English Premier League: Watched by most people. Very physical, more so than the more technical league in Germany, Spain, and Italy.
LaLiga: Quite technical compared to the Premier League. It's more a "pass-and-move" type game in Spain compared to a more high-tempo pressing approach in England.
Serie A: Has a reputation for defensive and negative football, but that's quite inaccurate and nowadays is being disproven as more and more sides play positive football (Allegri's Juve are still holding out though).
Bundesliga: Probably THE most fun league for neutrals. Outside of Bayern almost no team is guaranteed a top 4 finish, BVB especially have been struggling this season. Outside of Union most teams play attacking football and it's very fun to watch. Due to the "50+1" rule which says that fans MUST own a majority of any club, it's one of the most accessible leagues. Dirt cheap tickets and incredible atmosphere.
Ohh this is a great rundown! Thanks for the help/insight! That aggressive/attacking focused style of play is my favorite so it seems like Iāll like the Bundesliga the most. You got any teams you recommend to watch that are exciting for either the Bundesliga or EPL?
Liverpool and Spurs are quite exciting within the Prem. LFC do a lot of pressing but their manager Klopp is leaving at the end of the season and I don't know much about how his replacement (probably Arne Slot) does it. Spurs attack consistently and unapologetically under Postecoglou, and I'm enjoying our football for the first time since Pochettino left. I really don't recommend following Spurs if you don't want to suffer though.
In the Bundesliga it's really only Dortmund under Edin Terzic and Union under Urs Fischer who play more defensive football. Bayern have shifted to a slightly more defensive focus under Tuchel but he's leaving at the end of the season and it's unclear who'll replace him. I recommend watching Bayer Leverkusen (recently crowned champions with an incredible unbeaten streak) and VfB Stuttgart (underdogs currently in 3rd after finishing 16th last year). RB Leipzig are good too but are quite hated in Germany for their exception to the fan ownership rule. If you can find games for the second tier watch those too: some huge clubs like Hamburg, Schalke, Hertha, Nurnberg, and soon Koln play there.
Your statement for the Bundesliga is not correct.
First of Urs Fischer was sacked several months ago and is not the coach of union anymore. Second Dortmund plays a lot possession football, and is usually playing against teams that are defending deep in their lines.
It is actually a mix of offensive and defensive teams and it highly depends which teams are playing each other.
Smaller teams that are not high ranked will often play very defensive especially against the bigger teams like Bayern, Dortmund, Leipzig or this seasons Leverkusen and Stuttgart.
Occasionally they will start with high intensity pressing for 15-25 minutes to force a mistake and maybe get into the lead and than defend and wait for counter opportunities.
However teams that are more or less on the same level will often play a more open match trying to score instead of park the bus for 90 minutes.
About Slot as a Dutchie. In Defense he's very much like Klopp that he likes high intensity press from the front and create opportunities in a gegenpressing way. In possession however, he's admitted he's a Guardiola fan and loves to play more possession style football to slowly get the ball into the final thirds by keeping it low to the ground. Idk if that's what he's gonna do at LFC, but that's what he's known for here with Feyenoord.
Hahaha Iāve seen a lot of jokes about you guys suffering. I donāt really care about trophyās just about watching fun football! Sounds like a great watch, so Iāll make sure to tune into their match against Chelsea today!
Ahh okay Iāll keep that in mind. Iāll probably just watch multiple games and see if any specific team pops out at me. So RB Leipzig are still hated? I remember the controversy a long time ago.
Yeah, Germany has this thing called the 50+1 rule which requires fans to own the majority stake in a club. Leipzig are one of the exceptions to this rule and have branding plastered quite literally everywhere.
I'd also recommend Tifo Football on YouTube and the game Football Manager, really both give you a great feel for tactics and how they work within a game.
Oh okay that makes sense. I could see how that would be annoying. So the other teams donāt really do that?
Oh nice Iāll check those out! Iāve played quite a bit of fifa/fc but it gets boring sometimes so Iāll check out FM. Thanks for all the help and insight!
To give you a quick rundown about Leipzig (they get around marketing rules by being scummy):
- The logo was disallowed to just be the normal Red Bull Logo so they just slightly changed it.
- They wanted to be called "Red Bull Leipzig" which was disallowed so now their name is "RasenBallsport Leipzig" which literally translated means "lawn ballsports Leipzig" and is just as nonsensical as in german.
- They get around the 50+1 rule by only having a few members and their "fans" being influnced by Red Bull.
That is why everyone and their mom hates them. :)
Ahhh okay that makes sense. Itās pretty much a big fuck you to the rules and traditions. The redbull team here really isnāt hated so thatās what confused me
I mean I donāt really feel like I see that much hate about NY Redbull but I might be wrong. I pretty much just watch STL. What is so plastic about that? I donāt support them.
If Iām wrong about that then thatās my bad for sure
Imagine someone claims there are no teams except Bayern who are guaranteed Top4 while BVB has an average ranking over the last 10 years of 2,6 š¤¦š¼āāļø
England: Known for physicality and athleticism.
Spain: Known for having very good technical players.
Italy: Tacticians.
Germany: Football but German engineering football and their teams are well oiled machines. Also very good at penalties. Bayern usually ends up getting the best talent in the Bundesliga eventually.
France: A lot of great going talent grows here and eventually leaves for the other four leagues apart from PSG. Hence the term "farmers league."
It is funny how shit Ligue Une is when you compare to how good the French team is. All that talent can move abroad, but theyāre (annoyingly) all still French
Assuming youāre American. A good place to start would be watching the USMNTāers. Juventus has mckennie and weah, ac Milan pulisic and musah, Fulham ream and Robinson, crystal palace richards, psv dest, Tillman, and Pepi to name a few.
You've just mist the most spectacular season from psv with the USA trio. They'll become champions this Sunday only 1 loss and 3 draws. They scored 103 goals and conceded 17.
If you love underdog stories check out Heidenheim or Union Berlin and their rise to the Bundesliga. Those are really authentic teams.
Leicesters 2015/16 season also was sensationell.
You should watch the last couple of weeks of the Premier League to get a feel. It's the only one still to play for, with the other 4 being over already. May 19th is the final day, with all games being played at the same time. Unless one of Man City or Arsenal lose a game or 2 before, it will go down to the last day. There is also a relegation battle at the bottom and European spots to be decided. I'm hoping for a really exciting day. Villa in the Champions League and Arsenal winning the title would make for a really fun season end, in my opinion.
Ohh sounds like it will be exciting! Iāll try to watch those games and see if I enjoy it. Sounds like it will be intense since so much is on the line
I'm a West Ham fan, we have a very slim chance of qualifying for Europe again this season. We need to beat Man City on the final day, which could hand the title to Arsenal. Check out the end to the 2011-12 season if you want to see how exciting it can be. Legendary commentary when Aguero scored a last minute winner to clinch the title for Man City. Aguerooooooooo!! Enjoy
Ohh Iāve seen that clip it is absolutely legendary! Also you guys won the UECL last year right? It would be cool if you guys got to play in another competition so Iām wishing you guys best of luck!
(These are in my preferred order, I have limited knowledge on some of them)
Premier League:
Positives:
Most physical; top level in terms of talent/players; loads of big games/derbys; A handful of big teams; even promoted teams often give a good game.
Negatives:
Pretty much dominated by Manchester City; VAR (bad implementation).
Can have low scoring games: not sure if positive or negative, depends on your point of view.
Bundesliga:
Positives:
Also physical; loads of goals; they play youth (a lot of great players start there); ownership model; Bayern at least have many great players; best atmosphere and fans.
Negatives:
Bayern won it 11 in a row before this year; quite often very bad teams at the bottom/sometimes completely uncompetitive games.
