A Monday Muse

Are they the real deal? This was the thought that flashed through my head, as I quickly glanced to see how the French League is shaping up. Only to discover that recently financially flush, Paris Saint Germain was sitting in first. The team that leaped onto the list for all of the major transfer rumors over the summer, the Paris Saint Germain name has now become rebranded as a European power. Going down the list of talent that their new owner, Nasser Al-Khelaifi had acquired ranges from, an array of Brazilian talents such as Lucas Moura or Thiago Motta, to French jewels like Jeremey Menez or Kevin Gamiero. This team looks, on paper, to be the real deal. To be frank, they are. PSG happily boast stats such as 6 shutouts, no loses, and sporting the leading scorer in France, Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

The most striking piece here is, not the kung-fu like goals of Zlatan Ibrahimovic or even the surprise that this team is doing well. The interesting part is that this team, despite all of its glory, only sits 7 points above the 10th place team and 14 points above the last place team. A really tight race is developing in France and it looks even more compelling when its compared to other leagues around Europe. Barcelona sits on top of the Spanish League with 22 points, which, is 12 above 10th place Valladolid and 17 points on basement team, Osasuna. Even in England, which claims to be the most exciting league in the world, the competition isn't as even where, table toppers Chelsea command an 11 point lead over 10th place Swansea and a glaring 19 point lead over rock bottom Queens Park Rangers. The point of this is to demonstrate that there might be a surge in French soccer. With powerhouse clubs like, Marsellie or Olympique Lyon sitting neck and neck with PSG, the teams in France are getting better and the competition, more interesting. And yes, I fully recognize and admit that in Europe the French have not performed at their best, but its important to note that this could be a trend and will become even more apparent when the sleeper team in this years Champions League, if they get past the group stage, is Paris Saint-Germain.