After eight games played in La Liga, the name atop the table is a new one. FC Barcelona has enjoyed one of their most successful starts in La Liga now with 14 games without a loss. Real Madrid have seen great success on the pitch as well, losing only five points out of a possible 24. Sevilla, like Barcelona, still has a zero in the loss tally as they remain unbeaten through eight. Málaga also had its best start to the season after being taken over by a foreign owner. Even Valencia was one win away from their best start in club history after three successive wins at the start of the season. Despite all this, these big fish all find themselves trailing a minnow.
For the first time in club history, Levante is beating out every other club in the Spanish Primera. This is an incredible feat for a couple reason. First, with a 3-0 win versus a top Spanish league team in Villareal, Levante have now won six straight games. This winning streak marks a record in their club history. Also, Levante have only been in the first division for six seasons with their best finish being around the middle of the table with the number 10 spot. Last season they escaped relegation by only two points. All these records become even more impressive with one thing considered: Levante spent the least amount of money in the last transfer window.
According to Sid Lowe, Levante only spent €210,000 this transfer window. Levante has a payroll of €6.5 million and a budget of €22 million. When considering that Barcelona and Real Madrid have several players that make more than Levante's payroll, the success this team has achieved is incredible. Their entire budget is only five percent of Barcelona's budget, yet they are still leading La Liga. This raises several questions. Is it necessary to have financial restrictions and revenue sharing? Right now one of the smallest teams is leading the league regardless of its budget. Does success come down to money or is it about how the team is organized? We will see as the season progresses whether or not Levante is able to keep their spot at the top of the table.
Sources: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/oct/17/levante-la-liga-expendables-2 ; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levante_UD
Sources: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/oct/17/levante-la-liga-expendables-2 ; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levante_UD
There are also a couple other interesting things about this team. First, there squad is extremely similar to the squad they had last year since they signed very few people in the transfer window. Since there is such little turnover, they have gotten to know each other and how to play as a team extremely well. Another key factor is experience. The combined age of the Levante squad is 346, which secures a place among the oldest squads in history. This gives the team experience, but could pose a problem in the future when the veterans are unable to play.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it is the strategy that matters most. Building a interdependent squad that knows how to work as a team can be more important than having that selfish star player. If Levante can manage to win this year, they will silence critics that La Liga is a two team league.
Wow! I didn't know all this about Levante. But they are on the top for now; how long do you think they can hold that top spot with the powerhouses tailing so close behind?
ReplyDeleteSince this last post, unfortunately, Levante has lost their first game. That being said they find themselves only two points back from the lead (two points behind Real Madrid and one point behind Barcelona). Although many people are rooting for Levante to stay atop, realistically, the season is extremely long and it is unlikely they will able to keep their form. However, as mentioned in some of our articles, a successful season for a team like Levante is sometimes classified as qualifying for other competitions. If they are able to secure a Champions League spot, it would do wonders as it would increase revenue for a team with such a small budget.
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