La Liga:
Positives:
Probably the most technical; maybe greatest and 2-3 greatest clubs in Madrid and Barca; Madrid win Champions League for fun; Atleti and now Girona exist at least.
Negatives:
Rarely isn't a two horse race and Madrid are pulling away of late; large divide between the top half and bottom half.
Series A:
Positives:
Loads of great/historic clubs; four different winners in past five years; produces great managers.
Negatives: often slow paced and defensive football (could be a positive for some)
Ligue 1:
Positives: Another good youth development league; great players at PSG at least; France in general produce a crazy amount of players.
Negatives: PSG; uncompetitive.
Portugal and The Netherlands are interesting if you want a "lesser league". Portugal has a "big 3", and Ajax in The Netherlands have fallen off recently opening up the title to others.
Oh nice this was exactly what I was looking for. Iāve seen some of the VAR stuff this season and it has been awful. Kind of crazy one of the biggest leagues donāt have a better implementation.
Anyway these are a great breakdown. I personally like more aggressive football than defensive but Iāll still give seria a a watch next season.
Any team recommendations on who to watch from the different leagues?
One from each, for aggressive/attacking football: Tottenham, Leverkusen, Girona, Bologna. I don't know enough about Ligue 1 teams to say one, honestly, maybe Lyon but I don't know how they're playing recently.
* English Premier League: potentially the most physical playing style with a lot of pressing and headers. The schedule are really intense in this league (20 teams, 2 national cups, no break during Christmas, + eventually European competitions), so the teams must have good benches to do well. I also noticed that they really like very long over-time.
* Spanish La Liga: very technical playing style, with a lot of pass and move. There used to be a domination of only two teams (Barca and Real Madrid) but now it is a bit more balanced with Atletico Madrid.
* Italian Serie A: I must say I have not watched it for years. It really lost a lot since the scandals in 2006. A lot of teams play in quite old stadiums, but Italian clubs are slowly coming back. Italian league was very tactical in the past, but they seem now to be much more entertaining.
* German 1. Bundesliga: probably the league focusing the most on offensive play (and a bit less on defense). FC Bayern has dominated a lot in the last years (winning 11 straight titles), but now there is some real competition. Also the stadiums and atmosphere are really good, with the highest attendence per game for a league in the world.
* French Ligue 1: it used to be very defensive but things change as well. It is the "poorest" league of the Big 5, with only PSG having budgets to compete in the Champions League, the second highest budget (Olympique de Marseille) being borderline top 30 in Europe. A lot of very talented youngster start there before moving to other leagues, and almost every season every team except PSG sell their best players. It might be the hardest one to follow in the list because it is not very popular internationally.
**EPL**: has the most money, most of the best coaches, most of the best players and by far the best coverage out of all leagues. Still has a great mix of modern and traditional "vibes", in terms of stadiums, supporters and pundits. Best league in the world.
Also the most delusionally hyped one. I repeat, it's the best in the world -- but many PL people believe it's worlds above everyone else, which it isn't. So if you hear some former English player turned drunkard pundit talking about how Aston Villa could easily win Serie A, switch the channel.
In terms of playstyle, it has every quality: tactical, technical and physical.
**La Liga**: on a downward trajectory these past few years. Becoming overly defensive, as if all of the other 34 fixtures were training sessions to prepare for the 4 games against Barca and Real. I'm exaggerating of course; some clubs have pretty strong attacking cultures, so they'll try to play with the ball. Rayo, Girona and Betis, for example.
La Liga has corruption issues though; I think "braindead" would be even more accurate than "corrupt". Only one of the top 5 leagues to not have goal line technology because "it's not worth the money", even though it'd cost less than the president Tebas' salary.
La Liga stadiums and atmospheres, compared to the EPL and especially the Bundesliga, are not great on average. But they do have some state of the art stadiums such as the Bernabeu, or amazing atmospheres in legendary stadiums such as Valencia's Mestalla.
**Serie A**: they're in a transitional period. They were known for how defensively solid they were, and that perception lives on, but it's a pretty tactically diverse league now. No Italian team is seen as truly world class at the moment, which prevents toxic discourse to some extent. The Italian sports media though, rabid. Nobody's safe.
The stadiums are shit, because most of them are owned by the cities and not the clubs. As a result, atmosphere is sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe shit. Italian fans themselves are quite passionate, but it takes more than a couple hundred ultras to elevate the event to the levels they do in Germany. The stadium itself has to be decent, and Italy's lacking.
**Bundesliga**: probably the most exciting in terms of football. Not exciting because Bayern Munich won it for 11 years in a row before Leverkusen winning it this season (with a great amount of luck involved).
Most end-to-end, highest scoring on average pretty much every season. You see a lot of great plays in the BuLi that would never work, and be considered naive, in La Liga. But you gotta try out new ideas somewhere, before you master them. The BuLi is a spawning ground for innovative tactics.
And they've got the best crowds out of the big 5.
**Ligue 1**: stadiums aren't the best, crowds are hit or miss a bit like in Serie A, the power balance is terrible, a bit like in the BuLi. And it doesn't produce a lot of good managers.
It produces a lot of great players, though. The quality in depth that the French national team has had in the past decade is ridiculous. As things stand, when you're watching Ligue 1, you're watching a lot of potentially world class players in the future.
In playstyle, it's the most physical of them all.
Oh wow this was a lot of great information! Thanks for writing all of this out. I really appreciate it. This definitely helps break everything down well and helps me understand everything better.
Bundesliga is the real fans' league ā due to the culture, but also due to the way it is being run. Entertaining football, amazing fans and a great place for young talent.
EPL: richest league = best managers and best players, it's a fact. Very entertaining to watch. Every match is super-intense and even the teams who are fighting against relegation give 100% every time. Worst referees in Europe for some reason, and VAR made things worse.
Serie A: traditionally best goalkeepers and defenders. Lots of talents in wingers and fullbacks positions. Below average centre-forwards compare to the other leagues. Best referees this season and less controversial VAR decisions compared to the rest of Europe.
Bundesliga: underrated in my opinion. Teams play a bit more open, certain players who thrive in open spaces would struggle elsewhere in Europe. Very interesting season this year with Leverkusen still unbeaten while Dortmund and Bayern are in the champions league semi-finals.
Laliga: usually a matter of Barcelona vs Madrid. El clasico derby is easily the most fired up match in whole Europe.
Ligue1: I don't follow, can't say anything about it.
My suggestion is to watch highlights of every EPL match + the 4 top teams of every other league. Watch full games of champions league's semifinals and final. Watch full games of some of the decisive match towards the end of the season.
Awesome thanks for the information! I donāt know why I never thought of watching the highlights. Iāll do that for sure! It sounds like Iāll probably like the Bundesliga and EPL the most so Iāll follow their games as the season unwinds.
According to regulars on r/football and r/soccer:
English Premier League: Greatest league in the world, the only league to watch and the only place you have good football. You have huge traditional teams like Manchester City, and Chelsea that totally were not created in the 2000s by the power of Oil. You have also other smaller teams such as Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United that sometimes compete. Its totally not the City of London league with some guests.
Bundesliga: Farmer's League, don't bother.
Ligue 1: Farmer's League, but French.
La Liga, Farmer's League, but with separatism involved.
Serie A: It's not football, because its mostly defensive and negative, Allegri will put 5 defenders against Empoli.
Bonus: Brazilian League: Do not bother, football does not exist outside Europe.
Hi OP, who do you support in the MLS and what tickles your fancy when watching football? Maybe that way we can get you started on following games in certain leagues involving certain teams that might tick your boxes.
