How winning became gambling – The Spectator


TARYN OKAMOTO • THE SPECTATOR

After a decisive 5-0 victory over Newcastle United, May 8, Manchester City Manager Pep Guardiola commented on the Premier League (EPL) title race in an interview with sky sports. Taking the opportunity to send a friendly pickaxe to his rival Jurgen Kloppthe manager of liverpoolGuardiola discussed the differences between the two sides.

“Everyone in the country supports Liverpool, the media and everyone. Liverpool have an incredible history in European competitions. Not in the EPL because they have won one in 30 years,” Guardiola said.

The comments came after Manchester City lost an absolute thriller in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final tie against real Madrid. In the other semi-final, Liverpool beat the Spanish club Villarreal reach the final for the second time in four years.

If Manchester City manage to win and secure all three points in their final game of the season against former and current Liverpool captain AstonVilla Manager Steven Gerardthen they will win the league for the fourth time in the last five years.

Liam Snow, a loyal Liverpool supporter and second-year social work student, is able to laugh at the comments. It should be noted that the last time Guardiola won a Champions League was with FC Barcelona in 2011.

“I don’t care what Pep has to say, to be honest. I’m not thinking of Manchester City – of course they’ve won titles successfully, but it’s been done before by teams like Manchester United below [Sir Alex] Ferguson“Snow said.

Under Ferguson’s stewardship, Manchester United won a total of 13 EPL titles from 1992 to 2013. After their long run of success, Manchester United’s current 2022 season has been one of the worst they have had in decades. .

Despite their divided areas of success, Manchester City and Liverpool have been the headliners of this EPL season. City currently sit on 90 points with Liverpool just behind on 89. The next closest team, chelseais 16 points behind.

This highlights an interesting dilemma, not just in the EPL, but in almost every major league in Europe. Tommy Ray, a second-year maths student, believes the current state of football is all about money and management.

Data collected by statisticalwhich rates European football clubs, shows that Manchester City is the third most valuable club in the EPL (Liverpool second), real Madrid is the most valuable club in Spanish league, Bayern Munich is the most valuable club in the German Bundesliga, Paris Saint Germain (PSG) is the most valuable club in French League 1 and Juventus is the fourth most valuable club in Italian Serie A.

Each of the clubs mentioned above are the current title winning teams in their respective leagues.

Although discouraging, all hope is not lost. Teams like City and Liverpool are beaten by clubs with fractions of their wage bill. Domestically, over the course of a season, money and power often balance each other to succeed. Moments of magic often come in competitions such as the English FA Cup, when a third-tier side knock out one of the EPL big six according to Snow.

“There’s a kind of karmic justice that ‘state’ owned teams don’t really have much success in European competitions. For example, City and PSG have both been stunned by Real Madrid this year in the Champions League,” Snow said.

Both City and PSG are owned by Middle Eastern investment groups, giving them each one of the deepest pockets in the world of football.

Gavin Juviler, a second-year biochemistry student, believes an increasing number of European clubs are going to be taken over by big foreign investment groups. For example, the Saudi Public Investment Fund took over ownership of the EPL team Newcastle United earlier this season.

Newcastle started their season bottom of the table and after their takeover they sit 12 points above the relegation zone. They serve as an example of how an injection of cash can completely change a club’s outlook. In the process of being acquired by the Saudi investment fund, they spent the most money of any club during the January transfer market window.

The Champions League final is set to take place in Paris on Saturday May 28. The teams playing, Real Madrid and Liverpool, are the first and fifth most valuable teams in the world. With an abundance of talent on both sides, the match promises to be everything money can buy and more.

Previous Boris Johnson contemplates post-COVID economy as British Tories meet
Next Tourism is an integral part of the Spanish economy