In a little less 15 years, the UEFA Champions league has become the most important competition in the world, often to the detriment of the league form of many of Europe’s biggest clubs, says Rob Hughes of the International Herald Tribune. AC Milan, the 2003 and 2007 European champion and a runner-up in 2005, is the perfect example. Hughes says that Milan “barely even pretends to make the effort of being competitive in Italy’s Serie A while its elderly players save themselves for Europe.” The Rossoneri have an admittedly thinner (and not to mention older) squad compared to the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid; their league form has undoubtedly suffered as a result.
Yet more modest clubs like Germany’s Werder Bremen don’t have the luxury of resting top players — and Europe’s domestic leagues are tough. Tottenham Hotspur, perennially on the fringes of becoming a top tier club in England’s Premier League, served notice of just how tough it is when the club fought its way back to an exhausting 4-4 draw with Aston Villa on Monday. More recently, Spanish club Sevilla became a top tier club in La Liga, but the glut of early season fixtures brought on by the Champions League may have prove to be too much; Coach Juande Ramos’ men have lost three of their last four games in all competitions.
Hughes says that Bremen, Sevilla and Tottenham are “three of a kind,” in that they have a small financial base, but have tasted enough European success to desire more, and of course the pinnacle of “more” is Champions League success.