Last night marked a milestone in European football. The English dominance has come to an end. After years in which the English clubs dominated the Champions League, last night marked the beginning of the end.
In the previous two competitions all four English teams had qualified for the Quarter Finals. With Liverpool being kicked out in the Groups Stage and Chelsea loosing last night, this time it will be only two teams.
But it is not only the statistical fact that drives my conclusion it is also the way in which Chelsea was eliminated. It looked like the team has gotten too old, too predictable and that Inter had finally caught up with the bug guys in Europe.
This is all a result of the financial crisis in the Premier League. Liverpool has been bankrupt for a while and had to let go some of its key players during this summer. Chelsea was not only banned to transfer players, but the billionaire and owner Abramovich has not heavily invested in the team for the last two years. What remains is Manchester and Arsenal. Well Arsenal has been playing the same football for the last 10 years or so. Sometimes brilliant, sometimes horrible. But all in all it was not enough to reach a domestic or international title.
What is left is Manchester United. Manchester plays unbelievably well, taking into consideration the fact that Cristiano Ronaldo left in the summer. The team is mediocre and its main source of brilliance comes from Wayne Rooney who plays an unbelievable season. But Manchester is in huge debt and the years ahead do not look too rosy. Even Ferguson will not be able to build a team that can compete for the European crown without any financial backing.
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