File picture of Manchester City’s Chilean manager Manuel Pellegrini.
DPA/London
For all the millions of pounds poured into the Premier League, Champions League success continues to be a scarce commodity for English clubs and it could cost them dear.
Barring what would be a miraculous win for Manchester City in Barcelona or victory for Arsenal (by at least two goals and three scored) in Monaco this week, England will be left without a representative in the last eight of the Champions League for the second time in three years.
And the worsening performance of the English clubs could yet cost them their fourth Champions League spot at some stage over the next few seasons, thanks to the complicated UEFA coefficient, which relies on the performance of a country’s clubs in all European competitions.
Given the huge investment in Premier League clubs in recent seasons - and the record 7.84 billion dollars spent by broadcasters on domestic rights in the latest round of TV deals - their performance is not good enough.
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard saw his side go out in the group stages but rejected suggestions that it was a crisis.
“I don’t think it will repeat as the years go by. Teams will bounce back,” Gerrard told The Liverpool Echo.
“Chelsea, City, ourselves, Arsenal, will make signings in the summer, and come back next season and have another go.
“It has happened before where teams have gone out early and then come back the next year and won it. It’s not a major problem. It’s just that this season English teams have not been good enough.”
His former Liverpool teammate, Jamie Carragher, now working as a TV pundit with Sky Sports, said British clubs are failing defensively.
“For all the money that’s in the Premier League, we’ve got to improve,” he said.
“I still believe we’ve got the most exciting league to watch - that’s what generates the money and interest from all around the world - but in terms of quality, we’re not the best and it needs to change.
“The financial advantage most of our clubs have over teams in Europe should be reflected in European competitions but it isn’t. Put simply, I don’t think our clubs - when they play against the top teams in Europe - are good enough defensively.”
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce said British clubs are paying the price for not having a winter break, something all of their rivals for the Champions League enjoy.
“I think that we don’t help ourselves with our fixture list,” he said.
“Playing as many games as we play through Christmas and New Year and not having the opportunity to shut the league down for a couple of weeks gives every club that plays in Europe a disadvantage.
“When they come back into playing in Europe they may have a considerable amount of injuries in certain areas, or fatigue and mental fatigue kicks in on players.”
With just Everton left in the Europa League, the pressure is on the Merseysiders to lead the British challenge.