Jamie Carragher says the Premier League is already the Super League as the new format for a breakaway European tournament was put forward on Thursday. Promoters of the competition, A22, have made some key changes but it isn't likely to make much difference to fans.
The initial announcement back in April 2021 was so out of the blue, poorly planned, thought through and executed by those involved that there is still a sour taste. Even though the new 50-plus team proposal doesn't sound nearly as bad as the original one, it still isn't going to be of serious consideration for the top clubs in England. How can it be?
The Premier League is the dominant league in Europe now. The league is having its very own 1990s Italy and early 2010s Spain moment, but perhaps on another level. As much as there was a merry-go-round of players between the top clubs in those countries it didn't quite border the financial muscle that even mid-tier English sides now have.
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Champions League semi-finalists last year in Villarreal lost their manager to relegation threatened Aston Villa earlier this season. Former Spain manager Julen Lopetegui is now at Wolves. The attraction of even a Premier League revival is more than that of higher level success across Europe, it seems.
This has all been confounded and highlighted in 2023 by the spending power of Chelsea's new owners. While clubs outside of England have mellowed and the days of a £500million player appear a lot further away than when Neymar moved to Paris Saint-Germain, the Blues broke their transfer record for the second time in four windows.
That deal, to make Enzo Fernandez the league's most expensive ever player, was the last of eight new signings and 18 under the new owners. Chelsea alone spent more than the top five leagues combined whilst also outspending Brentford and Brighton's entire history.
This is just a small part of why Carragher thinks that the European Super League isn't set for a return just yet. "The Super League happened two or three years ago and the criticism they took a few of those things on board and now the talks is for a 60 to 80 team Super League or maybe two leagues with promotion, relegation, no permanent clubs that are always in the competition," he told Sky Sports.
"You have to play your way in, if you like. That'll read well and sound good to a lot of observers on the outside. Basically it boils down to the fact that the Premier League is the Super League. That is what Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus can't get their head around and they just can't fathom why some of the biggest clubs in European football are earning as much as a mid-table club in the Premier League.
"Look at the transfers fees that English clubs pay. The January transfer window compared to other leagues and it's night and day and they want a slice of it. The only problem is that there was that much damage done to our football clubs by almost leaving to go to the super league that they'd been burnt by the league and it'll be a long time before any of our clubs are getting involved in anything like it.
"Without the English clubs right now for me there is no Super League."
Boehly himself has already spoken about a Super League but for now it doesn't seem like there's much incentive to move too far away from the current system that is making English clubs stronger and stronger. Though it does create a risk with the level of spending if nobody can afford Chelsea's outcast players.
That's a point for another time though.
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