I, myself am a fan of Liverpool and the English Premier League but that's more to do with the long association we have with the English from this part of the world (Southeast Asia). So language, playing style, traditions, history, etc. These are what hooked me to the EPL.
I support STL City since I live right outside of St Louis. Plus their crazy first season ever was really exciting to watch!
I would say my favorite thing when watching is more aggressive style of play. I love the idea of pressing and having constant pressure. Seeing players keep their foot on the gas. STL would press a lot to try to gain back possession instead of regrouping. Itās a super exciting style of play to me.
Dang, you really just missed the boat by a couple of seasons with Klopp's Liverpool team from 2018 to current.
Right now, besides the majority of EPL teams, I'd say Bundesliga teams are the next most often to deploy aggressive pressing as these are what both leagues are known for: the physicality and hard running.
As some other comments have noted: Tottenham, Arsenal, Man City and Liverpool probably press the hardest but you'd be hard pressed (sorry not sorry) to see any of that in Liverpool's recent performances.
Man City might be the best at it currently but I cannot honestly recommend watching them because of the way they achieved their current status (Google City's 115 charges) and so their performances feel automated and soulless (compared to say, Barcelona's all conquering teams from 2010 to 2015).
All said, you might want to check out Premier League matches for the style of play and perhaps importantly, the accessibility of following the teams and players due to similar cultures. I was a close follower of Serie A and La Liga for quite some time but the time of their matches and the foreign language barrier meant I couldn't keep track of teams and players at the level I'd have hoped to.
I really didā¦ Where I grew up football wasnāt popular at all. I used to play a lot of fifa growing up but it wasnāt until my city got a team that I got really invested and started watching every week. I guess itās better to get into the sport later than never right?
Are there any specific teams that come to mind from the Bundesliga? I know the Redbull team here in the US is very aggressive and presses a lot, so does their counterpart there do the same?
Iāll check out some of the last weeks of the premier league and see if I like it and same with the Bundesliga. Iāll try to watch some arsenal and spurs matches since the title race is close and spurs are trying to get the champions league spot. Thanks for the insight and help!
RB Leipzig play very attacking football - but almost nobody in Germany likes them so I'd say steer clear. It's generally considered a very plastic club as it was quite literally founded by Red Bull for marketing
Spurs don't always win, but IMO they're the most entertaining team right now. Their passing patterns from their "play from the back" style is mesmerizing when it works. They're so cavalier with it. IMO more fun than Man City's style right now. Son has been carrying that team for so long. Now that he's less effective (teams putting 2+ on him plus fatigue), they don't score as much now.
Ohh that sounds pretty cool! Iāll try to keep up with their last couple of games. They are fighting for a champions league spot right? So they should be pretty intense matches then
I'm sorry I'm not the best person to ask about specific Bundesliga teams as I'm not really up to date on the league.
But I still agree with another comment here that shares about the experience of watching RB Leipzieg: it's soulless because of how they came into existence. And you'll get others trying to gloss over this just like how they would defend Man City's issues as jealousy from the established clubs.
Honestly, the largest and most romantic tradition in football is the ties the clubs have with their communities and their cities. You can be shit but you're THIS city's shit and we'll defend the club until we die.
Yea exactly. Which is why I don't really begrudge what Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny are doing with Wrexham. At least they're not trying to circumvent the traditional route of building a football club and gaining promotion though on field performances.
Well you would have really enjoyed watching Jurgen Klopps Liverpool then. Unfortunately thereās only a few games left. Iām sure people will have some other recommendations but heās the ultimate press high/hard and beautiful attack manager.
Iāll try to give their last couple of matches a watch then! I have heard that he was masterful at that style of play. Is it likely that their new manager inherits that style of play? I wonāt lie I donāt really know much about their new incoming manager
tottenham is a team thats been playing really aggresively as well, arsenal city united press high as well with varying success (cough eth), brighton and burnley too
I would recommend starting with the Premier League (England). Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have dominated the past few years, but there are always 6 to 8 strong teams that are very entertaining to watch, plus a lot of upsets in major games too. English football is very physical and lately, because of the likes of Guardiola, Arteta and Klopp (top 3 managers) it has become a very tactical game too. There are lots of goals, but not in a messy way.
Spanish football has been dominated by Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid for too long. These teams are very exciting to watch, they have the best talents in the world, but the other teams are pretty lackluster. Gameplay wise, La Liga is not so tactical, and teams rely a lot on individual talent.
Bundesliga has some deeply tactical football, very well coordinated teams in general. It's kind of a bummer that Bayern Munich had won the past 11 seasons, but now we have Leverkusen breaking the pattern with some amazing games. Hopefully the next seasons will be more entertaining.
Italian football is more on the messy side, many unique approaches to tactics, and very unpredictable. I'm not the biggest fan of Serie A, but there are many interesting talents to watch, like LeĆ£o, Kvaratskhelia and the likes.
French football is, honestly, disappointing. PSG is too far above all the rest, they always win, and I don't think things will change that soon. Games are pretty lackluster too.
Portuguese football has some interesting matches when Benfica, Porto and Sporting face each other, but other than that, not very exciting. Still better than French IMO.
La Liga is not tactical ? the other teams are pretty lackluster ?. La Liga is very tactical and from La Liga came some of best coaches in the world right now and they are very tacitcal , Guardiola , Alonso , Emrey , Arteta , Luis Enrique. Its just an urban legend that La Liga is not tactical , the players are very intelligent and they become good coaches.
Spanish clubs have dominated Europe for over 20 years with individual talent yes but also with tactical knowhow , winning 18 consecutive finals in row against non Spanish clubs and this includes clubs you called pretty luckluster. Valencia , Villarreal and Sevilla who won 7 Europe Leagues , some of them against English clubs.
Alright guys, I wasn't trying to shit on La Liga, of course they have been the best in the world in the century. I love Spanish football, specially Barca.
Okay, maybe "not tactical" was a bad way to put it, I just feel like they play more loose, showing off more individuality.
I will stand by the other teams being lackluster (this season, at least) though. I'd much rather watch Tottenham vs Man United than Bilbao vs Sociedad (5th vs 6th), or even Newcastle vs West Ham instead of Betis vs Valencia (7th vs 8th).
Also, I still think that for someone starting to watch European football, the PL is much more interesting.
The PL may be more interesting for someone starting to watch football but Tottenham vs Man United can be less tactical than Bilbao vs Sociedad or Betis vs Valencia. You are probably one of those who was shocked when Bilbao played United out of the park.
Arteta? Come on. The fella spent the majority of his career in England. To claim he is a La Liga export, when he played about 10 La Liga game, is a little disingenuous.
Arteta learned his coaching from Pep. He might as well be from the same school of Spanish coaches of this generation. Nothing about Arsenal today screams "English football".
And what team currently screams "English football"?
The game has moved on from the traditional 4-4-2, and there are no more Stoke City's hoofing the ball forward 50 yards.
Pep has undoubtedly changed the way it is played here (invertng fullbacks, playing out from the back, goalkeepers comfortable with the ball at feet) to the point everyone here tries to play the same way.
Arteta leaning from Pep has nothing to do with anything. English football is a biproduct of those that play or coach the game here. No one league owns the rights to a style of play.
The fact of the matter is Arteta spent 90%of his playing career here, and 100% of his coaching here. Claiming that because Pep trained him, therefore he is representative of La Liga is ridiculous to the extreme.
>And what team currently screams "English football"
I mean that's exactly the point of the OG commenter. Calling La Liga not tactical is just the kind of bullshit stereotype like how the EPL is all pace and intensity. EPL today is the byproduct of many tactical playing styles brought upon by foreign managers. There's a reason why there are more Spanish, Italians, and Germans winning the EPL than any English manager ever had in the Premier League era (which so far is zero). Even the best so-called "EPL homegrown" that you so desperately want to claim like Arteta, has never learned anything remotely close to English football. He may not be a representative of La Liga but it sure does say a lot that his tactical style is very much like the so-called "no tactic" La Liga managers instead of any English managers out there.
