Liam Flin: Rise of the underdogs across Europe is a breath of fresh air in a world where money talks

Money talks in football and the richest clubs are expected to dominate but Borussia Dortmund's progress to the Champions League final this season shows there is still ample opportunity for clubs with smaller budgets to defy the odds on the biggest stages.

And the 2023-24 campaign has indeed been the season of the underdog across the continent.

Bayer Leverkusen are obvious example of a team punching above their weight this season

From 'Neverkusen' to 'Neverlusen', the Bundesliga club were second-bottom when they took a chance on Xabi Alonso as manager in 2022 and they have since enjoyed a meteoric rise.

Leverkusen lost just one of their 53 matches in all competitions this season, winning their first Bundesliga title and the German Cup either side of a Europa League final appearance.

Flying full-backs and midfield dominance were central to Leverkusen's ascent and their triumph was made more impressive by the fact they toppled a Bayern Munich side who had won the previous 11 Bundesliga titles and added Harry Kane to their ranks last summer.

But Leverkusen's exceptional run was not the only fairytale in Germany this season as Stuttgart also raised shocked many by finishing second in the table - a point ahead of Bayern Munich.

Stuttgart began the season as relegation candidates and for good reason too - they placed 16th in the 2022-23 campaign and had to battle through the relegation playoffs.

Sebastian Hoeness was the managerial mastermind behind it all, having inherited a Stuttgart side who were bottom in April 2022, before guiding them to safety and jumping 14 places in a single season.

The 28 league goals of Serhou Guirassy were crucial but the unity and tactically flexibility of Stuttgart deserves immense credit as well.

In Italy, Bologna had been a mid-table club for a number of seasons but breaking into the European places - let alone the Champions League spots - looked unlikely given the league is stacked with big names like Inter, Milan, Juventus, Roma, Lazio, Napoli, Atalanta and Fiorentina.

Under the stewardship of former Champions League winner Thiago Motta, though, Bologna upset the apple cart to place fifth, which this season resulted in qualification for Europe's premier club competition. 

In Spain, Girona were the big talking point. They were top of La Liga at the end of January, having been 1000-1 in the ante-post betting, before finishing third below Real Madrid and Barcelona but above established giants Atletico Madrid.

Unlike other success stories across Europe, Girona's progress was built on fluid attacking football rather than a sturdy rearguard - their tally of 85 league goals was bettered only by Real Madrid.

And France was not untouched by underdog fever, either, as Brest, a club who had never previously finished higher than eighth in Ligue 1, secured Champions League football with third spot.

Eric Roy's men were defensive powerhouses throughout the season and achieved the unthinkable with an annual budget of only €48 million and a stadium capacity of 15,000.

Each of these stories deserve columns in their own right - and that is without mentioning Aston Villa in the Premier League.

The Champions League changes format next season - whether or not it will make things more competitive remains to be seen.

But for now at least we can take solace from the transformations of Stuttgart, Bologna, Girona and Brest, which shows there is more to European football than just money.

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