Well, there are several things to put in context. I don't think that there's a general crisis in our football and you have to go to each particular case to find the causes of the failures of the Spanish teams in Europe.
In the Champions League, Barcelona are alive (let's see for how long though). The cases of Real Madrid and Sevilla aren't strange to me. Real Madrid lost against Roma in their worst moment of the season. Real Madrid are getting good results in La Liga, but it's also true that their football isn't that good lately and they had important injuries. It's not a secret that not even the madridista press thought that this Real Madrid could go very far in the Champions League. Anyway, Real Madrid should have won their game against Roma.
Sevilla's elimination was the perfect example of their season. They're able of the best and the worst. Sevilla mix good moments of football, as in the last 3 seasons, with stupid defensive mistakes... it happened to them in Europe and La Liga. Not surprising to me either.
Valencia were (are?) a mess during a long part of the season. Their failure in Europe is their failure in Spain. Is it surprising?
Similar analysis could be done about the UEFA Cup teams. So, at the end, I think it's the reflection of the state of the Spanish teams... not in Europe, but also in the domestic competitions. They're competitive, able to win anyone, but they also look very irregular, each one in their level. You can't say that there's any remarkable team in Spain.
The players are good enough, but each club with their circumstances explain the European failure.
For me, the most worrying is the future. Barcelona and Madrid are safe, because their size protects them. But the upper-mid class will have a problem competing with the English clubs, because things in Spain are awfully done by the RFEF and the LFP. The battle of the TVs, the hours of the games, etc.. Everything is a mess and the consequences of it will appear soon.
I don't think there's a general crisis in our football. I don't think there's a reason to panic. But things should start to change and soon.
In the Champions League, Barcelona are alive (let's see for how long though). The cases of Real Madrid and Sevilla aren't strange to me. Real Madrid lost against Roma in their worst moment of the season. Real Madrid are getting good results in La Liga, but it's also true that their football isn't that good lately and they had important injuries. It's not a secret that not even the madridista press thought that this Real Madrid could go very far in the Champions League. Anyway, Real Madrid should have won their game against Roma.
Sevilla's elimination was the perfect example of their season. They're able of the best and the worst. Sevilla mix good moments of football, as in the last 3 seasons, with stupid defensive mistakes... it happened to them in Europe and La Liga. Not surprising to me either.
Valencia were (are?) a mess during a long part of the season. Their failure in Europe is their failure in Spain. Is it surprising?
Similar analysis could be done about the UEFA Cup teams. So, at the end, I think it's the reflection of the state of the Spanish teams... not in Europe, but also in the domestic competitions. They're competitive, able to win anyone, but they also look very irregular, each one in their level. You can't say that there's any remarkable team in Spain.
The players are good enough, but each club with their circumstances explain the European failure.
For me, the most worrying is the future. Barcelona and Madrid are safe, because their size protects them. But the upper-mid class will have a problem competing with the English clubs, because things in Spain are awfully done by the RFEF and the LFP. The battle of the TVs, the hours of the games, etc.. Everything is a mess and the consequences of it will appear soon.
I don't think there's a general crisis in our football. I don't think there's a reason to panic. But things should start to change and soon.
