When have 5 CL spots been up for grabs that they haven't gone to Spain?

Premier league in 05/06.

Was that the year Everton didn't make it?

Si, lost to Villarreal. Who had won Spain's top four trophy the season before.

Actually they didn't, Betis did. That was back when third and fourth both had to play a play off. My mistake.

Napoli are going to win the EL this season anyway.

I think Europa might stand a chance in this year's Sevilla league.

I hope so.

Just for all the articles we'd see from Forza.

Sevilla are the only club whose chairman has made winning the Europa League the club's priority virtually from the start of the season. I found it a weird and risky statement to make, but hey ho.

It's beneath Italian and English sides.

Italy has the best UC/EL record of any country.

Sevilla will do well to win the Europa League this season. Will have to avoid beating City and Munchingladbach which will be a tall orde and Juventus look pretty poor so can't see it happening.

Yeah the used to take it seriously when it was the UEFA Cup. Not won one since the 90's I don't think.

Did you know that no English team has ever been knocked out of the Europa League? They quit. They were just fed up because they were too good for the job and was nothing to do with that big poo I left in the boss's shoe.

Castellon Cup?

Europa League is ours, very few sides comfortably better than us that can actually be bothered with the tournament.

We could take any English side.

Man City might take it seriously.

City will do rather well this season I believe, they have a bit of breathing room in the league which has been uncharacteristic for them.

I can see this being their best season yet, and if as it has been suggested that it is Pellegrini's last season, I expect them to really go for it.

*In the Champions League

Maybe it will be the first season in years where a team wins the PL by actually being good. Not just through other teams being rubbish. Not looking promising though as Arsenal, Man Utd, Chelsea and Liverpool all trying to be as awful as possible already.

They'll have a wobble and there will actually be a title race I reckon.

No, I agree they'll have a wobble, but I think for once they can go into the majority of their Champions League group stage games without being massively worried about their league fixtures.

United are the opposite, their group is so easy they can actually concentrate on trying to push City in the league.

I think City can reach the semi-finals this season and from there on in they'd be dark horses in my view.

Depends who they play when the CL matches are on. They play us at Old Trafford after one of the games.

I'd be surprised if they get to the semis, to be honest. Depends on the draw but they just aren't that good in Europe. They are basically Arsenal in Wenger's early years.

IMO the PL was at its strongest domestically and in Europe when it had Benitez, Ferguson and Mourinho all competing against each other to master the art of the 1-0 win. That's the only way PL clubs have been able to achieve any sort of success in Europe in recent years. The likes of Wenger, Pellegrini and Rodgers don't have the pragmatism needed at that level. Jury's out on van Gaal as I feel his possession 'philosophy' is impotent without the spark of someone like Robben (and even with Robben as evidenced by the 2010 CL final).

(Wenger's best chance of Euro glory was also when he managed to master the 1-0 win. But he doesn't like to be reminded of that)

Yeah have always thought that. But that was when football was at its most boring. I think it peaked at its most awful in the 2007 FA Cup final.

The top teams in Europe are far too organised compared to PL teams these days, but not in a cowardly Chelsea 2012 way. Just remembered that. It gave me ebola.