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With the season almost over, new teams have emerged from the shadows as potential contenders for next season and some of the old guard have fallen off their pedestals and into the abyss of disappointment.
The new season brings with it more hope and a lot of drama, but most importantly - it will bring new overseas obligation into the midst. Teams that were curtailed to domestic competitions last season will finally have the opportunity to go abroad and show their mettle.
Europe isn't always a dream come true, and in most cases, turns out to be a nightmare for teams not used to its brutal logistics. They focus too much on Europe, and lose track of their domestic pursuits - sometimes failing in both.
What about this season? How did the teams in the Top-4 leagues who had European participation this year, but were not burdened with it the previous year, perform domestically? Let us find out:
Premier League
In the PL, 3 new teams went to Europe this year as compared to the previous year - Champions Chelsea, Liverpool and their local rivals, Everton.
Chelsea had the biggest drop in performance - a 23 point deficit (70 points in 2017/18 as opposed to 93 points in 2016/2017). The blues also managed to fall 4 places, going from 1st to 5th - thereby will be playing in the Europa League next season instead of the Champions League.
Chelsea also didn't have the most productive of European campaigns, losing out to Barcelona in the RO16 with a 4-1 aggregate. The loss of key players, tension between the board and the manger, inability of new signings to adapt to Conte's play-style all combined to thwart Chelsea's season.
Liverpool are perhaps the surprise package of the year and will be taking on Real Madrid in the final of the Champions League. European participation has not had a toll on them, as they have once again qualified for the CL next season.
Though they have one fewer point than they did in the previous season (76 points in 2016/17 as against 75 points in 2017/18), they still held on to the 4th position in both seasons. The Reds still have a shot at a trophy, and assuming they win - it will be a very successful season as they have juggled both domestic and success overseas.
Everton, like Chelsea, have endured a sticky season in terms of both the PL and the Europa League. Everton finished 8th in the league, one step below where they finished last season and dropped an incredible 12 points (61 points in 2016/17 as against 49 points in 2017/18).
Europa League was also not kind to the Toffees, as they didn't even manage to break out of the group stage. Their huge spending spree in the summer didn't bear enough fruit, and their acquisitions failed to set the world on fire.
La liga
Real Sociedad was the only team from La Liga which was new to Europe this season, and they didn't have the brightest of seasons.
Sociedad earned a spot in the Europa League after finishing 6th last season, but experienced a calamitous drop this season. Sociedad finished this season at a staggering 12th place, losing 15 points in the process (64 points in 2016/17 as opposed to 49 in 2017/18).
Their European journey was a little better. They finished runners-up in the group stage, and earned a place in the RO32. Sociedad was drawn against RB Salzburg, and lost out to the Austrain Champions 3-4 on aggregate.
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga had 4 new participants in Europe this season - RB Leipzig, Hoffenheim, FC Koln and Freiburg.
RB Leipzig, runners up in the Bundesliga last season, endured a tough second season in the top-flight of German football, as they finished sixth this time around. Leipzig also lost 14 points in the process (67 points in 2016/17 as against 53 points in 2017/18). As a result, Leipzig will be competing in the EL instead of the CL.
In the CL, Leipzig finished third in the group stage and dropped down into the RO32 of the EL. Drawn against Napoli, Leipzig held their nerves to beat the Italians on away goals ina 3-3 aggregate scoreline and went on to meet Zenit St. Petersburg in the Quarters.
Leipzig did well to beat the Russians with a 3-2 scoreline, and were drawn to play against Marseille. That was the end of the European run for the newbies, as they lost out 5-2 against the eventual finalists.
Hoffenheim, under the young Julian Nagelsmann, were the surprise packages of the BuLi last season when they finished in the fourth place, just behind Borussia Dortmund. This season has been even better than their previous season, as they finished third on the table beating out Dortmund on goal difference.
Despite a bettering of places, their points tally suffered a drop of 7 points (62 points in the 2016/17 season as against 55 points in the 2017/18 season).
After losing out to Liverpool in the CL qualifiers, Hoffenheim had to settle for the Europa League. Europe was not too kind on the Germans as Hoffenheim finished last in the group stages - a group consisting of Braga, Ludogorets, and Istanbul Buyuksehir.
European duty turned out to be FC Koln's pandoras box as they finished last and got themselves relegated from the Bundesliga this season after finishing 5th last season. Unsurprisingly, they suffered a massive 27 point drop (49 points in 2016/17 as opposed to 22 points in 2017/18).
There was no compensation from Europe as well - FC Koln finished in the third place in their group and failed to qualify for the RO32.
The fourth team - SC Freiburg, lost out in the third qualification round on the Europa league against Slovenia's NK Domzale. Interestingly, they still suffered a net loss of 8 places and 12 points (48 points in 2016/17 as opposed to 36 points in 2017/18).
Serie A
Serie A saw 3 new teams in Europe this season - Atalanta, Lazio and Milan.
Atalanta took Serie A by storm last season, when they fought hard to a fourth place finish in the league, beating out Lazio by two points in the end. This season saw them fall to 7th on the table, thereby missing out on qualification to Europe.
A 12 point difference in points tally was the reason for their poor finish this season (72 points in 2016/17 as against 60 points in 2017/18).
In the Europa League, Atalanta finished their group as table-toppers, edging out Lyon and Everton in the process. Unfortunately for the Italians, they lost out to Borussia Dortmund in the RO32 with a 3-4 scoreline.
Lazio finished fifth last season in Serie A, and in a shocking final matchday twist this season, once again finished fifth - this time losing out to Inter Milan on goal difference. However, they gained 2 points between the two seasons (72 points in 2017/18 as opposed to 70 points in 2016/17).
Like Atalanta, Lazio finished their group as table-toppers and qualified for the RO32 where they faced where they faced Romania's Steaua. A 5-2 scoreline saw them proceed to the RO16, where they beat Dynamov Kiev with a 4-2 aggregate.
In the quarters, however, they faced RB Salzburg. Two high-octane encounters later, the Italians crashed out with a 5-6 scoreline.
In a sort-of return to the glory days, AC Milan finished sixth in Serie A last season and earned a place in the EL after qualification. This season once again saw them finish in the sixth place, with a gain of 1 point (64 points in 2017/18 as against 63 points in 2016/17).
Like the other two Italian clubs, Milan finished as table-toppers and sailed into the RO32 where they comfortably beat Ludogorets with a 4-0 scoreline. In the next round, however, they suffered a heavy defeat against Arsenal - losing the tie 1-5 on aggregate.
Conclusion:
Among the 11 teams, only two teams (Lazio and Milan) ended the season with a net gain of points in the domestic circuit. Liverpool were the ones who successfully managed to juggle both of the competitions, while FC Koln were the worst performers when handed over the new burden.
