The Premier League is the top division in world football, why were Aston Villa the only English club to reach the European semi-finals this season?
Clubs across the league have struggled with an injury crisis this term, Villa being one of them. Some clubs have bigger squads than others, which is why Chelsea can field a strong XI despite having more than 10 absentees for most of the campaign.
While many mock Manchester United for their poor season, they literally had no centre-back to call upon for the trip to Crystal Palace. Newcastle and Brighton’s domestic and European campaigns have been hampered by injuries, while Wolves’ hopes of competing for European football have been dashed after suffering a number of injuries up front.
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You can go on and on. All clubs have been affected by the intensity and demands of the world’s best league. Here is the problem.
As seen this season, Premier League clubs can be at a disadvantage against many other sides from various leagues who are fighting for that European honour.
It’s true that West Ham and Manchester City both won two of the three UEFA titles last season, but while the calendar shows no sign of letting up, and if things get more murky, it’s about how the league should be run. Can help competitive clubs in Europe.
In the end, Italy and Germany raced for an extra spot in next season’s Champions League. Their Premier League hopes ended after Arsenal lost to Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund beat Atletico Madrid in the second leg of Villa’s second leg victory over Lille in the Europa Conference League quarter-finals.
The LFP have given Lille a free weekend ahead of the first and second legs, splitting their home duties. Paulo Fonseca’s team probably had to pass largely because they were new and were able to compete at their best level.
At the same time, Villa had to play league title rivals Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. They won the match 2-0 before digging deep to beat Bournemouth 3-1 after winning on penalties against Lille.
After the win at Cherries, Villa looked stubborn, but that’s not a criticism, it’s just the reality of the situation they find themselves in.
In the current season, they played 54 matches. These are huge games for a team that has suffered a major injury blow at Newcastle before the campaign even started.
Emery was without eight players for Thursday night’s second leg against Olympiakos.
While Villa have not opened an official dialogue with the league, it is understood they are proposing to do more to facilitate suitable rest between European and domestic matches. It will be in the Premier League’s interest to help clubs participating in the knockout rounds of European competitions due to the increasing importance of the odds rankings.
Villa are thought to be particularly frustrated after their home game against Tottenham was moved to Sunday at 1pm in March. The game was postponed after Liverpool v Manchester City was postponed at 3.40pm on the same day at the request of the police.
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