These were the years of maximum hegemony. three titles For the whites (plus that of the 2017-18 season) and two azulgranas, only one title remained for Chelsea at that time and one for Bayern. there was even two spanish finalsboth between the capital’s two wonders and with the same result: Madrid victory.
These times of maximum impact, of course, The fullness of Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, moved to a better life and resulted in a maximum of one Spanish semi-finalist four times in a row (from 2017-18 to 2020-21). The bottom was touched in the 2019-20 edition, which was resolved in a short time due to the pandemic. last eight in LisbonBarcelona and Atlético fell to the quarterfinals as the only Spanish survivors.
resurrection
But now, at the least likely time, in the 2021-22 season, Spanish football is making a comeback. show muscle with the mainland. The growing economic divide with English Premier League clubs, greed in the PSG market, and the league’s historic solidity. Bayern They seemed to have left LaLiga in the background. Still, among the top four players in Europe are Real Madrid and Villarreal.
To achieve this, both had to suffer. Real Madrid saw how the first-leg advantage at Stamford Bridge blew away, eventually appealing to the legend, forcing overtime and eventually executing current champions Chelsea. Villarreal, meanwhile, played to defend the first leg 1-0 and felt on the edge of the cliff after the goal. Robert Lewandowskihowever, Chukwueze was tied at the time of injury.
for white set tenth semi-final in the last 12 years; for gourmet, second in history, after a penalty in 2006 where Riquelme missed a penalty that would take Arsenal to extend the draw. Atletico’s loss to Manchester City last night prevented the three Spaniards from qualifying for the second time in history: 1999-00 Madrid, Barça and Valencia made it.
hegemony
The semi-finals are inevitably determined as a match between Spanish and English football. hegemony of the continent. A dialectic that has been on the table for years and is finally shown in the foreground without external comrades. On the one hand, Real Madrid and Manchester City They will seek a place in the final to be held in Saint-Denis on 28 May; on the other hand they will Liverpool and Villareal.
The interesting thing about this Champions League reality is that it comes in a year where LaLiga has confirmed a cost containment trend. As reported by El Periódico de España, a newspaper of the same group called Prensa Ibérica, this newspaper Spaniard is the major European league that has made the least signing investment since the start of the pandemic and is left behind. Premier, Serie A, Bundesliga and Ligue 1.
The distance to British competition is huge as he has invested in the last two years. four times more More than the Spanish one, but also the same as the Italian one, at more than double the expense. for him FootballEven outside of the quarterfinals, another pile-up over the last decade for those who haven’t been able to raise ‘Orejona’ since he did it. Inter in 2010.
The analysis of each of the two matches also clarifies the distance between the investment made by the Spanish and English teams. The city spent 1.073 million euros in the last six years to strengthen himself, 618 from Real Madrid. The difference has been maximized in the last two campaigns: 31 kilos for whites and 306 kilos for ‘citizens’.
In the other semi-finals, the gap widens given the size difference between the two competitors. Liverpool spent 613 million In the last six lessons, reinforcements (almost the same figure as Real Madrid) and Villarreal remained 328almost half.
At market level, Spanish and English teams are currently different sizes, No matter how much Madrid has devoted itself to filling the piggy bank in recent years. Of course, Madrid’s investment cannot be compared to PSG’s or Villarreal’s investment with Juventus, and they both fell short.