Author: isport

How the Premier League compares among Europe’s Big 5

The English Premier League is considered by many as the most exciting football league in the world. It’s certainly the most popular when it comes to television ratings and revenue worldwide.

This despite the Spanish La Liga dominating both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League over the past three seasons and storming away in the UEFA Coefficient member rankings.

The English Premier League is considered by many as the most exciting football league in the world. It’s certainly the most popular when it comes to television ratings and revenue worldwide.

How the Premier League compares among Europe’s Big 5

This despite the Spanish La Liga dominating both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League over the past three seasons and storming away in the UEFA Coefficient member rankings.

Between them, Barcelona and Real Madrid have won nine of the last 19 Champions League finals, and Juventus are the only non-Spanish side to appear in one of the last three.

England’s top flight itself needs to be wary of the Italian Serie A trying to grab back their fourth Champions League spot over the next couple of seasons. Chelsea are the only Premier League side to have lifted the famous trophy over the past eight years.

Will Manchester City, Arsenal or Leicester City bring home the trophy come the end of this season? Paddy Power’s football odds don’t give either of the English trio much chance with Pep Guardiola’s side the shortest price coming in at 12/1.

Last season’s runners-up Atlético Madrid can be found at 8/1 despite a slow start to their domestic season. In comparison, Arsenal are 14/1. Defending champions Real Madrid are only third favourites with the Irish bookmaker, at 5/1, whilst Bayern Munich, who also finished runners-up in their group, come in at 7/2. Despite trailing Madrid by six points in La Liga, Barcelona are once again the bookmakers’ favourites, at 10/3.

The popularity of the Champions League has grown and grown over the past two decades or so, just like football in general, coinciding with the inauguration of the Premier League back in 1992.

Crowds, television viewers and revenues have increased to ridiculous levels over the past 25 years and the below graphic compares Europe’s big five leagues – Spain, Germany, England, Italy and France.

Bournemouth became the 47th team to play in the Premier League following their surprise promotion back in 2015. Of these five leagues, only Italy can boast more sides to play in their top flight over the past 25 seasons after Crotone made their debut back in August.

Leicester City were the sixth different side to lift the Premier League crown, following Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City. That’s one more side than either Spain or Italy have seen during the same run. However, France’s Ligue 1 has thrown up 10 different winners during that time… before Paris Saint-Germain’s heavy investment has helped them to win the top flight for the past four seasons.

Manchester United have won the Premier League 13 times in all, over the 24 seasons. Only Bayern Munich have won their domestic league on more occasions since 1992 among the big five leagues (14). Barcelona are just behind with a dozen, whilst Juventus have 10 and Lyon lead the way in France with seven.
There’s lots of exciting information on the below graphic:

How the Premier League compares among Europe’s Big 5

The English Premier League is considered by many as the most exciting football league in the world. It’s certainly the most popular when it comes to television ratings and revenue worldwide.

This despite the Spanish La Liga dominating both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League over the past three seasons and storming away in the UEFA Coefficient member rankings.

The English Premier League is considered by many as the most exciting football league in the world. It’s certainly the most popular when it comes to television ratings and revenue worldwide.

How the Premier League compares among Europe’s Big 5

This despite the Spanish La Liga dominating both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League over the past three seasons and storming away in the UEFA Coefficient member rankings.

Between them, Barcelona and Real Madrid have won nine of the last 19 Champions League finals, and Juventus are the only non-Spanish side to appear in one of the last three.

England’s top flight itself needs to be wary of the Italian Serie A trying to grab back their fourth Champions League spot over the next couple of seasons. Chelsea are the only Premier League side to have lifted the famous trophy over the past eight years.

Will Manchester City, Arsenal or Leicester City bring home the trophy come the end of this season? Paddy Power’s football odds don’t give either of the English trio much chance with Pep Guardiola’s side the shortest price coming in at 12/1.

Last season’s runners-up Atlético Madrid can be found at 8/1 despite a slow start to their domestic season. In comparison, Arsenal are 14/1. Defending champions Real Madrid are only third favourites with the Irish bookmaker, at 5/1, whilst Bayern Munich, who also finished runners-up in their group, come in at 7/2. Despite trailing Madrid by six points in La Liga, Barcelona are once again the bookmakers’ favourites, at 10/3.

