Sorry if this seems to be coming a bit late - espeically after a fresh weekend of Premier League action - but as there's little to say about the top flight, except optimistically repeating that we should wait another five games for Chelsea to slip up and Liverpool to climb the table, I thought it would be a good opportunity to look at if teams and supporters are actually bothers about their European travels at this stage of the season. Four of England's six representatives eased to victory in an undefeated opening round, but it was notable the lack of ambition or indeed urgency that was present.Manchester United and Champions' League newboys Tottenham Hotspur were the first up for their group stage ties, and were also the two to fall shot. United's Carling Cup kids laboured on their way to a 0-0 home draw with Rangers, which says as much about how seriously the club treats the competition at this stage as it does about the state of Soctish football. Sir Alex Ferguson clearly assumed he could focus on the league and their upcoming game with Liverpool to field a weakened side in Europe, and after the recent failings of Celtic and Rangers in Europe this approach is understandable. But Rangers also showed a lack of ambition with their 9-1 formation never likely to have a go and try and score, more likely to have everyone standing on the goal line to keep the hosts out. It was disappointing to see such a performance, but United will still be confident of progressing.
Slightly more ambitious were Tottenham, who surrendered a 2-0 advantage to draw in Werder Bremen. Their fans are obviously optimistic about their European hopes, but at what stage will the club opt for pragmatism over ambition? It would be an achievement for the club to reach the kock out stages as they share a group with holders Inter Milan, and though much has been made of Harry Redknapp's improved squad, is it deep enough and experiences enough to cope with the Champions' League and Premier League? Is European success more important than qualifying for the same competition next year? Teams outside the traditional 'Big Four' have thrown away their UEFA Cup prospects to either surrvive in the league or aim to qualify for Europe again, so what will Spurs' attitude be should they find themselves in a simlair situation?
On team that no doubt harbour realistic hopes of winning the tournament in Chelsea, whose ruthlessness in the league continued as they dispatched MSK Zilina 4-1. Winning the competition takes luck and skill, and Chelsea have certainly been lacking in the former over the last few years. It is clear owner Roman Abramovich yearns this trophy above all others, and manager Carlo Ancolotti knows that it will be key for him to have the opportunity to build a dynasty at Stamford Bridge. They rarely had to break a sweat in the opening game to win - and they eased past West Ham in the preceeding league game at a training ground pace.
Can Chelsea win the Champions' League? I think so - I also think they will have more desire than many of the other teams. In 2005 they lost to champions Liverpool to an admittedly dubious goal - in 2006 they lost to champions Barcelona - in 2007 they lost to runners up Liverpool on penalties - in 2008 they lost the final on penalties - in 2009 they lost to champions Barcelona in a game where they should have been awarded at least one decisive penalty - and in 2010 they lost to an Inter Milan side inspired by previous manager Jose Mourinho who still knew the ins and outs of the side. See a pattern emerging? Chelsea usually lose in dubious or unfair circumstances to the side that wins the tournament, and it is still the big unticked box on their 'to do' list. For all the praise given to Barcelona, they have hardly excelled in the competition recently, scraping past Chelsea and beating United before being outclassed by Inter, who proved that a combative and disciplined style - similar to Chelsea's - is effective in nullifying their passing game. Real Madrid may have the superstars but have struggled to perform in the competition consistently for the last several seasons. Of all the contenders at the top, Chelsea must consider themselves among the forerunners.
Is is optimistic to think the same can be said for Arsenal, despite their clincal opening rout of Portugese side Braga. Arsenal have consistantly beaten teams that open up to play against them, and, though they are getting better at coping with it, still struggle in a combative game. Last season's rout at the Camp Nou showed that even playing their game against better teams won't work, despite a valiant fight back at the Emirtates. They will assume qualification, but may be found out against top quality sides in the latter stages.
Over in Europe's B tournament - which I now must unfortunately take an interest in and suffer the humiliation of watching football on Channel Five - both Liverpool and Manchester City eased through their first games. Liverpool, despite not being good enough to qualify for the Champions' League last year, looked much too good for the Europa League as they did last year. The weakened side never seemed too troubled by Steaua Bucharest as they eased to a 4-1 victory that even allowed Luca Levia to score. Without taking the game too seriously it was a comfortable result and a damning indictment of the standard of teams in this competition - remember last season, had it not been for Diego Forlan and the away goals rule, Liverpool would have reached (and probably won) the final against Fulham. Again this year they look a top side when in this B tournament and should go far without breaking too much of a sweat.
Manchester City looked hungry as they beat SV Salzburg 2-0. Roberto Mancini should have no problem motivating his side to excel and end their trophy wait - it seems any will do, not neccessarily the leage at this point. They will face sterner tests but, like Liverpool, will have the quality to go far in this competition without too many problems. This may be a competition where not just the team with the most quality, but also the team with the most desire, is the most successful.
Despite all these successes and struggles, it was noticable the lack of support at this stage of proceedings - indeed there were swathes of empty seats inside Old Trafford. So do fans really care at this point? It seems Chelsea, United and Arsenal can safely assume groups stage qualification, and that is when the real football starts. The seeding system ensures that the top teams do not have to meet any of their rivals until the latter stages, which takes the excitment away somewhat, save for a few unpredictable results. Sound sfamiliar? The World Cup employed the same format to ensure the top seeded nations would not meet until after the group stage.
So why does this seeding have to happen? All it does is ensure smaller teams cann't enjoy the benefits of progressing in the tournament while the more established and richer teams can safely plan their way into the last 16 at least. It effectively enforces a system of inequality that will continue to widen due to the financial benefits. Would a non seeded system be welcomed? Soom yearn for the days of the old knock out tournaments and only league champions entering, but sureluy that would be more unfair - as it stands, four English teams may be able to win the tournament, along with two Spanish and two Italian, so that pool of eight teams would shrink to three under a champions only policy.
Another issue, sadly as with all aspects of football, is how the financial rewards become paramount to the sporting achievements - Tottenham's qualification did not spark congratulations of their sporting accomplishment, but rather awe that they would be netting extra tens of millions. Is that all the Champions' League is? Is Europe's premier club competition just a money making machine? That would certainly explain United's complacent approach and a seeding system designed to benefit the bigger teams.
And if that is true, then what hope is there for the Europa League? As I said, City will be motivated for sporting success due to their financial situation anyway, but Liverpool never really looked concerned, and most fans, myself included, would prefer Champions' League qualification to Europa League success. It would be nice if pride and glory could again replace money as the primary motivator in sport, but those days may be long past.
(Picture: Reuters)
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