Since November 20, the world has been watching the cream of the crop in Qatar, who have done incredibly well in hosting the world, with the attendance being one of the best in the tournament’s history.
With each team allowed 26 players, there were just over 830 players when the tournament kicked off, and 133 came from English Premier League (EPL) teams. During the 2018 tournament in Russia, the EPL also had the most players of any other league (108), and in second was Spain with 78. Further down, the EPL also dominated in 2014.
In Qatar, the 133 players from the English topflight are certainly a strong indication that it’s the go-to league. The Spanish La Liga followed with 83 players. By the quarterfinal stage, which concluded yesterday, the EPL still boasted big numbers, with 61 (36 without players in the England squad) remaining in Qatar. La Liga was left with 31 players.
The England team has 25 players competing in the EPL, except for Jude Bellingham, who turns out for Borussia Dortmund in Germany. The Spanish team that was knocked out by Morocco in the Last 16 had five players from the EPL, but England has no players in La Liga. The best players in the world have seemingly shifted focus to the EPL. Take Brazil, for example. They had one player from the EPL in their 2010 World Cup team, six in 2014, and six in 2018. Now in Qatar, the Brazilian team comprises 12 players from the EPL, while only five are from La Liga. Should EPL clubs also turn their attention to young Brazilian talent on a regular basis and get their hands on them, they are likely to hit hard the likes of La Liga’s Real Madrid, who are at the forefront in recruiting the South Americans’ best young talent to Spain. Besides Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, Madrid has now set their sights on Endrick, who’s with Palmeiras.
From the start of the tournament, the EPL has made a huge impact on the field. In the group stage, players from the EPL contributed 24 goals, followed by France’s Ligue 1 with 13 and the Bundesliga and La Liga, both with 12. In the group stage, the EPL also dominated in the assists section, with EPL players producing 20 compared to second-placed La Liga’s 12.
This reflects the EPL, where goals come aplenty, and that’s exactly what the fans want to see. This season, 419 goals have been scored in 146 EPL matches (at an average of 2.87 per match), or a goal every 31.4 minutes. Only the Bundesliga and France’s Ligue 1 have seen more, with the former producing 431 goals in 135 matches (at an average of 3.19 goals per match or a goal every 28.2 minutes) and the latter 444 in 150 matches, at an average of 2.96 goals per match or a goal every 30.4 minutes.
In comparison, La Liga has produced 356 goals in 140 matches this campaign (at an average of 2.54 goals per match or a goal every 35.4 minutes.
It further stands the League in good stead that some of the best players in the world are linked with EPL clubs such as Kylian Mbappe (Liverpool and Chelsea), Cody Gakpo (Man Utd), Jude Bellingham (Chelsea, Liverpool, and Man Utd) and Adrien Rabiot (Arsenal, Man Utd, and Liverpool).
Whichever way you look at it, the EPL is widening the gap, and it will take some effort for the rest to close it.
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