Simon Parker column

Once again the Premier League was owned by Europe and the excuses were as predictable as the results.

Manchester City, for all their billion-pound bluster, were swatted away by Barcelona. Arsenal, as expected, were reduced to a sparring partner role for champions Bayern Munich.

Were we surprised at seeing the shortcomings of two of our best teams so brutally exposed? Not really.

We may boast the most exciting league in the world – but most watchable does not make for the best.

Frenetic, end-to-end action may be easy on the eye but the true technical wizards operate elsewhere.

Barring Jose Mourinho and Chelsea coming up with their best road block impersonation, nobody this side of the Channel can resist Bayern, Barca and Real Madrid – and you can probably throw in PSG and Atletico Madrid too.

So let’s just admit it, rather than clutching at straws as we saw in both post-match press conferences.

First Manuel Pellegrini and then Arsene Wenger tried to deflect the criticism by heaping blame on red-card wielding referees.

It’s far easier to moan at the laws of the game than admit the real reason for two damning defeats – on both nights, the home side was not good enough.

The sendings off were a factor, obviously, but certainly not the cause.