Premier League teams play down to level of their Champions League opponents

The English Premier league is commonly thought of one of the most competitive leagues in the world. Therefore the high-flying teams atop the premier league are usually thought of as some of the best teams in Europe. However, in recent weeks the kings of English soccer have been shown otherwise.

Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Liverpool’s Champions league hopes have taken a blow after they suffering multiple losses and draws in matches that they were predicted to win. The lack of consistency in their play has many wondering, is the Premier League really the best in the world?

Eden Hazard raises his hands in frustration after missing a crucial penalty.

Arsenal, who have found better form in the Premier League recently, have struggled to maintain consistency in the Champions League. After defeating a very threatening Anderlecht two weeks ago in the final seconds of the game, the Gunners struggled to repeat their victory over the Belgian side at the Emirates. After goals were scored by Mikel Arteta, Alexis Sanchez, and Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, Arsenal looked to be fully in control of the match. However, the gunners struggled to maintain their strong league with 32 minutes left to go. Arsenal, for reasons still unexplained, continued to send men forward in search of a larger lead. However this quickly backfired when Anderlecht responded by taking aim at Wojciech Szczęsny’s goal, scoring 3 consecutively unanswered goals. Arsenal were heavily favored to win the match as few had ever even heard of the Belgian side. However when the whistle blew at the Emirates, the unimpressive scoreline had many asking the same question: Are we really the best in Europe?

Arsenal hang their heads in frustration after struggling to keep Anderlecht from ruining their lead.

198 miles on the other side of England, a similar story was unraveling at the Etihad. Here, the crowned champions of England were being torn apart by Seydou Doumbia and  his CSKA Moscow side. Throughout the entire game, the Citizens looked disjointed. Unable to form a cohesive attack, Manchester City fell to the Russian side 2-1 leaving Manchester in a fight for the top spot in their group.

Seydou Doumbia celbrates his brace after putting CSKA Moscow ahead at the Etihad.

And while as if our faith in English soccer wasn’t already in the balance, Chelsea drew with a side that frankly nobody has ever heard of. However the name Maribor will forever conjure up nightmarish thoughts in the minds of Chelsea fans after Tuesday. After conceding a goal in the first half, Jose Mouhrinho’s side were struggled to equalize. Finally, Matic found himself in a fortunate position at the back post and quickly equalized. Chelsea missed countless opportunities that would’ve sent them ahead, including a penalty missed by Eden Hazard. However the game finished 1-1 after Hazard couldn’t produce when it mattered most.

These incredibly underwhelming results have left me and many other soccer fans wondering: Why are English teams failing to be consistent? One possibility is that maybe they simply don’t care. For whatever reason, many of the English teams don’t start their best squad. Whether it is to prevent injury or try new things, it seems like Champions League soccer is no longer their priority. They are more worried about the Premier League and maintaining their spot atop the table. The other possible explanation is that maybe we just have to face the harsh reality that the English aren’t the best in Europe. Whether we like to believe it or not, many leagues from around the world are growing making European soccer so much more competitive. English teams seem to expect that victory is a given when they play the smaller clubs. Consequently, many former Champions have found themselves in awkward positions in recent weeks

The Smell of Injury in the Air

Its that time of year again. The leaves are falling, the air is getting cooler, and the Arsenal injury crisis has hit the Emirates once again. Over the past few Premier League seasons, Arsenal’s title hopes have been crushed by an all too familiar series of injuries. This annual injury crisis has repeatedly left Arsenal without multiple key players in crucial parts of the season. However, this year, the injuries have hit early and harder than ever before.

A fully-fit Arsenal showcase there ability to play the beautiful game.

The injuries began with left back Kieran Gibbs who experienced a hamstring injury in his first match against Aston Villa . Very soon many more names were added to the list that includes Mesut Ozil, Aaron Ramsey, and Olivier Giroud. Arsenal will now have to face some of their hardest opponents without 10 crucial squad members. Arsene Wegner has been known to adjust well to times of injury however this time around it may just be too much for the old frenchman.

Mesut Ozil could be left out of the squad for 3 months due to a ligament tear in his knee.

As the Arsenal injury list continues to grow people begin to ask questions as to why the squad has become so prone to injuries. Many want to point the finger at the Gunner’s fitness trainer however this is a theory that I struggle to believe. Arsenal have recently hired Germany’s world renowned fitness trainer Shad Forsyth. Germany have never had a major injury crisis and nor should Arsenal. So who is to blame for the constant injury issue at Arsenal? One possible explanation would be that the players are simply not taking care of themselves off the training pitch. Jack Wilshere has been ridiculed multiple instances in which he was photographed smoking. While this theory is highly unlikely, it is still surely one to consider. Another reason could be that Arsenal have simply compiled a squad of injury prone players. Aaron Ramsey has been plagued by hamstring and ankle injuries since his days in the youth academy at Arsenal. Similarly, Jack Wilshere has struggled with ankle issues ever since breaking his ankle in a preseason friendly in 2011. Just as well, frenchman Abou Diaby has a repertoire of injuries longer than any other player in the Premier League. We could sit here all day and propose reasons as to why they have this injury issue. However, I will be the first to admit that its very possible that we are simply unlucky when it comes to keeping players healthy.

Pilot

Before the postings begin, I want my readers to know that this won’t be your typical soccer blog discussing the weekend results. I want to use the Far Post as a place to delve into the deeper aspects of the Premier League. I want people to know what makes the Premier League the most competitive league in the world. I might even write about what makes Manchester United so horrendously awful…

That being said, lets take a second to realize how corrupt the Premier League really is. The league is composed of 20 teams. Each of which is given a “fair” shot at hoisting the trophy. At the end of the season, 1 team is crowned champion, 3 teams are relegated, and the other 16 are left most likely where they started off. However, the path to the trophy was in no way “fair”.

Success in the Premier League all comes down to money. Although it wasn’t always like this, “buying” the title has quickly become a sad reality. Clubs no longer develop their talent like they used too. Instead they take their search to Brazil and Spain where they can easily purchase the talent. However, not every team has the financial ability to do this. Hull City is never going to keep up with Manchester City financially. So while Manchester City is winning more and more trophies, Hull City is just trying to make do with what they have.

Part of the financial unfairness in the Premier League is a result of the difference in city size. A team like Arsenal has more international fans than a team like West Ham. This is because Arsenal is from London and West Ham is from… This means that more people will come to games and buy jerseys consequently giving Arsenal a financial advantage. Also, these big-city clubs attract big investors which only means more cash flow and better players. So when we realistically look at the Premier League, the only teams with any chance are the teams from London, Manchester, or Liverpool. The rest are left wishing that they could spend like the big boys and sadly remain in the middle of the table. Sorry West Ham, but your boys won’t be drinking any champagne at the end of this season.