Queens Park Rangers and Norwich City have been promoted to the Premier League this week and a certain struggle against relegation awaits the two clubs next season in Europe’s richest and most watched league competition. But is the Premiership as good as its hype? No English team reached further than the quarter-final of the Champions’ League last term and several world-class talents have departed these shores to achieve their goals abroad, notably Xabi Alonso and Cristiano Ronaldo, in recent seasons.

Last summer, Germany displayed their precious quality on the international stage at the World Cup in South Africa, which was a result of years of financial and technical development at club level. Now, many observers are beginning to see a shifting of power away from England and towards the German Bundesliga, especially considering UEFA’s financial fair play rules are to be implemented imminently, so could it be argued that the Bundesliga is overtaking the Premiership as the best league on the continent?

The most important difference between the two is that in Germany, the fans are priority. The Bundesliga has the lowest ticket prices and the highest average attendance of Europe’s five major leagues. Borussia Dortmund, who last month secured the league title, boast a stand at their Westfalenstadion home which holds 26,000, the biggest stand at any football stadium in Europe, and costs little more than £10 for admission on match-days. Clubs limit the number of season tickets to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to attend games, and the away team always retains the right to 10% of the available capacity. What’s more, match tickets also double as free rail passes which guarantees supporters at least one easy transport route to games, and the perception of travelling fans is as far removed from the hooligan culture in England as possible.

The Bundesliga is possibly Europe’s only major domestic league whose clubs collectively make a profit, but no German team has won the Champions League for ten years, if we assume Schalke will fail to defeat Manchester United in Wednesday’s semi-final second leg. That said, Bayern Munich reached last years final and Schalke’s presence at this late stage indicates an encouraging future for German sides in Europe’s premier club competition. “The Bundesliga as a brand, a competition, is in good shape. We have a very, very interesting competition, a stable and sustainable business model that relies on three revenue sources,” explains Bundesliga chief executive, Christian Seifert. These three features of German football’s development are match-day revenue, sponsorships and broadcast income, amounting to a turnover of 1.7billion Euros last season.

These figures couldn’t contrast the state of English sport any more, where week after week a different football league club is placed in to administration and where top teams like Manchester United and Liverpool build on their mountains of debt. In Spain, club debts are just as high, in France, Ligue 1 clubs spend more of their income on wages than any other league, and in Italy, stadiums are regularly half-filled. Germany’s success is based on putting supporters first, which, despite the Bundesliga taking home around 350million Euros less than the Premier League in match-day revenues each year, has seen attendances surpass every other major domestic league in Europe.

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Two seasons ago, La Liga recorded average attendances of 28,478 fans, the French Ligue 1 21,034, Serie A 25,304 and the Premier League 35,592, but these figures were smashed by the Bundesliga’s average of 41,904. A significant factor contributing to the Bundesliga’s success is that its clubs pay less than 50% of their revenue on players’ wages – the lowest in Europe – and substantially less than the 62% Premier League clubs spent in the 2007-08 season, which is now even higher following Manchester City’s extravagant spending over the three campaigns since these figures were released.

The most extraordinary aspect of Germany’s financial management is that it has been achieved despite the Bundesliga’s television income being a modest 600million Euros compared with the Premier League’s lucrative return of over £2billion. Seifert rationalizes this discrepancy: “When pay-TV was introduced in 1991, the average household already received 34 channels for free. Therefore we had the most competitive free TV market in the world, so this influenced the growth of pay-TV very much. We were forced to show all of the 612 games of the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 live on pay-TV. So we have to carry the production costs of this.”

Seifert, however, refuses to use the small return from television rights as justification for German teams’ recent failings in European competition: “Bayern Munich is ranked in the first four clubs of Europe, and bear in mind even Chelsea, which spent a hell of a lot of money in the last years, didn’t win it. Sometimes you could have the feeling that the ability to win the Champions League goes in line with your willingness to burn a hell of a lot of money. For that reason I think Uefa is on very good track with their financial fair play idea.”

I tend to agree with him on this point because money has never been the defining factor in Champions’ League success, as of course Porto and Monaco proved by reaching the final in 2004. The trend is more often than not a cyclical process, evidenced by German football’s dominance at the end of the last century when two Bundesliga clubs won the Champions’ League and a further two reached the final between 1997 and 2002, but European tournaments are also not always justification for the strength of a country’s domestic competition. As we all know, Bayern Munich are traditionally, and currently, the best club representative from the Bundesliga, but the title has been shared between four different sides in the past five seasons, a refreshing divergence from Manchester United’s Premiership dominance, spanning the past three decades. Surely this level of competition offers spectators the most exciting and unpredictable league in Europe, particularly when compared to La Liga, where just two teams compete for dominance year after year.

