Finally the penny has dropped. One can now sit steadfastly on ones haunches or lie luxuriously on one’s sofa or anxiously bite one’s nails watching the time run out or miss a goal because you had gone to the fridge to get another beer; whatever be your soccer watching situation, one reality has finally been chiseled and carved out in stone this year, on 1st September 2008 to be specific, the English Premier League has TRULY become the BEST football league in the world.
Truly – Because the final un-colonised EPL continent is now added to its football empire. Best because this continent had the world’s best players in terms of style, skill, flair, substance. The one continent which used to get me furiously quizzical – why the hell was it absent? Why weren’t they there? I google searched in vain. Asked football groups on yahoo in despair. Called my soccer fanatic friends only to get lost in fruitless digressions.
For two years I have wondered why the South American countries have not been a big part of the EPL. In particular Brazil and Argentina and then the others Colombia, Peru, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Ecuador etc. Why not? It was indecipherably, imponderable-y inexplicable.
Why did the world’s best league contain the mechanical force, speed and organization of the Western European countries, the physical force, stamina and speed of Africa, the quick dexterous moves of Korea and the odd flashes of brilliance from the Middle East, the new world flair of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the US. All of this, the world as its oyster but not the samba dancing, life-is-beautiful, football-is-an art surges, thrusts and turns of Braz-entina?
Let’s look at the ascendancy of various regions on the football globe: Europe and South America have dominated the game since its inception. Africa (with the stunning display that Cameroon gave the world in 1990 and the Nigerian super eagles in the ’94 World Cup) joined the other two continents as a force to be reckoned with. North America, Oceania and Asia have also begun to flaunt their wares on the footballing map. From being non-entities, Australia, New Zealand, USA, South Korea and Japan have made giant strides towards the apex of the footballing pyramid which seems to be getting broader and broader. The middle-east and North Africa (Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran) East Asia (Japan, South Korea and a rapidly improving China), Oceania (Australia and New Zealand) North America (a hugely improved USA and a rapidly improving Canada). In a short span 1990-2008 (a mere 18 years) the footballing map has rapidly changed.
The EPL, ever since its inception in 1992 has colonized the world’s football players. From just 11 foreign players named in the starting line-ups of the league’s teams in 1992 to over 260 foreign players in 2006 the league got the eyeballs of the globe stuck to its mouth watering line-ups every Saturday and Sunday. Very often EPL matches resembled World XI A vs World XI B, Arsenal and Chelsea began to play all foreign line-ups. And that’s where the puzzle began. In the 2000s the league had the best of Western Europe and Eastern Europe, the top players of North America, Africa, Asia and Oceania playing their leagues. The only ones who hadn’t joined the party were the samba dancers.
This was not written about much. But there were whispers of the speed of the English game being completely unsuited to the slower, skillful, dribbling of the South Americans (something which I found ludicrous after watching Messi and Tevez play for Argentina in the 2006 World Cup. They were like a Ballet Blitzkrieg - grace, beauty and amazing pace). Then there was the theory of South American players feeling culturally alien in England, preferring to play in Spain’s La Liga and Italiy’s Serie A, where a similar language, culture and fellow players were to be found in abundance.
None of this made sense. How could the world’s best footballing continent along with Europe be left out of what had become the world’s best (certainly most lucrative) league.
And then the myths were busted, the floodgates opened and the torrent of dribbling demons arrived.
