Chapter 593 Saving the Premier League
At noon, Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport in the Netherlands was crowded with people.
As one of the largest international airports in Europe, Schiphol Airport is definitely big.
But any tourist from all over the world can clearly see the two colors as soon as they enter the airport lobby.
One is blue, and the other is red and white.
What’s interesting is that if the tourists are more careful, they will definitely notice that whenever fans of the two colors meet, the fans wearing blue jerseys will always involuntarily lower their heads and dodge.
The fans wearing red and white jerseys will sing loudly, "We are the champions!"
Many blue fans burst into tears of shame as soon as they heard this song.
Occasionally, some blue fans would resist, but they would either be controlled by the airport security, or they would see that the other side was more numerous and powerful, so they would just retreat first.
There is no way, the fans in red and white jerseys have an overwhelming advantage in numbers!
Reporters were savvy enough to catch this and immediately send a live news broadcast.
"According to the data we have received from UEFA, Southampton fans account for about three quarters of the fans who have booked tickets, one third of whom are from the UK, one third from Europe and one third from all over the world."
"That is to say, apart from the tickets distributed by UEFA to the two teams and some tickets to sponsors and guests, the remaining 10,000 tickets were almost all bought by Southampton fans."
"We can fully expect that the fanatical Southampton fans will definitely turn the Amsterdam Arena into the home of the Saints!"
"It is worth noting that according to the information we received from the airport, the special planes of the airlines that the two teams are taking arrived at Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport very close to each other, arriving one after the other."
"So, we are looking forward to seeing the two teams meet at the international airport."
"Will there be a big fight?"
Just as many reporters were sending the latest live news reports using their mobile phones, tablets or laptops, a message came over the airport broadcast.
The Delta Air Lines special flight from London to Amsterdam is about to land.
Delta Airlines?
Isn't this Chelsea's sponsor?
When the news came out, there was a sudden commotion in the airport hall.
Fans and reporters gathered here to wait for the arrival of the two teams.
For a moment, fans wearing blue jerseys rushed to the exit.
Fortunately, the ground staff at Schiphol International Airport were well prepared and had sufficient manpower on site to maintain order.
A few minutes later, a white Boeing plane slowly landed.
Not long after, Chelsea's acting head coach Zenden was seen walking out slowly with the players in suits.
There was an uproar at the scene, and the Blues fans were shouting the names of the players they supported.
But what was somewhat surprising was that Chelsea's players seemed to lack interest and were very perfunctory in dealing with the fans' enthusiasm, which made many reporters present think of the great defeat at Wembley Stadium three days ago.
Chelsea was defeated 0-5 by Southampton. This battle will be difficult for them!
If they fail to handle the situation properly and suffer another crushing defeat, the Blues will be finished!
There were also reporters with a keen sense of smell who, after taking a look at Chelsea's traveling lineup, found that Oscar was still not there!
After the last decisive battle at Wembley Stadium, many analysts believed that Chelsea was defeated because of the loss of midfield, and the reason for the loss of midfield was that the midfield was too weak.
Juan Mata alone cannot support Chelsea's entire midfield.
As for the combination of Lampard, Ramires and Mikel, it is also difficult to be satisfactory.
In this case, Chelsea really needs an Oscar!
But judging from the current team list, the Brazilian midfielder is still blocked!
Does Chelsea still intend to rely on this lineup that suffered a disastrous defeat to play against Southampton?
Many reporters at the scene had a big question mark in their minds!
As soon as Chelsea walked out, the airport broadcast came again, saying that the Qatar Airways special plane flying from Southampton Airport was about to arrive and land.
Suddenly, there was chaos at the scene again.
Especially since the two teams had the same exit, the situation became even more chaotic.
As soon as the Southampton fans in red and white jerseys heard the broadcast, they immediately gathered from all directions.
My goodness, it looked like they were going to surround and annihilate Chelsea fans at the exit.
Chelsea fans immediately scattered and fled the scene.
A few minutes later, a Boeing 777 with red and white arrow stripes slowly landed at Schiphol Airport.
It is true that when you compare yourself to others, you will be rejected; when you compare goods to others, you will be thrown away.
Although they are both sponsors, the treatment is completely different.
Chelsea's private plane looks no different from an ordinary passenger plane, and there is not even a Chelsea logo on the fuselage.
But it’s different for Southampton. The entire fuselage of the Boeing 777 is painted with Southampton’s red and white arrow stripes, as well as the advertising images of Southampton’s team superstars. It looks lifelike from a distance.
It is said that in order to facilitate the use of Southampton players, coaching staff, team members and reporters, the interior of the aircraft has also undergone special modifications, which is very different from other Boeing 777 aircraft.
Not only that, the Qatari tycoons also specially provided Southampton with two such special planes. These two planes will only undertake the task of passenger transportation during the break between games, but anyone who wants to take these two planes must book tickets specifically.
But even so, almost every flight of these two special planes is fully booked!