Each observer will have a different set of criteria for what constitutes the best league, but the Bundesliga, since its post-2006 World Cup transformation, appears to triumph in every department. The issues which persistently trouble English fans are managed with typical German efficiency, including the aforementioned ticket prices, transport, club finances, home-grown talent, national side and league competition. The entertainment factor is, and always will be, up for debate, but the Bundesliga is beginning to cast the Premiership in to the shadows.

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Sporting Braga boss Domingos Paciencia believes his team can defy the odds and beat Porto in the Europa League final on Wednesday.Porto, who claimed the Liga Sagres title by winning 27 of 30 games and drawing the other three, are favourites going into the first all-Portuguese final in Dublin.

Paciencia said his team faced a tough task against a side he felt were good enough to play in the Champions League, but he was confident they could win the cup.

“Porto have always had a very strong team and right now they are a side that could do well in the Champions League. They are a Champions League club,” he said.

“In a final, and given how the season has gone, it’s natural that Porto are big favourites.”

“But it’s a final, it’s just one match. With the right inspiration and motivation, many situations can occur in a match that can get you a goal. That is what makes us believe it’s possible to win.”

Andre Villa-Boas’ Porto side have won the Portuguese Cup to go with their league title and could complete a treble in Dublin.

But Braga have defeated some of Europe’s best sides en route to the final, and Paciencia said his team deserved to be there.

“When you face a Liverpool, a Dynamo Kiev, even the champions of Poland, Lech, those are big names and automatically the players gain motivation,” he said.

“I also think the players’ capacity for hard work and their daily efforts are reflected in where they are now.”

Braga, who finished 38 points from Porto in the league, are winless in their last seven outings.

Germany can move a step closer to Euro 2012 if they continue their 100 percent start to qualifying against Austria on Friday.Joachim Loew’s young Germany team announced themselves as a force to be reckoned at the 2010 World Cup finals, beating England and Argentina before a narrow 1-0 defeat to eventual winners Spain in the semi-finals.

They continued their impressive form into qualifying for the 2012 European Championships in Poland and the Ukraine, winning all five matches so far to top Group A by five points ahead of Belgium.

Turkey are six points back in third, while Friday’s opponents Austria are eight points off the pace in fourth place.

Austria have won just two matches from five and must defeat Germany at the Ernst Happel Stadium if they are to have a realistic chance of claiming second place and earning a berth at the tournament.

It will be no small task for the hosts in Vienna, but they at least come into the match in the knowledge that Germany are battling a considerable injury list.

Miroslav Klose will be unavailable after the first-choice striker suffered bruised ribs in Germany’s 2-1 friendly win over Uruguay last Friday.

With uncapped Borussia Moenchengladbach striker Marco Reus also sidelined, Bayern Munich’s Mario Gomez is now Loew’s only fit out-and-out striker. Forwards Lukas Podolski and Thomas Mueller lead the options to offer Gomez support.

Bayern’s Bastian Schweinsteiger and Borussia Dortmund’s Sven Bender are out, while Stuttgart’s Christian Traesch became the latest midfielder to be ruled out after twisting an ankle in training on Tuesday.

Bayern attacking midfielder Toni Kroos could be converted to a holding role, while Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira has been passed fit after overcoming a thigh problem.

“Toni has played successfully in that position in the past,” assistant coach Hans-Dieter Flick said.

“With Sami Khedira everything is going according to plan. He trained with the football yesterday and will do it again today. As far as the injury is concerned it has healed.”

“If he is fit he will play but if we see a risk then it is also our obligation to the player, to be careful. We will know for sure if he can play after Thursday’s training.”

As for Austria, Twente striker Marc Janko is aiming to cause an upset to keep his team in with a slim chance of qualification.

“We are the clear outsiders but that also means we have nothing to lose,” Janko said.

“We want to anger our big brother and maybe it will be enough for a draw or even a sensation.”

“We are in a position where only victories will do for us right now.”

With most players now having been back at Carrington for pre-season training for around a week, thoughts are now turning to the pre-season tour of the USA which is fast approaching, with the first match on the 13th of July and the squad staying for the remainder of the month.

During Pre-season, the squad will play matches against clubs of varying strength and quality, from Kansas City to the recent Champions League victors Barcelona. With more emphasis being put on conditioning the players and preparing them for the upcoming season than the results of the games, it is the perfect opportunity for some of the players to stake a claim to the first team or at least the subs bench.

