The Premier League colors fly high as Liverpool, Aston Villa, Brighton and West Ham finish top of their Groups – Will we see an English Champion?
top 4 english teams in Europa: There seems to be a reasonable amount of buzz and excitement with over eight teams taking part in European competitions this season from the Premier League – four in the Champions League and four in the Europa League with one in the Europa Conference League. Liverpool are perhaps the favorites to win the Europa League and Manchester City are always in the fight for Europe’s biggest prize, the Champions League. While some of these teams may not be performing well domestically, they sure have cashed in at the right time in continental competitions. Let’s take a look at their road to the knockout rounds.
Shop quality jerserys from Goal90.shop
Top 4 english teams in Europa
West Ham – Defending Champions looking to Expand their Territory
In the previous season, we witnessed a rather unanticipated West Ham triumph in Europe as they were crowned champions of the Europa Conference League. This season, they look just as lethal and motivated to slide another trophy into their bag. With five wins and one loss in their group stage, they deserve some lauding.
However, West Ham haven’t been very competent domestically. Though they sit in the top half of the table, the tempo with which they need to go out and take that prize home seems to be absent. They haven’t been scoring much goals either, just 10 goals in the group stage in contrast to Freiburg’s 17, who finished as runners up in the group. Their efficiency in front of the goal with minimal goals conceded may seem to make up for it but they’ll have to take bigger steps to be serious contenders in a pool of other glory-hungry teams.
Brighton – Carving Out Their Own Legacy
They play football just as good as their scouts do their jobs. With 4 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss, the Seagulls enjoyed a comfortable top group finish to their group stage. Like West Ham, they weren’t scoring many goals; relied simply on their clinicality and their backline were on their guard at all times.
The victory against Marseille on matchday 6 led to a burst of emotions for the Italian gaffer, Roberto De Zerbi. In the post-match interview, he had the following to say:
“I think this is the best moment in my time [at Brighton],” he told TNT Sports.
“I’ve lost my voice, I’ve lost everything.
It was an amazing game, we played amazing football and we deserved to reach the top of the table and we deserved to win.
“We could have scored more goals but we are very happy and we are very proud for the club, for Brighton, for our fans, for our club, for our players, for the people who work inside of the club.”
Liverpool – Rebuilding the Champions’ Stature
Missing out on the Champions League this season must’ve been devastating for Jurgen Klopp and his men. However, given their recent form and the zeal with which they currently play football, it’s not too hard to see why they’re the favorites to win the Europa League this season alongside Bayer Leverkusen. They ended their group stage with 17 goals scored and 7 conceded – bagging 4 wins out 6 along the way. Both of their losses came in matches where Klopp was rotating his squad and giving the youngsters a go
One such player who gained attention during the squad rotation was a certain Jarell Quansah. Though still 20, the young Englishman played like he was 30, in his prime. Jurgen Klopp in particular was a fervent admirer of the Centre Back about whom he remarked:
“He’s a top talent”
Aston Villa – Leaving Everyone with Nailbiters
The boys from Villa Park have been nothing short of outstanding this season. Currently sitting at third in the Premier League, they have proven time and time again since their season began in August that they are a force to be reckoned with. A mix of experienced players and energetic youngsters has proven to be a successful recipe. They finished their group stage with 13 points, scoring 12 goals and conceding 7, winning 4 games, losing and drawing 1. Despite this being their first taste of continental football in over 13 years, Unai Emery still set the bar pretty high for his team.
“We are happy because our objective was to be first in the group, with this draw we are,” Emery said.
The taste of continental football allowed younger players to find more minutes and slot some more experience into their resumes. The Spaniard remarked:
“We tried to play with some players who are not playing regularly in the season because of injuries like Jacob Ramsey and Alex Moreno, and with Leander Dendoncker, Filip Marschall and Tommi O’Reilly as well.”
“It’s important for them to get confidence and minutes. Tonight was perfect with the draw and result and perfect to give some of the players chances.”
