European twist. While Europe is about to explode financial and monetary, the football one has already been reversed.
The Champions League groups have in fact issued sensational verdicts: the much-mistreated Italian football is resurrected, with 3 out of 3 qualified, the nobles Spain and England mourn as they see their platoon halved (both two teams eliminated out of four) and even unknown Cinderellas like Basel and the Cypriots of Apoel Nicosia qualify for the round of XNUMX.
But above all, what catches the eye is the unexpected abdication of the glorious city of Manchester, which brought two teams among the favorites for the final victory: the multi-millionaire Manchester City of Mancini and the stainless United of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Manchester is thus canceled from the European football map well in advance: Sheikh Mansour's infinite and overpaid troop is eliminated by Napoli, which has 60 times the budget, while the Reds, 3 finals in the last 4 editions, confirm their slow decline by even being eliminated by Basel.
That the band trained by the Scottish baronet was now old and run down was also understood by the clamorous defeat in the championship derby against City, which finished with a tennis score of 6-1. The Ferguson generation (70 years, 25 of which at the helm of the Manchester United club) now seems to have ended, with the honor and glory of 27 titles won.
But that instead the young and luxurious guys led by Mancini to open the new City cycle should come immediately swept away by the Neapolitan "beggars". this was already less predictable.
But perhaps the key is this: too late for United, too early for City. The first will have to re-found, the second to grow. Because money isn't enough to win, you need experience and know-how. This is demonstrated by Italian football, increasingly poor but which is the only one that brings 3 teams out of the 16 that go to the knockout stages.
