Franco Di Santo reckons the top tier Football in Germany is quite intense, probably a little more than that in England.
If Di Santo had made this statement some time back, it would have been considered ridiculous, but, the way the English teams have performed in the Champions League over the last couple of years, it seems the Argentina international is not off the mark.
There were only a couple of English teams in the Round of 16 in the previous season’s Champions League and neither of them managed to advance to the quarters.
When asked to compare the leagues in Germany and England in an interview, Di Santo said, “Frankly speaking, I had not expected Bundesliga to be that intense, but, having played in it for a full season now, I would say it’s more intense in comparison to any other league I have played in my career so far. As a player; you are under pressure all the time.”
“The training regimes are also quite different in the two countries. They have a different philosophy back there in UK. They don’t put that much pressure on the body of the players. There is more emphasis on rest. In Germany, it’s not like that. We have to train quite a bit and I have realized it’s beneficial in terms of stamina.”
“At times, playing Premier League games, I used to start feeling a little weary after 75-80 minutes. I don’t feel that way over here. So, more training brings more strength to the body which is good.”
“The English league might have upper hand in marketing though. However, if you talk about the standard of the game, I would not say they are ahead.”
Di Santo played for as many as three teams during his stint in England.