Although Ligue 1 is a bit of a lag, it is undeniable that the top five leagues are definitely the most weighty and influential force in European football. Every season's Champions League, playing to the final stage, is basically played by the giants of the five major leagues. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern, Liverpool, including Manchester City in recent years, have basically controlled the main lifeblood of European football since the new century, and their success has naturally increased the competitiveness of their leagues.
Indeed, those teams that are not in the top five leagues are increasingly marginalized. Especially after the Boseman Act came into effect, it is difficult for the second and third tier leagues to give birth to top giants. Ajax is the team that has suffered the most. In the early 70s, Ajax was the strongest team in Europe, and in the 90s, Jax also had the ability to win the Champions League, reaching the final for two consecutive seasons and winning the title once. But since the beginning of the new century, Ajax's competitiveness has plummeted, and Jiafu, which dominated the Champions League back then, is now only a European black store that occasionally plays against the sky.
Therefore, the topic we are discussing today, who is the No. 1 European club in the non-top five leagues since the new century, maybe Ajax is not qualified enough. After all, in the past two decades, their best result in the Champions League is only the semi-finals.
Actually, this question is not difficult to answer. As mentioned earlier, Ligue 1 has dragged the five major leagues behind, and even many people feel that there are at least two second-tier leagues in Europe, above Ligue 1, one is the Eredivisie and the other is the Portuguese Super League. As the traditional boss of the Eredivisie, Ajax will not be selected, let alone PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord. So, what about the Portuguese Super League?
Since the beginning of the new century, there is indeed a team in the Portuguese Super League, and the results of the Champions League are even better than many of the top giants of the five major leagues.
Obviously, Porto.
In the 03-04 season, Porto won the second Champions League title in the team's history. In the context of European football since the new century, one can imagine how difficult it is to win this title. With this championship alone, Mourinho can be directly crowned a god. There is a fact, which is both cold knowledge and hot knowledge - Porto are the only team in the non-top five leagues to win the Champions League in the new century.
Okay, let's not just talk about the Champions League, we talk about other indicators. For example, the Europa League. It is said that the Europa League best reflects the overall level of a league, but when it comes to the championship, it can be said that the Europa League championship definitely has considerable weight in European football. In just over 20 years since the beginning of the new century, Porto has won the Europa League twice, second only to Sevilla, the king of the Europa League, and equal to Chelsea and Atletico Madrid. As a second-tier giant, what more could you ask for?
It can be said that in the past 24 years, in terms of the overall results of European competitions, Porto is at least better than Dortmund, Grand Paris, Arsenal and other giants of the five major leagues. In addition, don't look at Manchester City's treble last season, but the overall European results, they really can't compare to Porto. Who can beat Porto in the past 24 years? Ajax, PSV Eindhoven, Celtic, Shakhtar Donetsk. Even Benfica, a Portuguese side who have performed well in the Champions League, is not good.
There is really nothing to doubt, Porto are the boss of the non-big five league teams, the number one giant. If the other teams are not convinced, try to win the Champions League first.