Mikel Arteta, 44, Arsenal manager, reacted in a press conference to the clash between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich. While admiring the quality of the match, the former midfielder emphasized the freshness of both teams to explain their performance, an interpretation that also seemed to put the spectacle into perspective.
Arteta: “To deliver those moments of quality, you have to be very fresh.”
“PSG-Bayern? It’s probably the best match I’ve ever seen. The quality of both teams, and especially the individual quality of the players… I’ve never seen anything like it. But when I look at the number of minutes played and how fresh these players are, then I’m not surprised.
To deliver those moments of quality, you have to be very fresh. The difference between the leagues and the way (other teams) compete is night and day,” Arteta pointed out. “We compete in two different worlds, so you can’t compare without providing context.” “
There is, of course, some truth in Arteta’s observation: the Premier League is more competitive, more demanding each week, and English clubs often have to navigate a particularly heavy schedule.
But the argument becomes much weaker when it is used to diminish the significance of an exceptional match. For years, Paris Saint-Germain heard that Ligue 1 didn’t adequately prepare them for the intensity of the Champions League.
Now, this same Ligue 1 is supposedly becoming almost a decisive advantage, because it allows them to arrive fresher. Convenient. The reality is less comfortable: Arsenal, Manchester City, and Liverpool also play in an immensely wealthy league, supported by massive transfer windows and squads built to withstand this competition. Sometimes, you just have to applaud.”
