And so it seems Liverpool got enough gold rings to ease past Dr Robotnicki and into the next round of Europe's inferior competition (okay, the Sonic jokes got old long ago). So far everyone seems to be getting excited about how they beat a team that many believe would be more suited playing in the Ryman League than the Champions' League. But Joe Cole looked sharp on his debut and David Ngog, though still not an apt replacement for Torres and his fibreglass legs, is at least scoring a few.
After the difficulty of having the reserves come home triumphant from Macedonia, they now face a journey to Trabzonspor- although it sounds like a type of medicine, apparently it's a town in Turkey. Just when you thought Besiktas, Fernerbache and Galatasaray weren't glamorous opposition...
Anyway, hopefully Liverpool will do well in the Europa League. Although it seemed like they didn't want to be there after being relegated from the Champions' League last season, I thought they still gave it a good go. And if it hadn't been for Diego Forlan, the bane of English football last year, we would have had an English winner.
However, most English teams in the competition seem to treat it with some disdain. And why is this? It isn't the Champions' League and teams do have to suffer the indignity of being televised on Channel Five, but it is still a European competition. Bolton were in a good position to do well a few season ago before exiting to Sevilla, and Villa decided to promote their resources to their annual quest to finish sixth rather than have a good run in Europe. Fulham took it seriously and humbled the mighty Italian legends Juventus and the rigning champions Shakhtar Donetsk among other, so hopefully more will follow their example in the future.
Of course Villa have the chance again this year as they face Rapid Vienna, while Manchester City's millionaires will face thge might of Timisoara - not an ancient warrior, a city in Romania. I hope Villa do well and take the tournament seriously, and I believe City will. I'd be surprised if they treated it as anything except an audition for where they hope to be next season, but with their squad of £20m + players then they should be able to compete on all fronts.
And let's not forget the Champions' League draw - Spurs were no doubt pleased to be facing Young Boys - the Swiss team, not Arsenal's Carling Cup team. They have avoided Braga, who spectacularly humbled Celtic to show just how poor Scottish football has become, and once they reach the group stage the luck of the draw could be theirs. It will be interesting to see if their squad can cope with the Premier League and the Champions' League if they have a good run in the latter. If they have to choose, will it be for Euro glory at the cost of a mid table finish or for a high Premier League finish as the European dream passes them by?
So now it's not just the Premier League to eagerly anticipate - Spurs fans are ready for their first season in Europe while Liverpool and City fans will be unenthusiastically preparing for their competitions. With a good spread of English representation, lets hope they all put in a good showing (with Liverpool coming out on top of course) to show UEFA that Barcelona aren't the only side that can play good football and that the Premier League is still better than La Liga.
(Picture courtesy of the BBC)
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