The Premier League has gotten into serious trouble trying to tie down one of the two options to have a fifth team next season in the Champions League. The eliminations of Manchester City and Arsenal, together with the passage of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund to the semifinals of the Champions League, put the Bundesliga one step ahead of the Premier.
The English promised them happily before the quarterfinals of the three competitions (Champions League, Europa League and Conference League) by having five teams, compared to three for the Germans. The Italians, with four qualifiers and an advantage at the top of the UEFA coefficient, are practically done to win one of the two extra places that will give them access to the ‘Champions’ next year, when the format expands.
The other place will go to Germany or England and with the Premier League, superior in number, it seemed like a piece of cake. It is worth remembering that there is no distinction between competitions, that is, it is the same to pass in ‘Champions’ as in ‘Conference’.
In the absence of what happens this Thursday in the Europa League and the Conference League, the Premier now needs a miracle. Arsenal and City were favorites in their matches against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, but they have gone to the streets and left fifth place in the hands of West Ham United, Liverpool and Aston Villa.
Only Unai Emery’s men start as favorites to be in the semi-finals of the ‘Conference’, after beating Lille 2-1 in the first leg. Liverpool will need one of the best comebacks in their history, having to overcome a 0-3 deficit in Bergamo, while West Ham, with David Moyes more out than in, have to turn around the 2-0 they conceded in the first leg against an undefeated Bayer Leverkusen this season and recent Bundesliga champion.
If all three fall, the fifth place, which could go to Tottenham Hotspur or Aston Villa, will be from Germany, which in addition to Bayern and Borussia can have Lekerkusen in the semifinals.
In the coefficient table, which counts the results of teams over the last five years, Italy comfortably leads, with 18,428 points, above Germany, with 17,642, and England, with 16,875. Far behind and now without options is Spain, which only has Real Madrid left, and France, which has Paris Saint Germain, Lille and Olympique de Marseille alive.
The collapse of the Premier is also demonstrated by the fact that it is the first time since the 2019-2020 season that there is no English semi-finalist in the Champions League. That edition, in which Olympique Lyon and RB Leipzig sneaked into the top four, was followed by 2021, with a completely English final between Chelsea and Manchester City; 2022, with Liverpool losing against Real Madrid; and 2023, with City winning their first ‘Champions’ in Istanbul against Inter Milan. EFE
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