Is it really possible that next season’s Champions League will be without a representative from Manchester? Yes, there actually remains a chance that both Manchester United and Manchester City may not qualify for the elusive extravaganza. While it is surely difficult to believe that such elite football clubs may end up not competing in the prestigious event, but one must also understand that the Premier League is considered to be the most competitive and unpredictable league on the planet for a reason.
Midway through the 2016/2017 Premier League campaign, the football fraternity is absolutely baffled after seeing both the Manchester outfits outside the top four in the points tally. Chelsea is the league leaders at the moment, sitting comfortably at the top of the table with 49 points from 19 games. Liverpool and Arsenal are in the second and third position with 43 and 40 points respectively. While, Tottenham Hotspur finds themselves claiming the fourth spot with 39 points. Elsewhere, City and United are placed fifth and sixth with 39 and 36 points respectively and thus are in danger of missing Champions League action next season if things stay the way they are now.
But this should neither come as a shock nor surprise, especially after Leicester City’s fairytale season last year where they defied all odds by becoming the Premier League champions. If the Foxes are able to successfully mount a title challenge by ousting the ‘so-called’ favourites, it clearly indicates that nothing in the Premier League is impossible. The Red Devils and the Citizens both shuffled their managerial setup before the start of the ongoing season by bringing in Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola. The world-class managers were brought in initially to win the Premier League while eventually aiming for the coveted Champions League. But things have certainly changed, and now both Jose’s and Pep’s reputation is on the line.
Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola’s reputation is on the line after a poor start to the 2016/17 Premier League season. (Courtesy: Reuters)
Is this because their tactics have not worked out yet or maybe it is much more than that? Managers obviously need time to build their squads according to their gameplan, but we are talking about United, City and Mourinho, Guardiola here. They have inherited clubs in which world-class footballers are already there in their ranks. Fans are completely clueless after not being impressed with their clubs’ performances so far this campaign. And with the London and Liverpool clubs marching forward one game at a time, Manchester outfits may not even qualify for the reputed Champions League, if their Premier League records don’t improve in the foreseeable future.