The much discussed summer signings of Ashley Young, De Gea and Jones will all be looking to make a claim for first team football, with De Gea’s task being the easiest for obvious reasons. Young will also have high expectations and expect to make a strong impression in pre-season, and is surely hoping for a start in the opening game of the season against West Brom. Jones seemingly has the hardest task in ousting Vidic or Ferdinand for a first team place, but is certainly prepared to have a go and try to claim a starting jersey for the upcoming campaign.

Not only are there the new signings to consider, the current players on the fringe of the squad will also be looking to impress the manager, with Chris Smalling coming from the back of an impressive under 21 tournament and having just signed a new contract will feel more than hopeful of forcing his way into the team at some point, and will certainly expect a good run out in pre-season to show exactly why he should be in our starting eleven week in week out.

The Da Silva twins Rafael and Fabio will consider the departures of Brown and O’Shea to be only a good thing, showing the trust Fergie has in them to play consistently in the first team, and they will both look to try and enhance their reputation during the pre-season games and at the start of next season. With Evra now 30 and not getting any younger, it seems feasible that Fabio will focus on making the left back position his own and Rafael will look to become the main right back for United.

Likewise upfront, whilst Rooney has the least to prove of the four main contenders, Hernandez will want to prove he is not a one season wonder, and Berbatov will be trying to stake a claim for a place partnering Rooney up top come the 13th of August. Owen, one would assume, would simply be looking to show he can finish something other than his dinner. Danny Welbeck and Kiko Marcheda would also be looking to make some sort of impact and at the very least raise an eyebrow or two of the management to prevent being farmed out on loan for a further season.

When considering the high profile retirements of the last season, Van Der Sar’s successor is pretty much certainly De Gea should the boy perform as expected, with Gary Neville’s position being filled by the Da Silva twins. With the mentioned departures of Brown and O’Shea, the only recognised full backs in the squad are the Brazilian lads and Patrice Evra. Both Chris Smalling and new signing Phil Jones can also prove a dab hand at full back, and Fergie seems to have acknowledged this, with his lack of pursuit of a further full back to fill the shoes left by Neville. Pre-season will be vital for our young players to prove they deserve a place in the team and to show Fergie was right in focusing on other areas during the summer transfer window.

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Scholes’ ‘successor’ is yet to be unveiled, but Nasri or Sneijder look strong possibilities to be pulling the strings in our midfield next season. Signing either of the above before the pre-season tour commences is far from likely, but Fergie will want some sort of deal done sooner rather than later, possibly in time for the Community Shield game against Man City, if not long before that.

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Pre-season will be vital for all our players, with each either looking to cement their place in the first team or to enhance their reputation and break into the first team. With such competition for places, and a great deal of quality too, not only do the pre-season games look promising, but the upcoming season has the potential to be one of the best yet.

Read more of Rebecca Knight’s articles at The Busby Way

Swansea City have signed goalkeeper Jose Moreira for an undisclosed fee from Liga Sagres runners-up Benfica.Moreira, 29, has agreed a two-year contract with the Welsh side, who were promoted to the English Premier League after their victory in last season’s Championship play-off final.

He has one full international appearance to his name with Portugal and was an unused squad member during the European Championships in 2004.

“It’s my dream to play in the Premier League and I’m delighted to get my chance with Swansea City,” Moreira told the club’s website.

“I have been at Benfica for 12 years and while it will be hard to leave I need a new challenge in my career.”

After beginning his youth career with Salgueiros, Moreira joined Benfica in 1999 and has made more than 100 appearances for the club.

“I believe the experience I’ve gained at such a big club as Benfica and with Portugal will help me achieve success in the Premier League for Swansea.”

“I watched Swansea’s game at Wembley against Reading on the internet and I was very impressed.”

“I can’t wait to get started.”

West Brom are in talks with goalkeeper Ben Foster over a move to The Hawthorns the Daily Mail understands.

Boss Roy Hodgson is keen to bring a new first choice goalkeeper after selling the error prone Scott Carson to Turkish side Bursaspor.

Foster is available after Birmingham’s relegation with the club eager to get him off the wage bill at St Andrews ahead of the new season.

A move across the Midlands would suit the 28-year-old keeper, who made himself unavailable for England duty last year, with a number of Premier League clubs chasing him.

Speaking about the player Hodgson said: “I am aware of our interest in Ben Foster but I am not aware of how far down the line we are with our negotiations with Birmingham, so I can’t make any comments on that.

“But Ben Foster is a goalkeeper who interests us and, if we can get him to West Bromwich Albion on loan or on a permanent deal, that would be something we would be very happy about.”

It would be a real coup if Hodgson can bring the former Manchester United and Watford keeper to the Black Country club.

He received numerous plaudits for his performances last season despite Birmingham dropping into the Championship.

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Securing Forsters signature would also provide the Baggies boss with a keeper bursting at the seams with International and Champions League experience.