The popularity of the Champions League has grown and grown over the past two decades or so, just like football in general, coinciding with the inauguration of the Premier League back in 1992.

Crowds, television viewers and revenues have increased to ridiculous levels over the past 25 years and the below graphic compares Europe’s big five leagues – Spain, Germany, England, Italy and France.

Bournemouth became the 47th team to play in the Premier League following their surprise promotion back in 2015. Of these five leagues, only Italy can boast more sides to play in their top flight over the past 25 seasons after Crotone made their debut back in August.

Leicester City were the sixth different side to lift the Premier League crown, following Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City. That’s one more side than either Spain or Italy have seen during the same run. However, France’s Ligue 1 has thrown up 10 different winners during that time… before Paris Saint-Germain’s heavy investment has helped them to win the top flight for the past four seasons.

Manchester United have won the Premier League 13 times in all, over the 24 seasons. Only Bayern Munich have won their domestic league on more occasions since 1992 among the big five leagues (14). Barcelona are just behind with a dozen, whilst Juventus have 10 and Lyon lead the way in France with seven.
There’s lots of exciting information on the below graphic:

Atletico Players Still Trust Simeone

Fernando Torres says that despite the poor form shown by Atletico Madrid, the players still trust manager Diego Simeone and his tactics.

The club slipped to sixth place in the table after a second consecutive loss in the league. This time around, it was quite a heavy 3-0 defeat against Real Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.

The possibilities of Atletico Madrid being even close to winning the title are slowly slipping away.

Fernando Torres says that despite the poor form shown by Atletico Madrid, the players still trust manager Diego Simeone and his tactics.

The club slipped to sixth place in the table after a second consecutive loss in the league. This time around, it was quite a heavy 3-0 defeat against Real Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.

Atletico Players Still Trust Simeone

The possibilities of Atletico Madrid being even close to winning the title are slowly slipping away.

There are several transfer rumours surrounding the top players at Madrid, and it only enhances the doubts surrounding the manager – if you want to see the likes of Greizmann and Torres play, you should probably buy tickets sooner rather than later through this website. Recently, Simeone downgraded his contract much to the surprise of many. It was seen as the first sign of a problem with the Vicente Calderon.

One of the major problems for the club has been defending, and they have already allowed more than seven goals than they did throughout the 2015-16 season. The inability to prevent the opposition from scoring has led to 3 defeats in the last four matches. As a result, the club are now nine points behind table leaders Real Madrid. They may very well shift their attention to only finishing in the top three, which would give them Champions League football for next season. Sevilla occupy the final Champions League spot and they are only three points above Atletico.

“We have never doubted Simeone. We are proud of what we are doing but we must recover our style. We must be prepared because every game is different. We are always together, we know what we want to achieve and how we need to achieve it,” said Fernando Torres.

One of the problems for the club going forward has been the over reliance on Antoine Griezmann. The French striker has been the main source of goals, while Torres has not scored in the last nine matches of all competitions.

Atletico Players Still Trust Simeone

Fernando Torres says that despite the poor form shown by Atletico Madrid, the players still trust manager Diego Simeone and his tactics.

The club slipped to sixth place in the table after a second consecutive loss in the league. This time around, it was quite a heavy 3-0 defeat against Real Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.

The possibilities of Atletico Madrid being even close to winning the title are slowly slipping away.

Fernando Torres says that despite the poor form shown by Atletico Madrid, the players still trust manager Diego Simeone and his tactics.

The club slipped to sixth place in the table after a second consecutive loss in the league. This time around, it was quite a heavy 3-0 defeat against Real Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.

Atletico Players Still Trust Simeone

The possibilities of Atletico Madrid being even close to winning the title are slowly slipping away.

There are several transfer rumours surrounding the top players at Madrid, and it only enhances the doubts surrounding the manager – if you want to see the likes of Greizmann and Torres play, you should probably buy tickets sooner rather than later through this website. Recently, Simeone downgraded his contract much to the surprise of many. It was seen as the first sign of a problem with the Vicente Calderon.

