The English Premier League has been hailed as the best league in the world, the league that every player wants to play in. The Media tells us this at every given opportunity, managers say it and players also have been heard to boast about it.

Well I for one can’t see it.

Every time the English sides come face to face with the so-called best from other leagues in football, seldom do they come out on top.

There is no doubt in my mind that the EPL is not the best.

If you take the best team in our league, which at this point in time is Manchester United and see how they have fared this year, you have to agree that they only won the Premier league by others misfortunes.

In all honesty four to five teams could have won the league this season but mistake after mistake opened the door for United. Our own team, The Arsenal could so easily have won the league if only they hadn’t self destructed.

Chelsea had the same problems as us, they had injuries which resulted in bad games at times and bad results followed, the sacking of Wilkins didn’t help their cause either. Manchester City also had their chances but new players, which they acquired often need time to gel. That, coupled with silly slip ups saw their chance go.

So how in all honesty are we the best?

Manchester United may have reached the final in the Champions League but it has to be said they had the help of the draws throughout the rounds but in the final they were matched with what the media have hailed as the best team of all time. Great praise for a team who supposedly play in an inferior league to us.

Barcelona. I could write about Barcelona exploits all day long but at the end of the day they absolutely hammered our best team. To be fair they hammered us as well, yes I can say that we beat them at The Emirates but an honest fan would say that it really was against the run of play.

When we played the return leg at The Camp Nou, Barcelona overpowered us to the point of us not having many shots on target other than our goal. That was an absolute hiding for a team who are supposedly the fourth best team in the best league in the world. I could of course mention that we played almost the whole of the second half with only ten men, but that still wouldn’t detract from the point that we were battered.

In my eyes Manchester United have been the best team in the EPL for many years not forgetting Chelsea who have had their own successes as well, but Utd have been there all the time.

Utd were humbled in the final and this will ultimately affect them in the future, you only have to look at our own Arsenal who self destructed after their humiliated defeat against Barcelona. We plummeted from second in the best league in the world to a fortunate fourth.

We were fortunate that the season ended when it did as we could so easily been out in the cold had it continued for another couple of games but it didn’t and we secured fourth, just.

Manchester United have been fortunate that they played Barcelona in the last game of the season, they will now have the close season to try and build their confidence back up and make changes where needed. I have no doubts that the hammering they encountered will stay with the players for quite some time but I am sure Ferguson will endeavour to replace some of his players in the hope that this humiliating defeat will be diluted.

Of course we have to remember the other teams in the Premier league; the teams that make this league the best in the world. Birmingham must receive some acclaim, they beat us in the final of the Carling Cup but they will be playing their football next year in a lower division owing to their relegation from the best league in the world.

Manchester City winners of The FA Cup made a spirited surge at the end of the season to squeeze into third place they could be the dark horses of the Premier league for next season, although when they played us they shut up shop and were quite happy with a point. Next season should they get paired with Barcelona or Madrid a point will not help them much.

Our Old neighbour’s Totteringham made their début in The Champions League this season but after getting hammered by Real Madrid, they too will have to wait a few years before they reach these dizzy heights again.

So who has the best league in the world?

I just believe that when all our top teams have been well and truly humiliated surely it cannot be ours, can it?

Written by Steve Palmer

Bit of news re the squad, Mark Randall has been told his services are no longer required at the club. Young Guns report that he has been  released after the decision was made not to offer him a new contract – he is the third young gunner to be released this summer, George Brislen-Hall and Roarie Deacon being the other two.

I hope they all find new clubs and do well in the future….

Looks like the clear out of the youth/reserves has begun….