In the current European season, several teams have appeared in the top leagues, sensationally competing for gold. In the Premier League, Aston Villa is next to the leader, and in the Bundesliga and Example the table is headed by Bayer Leverkusen and Girona, respectively. There is a chance that at least one of the teams will emerge as champion. In the 21st century, unexpected clubs often take gold in Europe’s five best leagues. Let’s remember all the cases.
nuclear submarine
Leicester City – 2015/2016
Leicester with the trophy
Photo: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
One of the greatest football stories in history. Leicester never became the champion of England in history and did not return to the elite division until 2014. And at the end of the first season, it miraculously retained its place in the Premier League, ending an eight-game unbeaten streak. In the summer of 2015, Leicester was managed by Claudio Ranieri, who had an underdog resume. Some bookmakers had odds of 5000 on the Foxes winning the Premier League! However, the coach and the players formed a powerful symbiosis.
Kasper Schmeichel, Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez, N’Golo Kante played for the team. Powerful gang! And she did the incredible: became champion of England. Yes, that season Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool had problems, and Leicester’s main competitors were only Arsenal and Tottenham. But this in no way diminishes the miracle. Interestingly, this is the first club in 38 years to become English champions for the first time (before that, Nottingham Forest won their first championship title in 1978).
What is happening now with the players of champion Leicester?
Three Leicester players became champions and were relegated from the Premier League. How did the fate of the others turn out?
First
Valencia – 2001/2002, 2003/2004
Valencia celebrates the title
Photo: twitter.com/valenciacf_es
The majority of titles in Spain were won by three giants: Real Madrid (35 championships), Barcelona (27) and Atlético de Madrid (11). And in the 21st century, the only club that took the gold away from them was Valencia. In the early 2000s, the bats, first led by Hector Cooper and then Rafael Benitez, were magnificent. Valencia reached the Champions League final twice (losing both times) and took two La Liga titles. Furthermore, on both occasions the Valencians were not in the lead for most of the season, taking the lead only towards the end (in round 34 in 2002 and in round 32 in 2004).
In that Valencia there were several cool footballers: Santiago Cañizares, Amedeo Carboni, Pablo Aimar, Roberto Ayala, Carlos Marchena, Mista, David Albelda, Vicente and Mauricio Pellegrino. And the coaches brought them together into a single mechanism. Also at that time, Valencia won the UEFA Cup and the Super Cup in 2004. One of the best moments in the club’s history.
How a hateful owner turned Valencia into an outsider:
“You scoundrel, get out.” The owner of Valencia does not care about the fans and he is leading the club to collapse
A series
“Romanis” – 2000/2001
Francesco Toti
Photo: Grazia Neri/Getty Images
At the beginning of the century, Rome dominated the Italian championship. In the 1999/2000 season, Lazio took the gold and the following year the main rival, Roma, turned out to be the strongest. At that time, there were two Roman clubs that had the most powerful squads. By the way, the “wolves” became the first Italian champion of the 21st century.
Who shook the team led by Fabio Capello? The main stars were the attacking players: Gabriel Batistuta, Francesco Totti, Vincenzo Montella and Marco Delvecchio. Important elements of that Roma were also the goalkeeper Francesco Antonioli, the defenders Walter Samuel and Cafu, as well as the midfielders Cristiano Zanetti and Damiano Tommasi.
Roma topped the table throughout the season. In the second part of the Championship, Capello’s team allowed Lazio and Juventus to get a little closer, but in the end it retained first place. This gold was only the third in the history of Roma and the last for the moment. And the protagonist of Rome, Francesco Totti, stated that “his dream of him has come true.” In the mid-2000s and 2010s, the Wolves had several good chances to win the Scudetto again, but Cesko did not win championship gold again.
If Roma bought Alenichev now, they would pay a decent amount:
How much would they pay now for Russian soccer stars? One transfer: more than 160 million euros
Bundesliga
Werder Bremen – 2003/2004
Werder players celebrate the championship.
Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
Many are used to Bayern being the king of the Bundesliga. The team has 33 gold medals, the closest pursuer, Nuremberg, only nine. But from time to time the Munich team falters, allowing lower status clubs to pass by. If Borussia Dortmund can be considered a top team, Werder’s championship in the 2003/2004 season was a surprise. The Bremen team won gold for the fourth time in history, although the previous season they finished sixth in the championship.
In the 2003/2004 edition, the main protagonist was the enormous Brazilian striker Ailton: despite problems with excess weight, he scored 28 goals in 33 games, becoming the top scorer in the German championship. Other well-known names who played for Werder were: Tim Borowski, Valerien Ismael, Fabian Ernst, Mladen Krstajic, Ivan Klasnic, Umit Davala, Angelos Charisteas and Nelson Valdez. And at the end of the season, the Bremen Club won the German Cup, beating Alemannia in the final (3-2).
In the Champions League, Werder managed to get out of a desperate situation:
These 7 teams left the Champions League group after a hard failure. Milan should follow suit
Stuttgart – 2006/2007
Stuttgart players with the coveted trophy
Photo: Sandra Behne/Getty Images
Stuttgart is making noise in the current Bundesliga season, occupying third place in the standings. And in the mid-2000s, the Swabians became champions of Germany. In the 2005/2006 season they finished ninth and the following year they took gold. A new coach came to the club: Armin Fe. And he was able to form a championship group from quality soccer players. That season Bayern failed: in January, Felix Magath was replaced as coach by Ottmar Hitzfeld. But this did not help Bayern win at least one trophy. In the Bundesliga, the Munich team finished fourth.
But Stuttgart took advantage of the giant’s weakness. Although the Swabians had a great squad at that time: goalkeeper Timo Hildebrand, defenders Ricardo Osorio, Fernando Meira, Serdar Taschi and Mathieu Delpierre, midfielders Thomas Hitzlsperger, Sami Khedira and Pavel Pardo, as well as forwards Cacau and Mario Gómez . Stuttgart fought fiercely for the trophy with Schalke until the end of the season and finished just two points ahead of the Gelsenkirchen team.
Wolfsburg – 2008/2009
Wolfsburg players at the awards ceremony
Photo: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images
Following Stuttgart’s success, Bayern returned the title to Munich the following season. But then the daring Wolfsburg appeared, becoming champions for the first time in history. Until then, the club had not even achieved second place. In 2007, Felix Magath joined Wolfsburg. He also became the club’s sports director. The harsh training methods helped the Wolves. For most of the season, Wolfsburg was in the middle of the table (the leaders were Hoffenheim and Hertha), clearly taking the lead on matchday 26.
Bayern also stopped performing at the end of the season, but Wolfsburg finished two points ahead of Munich. The club’s “big three” stars were Edin Dzeko, Grafite and Zvezdan Misimovic. They account for most of the goals. Dzeko scored 26 goals, Grafite – 28, Misimovic – seven. Other interesting players are goalkeeper Diego Benaglio, defenders Marcel Schaefer, Makoto Hasebe and Andrea Barzagli, and midfielders Josué and Christian Gentner. Wolfsburg subsequently finished second (2014/2015 season) and at the same time won the German Cup.
League 1
Nantes – 2000/2001
Nantes players with champion shirts
Photo: fcnantes.com
Nantes is the fourth French club in terms of championship titles. However, now his gold seems like a miracle. At the beginning of the century, the champions of France changed every year: they became Auxerre, Monaco, Lens, Bordeaux and the first gold of the 21st century was won by Nantes. Before this, the “canaries” became the strongest in 1995. And in 2001, in a close fight, they defeated Lyon, which was gaining strength.
Nantes relied on the strong form of three attackers: winger Olivier Monterrubio (14 goals in 35 games), as well as forwards Viorel Moldovan (22 goals in 33 games) and Marama Wairua (15 goals in 28 games). Since then, Nantes has never been on the podium and the only trophy was the 2021/2022 French Cup.
