It has been argued that the Premiership has lost its ability to attract top players and that more of the world’s top players are to be found in La Liga and, increasingly, the Bundesliga. However, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore has delivered a robust rebuttal of this point of view.
Launching the new Barclays Premier League season, Scudamore said, ‘The clubs will do what they have to do. If the best offer is [from overseas], I don’t worry about that. We are not going to see a mass exodus of players from the Premier League.’
It has been argued that the Premiership has lost its ability to attract top players and that more of the world’s top players are to be found in La Liga and, increasingly, the Bundesliga. However, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore has delivered a robust rebuttal of this point of view.
Launching the new Barclays Premier League season, Scudamore said, ‘The clubs will do what they have to do. If the best offer is [from overseas], I don’t worry about that. We are not going to see a mass exodus of players from the Premier League.’
He continued, ‘The economic reality of world football will make sure that doesn’t happen. We are going to have 20 of the world’s wealthiest top 35 clubs in terms of income. We are not going to see a huge talent drain.’
Scudamore is a smart operator, but there is a fine border line between defending your position and becoming complacent.