One of the major problems for the club has been defending, and they have already allowed more than seven goals than they did throughout the 2015-16 season. The inability to prevent the opposition from scoring has led to 3 defeats in the last four matches. As a result, the club are now nine points behind table leaders Real Madrid. They may very well shift their attention to only finishing in the top three, which would give them Champions League football for next season. Sevilla occupy the final Champions League spot and they are only three points above Atletico.

“We have never doubted Simeone. We are proud of what we are doing but we must recover our style. We must be prepared because every game is different. We are always together, we know what we want to achieve and how we need to achieve it,” said Fernando Torres.

One of the problems for the club going forward has been the over reliance on Antoine Griezmann. The French striker has been the main source of goals, while Torres has not scored in the last nine matches of all competitions.

Torres will start against Barcelona

Atletico Madrid’s coach Diego Simeone has confirmed that Fernando Torres will be starting in the Champions League match against Barcelona.

Fernando Torres played in the game against Real Betis in the weekend and even scored a goal in the match. He also assisted Antoine Griezmann in one of the goals before he was substituted.

Simeone has revealed that the reason he was substituted was because he wanted to prepare him for the game against Barcelona. Fernando Torres is currently in a rich vein of form having scored four goals in the last seven games for Atletico. He deservedly needs to be in the team to face Barcelona in the Champions League.

Atletico Madrid’s coach Diego Simeone has confirmed that Fernando Torres will be starting in the Champions League match against Barcelona.

Torres will start against Barcelona

Fernando Torres played in the game against Real Betis in the weekend and even scored a goal in the match. He also assisted Antoine Griezmann in one of the goals before he was substituted.

Simeone has revealed that the reason he was substituted was because he wanted to prepare him for the game against Barcelona. Fernando Torres is currently in a rich vein of form having scored four goals in the last seven games for Atletico. He deservedly needs to be in the team to face Barcelona in the Champions League.

The manager has also declared that defender Diego Godin will also be fit for the match after having been out of the team. Savic and Carrasco are all expected to be in the squad to face Barcelona.

The atletci players enjoyed a day off to ahead of the big match to try and relax their nerves, heading off to the local golf course. It was just a bit of fun, but thousands of fans turned up to watch, and I’m sure that if StanJames had offers betting odds on who would win, it would have been a very popular market!

Atletico Madrid will have to be wary of Barcelona, who just came out of a defeat inflicted by their bitter rivals, Real Madrid in the Classico. Diego Simeone might be tempted to try and use the same tactics that worked well for Real to stop Barcelona from playing their game.

Barcelona will be without Alex Vidal, Mathieu and Adriano, who are all expected to be out because of injuries.
The Barcelona manager, Luis Enrique has said that they will not be affected by the defeat against Real Madrid.

Instead, they will use it as a motivation for the remaining games of the season. He is aware that it will not be easy against Atletico Madrid and that they will need to be wary of their counter-attacks.

Diego Simeone is not expecting an easy match either, and although he knows that Barcelona may be technically superior, he will not want his team to give up without a fight.

Torres will start against Barcelona

Atletico Madrid’s coach Diego Simeone has confirmed that Fernando Torres will be starting in the Champions League match against Barcelona.

Fernando Torres played in the game against Real Betis in the weekend and even scored a goal in the match. He also assisted Antoine Griezmann in one of the goals before he was substituted.

Simeone has revealed that the reason he was substituted was because he wanted to prepare him for the game against Barcelona. Fernando Torres is currently in a rich vein of form having scored four goals in the last seven games for Atletico. He deservedly needs to be in the team to face Barcelona in the Champions League.

Atletico Madrid’s coach Diego Simeone has confirmed that Fernando Torres will be starting in the Champions League match against Barcelona.

Torres will start against Barcelona

Fernando Torres played in the game against Real Betis in the weekend and even scored a goal in the match. He also assisted Antoine Griezmann in one of the goals before he was substituted.

Simeone has revealed that the reason he was substituted was because he wanted to prepare him for the game against Barcelona. Fernando Torres is currently in a rich vein of form having scored four goals in the last seven games for Atletico. He deservedly needs to be in the team to face Barcelona in the Champions League.

