Liverpool and West Ham United exiting the Europa League on Thursday ended the English topflight’s incredible streak in Europe.
Liverpool and West Ham United were eliminated by Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen, respectively, in Thursday’s Europa League action, leaving the Premier League without any participant in the leading continental competitions.
05:23 - 19.04.2024
UEL: Klopp unconcerned about Salah’s wayward finishing
The Liverpool forward missed a chance to double the Reds’ advantage against Atalanta on Thursday as the Merseyside club ultimately exited the Europa League.
22:00 - 18.04.2024
West Ham 1-1 Bayer: Boniface's Leverkusen extend unbeaten run to reach UEL semis
Nigeria's Victor Boniface and his Bayer Leverkusen side remain in contention for a treble this season after a 1-1 draw against West Ham United in the Europa League quarterfinals, extending their unbeaten run to 44 matches across all competitions.
Manchester City and Arsenal knocked out of the Champions League
Pep Guardiola’s City side were chasing a double treble until Real Madrid put paid to those prospects on Wednesday, while Arsenal were yet again defeated in the Champions League knockout stage by Bayern Munich, with Joshua Kimmich deciding the tie.
It means Guardiola and Mikel Arteta can throw everything they have into Premier League contention, and Liverpool fall into the same boat after Thursday’s exit in the Europa League.
Exits to Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool and West Ham end England’s UCL and UEL streak
Those outcomes mean no Premier League club will play any part in the semi-finals of the continent’s leading competitions for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
That season's Champions League saw Chelsea eliminated by Paris Saint-Germain in the first knockout round, with Man City and Arsenal suffering the same fate at the hands of Barcelona and Monaco, respectively.
No English club made it to the 2014-15 Europa League last four as Everton had exited against Dynamo Kyiv in the round of 16, having defeated Young Boys in the preceding knockout round.
The upshot of England producing no UCL or UEL semi-finalist
With Aston Villa being the Premier League’s only European representative in the Europa Conference League, England are not expected to get one of the two coveted extra Champions League slots.
Those additional slots should go to Italy and Germany going by UEFA's Association club coefficient ranking, with Roma — still in the Europa League — and Borussia Dortmund — Champions League semi-finalists — currently occupying fifth in Serie A and Bundesliga, respectively.