Just for this reason, it is clear how great the influence of Southampton is in the minds of sponsors.
Shortly after the plane arrived, Saints manager Mathieu Le Tissier led the team out and was immediately greeted by cheers from all the red and white fans in the entire airport hall.
Following closely behind are head coach Bielsa and assistant coaches, and then the players in the team.
Unlike Chelsea's players who all looked bored, Southampton's players all looked very excited. They had confident smiles on their faces and kept interacting with the fans. Some even stayed behind to sign autographs and take photos with the fans.
The stark difference in mental state between the two teams has caused many journalists to slant their predictions for the upcoming Europa League final.
At the very least, it will be difficult for Chelsea to defeat Southampton with this mental state!
But the most interesting thing is that when Southampton was about to walk out of the airport hall, Chelsea, who had already got off the plane, was still sitting on the sofa in the rest area on one side of the airport hall waiting.
It is said that there was a problem with the bus that Chelsea temporarily rented, so they were unable to arrive at the airport to pick up the plane in time.
On the other hand, Southampton had two luxury buses owned by the team parked at the gate of Schiphol Airport early. As soon as the Saints arrived, they got on the bus and left.
Many reporters at the scene captured that the moment when Southampton got on the bus to leave, everyone in Chelsea was envious and jealous, and many people even shook their heads and sighed.
From Ron Gourlay to Marina Granovschia, Chelsea's management has gone from insiders to outsiders.
There have always been rumors within the Blues that the Russian woman seems very smart, but that is more reflected in intrigue and power struggles. On the contrary, when it comes to team operations, she is a complete layman.
So, even though Chelsea seems to be running a good business, there are a lot of details that are very depressing.
For example, right now, they are sitting at Schiphol Airport waiting for the bus.
But what about Southampton?
The Saints' two buses arrived in Amsterdam yesterday. They are familiar with every road from the airport to the Amsterdam Arena, and will choose the most appropriate road at the right time to take the team to the Amsterdam Arena.
London is not far from Amsterdam, and it is the final stage of the league, so the schedule is very tight.
Chelsea will fight for the top four in the league, while Southampton will fight for the league title.
Therefore, both teams chose to travel back and forth on the same day.
But because of this arrangement, because of such a trivial matter as the bus, Chelsea was forced to stay at Schiphol Airport and wait, while Southampton went straight to the Amsterdam Arena for adjustments.
The difference between the two teams is obvious!
This is true not only in team management, but also on the football field.
Today, the British Guardian published an analytical article, which reprinted the points data from UEFA.
Even though the Premier League still secured four Champions League places this season, the situation is already precarious.
"UEFA's league rankings are calculated based on the total points of the past five seasons in European competitions."
"So, in 2012, the statistics are the total points of the five seasons starting from the 2007 to 2008 season. Thanks to the outstanding performance in the past few years, the total points of the Premier League are still ahead of Spain and top the major European leagues!"
"But in the new season, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse."
"Because in the 2007-2008 season, three Premier League teams appeared in the top four of the Champions League, and Manchester United and Chelsea both made it to the finals. In the end, the Red Devils won the trophy, and the popularity of the Premier League reached its peak!"
"But after 2013, the European points from the 2007-2008 season will no longer be counted. As a result, the total points of the Premier League will drop significantly. Especially in the last two or three seasons, the Premier League teams' lack of performance in European competitions has made it a foregone conclusion that the Premier League will give up the top spot to La Liga."
"But thanks to the outstanding performances of Bayern Munich and Dortmund in the European competitions in the past two seasons, the Bundesliga has quietly caught up."
"As one side gains, the other loses. The Premier League's second place in the European League ranking is already very dangerous. According to the total points, it is only one point ahead of the Bundesliga."
"So, if Southampton hadn't won the Europa League last season and reached the Europa League final this season, the Premier League would have lost its second place in the European League rankings."
"By that time, the Premier League's Champions League quota will also be reduced from the current four to three!"
"In this way, no matter which team among Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur finishes fourth in the league this season, they will still miss out on the Champions League next season."
"This will undoubtedly be a disaster for the Premier League!"
"But just before this disaster, Southampton, the dark horse, saved the shaky Premier League!"
"Whether Southampton wins the Premier League title this season or not, we should all look forward to the Saints' performance in the Champions League next season. I hope the Saints can bring us more and bigger surprises!"
This report by the Guardian was reprinted by British media and attracted the attention of football fans.
The European league rankings seem so unfamiliar to many fans.
But who could have imagined that a place in the ranking would determine the loss or gain of hundreds of millions of pounds in the Premier League.
It is entirely conceivable that if Southampton had not performed well, the Premier League would only have three Champions League places left. What would have happened?
The entire Premier League is bound to fight for these three places!
The competition for the top three in the league will become unprecedentedly fierce!
In this regard, what the Guardian said, that Southampton saved the Premier League, is not an exaggeration!