I wonder why, of all the countries in Europe, Germany has probably one of the smallest contingents (5 at the latest count) of players plying their trade in the EPL? Like it or not, they are still one of the strongest national teams in the world and have been for the past 20-30 years, so itâs a bit of a puzzle why more of their players donât join the gravy train. I canât think itâs anything to do with nationalism because over the years we have seen some of their best international players i.e. Klinsmann and Ballack grace our top league, but the list is very short. I know the Bundesliga has better average attendances than the EPL and they also have a better goals per team ratio each season so perhaps itâs more entertaining, but that is not normally a consideration for many players when deciding their future. So why they arenât drawn to the big bucks?
1914-1918 and 1939-1945..... And we beat them in the world cup................ Nah honestly mate, iv'e no idea got some fantastic players......is it money, or happiness?
its because the german league is better... they pay more,have bigger attendence,have better atmosperes,have a german players first philoshephy and are there home country
So what can you tell us about this so called world beating super league....who is tops and who is the their equivalant to wigan?
Wouldn't say it was a better league than ours better run definitely but, they will have their fair share of crap teams and games just like us. Maybe it's a loyalty thing with ze Germans they prefer to play in their home country than abroad, or maybe they are not the bunch of money grabbing twats that we and other countries seem to generate, or they are just a little bit more professional than players from other countries. I'm not too sure about either to be honest.
Very different mentality to this country. Many of their players are not celebrity hawks like ours. Its a country still built on very traditional beliefs. They also pay well and players are very well looked after by their clubs. They have a much stronger sense of national identity (hence their national teams always perform). They take a great deal of pride in being German and therefore see little to attract them abroad.
You could say the same about the British Players though surely, there are not that many British players plying their trade abroad, they are all here (for the most part) actually put me on the spot and the only one i could think of would be Harewood in China, there must be more than that but for the life of me i cant think of them. Beckham i suppose.
That could be because there are not many British players who would make it abroad or, are just not good enough, or they might get paid more here than they would at the lesser teams abroad. I can't see teams in the mid tables of European leagues paying top dollar in wages how ever good their respective leagues are.
Surely you can switch both of those statements around for Germany as well though. There are not that many Spanish players (good ones) plying their trade abroad (more than brits abroad but still not that many in the grand scheme of things), it seems the not very good leagues, have quite a few players abroad, the good leagues, hardly have any of their players abroad.
Your being to tackful...talc... We have to import rather than export because of one reason....the average player is not good..............?
It's Christmas mate season of good will and all that, was going to say the same as you i.e. they are just ****e but thought better of it.
Facts are facts, no denying them............. Was it chelsea or arsenal to field the first team without a single englishman? ****ing disgrace....but who can you blame?
I dont think its because the Brits are ****, there is plenty of **** in all countries plying their trade as professional footballers. I think its more to do with the way the teams play. England/Germany = More attacking, direct style of play, fast as well. Italy = A lot more defensive. Spain = Lots of skill and tippy tappy play. So you need players to fit into those styles, England players could flourish in Germany and vice versa, it just hasnt really happened, whether thats the teams not wanting them, or the players not wanting to move if a team does want them, im not sure, but i dont think its because the Germans are streets ahead of us. (the German international team is, but thats for another thread surely)
I think its all about homesickness, as well as wat Blackcatsteve has said. Not many British players are abroad, not many Germans players are abroad and same goes for Spanish players. If you think of the amount of players in Spain who are Spanish compared to those that play here, its probablies less than 5%. Most players are brought through the acadamey, build up a family around that area of a club and find it hard to move to a different country. Sure the money may be good, but money doesn't compensate family, no matter how much pay you get.
I think the Bundesliga is on the rise and we will see more and more top players heading to Germany in the next few years. I rate it on par with Italy but its still short of England and Spain atm.
Yes when an English player moves from Birmingham to Sunderland and is then homesick there is no chance of them moving to Spain, Italy, Germany etc etc. It is also down to the fact that managers of English clubs don't seem to have the courage to bring in players from the lower leagues. If an EPL club is said to be interested in a player it is nearly always a foreign guy. There must be a few players in the Championship and below who, given a chance, could make the grade but EPL clubs only have a policy of bringing in established players.
You beat me too it Steve. Was just going to say that English or British players have very rarely ventured outside the EPL/First Division over the past 40 years and a majority of them failed to be fair. Even the likes of Ian Rush was a flop in Italy and Hughes, Gazza and Lineker were only partial successes and the ones out of the country now are in mickey mouse leagues, so dont count imo, apart from Joe Cole in the Froggy league 1. BTW, I'd still have him back in our team in a flash, now he has regained fitness and form again. I'd have thought for mentality and climate, Germany would be a perfect fit for English players and vice versa. Maybe if the rumours are to be believed, we are about to add a 6th German player in this Jensen lad in the next couple of weeks, although I have to be honest and admit I know nothing about him at all apart form what people on here have been saying?
There's three reasons English players don't play outside the English leagues: 1.) Why leave a league where mediocrity is rewarded so handsomely? 2.) Moving abroad means being exposed to the terrifying concept of learning tactics, rather than running about for 90 minutes. 3.) Moving abroad means learning a new language - although Steve McManaman and David Beckham skipped that one... As for German players, some do leave the Bundesliga for Spain, Italy or England - Klinsmann, Ballack, Matthaus, Ziege, Ozil, Khedira, Klose, Lehmann, Moller, Bierhoff, Metzelder, Mertesacker - but the majority are content to stay within Germany. To hazard a guess, it could well be because German players don't have agents in their ear planning what's best for their agents' bank balance like we see from various players from England, Russia or South America.
