Three Serie A sides in the Champions League quarter-finals. The Match of the Day Top 10 boys discuss the top players in the French Premier League in the most recent episode of series five.
From the start of the Premier League in 1992 to the present, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Micah Richards never lacked options.
Record in the Premier League: 156 appearances, 70 goals, and 56 assists
Eric Cantona was the driving force behind Manchester United’s ascent to domestic dominance after his surprise midseason transfer from Leeds to the club in 1992–1993.
In his first season with the team, the French striker helped United win the league for the first time in 26 years, and he later inspired a league and cup double during the 1993–94 season.
The following year, United performed similarly, and Cantona scored an incredible volleyed winner against Liverpool in the FA Cup final.
Cantona was suspended for the second half of the 1994–95 season after getting sent off against Crystal Palace for kicking a spectator. He later returned to assist United to win the league and cup in 1995–96, a year in which he was named FWA Player of the Year.
Lucien Makelele
Three Serie A sides in the Champions League quarter-finals
League: Chelsea (2003-2008)
Record in the Premier League: 144 appearances, 2 goals, and 4 assists
When people think of great holding midfielders, Claude Makelele is frequently one of the first names that come to mind.
The £16.8 million he paid to join the Blues from Real Madrid in the summer of 2003 was a steal considering Makelele would go on to play a major role in the team’s success over the following several years.
Altogether, with the Frenchman constantly present, he assisted Chelsea in winning two league championships, one FA Cup, and two League Cup triumphs.
Kante, N’Golo
Chelsea and Leicester (2015–16) (2016-present)
Record in the Premier League: 222 appearances, 12 goals, and 16 assists
N’Golo Kante wasn’t well-known when he transferred from Caen to Leicester in 2015 for a pitiful cost of roughly £5.6 million, but his impact was felt right away as he was a crucial part of that year’s fairytale title-winning campaign.
The next season, Chelsea paid £32 million for him thanks to his dominance of midfield for the Foxes, and he once again had the same effect, helping the Blues win the title and earning PFA Player of the Year honors.
Kante is one of the top central midfielders of his generation, and he has won the Champions League, Europa League, and FA Cup.
We’re having our conversation in the opulent ‘President Club’ at Udinese’s Dacia Arena, a brand-new venue with 25,000 seats that is a rarity in the Italian game.
It is an anomaly in Serie A since, among other things, it has cutting-edge infrastructure and the training fields are close to the main stadium’s dressing rooms.
We are 30-35 years behind the other leagues here, yet nobody talks about structures and training facilities, as Maurizio Sarri famously noted last year. They claim that I often grumble when I gripe about the pitches. Nevertheless, if you’re watching a Bundesliga match and then switch to a Serie A match, you could start to wonder, “Where the f*ck am I?”
Given that several Serie A stadiums have not been updated since Italia ’90 and are under the local comune’s jurisdiction, ownership is undoubtedly a significant problem with regard to the condition of these facilities.
Again, Udinese stands out in this regard because they are one of only four Serie A teams to do so (the others being Juventus, Atalanta, and Sassuolo).
The recent attempts by AC Milan, Inter, Fiorentina, and Roma to renovate or construct stadiums have all been thwarted by a degree of bureaucracy that is gravely impeding the modernization of the Italian game.
The country’s bid to host Euro 2032 is the only thing that could spur improvement in the upcoming months; even Andrea Abodi, the country’s minister of sport, called the situation “mortifying.”
He told reporters, “I am getting stubborn. “Our country is filled of inconsistencies, but I think the days of making up justifications and alibi are behind us. We simply need to accept our shared responsibilities, beginning with me. Nothing new needs to be invented in this situation. But it’s not just about one minister; it’s about a diverse approach to collaboration with organizations and local authorities. Stadiums are examples of social infrastructure since they may revitalize metropolitan areas, generate employment, and exhibit all the traits of local funding. Instead, we are still here debating with ourselves about priority and competition.
Guarnerio claims that Serie A is making an effort to contribute for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the harm done to the brand by the sight of thousands of empty seats in dilapidated stadiums.
Think about the brand that the Premier League promotes to soccer fans all around the world, she continues. The stands are contemporary, near to the field, and crowded. Now, if we take a glance about us at the Dacia Arena right now, we will see that this is a great stadium that is assisting in changing how people view Serie A. But this is one of the few instances of a first-rate facility in Italy.
Thus, a work group dedicated to stadiums has been formed. We’re asking clubs what they can do to make their fields and facilities better.