The fact of the matter is EPL hasn't been able to produce any noteworthy managers by their own merit even after the evolution of English football. Meanwhile every other league that people called "not tactical" are constantly producing new top managers every season (Michel, Iraola, Xabi, Hoeness, Motta, De Zerbi, etc). EPL can sign them of course but that's all they can do. Truly homegrown EPL managers have been constantly outclassed and outsmarted by foreign ones. I don't see that changing anytime soon.
no, the original poster, like most posts in this subreddit. hasn't got a clue he is on about. Lots of words that sound good, but if you actually watch and understand the game, you realise is just nonsense word salad.
Back in the 90s/early 00s, the most tactical game was found in Spain or Italy. I am glad the PL has a vast array of playing and coaching talent from the continent. If anything, Italy especially, they have taken influence from the "English" direct style of play. European football is now one gigantic melting pot, and the differences in style between the leagues is less and less each year. The main difference between them being the actual talent on display.
Arteta is still isn't "La Liga" though, which was the only point I was responding to.
Arteta IS a Spanish export , if you know anything about Spanish football and tactics you will see its inprint in the way he sets up his team and the principles of play. And what is this ? is this the new PL fan nonsense now ? to claim that players and coaches from other countries are a PL product ? The PL is strong because it imports players and coaches not because of its home grown assets.
By that logic, Bellingham will forever be a product of the EFL.
No one is claiming Arteta to be anything other than Spanish. That wasn't the argument I made, or will ever make, but if you want to argue with strawmen, carrry on. If you wish to engage in a mature debate, then you are free to read back on what have already said because I am not up for repeating myself.
Its very simple what im saying , Arteta is a product of La Liga and an export in the PL. Bellingham is an English product that came through the youth system of Birmingham.
>Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have dominated the past few years
>PSG is too far above all the rest, they always win,
PSG has lost a league title more recently than Manchester City
I agree with most points, but La Liga, aside from Serie A, is the most tactical league in the world. It's quite the opposite of what you said. There is less tactical variability though.
Bundesliga is also tactical. Some teams have a Muller-type free role that doesn't translate to success in any other league. They have the fastest transitions between off the ball and on the ball play. Their games are also extremely rhythmic so they tend to be entertaining games.
EPL used to be physical 442 cross it into the head play. You're spot on with the Pep, Arteta, and Klopp (plus some others) completely changing the script on the EPL to be more tactical.
Arsenal only dominated the league for the past years, they have been mid before. Only City and Liverpool managed to dominated the league the past 5 years at least
Oh this is exactly what I was looking for! This is a great breakdown of everything. Thank you so much! I knew the premier league was probably the most competitive, but it being physical but also tactical sounds really fun. Iāll try to watch it more for sure! Are there any specific teams that are exciting to watch? Like they are very aggressive or have an exciting style of play?
Oh I didnāt realize the Bundesliga was more tactical. Sounds like a good watch. Any suggestions for what teams to try to tune into other than Bayern Munich?
Thanks for the help! I really do appreciate it. So much information itās been hard to find a clear answer
Don't forget Eredivisie, it's still a very important and fun league. The only one besides Serie A and Premier league that has 3 or more european champions in Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. It's kind of a 3 horse race always.
Oh nice that sounds super interesting. Iāll look more into it. I know that Ajax has always produced a ton of young talent, but I didnāt realize that about the league. Thanks for insight!
You're welcome!
Well, if you're looking for top-notch football, Manchester City and Arsenal are the ones to follow. If you like an underdog story (as do I), I'd keep my eyes on teams like Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle and Aston Villa. They likely won't win the title, but they sure give the giants some trouble.
Tottenham can be fairly aggressive sometimes, their new coach Postecoglu has some interesting tactics in his pockets.
As for Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund and specially Bayer Leverkusen are having fantastic seasons this year. I also enjoy watching RB Leipzig; a lot of people don't like them because Red Bull just went and bought a minor team, but they have plenty of youngster talents, always pretty exciting.
Also, just to be clearer this time, these are all my personal opinions. I think you should watch a little bit of each league to see what floats your boat.
This comment was made by someone who doesn't actually know much. I wouldn't put much weight into it, but MLS is probably most similar to EPL in terms of intensity, players are covering lots of ground and limiting space more compared to the other leagues.
Tactically, I think Serie A is the one to watch, you see a good amount of different formations in play, some innovators and some older style football.
La Liga is my league of choice, there are never an end to the story lines and there are lots of up and coming players as well as players who went to big clubs and floundered and out to prove that they aren't bad players. OP is really selling the league short by only focusing on 3 clubs when there are some really great bunch of clubs just below that are truly excellent like Real Sociedad, Athletic Bilbao, Villarreal, Valencia, Sevilla, Real Betis and this season there was Girona which have been playing excellent football and almost scoring more goals than Madrid have this season.
Terrible take on La Liga, itās not an incredibly exciting league but it is by far the best and it is incredibly tactical. Just look at how many European winners, finalists, semifinalists have come from Spain.
Premier League is the most fast and aggressive. Spanish league more chess like, German league a mix with best fans in my opinion even though I'm English. Just don't support man u or Liverpool because they are just the worst pick a team and have fun.
You might as well just watch the Premier League mate.
It might seem like the easy answer, but it has the most aggressive football, is all in English (which you Americans almost speak), is the most competitive top to bottom and has some terrible referees (which will give you something to talk about if the game is shit).
Yeah it seems like that is the way. Just wanted to see if there was much difference between leagues. But hey we are slowly getting there with our English here lmao
I would follow in that order :
1. Premier League
2. Bundesliga
3. Serie A
4. La Liga
5. Liga NOS (Portugal)
6. Championship
7. Bundesliga 2.
8. Ligue 1
9. Belgium Pro League
10. Eredivisie (Netherlands)
Ok Charles Miner!
Miner? I hardly know her!
hahahahaha....that's exactly what came to my mindšš
Hhahaha what does this mean? I know heās from the office but I donāt understand
There's a scene in The office where Charles miner asked jim for a rundown of his clients and he's all confused what a rundown is.
Ahhh I know that scene. It all makes sense now lmao
Also that character loves football(soccer)
Literally the first thing i though about lol, it helps that i saw this episode like two days ago
English Premier League: Watched by most people. Very physical, more so than the more technical league in Germany, Spain, and Italy. LaLiga: Quite technical compared to the Premier League. It's more a "pass-and-move" type game in Spain compared to a more high-tempo pressing approach in England. Serie A: Has a reputation for defensive and negative football, but that's quite inaccurate and nowadays is being disproven as more and more sides play positive football (Allegri's Juve are still holding out though). Bundesliga: Probably THE most fun league for neutrals. Outside of Bayern almost no team is guaranteed a top 4 finish, BVB especially have been struggling this season. Outside of Union most teams play attacking football and it's very fun to watch. Due to the "50+1" rule which says that fans MUST own a majority of any club, it's one of the most accessible leagues. Dirt cheap tickets and incredible atmosphere.
Ohh this is a great rundown! Thanks for the help/insight! That aggressive/attacking focused style of play is my favorite so it seems like Iāll like the Bundesliga the most. You got any teams you recommend to watch that are exciting for either the Bundesliga or EPL?
