The current division standings of Europe’s major leagues offer a vivid reminder that spending power does not guarantee success, no matter the size of the club in question.
In the Premier League, Arsenal sit one point clear after seven matches played while their north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur are behind second-placed Manchester City only on goal difference. The current top four is completed by Brighton & Hove Albion, who lead Liverpool by four points.
The Bundesliga is also home to an unexpected league leader in the form of Union Berlin, who only featured in the German top flight for the first time in the 2019/20 season. Bayern Munich, bolstered by the summer arrival of former Red Sadio Mane, are five points adrift in a league they so often make light work of. Two of the teams to make the top four last season were Bayer Leverkusen and RB Leipzig, who sit 15th and 12th respectively. Borussia Dortmund currently occupy second place and are joined in the Champions League spots by Freiburg and Hoffenheim.
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Offering up arguably the most thrilling title race of them all is Serie A, with only four points separating sixth and first. Napoli, Atalanta, Udinese and Lazio make up the top four in Italy. The next four places along? AC Milan, AS Roma, Inter Milan and Juventus. The demise of the latter club has been slowly unravelling in recent times but is now clear for all to see after only one win in their last six league games. Their most recent game resulted in defeat by newly-promoted Monza, competing in Serie A for the first time in their history.
PSG buck the trend of new teams coming to the fore as they lead the way in Ligue 1 with 22 points out of a possible 24 on offer. Their advantage at the top, however, pales into insignificance when compared with the rate at which the French giants have coasted to title glory in years gone by. A revitalised Marseille trial by just two points, with Lorient in third and Lens fourth. To put the current form of these sides into context, Lorient ended last season in 16th – four points clear of the relegation zone – and have only finished as high as seventh in Ligue 1 in their history while Lens returned to the top-flight for the 2020/21 season after a five-year spell in the second tier.
La Liga is the only division whereby it is a case of normal service resumed, to a degree. It is already looking likely to be the two-way tussle for the title between Barcelona and Real Madrid that many expected after both enjoying extremely strong starts. The remaining Champions league spaces are less predictable and could see as many as five teams competing for Champions League qualification.
When taking all of the above into account, although it could be argued we remain in the early stages of the season, a new reality is emerging for clubs that have become accustomed to total domination. Much has been made of Liverpool’s sluggish start to the campaign, though their current league position has equally been determined by the drastic improvement of sides such as Arsenal and Spurs.
At this stage of the Reds’ title winning 2019/20 season, Jurgen Klopp’s side already boasted a five-point advantage over nearest challengers City and were seven clear of fourth-placed Arsenal. Even last term, the gulf between Liverpool and City was as clear as it had ever been. Chelsea, in third, were some 18 points adrift of the Reds in second and Spurs, in fourth, were separated by a great chasm of 21 points.
Figures such as Mikel Arteta and Antonio Conte are the reasons behind why their respective sides have been able to bridge a gap many deemed an impossible task. In the case of Arsenal, particularly, sticking by their head coach has provided the club with a sense of continuity that has been in short supply since Arsene Wenger's departure. Effective recruitment has been another factor paving the way for impressive growth, with the likes of Cristian Romero, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko representing effective value-for-money acquisitions.
The problem this poses for Liverpool is that it is not only Pep Guardiola’s side likely to be standing in their way of top spot, as has been the case for the last four years. Attention may therefore soon start to shift to prioritising Champions League glory, aiming to make the most of the glaring imperfections shared by Europe’s elite.
It always promised to be a tall order for Klopp’s side to maintain their sky-high standards of recent times, though it seems they are not the only ones falling short of expectations in more than one department.
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