The 2020-2021 season has officially started all across Europe. Most leagues have resumed play with fans slowly trickling back into stadiums. However, with COVID on the decline, national governments are set to lift restrictions in the following months with some competitions providing limited seating on a game by game basis. With that said, here are all the major talking points from the five major leagues around Europe:
Premier League:
The premier league has had two weeks of play so far with Leicester City heading into match week 3 in first place on goal differential. Although England is one of the furthest behind in terms of allowing fans into stadiums, the games have still been thoroughly entertaining. Gabriel Jesus of Manchester City set a record for most goals ever in a single matchday with his late goal against Wolves in City’s 3-1 win. The most important game of the season so far played out was a 2-0 win for Liverpool as they thrashed Chelsea away from home. Liverpool appears to be the favorite for the title going into this season.
Bundesliga:
Germany has enjoyed one week of the Bundesliga so far with Bayern Munchen leading after an 8-0 battering of FC Schalke. Bayern moves into the season as clear favorites for the title, showing the same dominance that won them a treble last year. The Bundesliga allows only home fans to attend and demands that the stadiums be filled only 20% of the way, allowing for a little more atmosphere in games.
Serie A:
Italian football has also been back for only one week. This season marks somewhat of a turning point in the Serie A, as for the past few years, Juventus’ dominance has been tested by teams like Napoli and AC Milan. All three teams got off to strong starts with 3-0, 2-0, and 2-0 wins respectively with Genoa in 1st on goal differential. The Italian officials have occasionally admitted up to 1000 fans into stadiums, however, several players have recently tested positive with COVID, most notably Zlatan Ibrahimovic of AC Milan.
Ligue 1:
France has had soccer back for three weeks, the longest of any European country. The champions PSG have gotten off to a rocky start with two losses and a slew of red cards in their game against Metz. With Kylian Mbappe and Neymar fully fit, they remain clear favorites to win the league despite St-Etienne heading into match week four in first. Fan returns have been pushed back by French officials, causing some distress among clubs concerned about their revenue.
La Liga
The Spanish league has had two match weeks so far; however, not all teams have played yet, most notably Barcelona. Like the Serie A, this season marks a turning point in La Liga with both Real Madrid and Barcelona going through turbulent times. Barcelona, in particular, has suffered the loss of several key players such as Ivan Rakitic and Luis Suarez. Additionally, there have been several internal power struggles which almost resulted in Lionel Messi’s departure from the club. Granada goes into match week 3 in first place, however with Barcelona yet to play and Real Madrid failing to impress, there are no real favorites.
