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Asian Cup stars – what soccer leagues do they play in?

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Where do the stars of the Asian Cup ply their soccer expertise? Lets take a look at the teams that dominated the recent Asian Cup and consider what domestic leagues their star players earn a living in. Are most of the region’s top players battling it out in Serie A, the EPL, the Bundesliga and La Liga or are their club assignments more modest? What do the stats tell us about the state of Asian soccer and where Australia sits in the mix.

Asian Cup Champions

Qatar (7 wins, 0 losses, 0 draws, 17 goals, 1 conceded)

European league players – 1

Asian league players – 22

Asian Cup finalists

Japan (6 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss, 12 goals, 6 conceded)

European league players – 13

Asian league players – 11

Asian Cup Semi-finalists

Iran (4 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss, 12 goals, 3 conceded)

European league players – 7

Asian league players – 17

United Arab Emirates (3 wins, 2 draws, 1 loss, 8 goals. 8 conceded)

European league players – 0

Asian league players – 23

Asian League Quarter-finalist

Australia (2 wins, 1 draw, 2 losses, 6 goals, 4 conceded)

European league players – 15

Asian league players – 8

Six things we learned from the recent Asian Cup?

  • Asian national teams (and associated club teams that feed them) are not the easy beats we thought they were
  • National teams that have lots of players who play in local (Asian) leagues are not necessarily easy beats
  • You don’t have to play soccer in Europe to achieve a solid soccer playing experience
  • Choosing to accept good money to play soccer in an Asian league does not necessarily mean your career is over
  • The Socceroos, which is the only national team in Asia that is completely dominated by European-based players, is not as good as coaches, pundits and loyal supporters think it is… at least by Asian standards!
  • It’s possible that Asian soccer is on the rise! It may be bad for our egos and tougher for world cup qualifying but it is good that our young players will have rising standards in local leagues to challenge them, give them playing opportunities and to help them develop

SOCRATES

Short, fat, slow, uncoordinated and clumsy, ancient Athenian Socrates had very few of the physical quality required of the elite athlete. He did have, on the other hand, a better than average brain between his ears and a mouth that could talk opposing players, referees and coaches half into their graves. Socrates, as a sport analyst, is what the world needs and misses. He is an opinionated so-and-so that actually thinks deeply about sport and adventuring and likes nothing better than provoking others into deep thought. Socrates is the antithesis of the sporting jock or the West Sydney soccer supporter.

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