Apparently we here at Fastbreak Futbol aren't the only ones that think La Liga could potentially be boring. In an earlier post we discussed Valencia's first lost of the season and that the only two remaining unbeaten teams are not surprisingly, Barcelona and Real Madrid. Despite the talent on those two teams, the parity between the top and the bottom isn't a good thing.
Lucy Turner, some blogger over at ESPN seems to have a similar view (you can read the full article here). She begins:
"Spain's La Liga brands itself as 'The League of the Stars' and, in fact, the celebrity summer signings fit the term perfectly. But those star names might not have the hoped effect of making the domestic league the best competition in the world....
Twelve months ago, Guardiola's side struggled to even draw against Racing Santander in the first month, while Madrid crashed against Deportivo in the league opener. So either Barcelona and Madrid have improved a lot, or their rivals are not as strong as they used to be. At the other end of the table we have two lesser giants, Villarreal and Atlético, in the Europa League and the Champions League respectively, who are now in the relegation zone with two points in four games and still waiting for their first wins this term.
A few voices have been heard complaining that the Spanish league is turning into a weak league, like the Scottish or Belgian one (apologies to any offended) in that there will soon be a huge gap between the top two clubs and the rest. Maybe now UEFA's proposition to set a spending and wage limit makes more sense. Michel Platini is busy designing his new 'Financial Fair Play' project to set some kind of ethics and logic in the business of buying, selling and paying players...."
She focuses her article on the spending of the two clubs and that their financial situation but she too questions if La Liga is becoming boring and mediocre. She concludes:
"But clearly, making one team strong with very attractive players, ensuring world entertainment, doesn't lift the whole of the league. The remaining 18 clubs below Barça and Madrid are struggling financially and competitively in a season that indicates it will have high levels of boredom and predictable results."
It true. We said the same thing. We used the grammatically proper term 'ho-hum' to describe the season, but boring works as well. Madrid and Barca have created impressive squads. They have somehow (a.k.a. good business and development of players within your system, and buying the best talent no matter how far it puts you in debt) gathered the premiere talent in the world. Both teams are like watching an All-Star team because top to bottom they have household names-assuming the houses aren't in the U.S. Most fans cant help but tune in and watch because of all of the star players. But has it been worth the cost? The cost being their league is struggling and cannot compete with their spending and thus their players and team. The two teams may have a superb product, but the league is so mediocre that the overall product is no good. Can winning the league even be considered much of an accomplishment?
People want to see quality sport. That is why a league like the MLS struggles. The players aren't bad by any means, but they just don't compare with the top quality players in the EPL and other european leagues. The game in the EPL is just better and faster. Madrid and Barca may have quality teams, but you also need quality competition, otherwise the game gets boring. You have to have quality, but its worth reducing that supreme quality if it means that it will bring up all of the other squads. I'm no socialist activist or anything. I'm also not presenting any solutions to the issues with La Liga. But it is certain that as good as these teams may be and amazing as the talent may be, they are both heading for boring seasons, because of their competition.
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