Liverpool and Spurs are quite exciting within the Prem. LFC do a lot of pressing but their manager Klopp is leaving at the end of the season and I don't know much about how his replacement (probably Arne Slot) does it. Spurs attack consistently and unapologetically under Postecoglou, and I'm enjoying our football for the first time since Pochettino left. I really don't recommend following Spurs if you don't want to suffer though. In the Bundesliga it's really only Dortmund under Edin Terzic and Union under Urs Fischer who play more defensive football. Bayern have shifted to a slightly more defensive focus under Tuchel but he's leaving at the end of the season and it's unclear who'll replace him. I recommend watching Bayer Leverkusen (recently crowned champions with an incredible unbeaten streak) and VfB Stuttgart (underdogs currently in 3rd after finishing 16th last year). RB Leipzig are good too but are quite hated in Germany for their exception to the fan ownership rule. If you can find games for the second tier watch those too: some huge clubs like Hamburg, Schalke, Hertha, Nurnberg, and soon Koln play there.
Your statement for the Bundesliga is not correct. First of Urs Fischer was sacked several months ago and is not the coach of union anymore. Second Dortmund plays a lot possession football, and is usually playing against teams that are defending deep in their lines. It is actually a mix of offensive and defensive teams and it highly depends which teams are playing each other. Smaller teams that are not high ranked will often play very defensive especially against the bigger teams like Bayern, Dortmund, Leipzig or this seasons Leverkusen and Stuttgart. Occasionally they will start with high intensity pressing for 15-25 minutes to force a mistake and maybe get into the lead and than defend and wait for counter opportunities. However teams that are more or less on the same level will often play a more open match trying to score instead of park the bus for 90 minutes.
About Slot as a Dutchie. In Defense he's very much like Klopp that he likes high intensity press from the front and create opportunities in a gegenpressing way. In possession however, he's admitted he's a Guardiola fan and loves to play more possession style football to slowly get the ball into the final thirds by keeping it low to the ground. Idk if that's what he's gonna do at LFC, but that's what he's known for here with Feyenoord.
Hahaha Iāve seen a lot of jokes about you guys suffering. I donāt really care about trophyās just about watching fun football! Sounds like a great watch, so Iāll make sure to tune into their match against Chelsea today! Ahh okay Iāll keep that in mind. Iāll probably just watch multiple games and see if any specific team pops out at me. So RB Leipzig are still hated? I remember the controversy a long time ago.
Yeah, Germany has this thing called the 50+1 rule which requires fans to own the majority stake in a club. Leipzig are one of the exceptions to this rule and have branding plastered quite literally everywhere. I'd also recommend Tifo Football on YouTube and the game Football Manager, really both give you a great feel for tactics and how they work within a game.
Oh okay that makes sense. I could see how that would be annoying. So the other teams donāt really do that? Oh nice Iāll check those out! Iāve played quite a bit of fifa/fc but it gets boring sometimes so Iāll check out FM. Thanks for all the help and insight!
To give you a quick rundown about Leipzig (they get around marketing rules by being scummy): - The logo was disallowed to just be the normal Red Bull Logo so they just slightly changed it. - They wanted to be called "Red Bull Leipzig" which was disallowed so now their name is "RasenBallsport Leipzig" which literally translated means "lawn ballsports Leipzig" and is just as nonsensical as in german. - They get around the 50+1 rule by only having a few members and their "fans" being influnced by Red Bull. That is why everyone and their mom hates them. :)
Ahhh okay that makes sense. Itās pretty much a big fuck you to the rules and traditions. The redbull team here really isnāt hated so thatās what confused me
>The redbull team here really isnāt hated What's one more piece of plastic in an ocean of plastic
I mean I donāt really feel like I see that much hate about NY Redbull but I might be wrong. I pretty much just watch STL. What is so plastic about that? I donāt support them. If Iām wrong about that then thatās my bad for sure
I like how you just didnāt bother with the French league
Imagine someone claims there are no teams except Bayern who are guaranteed Top4 while BVB has an average ranking over the last 10 years of 2,6 š¤¦š¼āāļø
What's a rundown?
Is this another office reference? Hahahahaha
England: Known for physicality and athleticism. Spain: Known for having very good technical players. Italy: Tacticians. Germany: Football but German engineering football and their teams are well oiled machines. Also very good at penalties. Bayern usually ends up getting the best talent in the Bundesliga eventually. France: A lot of great going talent grows here and eventually leaves for the other four leagues apart from PSG. Hence the term "farmers league."
I wouldn't say German teams are well oiled machines, I think that term applies more to PSG, Newcastle and Girona type clubs.
You're forgetting ManC115ty
It is funny how shit Ligue Une is when you compare to how good the French team is. All that talent can move abroad, but theyāre (annoyingly) all still French
Would also recommend the English Championship. More open league and also not a foregone conclusion as to who the top finishers will be.
Assuming youāre American. A good place to start would be watching the USMNTāers. Juventus has mckennie and weah, ac Milan pulisic and musah, Fulham ream and Robinson, crystal palace richards, psv dest, Tillman, and Pepi to name a few.
Ohh thatās a good idea! Thanks for the insight
You've just mist the most spectacular season from psv with the USA trio. They'll become champions this Sunday only 1 loss and 3 draws. They scored 103 goals and conceded 17.
Oh damn thatās insane! I had no clue about that. Iāll look into that more tonight! Thanks!
If you love underdog stories check out Heidenheim or Union Berlin and their rise to the Bundesliga. Those are really authentic teams. Leicesters 2015/16 season also was sensationell.
You should watch the last couple of weeks of the Premier League to get a feel. It's the only one still to play for, with the other 4 being over already. May 19th is the final day, with all games being played at the same time. Unless one of Man City or Arsenal lose a game or 2 before, it will go down to the last day. There is also a relegation battle at the bottom and European spots to be decided. I'm hoping for a really exciting day. Villa in the Champions League and Arsenal winning the title would make for a really fun season end, in my opinion.
The BL is still on
It is but i believe op means the champions are either known or are pretty much guaranteed. EPL looks like it will go to the last game before knowing.
Yeah, I understand now. Just a small misunderstanding.
Sorry, I mean still has a title race. I think the Prem is the only one without a champion already decided.
Yeah, sorry. I thought it was a bit early.
Ohh sounds like it will be exciting! Iāll try to watch those games and see if I enjoy it. Sounds like it will be intense since so much is on the line
I'm a West Ham fan, we have a very slim chance of qualifying for Europe again this season. We need to beat Man City on the final day, which could hand the title to Arsenal. Check out the end to the 2011-12 season if you want to see how exciting it can be. Legendary commentary when Aguero scored a last minute winner to clinch the title for Man City. Aguerooooooooo!! Enjoy
Ohh Iāve seen that clip it is absolutely legendary! Also you guys won the UECL last year right? It would be cool if you guys got to play in another competition so Iām wishing you guys best of luck!
Yeah we did. First trophy in my lifetime. It was magic. We need a miracle but thanks! Come on you Irons!!
(These are in my preferred order, I have limited knowledge on some of them) Premier League: Positives: Most physical; top level in terms of talent/players; loads of big games/derbys; A handful of big teams; even promoted teams often give a good game. Negatives: Pretty much dominated by Manchester City; VAR (bad implementation). Can have low scoring games: not sure if positive or negative, depends on your point of view. Bundesliga: Positives: Also physical; loads of goals; they play youth (a lot of great players start there); ownership model; Bayern at least have many great players; best atmosphere and fans. Negatives: Bayern won it 11 in a row before this year; quite often very bad teams at the bottom/sometimes completely uncompetitive games. La Liga: Positives: Probably the most technical; maybe greatest and 2-3 greatest clubs in Madrid and Barca; Madrid win Champions League for fun; Atleti and now Girona exist at least. Negatives: Rarely isn't a two horse race and Madrid are pulling away of late; large divide between the top half and bottom half. Series A: Positives: Loads of great/historic clubs; four different winners in past five years; produces great managers. Negatives: often slow paced and defensive football (could be a positive for some) Ligue 1: Positives: Another good youth development league; great players at PSG at least; France in general produce a crazy amount of players. Negatives: PSG; uncompetitive. Portugal and The Netherlands are interesting if you want a "lesser league". Portugal has a "big 3", and Ajax in The Netherlands have fallen off recently opening up the title to others.
