The Renaissance of Serie A
Serie A now has the most representatives in Europe still competing on Europe’s two biggest stages with six teams. It was just another blessing having Roma fall short in the Group of Death to land in the Europa League, which is a tournament they can realistically win and boost Italy’s continued rising coefficient. Germany has four teams remaining with two teams currently having their backs against the wall, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Could the typical European league shift in power be taking place again? Certainly, and it’s happening right before our eyes, but don’t be surprised. This is a very normal occurrence. In fact, it is a return to the balance of powers.
All five Europa League contenders are more than capable of making a push to win the championship. All the remaining clubs have made it very clear that they will be focusing on competing both domestically and the Europa League in years past they would have scoffed at the thought of sacrificing their position in Serie A. Juventus in the mean time will look to put Borussia Dortmund to the sword and knock the Germans down even further than their Bundesliga position except in this case it will be at the expense of their morale. Heck, that might be the worst thing for a group of professional athletes to lose.
Here is the UEFA 2014-2015 Coefficient Rankings:
- Spain- 14,642
- Italy- 13,833
- Germany- 13, 571
- England- 12,857
- France- 10,250
Sorry for picking on you Bundesliga, but maybe I should have shifted my attention towards the Premier League. That day will come, but it is not today. Serie A must continue to focus on the Europa League because it was the very league that the Bundesliga used to capture the coveted fourth Champions League position and why not retaliate with some irony?
Majority of the highly coveted young talents in Europe are plying their trades in Italy right now. Paul Pogba, Mauro Icardi, Mateo Kovacic, Paulo Dybala, Lorenzo Insigne and Alvaro Morata are just part of a small list of the many talented youngester in Serie A. The top teams in the league today have focused on nurturing their youth and it is paying off immensely.
Let this be a lesson to the doubters that Serie A has always been capable of competing in Europe, but needed to find its humility again. It is no coincidence that some of the most coveted managers in the world are Italian. The remaining teams in Europe have taken their time to rebuild their teams and they have all been helped by the tv deals signed by Serie A the past few seasons. Additionally, there has been a boost in sponsorships and youth level focus. The night is always darkest before the dawn and six years of darkness was long enough for this proud league.