Let's take a look at the respective domestic races in each of the Big 3 leagues, with a special note at the bottom regarding the Lesser 2.
England: Chelsea, Manchester United, and Arsenal.
Chelsea have a firm grip on first place, and that's to be expected. What we didn't expect was that they'd do it without Didier Drogba or Michael Essien. If I was the rest of the league, I'd be fucking terrified about what would happen when those guys get back from AFCON. They're sitting pretty right now.
The interesting thing about Chelsea is that all of their players are in the same age range: 28-31. (Terry 28, J. Cole 28, Carvalho 31, Drogba 31, Anelka 30, Lampard 31, Ballack 33, Malouda 29, A. Cole 29, Deco 32). They're all in their prime. But unfortunately, in 2 or 3 years they'll all be over the hill, and we'll see a serious rebuilding process. Mr. Abramovich, open that checkbook because you'll need to use it. Daniel Sturridge and Bosingwa notwithstanding, this club will look like AC Milan in about 4 years. A sad prospect.
Manchester United might not even finish in second place this year. They have all the ingredients- solid defense, a deep squad, decent attack, and a strong midfield. But what they're missing is that element that makes a good team great: creativity. Their creativity comes from pretty much one place, and that place is Wayne Rooney. But wait, you say, there are other creative forces on that squad. That's a good point, there are, but they're all in the same spot, and that spot is up top or on the wings. Unless Ryan Giggs turns 27 tomorrow, we aren't going to see much of a change. Rooney, Berbatov, Giggs. That's all the creativity Manchester United have. Without anyone pulling the strings from the trquartista position, there won't be any celebrations in the Red half of Manchester.
Arsenal are the complete other end of the spectrum. Not solid defense, a shallow squad, very strong attack, weaksauce midfield, and nothing but creative players. That system is great for scoring goals and entertaining, but sometimes you have to grind out a win. Where's the clinical finisher? Where's the hard-as-nails defensive midfielder? Where's the utility man who can play anywhere in defense or midfield? And please, someone get this club a new keeper ASAP. Arsenal can expect to finish in second place this season if Fabregas stays fit. Without him, they're fucked.
La Liga: 2 Horse Race
Barcelona have it locked up, but they aren't the dominant force they once were. One of the reasons for this is the makeup of the squad- it's changed quite a bit. Eto'o out, Ibra in. What an impact he's made, and he's loving every minute of it. That's not the issue, however. The issue is Thierry Henry, who since his handball incident hasn't been the same player. Good thing Pedro is waiting in the wings, literally and figuratively. The youngster has a bright future.
Real Madrid, like ManU before them, have fallen too deeply in love with Cristiano Ronaldo. When he isn't on the pitch and they're facing quality opposition, they flounder. Even when they should cruise to victory courtesy of Kaka and Benzema, they don't. Overreliance on Ronaldo is foolish- we'll see how they do in their next 2 games.
Serie A: Done and dusted
Inter have it locked up. Jose Mourinho better dip into the transfer market one last time, however, because his side are lacking creativity aside from Sneijder. I'd love to see him bring in a competent trequartista, which is not Sneijder's natural role. We'll see what happens.
AC Milan were playing great for a while, but now is where the cracks shine through. This aging squad relies far too heavily on Nesta and Ronaldinho, and that's a problem as they have a combined age of 62. Something's got to give, and it'll need a boatload of cash to do it.
Juventus... what can I say. You fuckers fired Ranieri without having a suitable replacement lined up. Is Ferrara like Guardiola? Absolutely not, and expecting him to be was retarded. Buy a real coach (PLEASE NOT RAFA) and mold your team from there. Whatever it takes to get Hiddink, DO IT. PLEASE.
Finally, the little 2: Bundeslia race will be locked up soon, as Bayern exert their death grip on the current leaders. Arjen Robben, and not Franck Ribery, was the catalyst for this one.
Bordeaux has Ligue 1 sewn up. Sorry Lyon, but the Gourcuff/Chamakh juggernaut can't be stopped- this season.
