It’s not just Kuzyaev’s Le Havre that surprises.
One of the biggest questions for each of the major leagues in each season is how the players in the lower divisions will perform. They need to close the gap in level with other clubs, not all of them need transfers for this – some even immediately jump into the top ten.
Not everyone has invested in strengthening
And here the example of Luton Town attracts attention: the total cost of their team is even lower than that of other players in the championship. Sheffield United’s bid is estimated to be €50 million more expensive, while Burnley’s is almost 3 times more expensive. The gap between the “hatters” and the long-standing representatives nuclear submarine more and more. The club’s directors spent just €22.75 million on reinforcements in the summer, placing them last in the Premier League for transfer spending this summer.
The funny thing is that Rob Edwards’ team started with more confidence than Sheffield and are on par with Burnley (although failures occur such as the 0:3 defeat against Chelsea).
And for newcomers to the big leagues, this is a common situation: some have modest financial capabilities, others especially do not want to disrupt a well-coordinated backbone. In Ligue 1 and Bundesliga, Le Havre with Metz and Heidenheim with Darmstadt have not invested more than 6 million euros in strengthening. The same with the Spanish “Las Palmas” and the Italian “Frosinone”.
Some made it into the top 10
“Frosinone” itself, with what it had, managed to beat much stronger representatives of Serie A. In the 2nd round – victory over “Atalanta” 2:1 (and they were ahead 2:0). After the goalless draw with Udinese – 3 points with Sassuolo (4:2), 1:1 with Salernitana and Fiorentina. With 9 points after 7 rounds, the “Canaries” are well ahead of their relegation zone rivals and are four points behind Atalanta, who are in the European Cup zone.
In the Bundesliga Heidenheim holds the points very well. The team, which quickly rose to the top of the Bundesliga’s second strongest division last season, has confidently established itself in the top ten in the new season. Frank Schmidt’s team sensationally takes points from Borussia Dortmund and beats Werder Bremen and Union. The gap from the bottom of the table is 4-6 points, more or less the same as in the European Cup area.
Many have successfully entered the season
The rest didn’t start much worse. In Serie A, just below Frosinone is Genoa: the Grifoni are in 14th place. The gap is 1 point. At the same time, the team immediately remembered the level of resistance in the elite, so it beat Lazio away, took points from Napoli at home, after which it defeated Roma and drew with Udinese. If there is someone who can make so much noise it can only come from Genoa.
In La Liga, Las Palmas and Alaves are just above the relegation zone. Both average around 1 point per game. They got them first, sharing points with Mallorca and Sociedad, and also beating Granada and Celta. The latter made their debut a little stronger, with wins over Sevilla and Valencia, as well as a draw against Celta.
Darmstadt is just above the relegation zone in the Bundesliga, Metz in Ligue 1. Meanwhile, “Le Havre” with Daler Kuzyaev wins the public’s sympathy. The experienced Russian, who had just moved to Europe, quickly established himself in the main team of the club and managed to get into the symbolic team of the tour. In the opening seven rounds, the thirty-year-old midfielder scored two goals, and Le Havre itself won against Clermont and Lorient, and drew with Montpellier, Rennes and Lyon.
“Granada” and “Cagliari” are not to be envied
So far, only these two are clearly losing the competition in the fight for survival. For the “Rossoblù” this is even more offensive because after the promotion they improved very well indeed. With 22.2 million euros in transfers they are 15th in the league, on par with Salernitana, Udinese and Lecce. Meanwhile, in the first period we had to play against Inter, Atalanta, Milan and Fiorentina: the defeats are quite understandable. And we managed to score 2 points in the matches against Torino and Udinese.
With Granada, the situation is painfully similar: the Nasrids spent almost 13 million euros in the transfer window (something between Sociedad and Villarreal – this is 10th place in La Liga), but after 8 rounds they remain in the starting zone.
It’s harder for beginners nuclear submarine
Although all this pales in comparison to the intensity of the ongoing struggle nuclear submarine – right from the first rounds. Here newcomers spend at least 22 million euros (Luton Town). Sheffield bought for 64 million, Burnley – for 111. And even so, these teams have the teams with the lowest total cost.
“Sheffield” closes the table – the “blades” are satisfied with 1 point after seven rounds. Burnley is a promising project with a disciple of Pep Guardiola as head coach. But Vincent Kompany’s team felt all the cruelty of the Premier League from the first rounds: in the first match they faced Manchester City and lost 0:3. Then – clashes with Villa and Tottenham. After the draw with Nottingham, the match against Manchester United and Newcastle, victory over Luton. It is logical that with such a level of resistance the team scored only 4 points. Another question is where they intend to get points to get out of the relegation zone.
The “clarets” have perhaps the worst difference between goals scored and goals conceded. Therefore, if the points are tied with Luton and Everton, it is the latter who are higher in the table. It will be extremely difficult for newcomers at Premier League level, but everyone’s lineup is not weak.