The manager has also declared that defender Diego Godin will also be fit for the match after having been out of the team. Savic and Carrasco are all expected to be in the squad to face Barcelona.

The atletci players enjoyed a day off to ahead of the big match to try and relax their nerves, heading off to the local golf course. It was just a bit of fun, but thousands of fans turned up to watch, and I’m sure that if StanJames had offers betting odds on who would win, it would have been a very popular market!

Atletico Madrid will have to be wary of Barcelona, who just came out of a defeat inflicted by their bitter rivals, Real Madrid in the Classico. Diego Simeone might be tempted to try and use the same tactics that worked well for Real to stop Barcelona from playing their game.

Barcelona will be without Alex Vidal, Mathieu and Adriano, who are all expected to be out because of injuries.
The Barcelona manager, Luis Enrique has said that they will not be affected by the defeat against Real Madrid.

Instead, they will use it as a motivation for the remaining games of the season. He is aware that it will not be easy against Atletico Madrid and that they will need to be wary of their counter-attacks.

Diego Simeone is not expecting an easy match either, and although he knows that Barcelona may be technically superior, he will not want his team to give up without a fight.

MOU BACKS TORRES

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has come to the support of Fernando Torres – just few days after criticising him indirectly for not performing well in the 3-1 defeat against Paris St Germain – by saying that striker still has a future at Chelsea.

Torres’ position at the club has come under increasing threat following a run of several matches without a goal. The striker has scored only four goals in the league this season and Mourinho has been critical of his performance throughout this campaign. The Portuguese has said that Chelsea would have been top of the table by a long-distance had his strikers scored more goals.

Only Samuel Eto’o has been able to salvage some pride by scoring more than 10 goals in what is turning out to be a poor season for Chelsea’s strikers. The club are heavily linked with moves for Edinson Cavani and Radamel Falcao in the summer. Torres, meanwhile, has been linked with a return to Atletico Madrid in the last few weeks. After appearing in the club’s new kit launch video, some of the rumours have died down. Mourinho has further attempted to instil some confidence in the player by saying that Torres remains part of Chelsea’s future.

The player still has two years left on his contract.
“Does he have a future? Yes, he has. He is under contract, he’s a good professional. He works hard for the team, he brings positive things to the team. Obviously, we want him to score more goals. Obviously, he wants to score more goals. It’s not just me that wants. People that give everything they have you never can blame and you never can complain. When he’s on the pitch he tries to do his best,” said Mourinho.
Torres last scored for Chelsea towards the end of February in the 1-1 draw with Galatasaray.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has come to the support of Fernando Torres – just few days after criticising him indirectly for not performing well in the 3-1 defeat against Paris St Germain – by saying that striker still has a future at Chelsea.

Torres’ position at the club has come under increasing threat following a run of several matches without a goal. The striker has scored only four goals in the league this season and Mourinho has been critical of his performance throughout this campaign. The Portuguese has said that Chelsea would have been top of the table by a long-distance had his strikers scored more goals.

Only Samuel Eto’o has been able to salvage some pride by scoring more than 10 goals in what is turning out to be a poor season for Chelsea’s strikers. The club are heavily linked with moves for Edinson Cavani and Radamel Falcao in the summer. Torres, meanwhile, has been linked with a return to Atletico Madrid in the last few weeks. After appearing in the club’s new kit launch video, some of the rumours have died down. Mourinho has further attempted to instil some confidence in the player by saying that Torres remains part of Chelsea’s future.

The player still has two years left on his contract.
“Does he have a future? Yes, he has. He is under contract, he’s a good professional. He works hard for the team, he brings positive things to the team. Obviously, we want him to score more goals. Obviously, he wants to score more goals. It’s not just me that wants. People that give everything they have you never can blame and you never can complain. When he’s on the pitch he tries to do his best,” said Mourinho.
Torres last scored for Chelsea towards the end of February in the 1-1 draw with Galatasaray.

MOU BACKS TORRES

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has come to the support of Fernando Torres – just few days after criticising him indirectly for not performing well in the 3-1 defeat against Paris St Germain – by saying that striker still has a future at Chelsea.

