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The strongest league in the world?

Is the Premier League now the strongest league in the world with all four slots in the finals of European competitions occupied by English clubs for the first time ever? That was the question posed on Radio 5 this morning.

Of course, really one means in Europe. The MSL continues to develop; you cannot beat the Argentinian league for fierce competitive excitement; and large sums of money have been shovelled into the China Super League.

After that? When I was in Chile, I watched a dreary match on television involving the Catholic University team (there is also a team called Everton). There were just two highlights. When the one goal was scored by Catholica the player took off his shirt to reveal a tattoo of Christ on the cross covering his back. Thirty minutes after the match ended there was a riot outside my hotel involving rival fans.

But what about Europe? The real competition comes from La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga. We are just talking about one year and over the years the La Liga teams have been formidable. Real Madrid is still the place to go for many world class players. When supporters of some lower league team start claiming they are 'the greatest team the world has ever seen', it is Real I think of.

Arsenal and Chelsea fans face a real challenge in terms of getting hold of the just 6,000 tickets allocated to each club and then getting to Baku which has just one direct flight a week. More tickets are available in Madrid, but price gouging is already under way in terms of flights and hotels.

The Football Supporters' Federation have rightly taken a strong stance on this issue: Final costs condemned

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