Introduction.

My first impression, and whenever I have been asked this question I have been convinced of this, is that the Premier League is quicker and has bigger physical demands than the Spanish championship, and that La Liga is more technical and tactical.

I think that most football fans who are acquainted with both leagues will think the same thing, but, looking at the data we have received from companies such as Opta(who analyse more matches) and Amisco, and having read some published articles on the subject, we decided to do this analysis.

The first thing you have to take in to account is that according to the criteria used by these companies to define the parameters, the data can be different. For example, to count blocked shots as a shot or not completely changes the statistics. The same applies to the speed of the players; a sprint can be defined as over 21km/h or over 24km/h, which obviously changes the analysis.

To avoid the problem, having compared the data, we decided to use the most reliable data and present it in the clearest possible way; so the study will not have any scientific value but will give us a more objective idea of the 2010-11 season in both leagues.

From a Technical Point of View.

The first data we analysed showed only small differences in time of ball in play, 53 minutes in La Liga and 54 minutes in the Premier League last season.

The number of passes per game is similar for the last 2 seasons in both leagues, although slightly higher in the Spanish league. There is not a significant difference.

More long passes in the Premier League, more in the opposition half and also more in the final third, but with less accuracy. This may be due to the fact that in the Premier League many of these passes came from the goalkeeper. Similarly, more crosses in the Premier League over the last 2 seasons.

Passing:

The number of passes per game is similar for the last 2 seasons in both leagues, although slightly higher in the Spanish league. There is not a significant difference.

More long passes in the Premier League, more in the opposition half and also more in the final third, but with less accuracy. This may be due to the fact that in the Premier League many of these passes came from the goalkeeper. Similarly, more crosses in the Premier League over the last 2 seasons.

General Play:

In La Liga, they dribble more and with more success in the Premier League.
Higher number of challenges in the Premier League, and this is an important factor when we consider the disciplinary data.

The subject was lost, to be short i will respond to a question, my opinion is made mate as yours :)
Does Ronaldo s goals in spain is due to weakest defence ? No.

At 22 years old he scored 31 goals from 34 games, i think that non of the 28 years old RVP or Rooney or Suarez even approached his stats in a mature age, so considering he is stronger than when he was 22, i can safely say that he will score +30 goals every year with United,City or Chelsea. He is able now to perform every year in a high level giving outstanding performances every week, considering he is now with Messi the best professionnals ever to play the game.

The last fact i can tell you is not from EPL neither from La Liga:

Champions league stats :

Manchester united

2005/2006 : 8 apps 1 goal
2006/2007 : 11apps 3 goals
2007/2008: 11 apps 8 goals
2008/2009: 12apps 4goals

Real Madrid

2009/2010 : 6 apps 7 goals
2010/2011 : 12 apps 6 goals
2011/2012 : 10 apps 10 goals
2012/2013 : 12 apps 14 goals
2013/2014 : 1 apps 3 goals

Completely convinced that were not talking about the same Cr 7 ?
I still repeat it Messi and Ronaldo are destroying CL like they are destroying La Liga like they will DESTROY EPL if they\'ve got a chance to play in, and where is Epl strikers in CL ? Who are used to small spaces ?

Messi wouldn't "destroy" the EPL, but that's not to say he would not do well in the EPL.

@Lodatz

I disagree with you saying that Ronaldo wouldn't be able to mirror his form in the EPL. Here's why.

As a 22 year old, Ronaldo scored 42 goals in 49 games for United. Using simple logic of how a player gets better as he ages, we can safely assume that he would've sooner or later achieved his 1 goal per game ratio.

If you disagree with La Liga statistics, then fine. I won't use La Liga stats to prove my point. I'll use Champions League stats.

Since joining Madrid, Ronaldo has scored 38 goals in 41 games in the Champions League. That is, in fact, a competition of the best against the best. That means that all the teams Ronaldo scored against were not easy teams to beat. He's scored against the likes of Manchester United and City, Dortmund, Bayern, Lyon (back when they were dangerous), AC Milan, Tottenham, and many more teams.

Moreover, he's scored 5 goals in 6 games against English opposition. That is, against the BEST of English opposition. He's scored against Manchester United, Manchester City, AND Spurs. What makes you think he can't bag hat-tricks against teams like Wigan or Fulham if he faces them? If van Persie can do it, so can Ronaldo. You forget that a player of Ronaldo's intelligence and talent always finds a way to score or make an impact on the game.

Ronaldo is a superb athlete, so the "physical" side of the EPL should be no effort to him. He even bagged two goals against Chelsea in a friendly recently, and a goal against Everton. Even if they were friendlies, they still are capable English teams, and 3 goals in 2 matches should show that he is very much capable of scoring against them when tactical plays are involved.

Although this has been a long post, I hope you see my point. I am not saying that Messi will replicate his La Liga form in the EPL. I am JUST arguing for Ronaldo's case. I think I summed up some very valid points here, and I hope that I don't have to continue this debate more than this post.

"Lol mate you face facts with old videos,"

Yes, because you seem to be confused about the reality of the stats you're citing. Modric was played out of position until the last few months of the season, at which point he started playing where he should have been playing since Day One, and then banged in 3 goals and 6 assists. Oh, and also is the one who set the stage for Madrid to pass United.

Those are the Facts. You seemed unimpressed, so I gave you actual footage to impress you by, showcasing his actual play. If the best you've got in return is to simply say: "poor stats", then I doubt there's going to be much profit in discussing it further.
"but we have PLENTY of those players in Spain,in his profile."