Torres’ position at the club has come under increasing threat following a run of several matches without a goal. The striker has scored only four goals in the league this season and Mourinho has been critical of his performance throughout this campaign. The Portuguese has said that Chelsea would have been top of the table by a long-distance had his strikers scored more goals.

Only Samuel Eto’o has been able to salvage some pride by scoring more than 10 goals in what is turning out to be a poor season for Chelsea’s strikers. The club are heavily linked with moves for Edinson Cavani and Radamel Falcao in the summer. Torres, meanwhile, has been linked with a return to Atletico Madrid in the last few weeks. After appearing in the club’s new kit launch video, some of the rumours have died down. Mourinho has further attempted to instil some confidence in the player by saying that Torres remains part of Chelsea’s future.

The player still has two years left on his contract.
“Does he have a future? Yes, he has. He is under contract, he’s a good professional. He works hard for the team, he brings positive things to the team. Obviously, we want him to score more goals. Obviously, he wants to score more goals. It’s not just me that wants. People that give everything they have you never can blame and you never can complain. When he’s on the pitch he tries to do his best,” said Mourinho.
Torres last scored for Chelsea towards the end of February in the 1-1 draw with Galatasaray.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has come to the support of Fernando Torres – just few days after criticising him indirectly for not performing well in the 3-1 defeat against Paris St Germain – by saying that striker still has a future at Chelsea.

Torres’ position at the club has come under increasing threat following a run of several matches without a goal. The striker has scored only four goals in the league this season and Mourinho has been critical of his performance throughout this campaign. The Portuguese has said that Chelsea would have been top of the table by a long-distance had his strikers scored more goals.

Only Samuel Eto’o has been able to salvage some pride by scoring more than 10 goals in what is turning out to be a poor season for Chelsea’s strikers. The club are heavily linked with moves for Edinson Cavani and Radamel Falcao in the summer. Torres, meanwhile, has been linked with a return to Atletico Madrid in the last few weeks. After appearing in the club’s new kit launch video, some of the rumours have died down. Mourinho has further attempted to instil some confidence in the player by saying that Torres remains part of Chelsea’s future.

The player still has two years left on his contract.
“Does he have a future? Yes, he has. He is under contract, he’s a good professional. He works hard for the team, he brings positive things to the team. Obviously, we want him to score more goals. Obviously, he wants to score more goals. It’s not just me that wants. People that give everything they have you never can blame and you never can complain. When he’s on the pitch he tries to do his best,” said Mourinho.
Torres last scored for Chelsea towards the end of February in the 1-1 draw with Galatasaray.

TORRES MIGHT MOVE

Chelsea striker Fernando Torres has once again raised the possibility of leaving the West London outfit in the summer after refusing to rule out a potential transfer rumours linking him with a return to Atletico Madrid.

Torres has been a failure at Chelsea after managing to score just 19 league goals in more than 100 appearances. Even though he has managed to lift the trophies like Champions League and FA Cup, it has been rumoured that Jose Mourinho wants to improve the frontline by bringing in a striker to score goals.

Mourinho has praised on several occasions the endeavour of the Spaniard, but he says that the club will certainly do well with the addition of a player to score goals. Chelsea have been widely linked with a move for Diego Costa, but signing him may prove to be a problem due to the financial fair play regulations. Hence, it has been rumoured that Chelsea are considering a swap deal involving Torres, which would potentially lower the price of Costa. It was also marked the return of the hometown hero, who left in 2007 for Liverpool.

Torres recently turned 30 years of age and spoke about the possibility of returning to Atletico Madrid. He refused to rule out a move by saying that anything is possible in football.

“In football, you never know. You don’t know where you’re going to be tomorrow, in a week’s time or in 10 years’ time. How can I answer that question? You never know where life is going to take you. There’s nothing to say I’d end up with Diego Simeone here (at Chelsea) or at Atleti. Who could have told me that I was going to coincide with Rafa Benitez at two different English clubs? He [Simeone] taught me how to be a captain; he taught me a lot in the seasons we played together at Atleti,” said Torres.

Chelsea striker Fernando Torres has once again raised the possibility of leaving the West London outfit in the summer after refusing to rule out a potential transfer rumours linking him with a return to Atletico Madrid.

