“World Champions!” This is how the winners of the major North American sports leagues NHL (ice hockey), NFL (American football), NBA (basketball) and MLB (baseball) have always called themselves. Admittedly, the leagues are certainly the strongest in the world in their respective sports, but it does seem a little megalomaniacal to celebrate yourself as the world’s best team when you only play against teams from the USA and Canada. That would be like the winner of the UEFA Champions League celebrating itself as the world’s best team, even though only teams from Europe are playing for the title.
However, European decency prohibits them from celebrating Champions League winners as the best team in the world. Even though this is probably the case. Europe is – at club level – the centre of the football world in terms of sport, infrastructure and economy. It would therefore be only logical if only players from European leagues were to take part in the 24 best national teams on the continent at the current European Championship. In fact, the majority of the European Championship stars come from Europe’s top leagues.
The first non-European league with European Championship participants is the Saudi Arabian Pro League, with a total of 14 players, in 12th place out of 41 leagues. In terms of market value, the Saudi league is even number eight in this European Championship. Not all Saudi legionnaires are regulars in their national teams during the European Championship. Others, however, are. Austria has already had to deal with the 33-year-old and still tireless N’Golo Kanté (FRA) and learned that he has not lost any of his qualities despite moving to Al-Ittihad. The 39-year-old Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr) also impressed in the group phase. Romania fielded a Saudi duo in all group matches: Andrei Burca (Al-Okhdood) and Nicolae Stanciu (Damac), who has also scored a goal, are important parts of the Romanian team.
Belgium’s high-quality team includes Yannick Carrasco, a player from Al-Shabab, in the extended starting eleven, and Croatia also relied on “Saudi” Marcelo Brozovic (Al-Nassr) before their European Championship exit. Al-Hilal is represented by three players at the European Championship: While Ruben Neves is not a regular for Portugal, the Serbians Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Aleksandar Mitrovic are almost indispensable in their team. Jack Hendry (Al-Ettifaq) played the entire match for Scotland against Germany, Switzerland and Hungary.
Two “Saudis” are also playing in today’s round of 16 match between Spain and Georgia (9 p.m.). Aymeric Laporte, a Champions League winner and multiple English champion with Manchester City, has been playing for Al-Nassr since last summer. The defender played 135 minutes for the Spanish team, who impressed in the group stage, during the European Championship. Georgia’s Solomon Kvirkvelia also plays in Saudi Arabia; the defensive giant is under contract with Al-Okhdood.
The selection of Saudi Arabian legionnaires shows that you no longer have to play at the highest possible club level to be able to play a major role in the European Championship – as long as you are individually good enough. Or the Saudi Pro League is not as weak as many people think. Critics would even go so far as to say that European club football is simply not as strong as people think. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.
2024-06-29 15:00:08
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