Bordeaux – 2008/2009
Bordeaux’s “golden” era occurred in the mid-1980s, when the club became champions three times. But in the late 2000s, the team was led by Laurent Blanc. This was the legendary defender’s first coaching experience. And he immediately made a powerful “Bordeaux”! Already in the second season, the Girondins were proclaimed French champions, interrupting Lyon’s seven-year hegemony. Also in 2008 and 2009, Bordeaux won the French Super Cup and, in the 2008/2009 season, the League Cup. Another powerful episode in the club’s history.
The group of leaders of that Bordeaux included several names known to Russian fans: Yoann Gourcuff, Alou Diarra, Marouane Chamakh, Fernando Cavenaghi, Wendel. But the main star is Coach Blanc.
Now Bordeaux is run by a Spaniard with ties to Russia:
The “50% Russian” coach is going to revive the top French club. The story of Riera – cinema
Montpellier – 2011/2012
During the window between Lyon and PSG’s dominance in France, the champion changed each season. “Bordeaux”, “Lille”, “Marseille” and… “Montpellier”. The club only appeared in League 1 in the 2010/2011 season and took gold the following year. A sensation at the level of Leicester, but with the note that the Premier League is more competitive than Ligue 1. Montpellier’s success is associated with the name of René Girard. He arrived at the Club in 2009, first taking it to League 1 and then proclaiming it champion.
Which players shined on that team? The main star is striker Olivier Giroud, who became the season’s top scorer with 21 goals. Defenders Ilton and Mapu Yanga-Mbiwa, midfielders Younes Belanda and former Krasnodar player Remi Cabella also stood out. After winning Ligue 1, Montpellier did not win any more trophies and remained mostly in mid-table.
Monaco – 2016/2017
Monaco players with the Ligue 1 trophy
Photo: Jean Catuffé/Getty Images
The Monegasques won their first gold of the 21st century in 2017, breaking PSG’s four-year streak. If you look at the Monaco team that season, there is no doubt why the team became champions. Fabinho, Joao Moutinho, Falcao, Bernardo Silva, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Djibril Sidibe, Benjamin Mendy, Kamil Glick, Thomas Lemar, Abdou Diallo and Kylian Mbappé. A powerful lineup, headed by Leonardo Jardim.
Monaco has risen to first place since mid-season, without losing it to anyone. The Monegasques were eight points ahead of PSG, so the championship was spectacular and convincing. After the draw for the 2016/2017 season, the Club did not take home any trophies, but came second once and third twice. And the great lineup was destroyed by the European giants.
Lille – 2010/2011, 2020/2021
Lille celebrates its championship
Photo: Sylvain Lefevre/Getty Images
Lille was not always considered a formidable force in France. But in the 2010/2011 season a great team was formed, breaking the club’s 57-year streak without gold. The Dogs were led by Adil Rami, Mathieu Debuchy, Rio Mavuba, Yoan Cabaye, Idrissa Gueye, Gervinho and top star Eden Hazard. Lille confidently became champions, eight points ahead of Marseille.
The fourth gold in history came to Lille 10 years later. Under the management of Christophe Galtier, the club won the title race against PSG and Monaco. Lille was helped by the Parisians’ problems (during the season, Thomas Tuchel was fired and Mauricio Pochettino was appointed). And the “Dogs” have a decent lineup.
A large number of footballers ended up moving to higher-ranking clubs. Among them, for example, Mick Maignan (went to Milan), Sven Botman (Newcastle), Reinilda Mandava (Atlético), Boubakary Soumare (Sevilla), Renato Sanches (Roma), Timothy Weah (Juventus), Jonathan Ikone (Fiorentina) , while Yusuf Yazici and Jonathan David continue to play for the club.
Great Championship interview with the former Lille and Lokomotiv striker:
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