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| Image: socerlens.com |
Nothing peculiar with Manchester United leading the table two points clear of second placed Chelsea. Or with Arsenal being third only on goal difference, +15 compared to Chelsea +19. Manchester City clinches the final Champions League spot three points behind Arsenal with Tottenham breathing down their necks just a point away goes quite according to script.
The astonishing part is the little mater that the league leading team has drawn half of its games played so far. The second and third placed teams, Chelsea and Arsenal, have an identical record having lost four games and drawn two in just 15 games. Such statistics bring forth the fact that things are not that ordinary this 2010/2011 Premier League season.
The English premier league has become somewhat an affair akin to a formula 1 race.
Depending on the track, the conditions, team decisions and luck, any of the drivers at the start of the race can win the race. Similarly, dependent on the venue, manager decisions and luck, any of teams in the top flight English division can win the match.
Looking at it, I don't think the phrase 'upset' quite applies anymore. Consider this: Is Chelsea's defeat at home to Sunderland an upset? Or are home Arsenal's defeats to West Bromwich Albion and Newcastle up sets? What of West Bromwich Albion's come back at Old Trafford to earn a draw?
Two of Arsenal's defeats came at home after seemingly having the respective match under control commanding a two goal advantage at the break. Fist it was the unlikely West Bromwich Albion resurrection then a Garth Bale inspired second half comeback which gave Tottenham their first London derby away win in 13 years.
Both matches ended with a 3-2 Arsenal loss. The manner of these defeats reminds one of Manchester United early season woes when they threw away leads most notably at Everton away and West Bromwich Albion at home.
Bizarrely, the past few seasons, Arsenal was the team among the top three that drew the most matches- part reason for their continuing seven year wait for Premier League success. Now it appears it's Manchester United's turn to suffer the draws bug.
Chelsea's woes appear to be beyond Didier Drogba's recent bout of malaria which saw a dip in his form if the observations of teammate Malouda are to be believed. If it is, then it must be of the highly virulent complicated type complete with cerebral symptoms; occasioned by the larvae of the dangerous p. falciparum species blocking low caliber cerebral vessels of the London outfit's decision making organ.
The wisdom behind the dismissal of Carlo Ancelotti's assistant is yet to dawn on the rest of us. Simply put, Ray Wilkins was the 'premiership guy' considering his wealth of experience. Why Roman Abrahamovich chose to relieve him off his services is lost to many.
The disgruntled voices coming from Chelsea Technical Director who has indicated his desire to quit at the end of his contract in the summer is another cause of concern especially in light of the intense competition for talent among European clubs and Leagues.
Competition is the rightful answer to this apparent seismic shift in power among the European football clubs. How else can one explain the changed topography of the English premier league log?
Unlike the US National Football League (NFL) where a non -performance based revenue system has enabled smaller teams be more competitive as they are availed with funds strictly earmarked for development of team quality, the different nature of the European scene sees the top performing teams retain most generated revenues, while collectively bargained revenue sources like Tv broadcasting returns are shared in hierarchical fashion.
The amount received by each team depends on the teams final position in the league.
The effect of these two systems has resulted in different scenarios. In The NFL, every team stands a chance of being competitive as the shared revenues enable them attract and retain quality players who might have otherwise been hoarded by the larger teams as sparingly used squad members.
The European leagues skewed distribution of revenues sees the emergence of elite teams, who among themselves dominate the competition year in year out. In England there is the Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool foursome. In Spain,there is the Barcelona- Madrid hegemony while in Italy, the San Siro clubs and AS Roma are the roosters in that fiefdom.
In an effort to compete, clubs in Europe have increasingly injected funds to enable them attract star players who make the difference. For instance, Barcelona in spite of trouble in its books spent 25 Million to acquire Mascherano from Liverpool in the summer. The Catalan club was ready to spend another reported 35 Million to lure Arsenal's captain Cesc Fabregas, had the London club not fought so bravely.
In another example, Manchester United's star Wayne Rooney was recently subject to speculation to a move to filthy rich neighbors Manchester City.
Moreover, smaller clubs not to be out done, are spending resources which they may not have. A look at lower tier teams shows an increasing ability of the teams to attract top talent.
For instance, one of the scorers in Sunderland's 3-0 win at the Bridge was Ghanaian star and African world cup hero Asamoah Gyan. Peter Odimwinge another experienced Nigerian international was in the squad that tormented Arsenal at the Emirates.
One of the premier league's all time stars, Robert Pires recently joined Aston Villa on a short deal, the premier league signing of the 2010/2011 season saw Dutch star Van dar Vaart make his move from Real Madrid to Totenham while decorated William Gallas made the switch from Arsenal to Tottenham.
All this not considering the wads of dollars splashed by the Sheikh at Manchester City.
The monies spent by the lower tier teams has certainly shaken up the competition a bit even though it is still the traditional power teams that harbor a realistic chance of winning the premier league.
The danger of such spending lies in the possibility of business going bad as liabilities outweigh returns, a fact that the G14 is cognizant of in it's proposal on new financial rules.
The proposal by 18 of Europe's most powerful football teams (G14) seeks to bar teams which fail to spend within their earnings from participating in elite European competitions like the Champions League. This G14 proposal aims to somewhat level the ground as teams will be allowed to spend only what they earn.
Till this proposal comes into effect, the roller-coaster league currently on show in England may just be a clone of yet to come times. Damn exciting times indeed!
