西甲、英超激战正酣-- - 21世纪在线

Long live La Liga?
西甲、英超激战正酣
作者：DAVID BARTRAM, 21ST CENTURY STAFF  时间：2009-09-09
来源：21世纪英文报第819期

Will Cristiano Ronaldo usher in a new era of Spanish football? AFP
IT wasn't just the Spanish football league, La Liga, that kicked off last weekend; it was, perhaps, the start of a new era.
For the past few years the English Premier League has been Europe's dominant league. Its teams had more fans, more money and more top players than any other league in the world.
This meant that they tended to dominate the big competitions, especially the Champions League. For the past five years the Champions League final has included an English team, and in 2008 it featured two, when Manchester United beat Chelsea.
But several months ago things began to change. First, Barcelona beat Manchester United to win the European Cup in May. No big deal, you might think. After all, it was only one match.
Then things got worse for United. Their best player – and probably the best player in the world – Cristiano Ronaldo, decided he wanted to leave the club. He wanted to play for another team – in Spain.
Real Madrid shelled out a remarkable 94 million euros (920 million yuan) for his services. That was just part of a total spending spree of over 250 million euros to get some of the world's best players, including Kaka, Xabi Alonso and Karim Benzema.
In the past, the world's best players always chose England; now Spain's their preferred destination. The summer turned Real Madrid from a sleeping giant into one of the best teams in the world. But does this mean that Spain's La Liga is now the top league in the world?
Well, not so fast. The problem with La Liga is that it only has two great teams out of a league of 20. Other clubs, such as Valencia, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla, cannot compete with the two giants – Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Boring or better?
It is true that the Premier League has sometimes been criticized for being boring – Manchester United have won it the last three years. But this season at least five different clubs – Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City – have a good chance to win the title.
The real challenge for La Liga will be emulating the Premier League's success in the Champions League. England's top four clubs have consistently reached the later stages of the competition in recent years. In Spain, only Barcelona have done well.
If La Liga wants to be considered the best in the world, some of the smaller teams are going to need to step up. If they don't, the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo might just wish he'd stayed in England.
How La Liga differs from the English Premier League
Attendance
THE Premier League still attracts more fans to its games. Last season's average attendance was 36,000 per game, compared to 28,000 in Spain. Although Barcelona and Real Madrid often attract over 80,000 fans per game, the smaller teams in Spain are nowhere near as popular as smaller teams in England.
Transfer spending
Apparently, the Spaniards haven't realized that the world is in the middle of a financial crisis. Both Real Madrid and Barcelona spent vast sums of money on players this summer. In England, however, all the big clubs (other than Manchester City) decided to be cautious, looking for bargains instead of big names.
Asia
The Premier League remains the most popular league for fans in Asia, although La Liga is trying to change this. The league has decided to shift kick-off times for some of its biggest matches to challenge the Premier League during Asia's "prime time" on Saturday nights.
Style
The Premier League has been described as the most exciting in the world because of its wild pace. This often leads to extremely tense games. La Liga has long been considered a more skillful league, but sometimes games can be slower – and for some fans a bit boring.
Crossover
Many Spanish footballers play in England, but not so many English players compete in Spain. Liverpool have signed a number of Spaniards in recent years – including manager Rafael Benitez and star striker Fernando Torres. But maybe the tide is turning. This summer, Englishman Jermaine Pennant moved to the Spanish club Real Zaragoza.
21ST