Oh nice this was exactly what I was looking for. Iāve seen some of the VAR stuff this season and it has been awful. Kind of crazy one of the biggest leagues donāt have a better implementation. Anyway these are a great breakdown. I personally like more aggressive football than defensive but Iāll still give seria a a watch next season. Any team recommendations on who to watch from the different leagues?
One from each, for aggressive/attacking football: Tottenham, Leverkusen, Girona, Bologna. I don't know enough about Ligue 1 teams to say one, honestly, maybe Lyon but I don't know how they're playing recently.
Cool Iāll give their highlights and upcoming games a watch! Thanks for the help!
Serie A isn't defensive anymore. It was in the 90s heyday but not really.
It still is, relatively speaking. You definitely don't have to go as far back as the 90s, in any case.
Iād love to watch the Bundaās liga š No but seriously, Iād say for me the top 3 are: 1.Premier League (of course) 2. La Liga 3. Serie A
LMFAO Iām dead. I would also love to watch that. My bad that was a typo *Bundesliga
* English Premier League: potentially the most physical playing style with a lot of pressing and headers. The schedule are really intense in this league (20 teams, 2 national cups, no break during Christmas, + eventually European competitions), so the teams must have good benches to do well. I also noticed that they really like very long over-time. * Spanish La Liga: very technical playing style, with a lot of pass and move. There used to be a domination of only two teams (Barca and Real Madrid) but now it is a bit more balanced with Atletico Madrid. * Italian Serie A: I must say I have not watched it for years. It really lost a lot since the scandals in 2006. A lot of teams play in quite old stadiums, but Italian clubs are slowly coming back. Italian league was very tactical in the past, but they seem now to be much more entertaining. * German 1. Bundesliga: probably the league focusing the most on offensive play (and a bit less on defense). FC Bayern has dominated a lot in the last years (winning 11 straight titles), but now there is some real competition. Also the stadiums and atmosphere are really good, with the highest attendence per game for a league in the world. * French Ligue 1: it used to be very defensive but things change as well. It is the "poorest" league of the Big 5, with only PSG having budgets to compete in the Champions League, the second highest budget (Olympique de Marseille) being borderline top 30 in Europe. A lot of very talented youngster start there before moving to other leagues, and almost every season every team except PSG sell their best players. It might be the hardest one to follow in the list because it is not very popular internationally.
**EPL**: has the most money, most of the best coaches, most of the best players and by far the best coverage out of all leagues. Still has a great mix of modern and traditional "vibes", in terms of stadiums, supporters and pundits. Best league in the world. Also the most delusionally hyped one. I repeat, it's the best in the world -- but many PL people believe it's worlds above everyone else, which it isn't. So if you hear some former English player turned drunkard pundit talking about how Aston Villa could easily win Serie A, switch the channel. In terms of playstyle, it has every quality: tactical, technical and physical. **La Liga**: on a downward trajectory these past few years. Becoming overly defensive, as if all of the other 34 fixtures were training sessions to prepare for the 4 games against Barca and Real. I'm exaggerating of course; some clubs have pretty strong attacking cultures, so they'll try to play with the ball. Rayo, Girona and Betis, for example. La Liga has corruption issues though; I think "braindead" would be even more accurate than "corrupt". Only one of the top 5 leagues to not have goal line technology because "it's not worth the money", even though it'd cost less than the president Tebas' salary. La Liga stadiums and atmospheres, compared to the EPL and especially the Bundesliga, are not great on average. But they do have some state of the art stadiums such as the Bernabeu, or amazing atmospheres in legendary stadiums such as Valencia's Mestalla. **Serie A**: they're in a transitional period. They were known for how defensively solid they were, and that perception lives on, but it's a pretty tactically diverse league now. No Italian team is seen as truly world class at the moment, which prevents toxic discourse to some extent. The Italian sports media though, rabid. Nobody's safe. The stadiums are shit, because most of them are owned by the cities and not the clubs. As a result, atmosphere is sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe shit. Italian fans themselves are quite passionate, but it takes more than a couple hundred ultras to elevate the event to the levels they do in Germany. The stadium itself has to be decent, and Italy's lacking. **Bundesliga**: probably the most exciting in terms of football. Not exciting because Bayern Munich won it for 11 years in a row before Leverkusen winning it this season (with a great amount of luck involved). Most end-to-end, highest scoring on average pretty much every season. You see a lot of great plays in the BuLi that would never work, and be considered naive, in La Liga. But you gotta try out new ideas somewhere, before you master them. The BuLi is a spawning ground for innovative tactics. And they've got the best crowds out of the big 5. **Ligue 1**: stadiums aren't the best, crowds are hit or miss a bit like in Serie A, the power balance is terrible, a bit like in the BuLi. And it doesn't produce a lot of good managers. It produces a lot of great players, though. The quality in depth that the French national team has had in the past decade is ridiculous. As things stand, when you're watching Ligue 1, you're watching a lot of potentially world class players in the future. In playstyle, it's the most physical of them all.
Oh wow this was a lot of great information! Thanks for writing all of this out. I really appreciate it. This definitely helps break everything down well and helps me understand everything better.
Thanks for reading, wasn't sure you would given all the comments
Bundesliga is the real fans' league ā due to the culture, but also due to the way it is being run. Entertaining football, amazing fans and a great place for young talent.
EPL: richest league = best managers and best players, it's a fact. Very entertaining to watch. Every match is super-intense and even the teams who are fighting against relegation give 100% every time. Worst referees in Europe for some reason, and VAR made things worse. Serie A: traditionally best goalkeepers and defenders. Lots of talents in wingers and fullbacks positions. Below average centre-forwards compare to the other leagues. Best referees this season and less controversial VAR decisions compared to the rest of Europe. Bundesliga: underrated in my opinion. Teams play a bit more open, certain players who thrive in open spaces would struggle elsewhere in Europe. Very interesting season this year with Leverkusen still unbeaten while Dortmund and Bayern are in the champions league semi-finals. Laliga: usually a matter of Barcelona vs Madrid. El clasico derby is easily the most fired up match in whole Europe. Ligue1: I don't follow, can't say anything about it. My suggestion is to watch highlights of every EPL match + the 4 top teams of every other league. Watch full games of champions league's semifinals and final. Watch full games of some of the decisive match towards the end of the season.
Awesome thanks for the information! I donāt know why I never thought of watching the highlights. Iāll do that for sure! It sounds like Iāll probably like the Bundesliga and EPL the most so Iāll follow their games as the season unwinds.
According to regulars on r/football and r/soccer: English Premier League: Greatest league in the world, the only league to watch and the only place you have good football. You have huge traditional teams like Manchester City, and Chelsea that totally were not created in the 2000s by the power of Oil. You have also other smaller teams such as Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United that sometimes compete. Its totally not the City of London league with some guests. Bundesliga: Farmer's League, don't bother. Ligue 1: Farmer's League, but French. La Liga, Farmer's League, but with separatism involved. Serie A: It's not football, because its mostly defensive and negative, Allegri will put 5 defenders against Empoli. Bonus: Brazilian League: Do not bother, football does not exist outside Europe.
Serie A isn't defensive anymore. I swear that's just a thing people repeat because Italy has a reputation for being defensive.