Torres has been a failure at Chelsea after managing to score just 19 league goals in more than 100 appearances. Even though he has managed to lift the trophies like Champions League and FA Cup, it has been rumoured that Jose Mourinho wants to improve the frontline by bringing in a striker to score goals.

Mourinho has praised on several occasions the endeavour of the Spaniard, but he says that the club will certainly do well with the addition of a player to score goals. Chelsea have been widely linked with a move for Diego Costa, but signing him may prove to be a problem due to the financial fair play regulations. Hence, it has been rumoured that Chelsea are considering a swap deal involving Torres, which would potentially lower the price of Costa. It was also marked the return of the hometown hero, who left in 2007 for Liverpool.

Torres recently turned 30 years of age and spoke about the possibility of returning to Atletico Madrid. He refused to rule out a move by saying that anything is possible in football.

“In football, you never know. You don’t know where you’re going to be tomorrow, in a week’s time or in 10 years’ time. How can I answer that question? You never know where life is going to take you. There’s nothing to say I’d end up with Diego Simeone here (at Chelsea) or at Atleti. Who could have told me that I was going to coincide with Rafa Benitez at two different English clubs? He [Simeone] taught me how to be a captain; he taught me a lot in the seasons we played together at Atleti,” said Torres.

TORRES MIGHT MOVE

Chelsea striker Fernando Torres has once again raised the possibility of leaving the West London outfit in the summer after refusing to rule out a potential transfer rumours linking him with a return to Atletico Madrid.

Torres has been a failure at Chelsea after managing to score just 19 league goals in more than 100 appearances. Even though he has managed to lift the trophies like Champions League and FA Cup, it has been rumoured that Jose Mourinho wants to improve the frontline by bringing in a striker to score goals.

Mourinho has praised on several occasions the endeavour of the Spaniard, but he says that the club will certainly do well with the addition of a player to score goals. Chelsea have been widely linked with a move for Diego Costa, but signing him may prove to be a problem due to the financial fair play regulations. Hence, it has been rumoured that Chelsea are considering a swap deal involving Torres, which would potentially lower the price of Costa. It was also marked the return of the hometown hero, who left in 2007 for Liverpool.

Torres recently turned 30 years of age and spoke about the possibility of returning to Atletico Madrid. He refused to rule out a move by saying that anything is possible in football.

“In football, you never know. You don’t know where you’re going to be tomorrow, in a week’s time or in 10 years’ time. How can I answer that question? You never know where life is going to take you. There’s nothing to say I’d end up with Diego Simeone here (at Chelsea) or at Atleti. Who could have told me that I was going to coincide with Rafa Benitez at two different English clubs? He [Simeone] taught me how to be a captain; he taught me a lot in the seasons we played together at Atleti,” said Torres.

Chelsea striker Fernando Torres has once again raised the possibility of leaving the West London outfit in the summer after refusing to rule out a potential transfer rumours linking him with a return to Atletico Madrid.

Torres has been a failure at Chelsea after managing to score just 19 league goals in more than 100 appearances. Even though he has managed to lift the trophies like Champions League and FA Cup, it has been rumoured that Jose Mourinho wants to improve the frontline by bringing in a striker to score goals.

Mourinho has praised on several occasions the endeavour of the Spaniard, but he says that the club will certainly do well with the addition of a player to score goals. Chelsea have been widely linked with a move for Diego Costa, but signing him may prove to be a problem due to the financial fair play regulations. Hence, it has been rumoured that Chelsea are considering a swap deal involving Torres, which would potentially lower the price of Costa. It was also marked the return of the hometown hero, who left in 2007 for Liverpool.

Torres recently turned 30 years of age and spoke about the possibility of returning to Atletico Madrid. He refused to rule out a move by saying that anything is possible in football.

“In football, you never know. You don’t know where you’re going to be tomorrow, in a week’s time or in 10 years’ time. How can I answer that question? You never know where life is going to take you. There’s nothing to say I’d end up with Diego Simeone here (at Chelsea) or at Atleti. Who could have told me that I was going to coincide with Rafa Benitez at two different English clubs? He [Simeone] taught me how to be a captain; he taught me a lot in the seasons we played together at Atleti,” said Torres.