The most plausible theory according to me for their absence was the myth of the South American’s being ineffective in the English style. And this myth for me was not broken by South Americans but players similar to them from Spain and Portugal. I think no one broke the Speed vs Style myth more than Cristiano Ronaldo. Cristiano, the Portugese Prince, showed that speed, skill and style could be combined into a lethal combination. He literally altered Manchester United. The entire club played differently with him and without him. His influence was amazing. The English Wayne Rooney was made to look like a dull, monotonous 800 metres athlete on a football pitch. He was Neanderthal when compared to the grace and dexterity of Ronaldo. He scored a mere 18 goals to Ronaldo’s 42 last season. Another man who helped the Latin American cause was the Spaniard Frances Fabregas for Arsenal, his still, beautiful, play-making, sometimes reminiscent of Carlos Valderrama, the Colombian playmaker with the Tina Turner hair, the same still, slow, touch football. Where other mid-fielders went for speed and surprise, Cesc paused, examined and chess-player like landed the ball at the feet of his best chess piece. This dexterity also forced Anglo-Saxon coaches of the Machine Age to realize how individuality, flair and sheer dexterity counted towards the goal tallies that they dreamt of. Later on in the 06-07 season, Carlos Tevez brilliantly fought the case for Latin Americans as he single-handedly helped West Ham United avoid relegation with his genius.
Last year the Spaniard Fernando Torres made his fellow Liverpool forwards, the short, mechanical Dirk Kuyt and the lanky Peter Crouch look like clumsy schoolboys. Also last year the Portugese Nani and the Brazilian Anderson were added to the Manchester United line-up to great effect. With the skill of Anderson, Nani and Ronaldo added to the experience of Scholes and Giggs and the odd flashes from Rooney, Man U did the double, winning both the Premiership and the Champion’s League.
This year, as said before, the floodgates have opened and finally the EPL empire is complete. The myths have been busted and the conspicuously absent samba on the football pitch will be wholeheartedly in evidence. Manchester City has signed up Brazilian stars Robinho and Jo. The Brazil Born Deco is gracing the Chelsea line-up. Manchester United sports 4 Brazilians and 1 Argentinian. Liverpool has 3 Brazilians and 2 Argentinians. Chelsea has grabbed 2 Brazilians and an Argentinian while their London rivals Arsenal have the precocious Denilson in their line-up along with the injured Eduardo (of Brazilian origin, now plays for Croatia) .
The EPL is complete and can now say with a Rolling Stones-like working class swagger that they are without a doubt the best league, if not the greatest league ever, in the world, hosting an array of footballers who would otherwise only be available for the public gaze in the once-in-four-years football world cup.
The empire is back - but this time with a football at its feet.
Truly – Because the final un-colonised EPL continent is now added to its football empire. Best because this continent had the world’s best players in terms of style, skill, flair, substance. The one continent which used to get me furiously quizzical – why the hell was it absent? Why weren’t they there? I google searched in vain. Asked football groups on yahoo in despair. Called my soccer fanatic friends only to get lost in fruitless digressions.
For two years I have wondered why the South American countries have not been a big part of the EPL. In particular Brazil and Argentina and then the others Colombia, Peru, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Ecuador etc. Why not? It was indecipherably, imponderable-y inexplicable.
Why did the world’s best league contain the mechanical force, speed and organization of the Western European countries, the physical force, stamina and speed of Africa, the quick dexterous moves of Korea and the odd flashes of brilliance from the Middle East, the new world flair of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the US. All of this, the world as its oyster but not the samba dancing, life-is-beautiful, football-is-an art surges, thrusts and turns of Braz-entina?
Let’s look at the ascendancy of various regions on the football globe: Europe and South America have dominated the game since its inception. Africa (with the stunning display that Cameroon gave the world in 1990 and the Nigerian super eagles in the ’94 World Cup) joined the other two continents as a force to be reckoned with. North America, Oceania and Asia have also begun to flaunt their wares on the footballing map. From being non-entities, Australia, New Zealand, USA, South Korea and Japan have made giant strides towards the apex of the footballing pyramid which seems to be getting broader and broader. The middle-east and North Africa (Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran) East Asia (Japan, South Korea and a rapidly improving China), Oceania (Australia and New Zealand) North America (a hugely improved USA and a rapidly improving Canada). In a short span 1990-2008 (a mere 18 years) the footballing map has rapidly changed.