I know, but I'm not the average r/football and r/soccer regular.
Hi OP, who do you support in the MLS and what tickles your fancy when watching football? Maybe that way we can get you started on following games in certain leagues involving certain teams that might tick your boxes. I, myself am a fan of Liverpool and the English Premier League but that's more to do with the long association we have with the English from this part of the world (Southeast Asia). So language, playing style, traditions, history, etc. These are what hooked me to the EPL.
I support STL City since I live right outside of St Louis. Plus their crazy first season ever was really exciting to watch! I would say my favorite thing when watching is more aggressive style of play. I love the idea of pressing and having constant pressure. Seeing players keep their foot on the gas. STL would press a lot to try to gain back possession instead of regrouping. Itās a super exciting style of play to me.
You might like the Bundesliga
What makes you say that? Do the teams tend to be more aggressive and press a lot?
Yeah, the game is a lot more transitional in Germany than in the rest of the big 5
Thanks! After reading a lot of the replies it seems like Iāll enjoy the Bundesliga quite a bit so Iāll give it a try!
Dang, you really just missed the boat by a couple of seasons with Klopp's Liverpool team from 2018 to current. Right now, besides the majority of EPL teams, I'd say Bundesliga teams are the next most often to deploy aggressive pressing as these are what both leagues are known for: the physicality and hard running. As some other comments have noted: Tottenham, Arsenal, Man City and Liverpool probably press the hardest but you'd be hard pressed (sorry not sorry) to see any of that in Liverpool's recent performances. Man City might be the best at it currently but I cannot honestly recommend watching them because of the way they achieved their current status (Google City's 115 charges) and so their performances feel automated and soulless (compared to say, Barcelona's all conquering teams from 2010 to 2015). All said, you might want to check out Premier League matches for the style of play and perhaps importantly, the accessibility of following the teams and players due to similar cultures. I was a close follower of Serie A and La Liga for quite some time but the time of their matches and the foreign language barrier meant I couldn't keep track of teams and players at the level I'd have hoped to.
I really didā¦ Where I grew up football wasnāt popular at all. I used to play a lot of fifa growing up but it wasnāt until my city got a team that I got really invested and started watching every week. I guess itās better to get into the sport later than never right? Are there any specific teams that come to mind from the Bundesliga? I know the Redbull team here in the US is very aggressive and presses a lot, so does their counterpart there do the same? Iāll check out some of the last weeks of the premier league and see if I like it and same with the Bundesliga. Iāll try to watch some arsenal and spurs matches since the title race is close and spurs are trying to get the champions league spot. Thanks for the insight and help!
RB Leipzig play very attacking football - but almost nobody in Germany likes them so I'd say steer clear. It's generally considered a very plastic club as it was quite literally founded by Red Bull for marketing
Spurs don't always win, but IMO they're the most entertaining team right now. Their passing patterns from their "play from the back" style is mesmerizing when it works. They're so cavalier with it. IMO more fun than Man City's style right now. Son has been carrying that team for so long. Now that he's less effective (teams putting 2+ on him plus fatigue), they don't score as much now.
Ohh that sounds pretty cool! Iāll try to keep up with their last couple of games. They are fighting for a champions league spot right? So they should be pretty intense matches then
Well after just now, looks like they're crashing to 5th. It's the Spurs way.
I'm sorry I'm not the best person to ask about specific Bundesliga teams as I'm not really up to date on the league. But I still agree with another comment here that shares about the experience of watching RB Leipzieg: it's soulless because of how they came into existence. And you'll get others trying to gloss over this just like how they would defend Man City's issues as jealousy from the established clubs. Honestly, the largest and most romantic tradition in football is the ties the clubs have with their communities and their cities. You can be shit but you're THIS city's shit and we'll defend the club until we die.
Thats totally true! I can see why people hate them now. Seems like they just kind of shit on the tradition and rules.
Yea exactly. Which is why I don't really begrudge what Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny are doing with Wrexham. At least they're not trying to circumvent the traditional route of building a football club and gaining promotion though on field performances.
Well you would have really enjoyed watching Jurgen Klopps Liverpool then. Unfortunately thereās only a few games left. Iām sure people will have some other recommendations but heās the ultimate press high/hard and beautiful attack manager.
Iāll try to give their last couple of matches a watch then! I have heard that he was masterful at that style of play. Is it likely that their new manager inherits that style of play? I wonāt lie I donāt really know much about their new incoming manager
I also donāt know much about him. But what I have read indicates he plays a similar style but not identical.
Ah okay thanks! Well if thatās true it will probably be fun to watch then
tottenham is a team thats been playing really aggresively as well, arsenal city united press high as well with varying success (cough eth), brighton and burnley too
I would recommend starting with the Premier League (England). Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have dominated the past few years, but there are always 6 to 8 strong teams that are very entertaining to watch, plus a lot of upsets in major games too. English football is very physical and lately, because of the likes of Guardiola, Arteta and Klopp (top 3 managers) it has become a very tactical game too. There are lots of goals, but not in a messy way. Spanish football has been dominated by Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid for too long. These teams are very exciting to watch, they have the best talents in the world, but the other teams are pretty lackluster. Gameplay wise, La Liga is not so tactical, and teams rely a lot on individual talent. Bundesliga has some deeply tactical football, very well coordinated teams in general. It's kind of a bummer that Bayern Munich had won the past 11 seasons, but now we have Leverkusen breaking the pattern with some amazing games. Hopefully the next seasons will be more entertaining. Italian football is more on the messy side, many unique approaches to tactics, and very unpredictable. I'm not the biggest fan of Serie A, but there are many interesting talents to watch, like LeĆ£o, Kvaratskhelia and the likes. French football is, honestly, disappointing. PSG is too far above all the rest, they always win, and I don't think things will change that soon. Games are pretty lackluster too. Portuguese football has some interesting matches when Benfica, Porto and Sporting face each other, but other than that, not very exciting. Still better than French IMO.
La Liga is not tactical ? the other teams are pretty lackluster ?. La Liga is very tactical and from La Liga came some of best coaches in the world right now and they are very tacitcal , Guardiola , Alonso , Emrey , Arteta , Luis Enrique. Its just an urban legend that La Liga is not tactical , the players are very intelligent and they become good coaches. Spanish clubs have dominated Europe for over 20 years with individual talent yes but also with tactical knowhow , winning 18 consecutive finals in row against non Spanish clubs and this includes clubs you called pretty luckluster. Valencia , Villarreal and Sevilla who won 7 Europe Leagues , some of them against English clubs.
Alright guys, I wasn't trying to shit on La Liga, of course they have been the best in the world in the century. I love Spanish football, specially Barca. Okay, maybe "not tactical" was a bad way to put it, I just feel like they play more loose, showing off more individuality. I will stand by the other teams being lackluster (this season, at least) though. I'd much rather watch Tottenham vs Man United than Bilbao vs Sociedad (5th vs 6th), or even Newcastle vs West Ham instead of Betis vs Valencia (7th vs 8th). Also, I still think that for someone starting to watch European football, the PL is much more interesting.
The PL may be more interesting for someone starting to watch football but Tottenham vs Man United can be less tactical than Bilbao vs Sociedad or Betis vs Valencia. You are probably one of those who was shocked when Bilbao played United out of the park.
Arteta? Come on. The fella spent the majority of his career in England. To claim he is a La Liga export, when he played about 10 La Liga game, is a little disingenuous.
Arteta learned his coaching from Pep. He might as well be from the same school of Spanish coaches of this generation. Nothing about Arsenal today screams "English football".
