The beauty of football lies in its complexity. Eternal debates rage on, to which there is no one true answer. One among them has been the debate over which of La Liga or the Premier League is better.
The Premier League wins the television and financial stakes, but that is not all that a league is about.
Here are 5 reasons why La Liga is better than the Premier League:
#1 History
It’s a bit disingenous to suggest that English football’s First Division, which was founded in 1888 is not as historic at the La Liga, founded in 1929. The Premier League, as we know it know, was formed in 1992 – but again that’s a matter of semantics.
The reason La Liga has more of a history to it is simple – quiz any Barcelona and Real Madrid fan about the history of Spain and you’ll receive a surprisingly knowledgable answer, even if said fan is not from Spain. General Franco’s ‘links’ to Real Madrid still float around in hushed whispers and conspiracy theories abound over the transfer of Alfredo di Stefano.
The deep-seated divisions within Spanish culture have carried over to football – Catalan, Basque, Castillan identities are inextricably linked to clubs like Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid. There is simply no equivalent in English football. Liverpool and Everton may have a claim to represent ‘Scouse’ identity – but that is more of a dialect. England is not a land without divisions of culture, but those do not carry over to football.
So why does this make La Liga better? It’s not just a football match when Barcelona, Real Madrid, Sevilla, Athletic Bilbao, Celta Vigo clash. The distinct cultures of Catalonia, Castille, Andalusia, Basque, Galicia are all on display – a deep seated division that carries over to the pitch in a competitive way.
#2 Quality of Football
Yes, ‘good football’ is subjective. There is much to appreciate in a good tackle, and in the effective use of long-ball football. The likes of Sam Allardyce and Tony Pulis have found great success with their ‘direct’ style, and deserve credit for ensuring their teams get the job done.
This is how La Liga does long-ball football:
That’s not a superstar – that’s Sergio Leon, talisman of bottom of the league Osasuna against Las Palmas, hardly the most fancied of clubs.
There’s barely any argument to make anymore, the technical quality of most La Liga games are superior to those of the Premier League. Proof? Watch the pre-match warm-up. In Spain, rondos; whereas in England all we get are players running, stretching and jumping without the ball. Yes, the ‘blood-and-thunder’ games of the Premier League are one of its selling points, but when was the last time you can remember overpaid millionaires busting a gut in England?
For the purist, La Liga is without compare – even players from minnows have a technique far superior to any players of mid-table clubs in England. The previous statement reeks of snobbishness, something out of the mouth of a football hipster, – but it doesn’t make it any less true.
#3 The best players in the world – Ronaldo and Messi
No contest here – if you want to watch the best players in the world, you have to pick La Liga. It isn’t even a recent phenomenon – of the 60 years that the Ballon d’Or has been in existence, 20 of the winners have come from La Liga, closely followed by Serie A with 18. As for the Premier League, they have supplied a paltry 5 winners.
Eden Hazard and Alexis Sanchez can claim to be amongst the world’s best, but they cannot get pulses racing with their skill quite like how Ronaldo and Messi can. The superstar pair delight with a regularity never seen before in football, with even the ‘goal-obsessed’ Ronaldo reminding us of his prowess with a memorable elastico recently.
Also Read : Cristiano Ronaldo, an elastico, and the beauty of a singular moment
Looking past the much-heralded pair above, La Liga boasts a ton of superstar players. Antoine Griezmann, Gareth Bale, Luis Suarez and Neymar are ever-present in any list of the world’s best forwards. There really is only one league to follow if you want to view the most skillful players on planet earth.
#4 Competitive
‘La Liga is not as competitive as the Premier League.’
This is a myth – there are no two ways about it. Even since the Premier League began in 1992, there have been 6 winners, including Leicester’s shock title victory last season. In that same period, La Liga have experienced 5 winners – hardly the two-man race between Barcelona and Real Madrid most people consider it to be, with Sevilla and Atletico Madrid now making title challenges. At the very least, La Liga is as competitive as the Premier League.
The argument is made that Barcelona and Real Madrid routinely thrash minnows by large scorelines. It is true, but only on paper. Barcelona thrashed Leganes 5-1 away early in the season, but anyone who saw that game witnessed that the Liga debutants spurned plenty of great chances to score. The return fixture saw Leganes trouble Barcelona yet again, with the Catalans lucky to escape with a 2-1 win thanks to a dubious penalty call.
Even the teams Real Madrid’s record-breaking side dropped points against – Eibar and Las Palmas – are hardly what you would describe as giants. Clubs like Eibar are plentiful in La Liga – a small club with limited financial resouces dwarfed by those of Sunderland and Crystal Palace, but make up for it with excellent scouting, and great development of young talent. It would be interesting to see how the likes of Liverpool, Tottenham and Arsenal would fare at the 7000-seater Ipurua – it would not be a rout as many expect.
#5 Masters of the world, not just Europe
UEFA CL 2013/14: Real Madrid; UEFA EL 2013/14: Sevilla; UEFA Super Cup 2014: Real Madrid; FIFA Club World Cup 2014: Real Madrid
UEFA CL 2014/15: Barcelona; UEFA EL 2014/15: Sevilla; UEFA Super Cup 2015: Barcelona; FIFA Club World Cup 2015: Barcelona
UEFA CL 2015/16: Real Madrid; UEFA EL 2015/16: Sevilla; UEFA Super Cup 2016: Real Madrid; FIFA Club World Cup 2016: Real Madrid
Of the last twelve international trophies available in club football, La Liga have made a clean sweep. There is no real competition here – the top clubs of La Liga are simply better than those of the Premier League. Since the turn of the millenium, there have been 64 international club trophies on offer. The Premier League has only won 8 of those – La Liga? 30.
Let me repeat that – Thirty.
It has reflected in UEFA’s co-efficient rankings – in the top 10 there are 4 La Liga clubs, with Chelsea languishing behind them all in 10th place as the only English representative. There really is no better argument – La Liga is not just better than the Premier League, but the rest of the world as well.
Gary Lineker’s iconic quote is better amended thus :
“Football is a simple game. Twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans Spaniards always win.”