The EPL, ever since its inception in 1992 has colonized the world’s football players. From just 11 foreign players named in the starting line-ups of the league’s teams in 1992 to over 260 foreign players in 2006 the league got the eyeballs of the globe stuck to its mouth watering line-ups every Saturday and Sunday. Very often EPL matches resembled World XI A vs World XI B, Arsenal and Chelsea began to play all foreign line-ups. And that’s where the puzzle began. In the 2000s the league had the best of Western Europe and Eastern Europe, the top players of North America, Africa, Asia and Oceania playing their leagues. The only ones who hadn’t joined the party were the samba dancers.
This was not written about much. But there were whispers of the speed of the English game being completely unsuited to the slower, skillful, dribbling of the South Americans (something which I found ludicrous after watching Messi and Tevez play for Argentina in the 2006 World Cup. They were like a Ballet Blitzkrieg - grace, beauty and amazing pace). Then there was the theory of South American players feeling culturally alien in England, preferring to play in Spain’s La Liga and Italiy’s Serie A, where a similar language, culture and fellow players were to be found in abundance.
None of this made sense. How could the world’s best footballing continent along with Europe be left out of what had become the world’s best (certainly most lucrative) league.
And then the myths were busted, the floodgates opened and the torrent of dribbling demons arrived.
The most plausible theory according to me for their absence was the myth of the South American’s being ineffective in the English style. And this myth for me was not broken by South Americans but players similar to them from Spain and Portugal. I think no one broke the Speed vs Style myth more than Cristiano Ronaldo. Cristiano, the Portugese Prince, showed that speed, skill and style could be combined into a lethal combination. He literally altered Manchester United. The entire club played differently with him and without him. His influence was amazing. The English Wayne Rooney was made to look like a dull, monotonous 800 metres athlete on a football pitch. He was Neanderthal when compared to the grace and dexterity of Ronaldo. He scored a mere 18 goals to Ronaldo’s 42 last season. Another man who helped the Latin American cause was the Spaniard Frances Fabregas for Arsenal, his still, beautiful, play-making, sometimes reminiscent of Carlos Valderrama, the Colombian playmaker with the Tina Turner hair, the same still, slow, touch football. Where other mid-fielders went for speed and surprise, Cesc paused, examined and chess-player like landed the ball at the feet of his best chess piece. This dexterity also forced Anglo-Saxon coaches of the Machine Age to realize how individuality, flair and sheer dexterity counted towards the goal tallies that they dreamt of. Later on in the 06-07 season, Carlos Tevez brilliantly fought the case for Latin Americans as he single-handedly helped West Ham United avoid relegation with his genius.
Last year the Spaniard Fernando Torres made his fellow Liverpool forwards, the short, mechanical Dirk Kuyt and the lanky Peter Crouch look like clumsy schoolboys. Also last year the Portugese Nani and the Brazilian Anderson were added to the Manchester United line-up to great effect. With the skill of Anderson, Nani and Ronaldo added to the experience of Scholes and Giggs and the odd flashes from Rooney, Man U did the double, winning both the Premiership and the Champion’s League.
This year, as said before, the floodgates have opened and finally the EPL empire is complete. The myths have been busted and the conspicuously absent samba on the football pitch will be wholeheartedly in evidence. Manchester City has signed up Brazilian stars Robinho and Jo. The Brazil Born Deco is gracing the Chelsea line-up. Manchester United sports 4 Brazilians and 1 Argentinian. Liverpool has 3 Brazilians and 2 Argentinians. Chelsea has grabbed 2 Brazilians and an Argentinian while their London rivals Arsenal have the precocious Denilson in their line-up along with the injured Eduardo (of Brazilian origin, now plays for Croatia) .
The EPL is complete and can now say with a Rolling Stones-like working class swagger that they are without a doubt the best league, if not the greatest league ever, in the world, hosting an array of footballers who would otherwise only be available for the public gaze in the once-in-four-years football world cup.
The empire is back - but this time with a football at its feet.
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