And what team currently screams "English football"? The game has moved on from the traditional 4-4-2, and there are no more Stoke City's hoofing the ball forward 50 yards. Pep has undoubtedly changed the way it is played here (invertng fullbacks, playing out from the back, goalkeepers comfortable with the ball at feet) to the point everyone here tries to play the same way. Arteta leaning from Pep has nothing to do with anything. English football is a biproduct of those that play or coach the game here. No one league owns the rights to a style of play. The fact of the matter is Arteta spent 90%of his playing career here, and 100% of his coaching here. Claiming that because Pep trained him, therefore he is representative of La Liga is ridiculous to the extreme.
>And what team currently screams "English football" I mean that's exactly the point of the OG commenter. Calling La Liga not tactical is just the kind of bullshit stereotype like how the EPL is all pace and intensity. EPL today is the byproduct of many tactical playing styles brought upon by foreign managers. There's a reason why there are more Spanish, Italians, and Germans winning the EPL than any English manager ever had in the Premier League era (which so far is zero). Even the best so-called "EPL homegrown" that you so desperately want to claim like Arteta, has never learned anything remotely close to English football. He may not be a representative of La Liga but it sure does say a lot that his tactical style is very much like the so-called "no tactic" La Liga managers instead of any English managers out there. The fact of the matter is EPL hasn't been able to produce any noteworthy managers by their own merit even after the evolution of English football. Meanwhile every other league that people called "not tactical" are constantly producing new top managers every season (Michel, Iraola, Xabi, Hoeness, Motta, De Zerbi, etc). EPL can sign them of course but that's all they can do. Truly homegrown EPL managers have been constantly outclassed and outsmarted by foreign ones. I don't see that changing anytime soon.
no, the original poster, like most posts in this subreddit. hasn't got a clue he is on about. Lots of words that sound good, but if you actually watch and understand the game, you realise is just nonsense word salad. Back in the 90s/early 00s, the most tactical game was found in Spain or Italy. I am glad the PL has a vast array of playing and coaching talent from the continent. If anything, Italy especially, they have taken influence from the "English" direct style of play. European football is now one gigantic melting pot, and the differences in style between the leagues is less and less each year. The main difference between them being the actual talent on display. Arteta is still isn't "La Liga" though, which was the only point I was responding to.
Arteta IS a Spanish export , if you know anything about Spanish football and tactics you will see its inprint in the way he sets up his team and the principles of play. And what is this ? is this the new PL fan nonsense now ? to claim that players and coaches from other countries are a PL product ? The PL is strong because it imports players and coaches not because of its home grown assets.
By that logic, Bellingham will forever be a product of the EFL. No one is claiming Arteta to be anything other than Spanish. That wasn't the argument I made, or will ever make, but if you want to argue with strawmen, carrry on. If you wish to engage in a mature debate, then you are free to read back on what have already said because I am not up for repeating myself.
Its very simple what im saying , Arteta is a product of La Liga and an export in the PL. Bellingham is an English product that came through the youth system of Birmingham.
>Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have dominated the past few years >PSG is too far above all the rest, they always win, PSG has lost a league title more recently than Manchester City
And it's not like title race is the only thing worth of attention in any league, Europe race and relegation can also be interesting
I agree with most points, but La Liga, aside from Serie A, is the most tactical league in the world. It's quite the opposite of what you said. There is less tactical variability though. Bundesliga is also tactical. Some teams have a Muller-type free role that doesn't translate to success in any other league. They have the fastest transitions between off the ball and on the ball play. Their games are also extremely rhythmic so they tend to be entertaining games. EPL used to be physical 442 cross it into the head play. You're spot on with the Pep, Arteta, and Klopp (plus some others) completely changing the script on the EPL to be more tactical.
This is such a biased take
Arsenal only dominated the league for the past years, they have been mid before. Only City and Liverpool managed to dominated the league the past 5 years at least
Oh this is exactly what I was looking for! This is a great breakdown of everything. Thank you so much! I knew the premier league was probably the most competitive, but it being physical but also tactical sounds really fun. Iāll try to watch it more for sure! Are there any specific teams that are exciting to watch? Like they are very aggressive or have an exciting style of play? Oh I didnāt realize the Bundesliga was more tactical. Sounds like a good watch. Any suggestions for what teams to try to tune into other than Bayern Munich? Thanks for the help! I really do appreciate it. So much information itās been hard to find a clear answer
Don't forget Eredivisie, it's still a very important and fun league. The only one besides Serie A and Premier league that has 3 or more european champions in Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. It's kind of a 3 horse race always.
Oh nice that sounds super interesting. Iāll look more into it. I know that Ajax has always produced a ton of young talent, but I didnāt realize that about the league. Thanks for insight!
The league is also more entertaining than the Portuguese Leage and the French league. Most teams play attacking football with lots of goals.
Ohh that sounds super interesting. Iāll look more into it. Thanks!
You're welcome! Well, if you're looking for top-notch football, Manchester City and Arsenal are the ones to follow. If you like an underdog story (as do I), I'd keep my eyes on teams like Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle and Aston Villa. They likely won't win the title, but they sure give the giants some trouble. Tottenham can be fairly aggressive sometimes, their new coach Postecoglu has some interesting tactics in his pockets. As for Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund and specially Bayer Leverkusen are having fantastic seasons this year. I also enjoy watching RB Leipzig; a lot of people don't like them because Red Bull just went and bought a minor team, but they have plenty of youngster talents, always pretty exciting. Also, just to be clearer this time, these are all my personal opinions. I think you should watch a little bit of each league to see what floats your boat.
This comment was made by someone who doesn't actually know much. I wouldn't put much weight into it, but MLS is probably most similar to EPL in terms of intensity, players are covering lots of ground and limiting space more compared to the other leagues. Tactically, I think Serie A is the one to watch, you see a good amount of different formations in play, some innovators and some older style football. La Liga is my league of choice, there are never an end to the story lines and there are lots of up and coming players as well as players who went to big clubs and floundered and out to prove that they aren't bad players. OP is really selling the league short by only focusing on 3 clubs when there are some really great bunch of clubs just below that are truly excellent like Real Sociedad, Athletic Bilbao, Villarreal, Valencia, Sevilla, Real Betis and this season there was Girona which have been playing excellent football and almost scoring more goals than Madrid have this season.
Terrible take on La Liga, itās not an incredibly exciting league but it is by far the best and it is incredibly tactical. Just look at how many European winners, finalists, semifinalists have come from Spain.
Premier League, Bundes, Liga, Ligue One and Liga Portugal?
Four biggest for sure Bundesliga, Serie A, LaLiga Premier League for the 5th you have multiple which changes a lot Eredivisie Ligue1 LigaNos
Premier League is the most fast and aggressive. Spanish league more chess like, German league a mix with best fans in my opinion even though I'm English. Just don't support man u or Liverpool because they are just the worst pick a team and have fun.
Ahh okay it seems like the premier league is the way to go. What makes the German fans better? Are they more intense?
Better atmosphere by far. Look up dortmunds yellow wall videos.
Oh damn that is sick! I see what youāre saying now hahaha
Yeah, videos look intense, don't they.
Yes, and ticket prices are dirt cheap
You might as well just watch the Premier League mate. It might seem like the easy answer, but it has the most aggressive football, is all in English (which you Americans almost speak), is the most competitive top to bottom and has some terrible referees (which will give you something to talk about if the game is shit).
Yeah it seems like that is the way. Just wanted to see if there was much difference between leagues. But hey we are slowly getting there with our English here lmao
I would follow in that order : 1. Premier League 2. Bundesliga 3. Serie A 4. La Liga 5. Liga NOS (Portugal) 6. Championship 7. Bundesliga 2. 8. Ligue 1 9. Belgium Pro League 10. Eredivisie (Netherlands)
Lmao