Which must be why Madrid paid 33m pounds for him, instead of picking up one of those 'plenty' of players like him. ;)

"UNTIL THEY GOT BOUGHT BY AN ENGLISH CLUB, SUDDENLY THEY BECOME LEGENDS"

Not true at all. Cazorla is a great player, but he's hardly a legend. He's just the tricky, technical player that Wenger needed to upgrade his midfield and deal with the loss of Nasri and Fabregas (how's HE getting on, by the way?). Silva is another great player, but, he's not a legend either. He's a tricksy, technical player that City bought to upgrade their team. And it worked. Because he's a great player.

THAT'S WHY CITY BOUGHT HIM.

As for Mata, he's become probably the best #10 on the planet (aside from Messi, but, y'know, Messi) since joining Chelsea, upgrading his game, and being surrounded by players like Hazard, Oscar and Ramires, when before he only had Banega to work with. He really HAS become a legend, and if it were not for Iniesta in front of him in the pecking order, he'd be running Spain's midfield too.

I'm not sure what point you're trying to make, to be honest.

"Come on mate. not all EPL players can come to Spain and feel like its easy"

I'm not really sure which players have NOT found it that way. Except Song, really. I seriously don't know why Barca bought him -- he was never that good in the PL, either.

But, take a look at the record:

Ronaldo --> doubles his goal tallies the moment he joins La Liga.
Fabregas --> doubles his assists tallies the moment he joins La Liga.
Modric --> after 6 months of being played out of position, gets to play in his actual position, and becomes Madrid's best passer, in terms of pass completion rates (look it up).

Hell, even Gio Dos Santos, who could not even make the Tottenham bench, seems to be doing rather well again.

Who else IS there? Not many players cross from the PL to La Liga, because La Liga teams cannot afford them (unless it's Barca or Madrid), so it's hard to compare, but the superstars who DO cross seem to do pretty well for themselves, and suddenly get a boost in stats.

I don't understand why you can't see why that is. :/

@Dynast:

"That is, in fact, a competition of the best against the best. That means that all the teams Ronaldo scored against were not easy teams to beat."

• I actually disagree with that. I would rather face the likes of Galatassaray, Shaktar, Zenit, CSKA, PSV etc etc than I would face Newcastle, Swansea, Norwich and Southampton. I really would.

This is the thing that's forgotten about the Champions League: yes, it's full of champions, but, many of those champions are from small leagues who are vastly, VASTLY inferior to the PL, La Liga, Serie A and Bundesliga. Vastly.

If Ronaldo scored a hat-trick against Anderlecht, I would not exactly be impressed.

And yes, his European tally has increased since United, mainly because they entire Madrid team exists, much of the team, to simply give him the ball. He was the star at United, but not at the expense of the rest of the team. At Madrid, it often seems as though he IS the team.

So no. I don't accept that any of this changes the fact that when he moved from the PL to La Liga he started destroying the Spanish defenses which are much weaker. And no, if he returned to the PL, he would not be able to keep his numbers up.

Nor would Messi. Its just nonsense.

I mean, yes, one can point to having scored against United, this past CL. How long do you think he psyched himself up for that match? How many weeks in advance do you think he trained for that match? Studied for that match? Prepared himself mentally for that match?

And even when the match came, it took a frankly wonderful header out of nowhere to score at home, and United to be down to 10 men and in s state of shock to score away.

Not the same as your everyday league match, I'm sure you'll agree.

As for scoring against Spurs, yeah, that was 3 years ago, when we still had Crouch as our main striker, and Gomes as our goalkeeper. :p In fact, weren't Spurs down to 10 men inside the first 15 mins in that game at the Bernabeu...?

It's amazing what teams can do when they keep being given advantages like that. ;)

@Lodatz

But if those advantages were given in league play, you would not make excuses, no? If RVP scored a hat-trick against a ten man team, you would not be complaining, no? He would fully deserve those goals, just like how Ronaldo deserves his.

And please, I cannot find the will to argue with you further when you say that you would rather face Galatasaray than Southampton. Please, I have no response to that. It is just ludicrous.

"But if those advantages were given in league play, you would not make excuses, no?"

If the incidents were taking place in the PL, they would not be given as reds to begin with. That's part of the point. There would be no such advantage.

"He would fully deserve those goals, just like how Ronaldo deserves his."

I'm not saying he doesn't deserve his goals. Of course he deserves them; he scored them. I'm just saying that when they're against a team like Anderlecht, or against a 10-man peer team like United, it takes away the gloss somewhat.

"Please, I have no response to that. It is just ludicrous."

Why? Galatasaray are pretty crap, all things considered. Look at their star players: rejects and retirees from the bigger leagues. I have no qualms in saying that teams like Gala and Zenit would be hanging around the relegation zone if they played in the PL, and many of the teams in the CL (such as Anderlecht, Plzen, Steaua Bucharesti and Olympiakos) would be outright relegated.

This even trickles down to the Europa League. Tottenham had little more than a training game against Tromso, and even little old Wigan (playing in our SECONDARY league) got a draw against... well, whoever it was.

@Lodatz

You've been off your rocker lately. I don't know why you love to attempt to show people how much "better" the EPL is than La Liga and your recent obsession of proving that Ronaldo and Messi won't be able to score 40+ goals in the EPL. Do what you want mate. When you said Galatasaray is a weaker team than Southampton, I pretty much realized that you're off your rocker.

One thread doesn't seem like much of an obsession, dude. :/

I just illustrate what seem like pretty conclusive statistics, to me. When Ronaldo goes from scoring 15-20 goals in one league (that one amazing season aside), to over 40 in another league, immediately, especially when the team he's left performed better than the team he went to, in Europe, that says an awful lot about it.

As for being off my rocker: why? What is it about Galatasaray that makes you think they're so much better than Southampton?