Joe Cole has now joined Dimitar Berbatov on French club Paris Saint Germain’s shopping list according to various reports this morning coming out of The Mail and The Guardian.

Cole was linked earlier this week with a move to Premier League new boys QPR on loan, however his wages were seen as a stumbling block, with Liverpool wanting to shift the former England international’s muted £90,000 per-week contract off their wage bill.

Newly rich PSG won’t see Cole’s wage demands as an issue, particularly as they hope to tempt Liverpool into letting him leave on a free transfer – something Liverpool may consider as they look to cut down their over-stocked midfield area and reduce the astronomic wage bill that bit-part players receive at the club – something caused by the previous regime. Although Cole has featured in all of Liverpool’s pre-season fixtures, he suffered a terrible first season at Anfield, and there are doubts as to whether Kenny Dalglish sees a future for him at the club.

The French giants from the capital are now backed by the Qatar Investment Authority, and have already demonstrated their spending power, beating Chelsea to the signature of the much vaunted Argentine Javier Pastore for around £40 million.

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Meanwhile PSG’s interest in signing Manchester United striker Berbatov became more of a possibility this week, when United’s manager seemed to suggest that the Bulgarian could move to the French capital. When asked whether Berbatov could play with PSG, a smiling Ferguson replied: ‘Yes. Absolutely, no problem.’

Roberto Mancini has admitted he could pull the plug on a deal for Samir Nasri if he plays in the Champions League for Arsenal on Wednesday, the Guardian understands.

Nasri, who made a surprise start in the Gunners defeat to Liverpool on Saturday, is in line to start against Udinese in the play-off second leg, which would make him ineligible for City’s campaign in the competition.

Mancini has declared that if  Arsene Wenger does play his £25 million target it could prove to be a deal-breaker leaving the midfielder stuck at the Emirates.

“If he plays in the Champions League [for Arsenal] it is a big problem. I don’t know [if we would still sign him]. I’m sure we can close the deal.” The Italian said.

“But it’s a problem because we have followed Nasri for 40 days and it’s important we take him. Also, for Nasri, I think it will be important [for him] to play in all the Champions League.”

Despite the threat of Nasri being unable to play in the Champions League and reports in France claiming the deal had broken down the City boss is confident of bringing the 24-year-old to the Etihad Stadium and believes an agreement will be reached soon.

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“In the next 24 hours, maybe 48 hours” He said.

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Spanish newspaper Marca are reporting that AC Milan are lining up an ambitious swap deal for Fernando Torres in an attempt to end his Chelsea nightmare.

Since signing for £50 million from Liverpool in January the Spanish hit man has been seen his form rapidly decline scoring only one goal in 22 games for the Blues.

The chances of him leaving Stamford Bridge increased after recent interview with the official La Liga website saw him criticise  his teammates for being ‘too slow’.

Andre Villas-Boas has stated the matter has been resolved although it seems that the Portuguese coach has lost faith with the 27-year-old after another scoreless outing in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Reports earlier in the week linked him with a move to Italy and now it seems the Serie A side are ready to firm up their interest by testing Chelsea’s resolve in January with a cash plus player bid.

It’s been suggested that Milan could offer Robinho as a makeweight with the Brazilian on the peripheral at the San Siro and a target for numerous Chelsea managers in the past.

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Whether Villas-Boas would be prepared to take on the former Manchester City misfit is another matter with six strikers vying for a place up front at the current time.

Arsenal attacker Robin van Persie has stressed to his team-mates the importance of staying positive, despite the London club’s shaky start to the season.

Arsene Wenger’s men have lost three out of their first five Premier League outings this term, and are already 11 points behind pace-setters Manchester United.

Regardless of the poor start, the Netherlands international feels his side must keep their heads held high.

“It is important that we stay positive – that can be hard because everyone is frustrated and we realise that this is our worst start in the league for a while, but we have to stay together, be strong and make sure not to hide or become introverted,” he told Sky Sports.

The Emirates team lost 4-3 against Blackburn last weekend at Ewood Park, and Van Persie is upset at the manner of the defeat.

“Games like Saturday’s happen, but we must not go into our shell. The facts are we went in front twice and didn’t defend well enough thereafter.

“It is strange because in earlier games, Udinese being a classic example, we had managed to do it – fighting for a good result and keeping it. Now we have to show people we can do it week in, week out.

“Yes, we were a bit unlucky at Ewood Park, but I am someone who believes you bring luck to yourselves – and scoring two own goals is not down to bad luck. We don’t blame individuals, but we have to look a bit more closely at things,” he concluded.

Arsenal host Bolton at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, with The Gunners fans eager for their team to secure three points.

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