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The last decade marked a shift in power in most of the game's top domestic leagues.
Arsenal and Manchester United plummeted down the table in England while Manchester City established a dominant reign. French giants Lyon and Bordeaux were toppled by Paris Saint-Germain, while the two Milan clubs were usurped by a resurgent Juventus in Italy.
However, many of the fallen legendary clubs have shown signs of recovery in the last few seasons. For instance, AC Milan are once again competing for the Serie A title, and were back in the Champions League this season after a seven-year absence.
Despite encouraging signs from the likes of Arsenal and Inter Milan, other historic clubs seem to have lost their way in the last few campaigns. The collapse of Juventus, for example, has been sudden and unexpected.
On that note, here's a look at five legendary clubs whose fortunes have taken a turn for the worse recently:
#5 Celtic (Scottish Premiership)
Celtic are footballing royalty in Scotland, but their long-standing air of invincibility has evaporated in the blink of an eye. The Bhoys were on an incredible run of nine straight Scottish Premiership titles in 2020 when they were dethroned stunningly by Rangers.
Under Steven Gerrard, Rangers went unbeaten in the 2020-21 league season. Despite the Liverpool legend's subsequent departure to Aston Villa, Rangers are on course to win a second consecutive title, and currently lead Celtic by six points.
Celtic, who are the only Scottish team in history to win the European Cup (1967), have also struggled in Europe in recent years. They haven't qualified for the Champions League group stage since the 2013-14 season, and have regularly faltered in the qualifying rounds.
They haven't fared much better in the Europa League either. Celtic finished bottom of their Europa League group in 2020-21. They have already dropped to the Conference League after a third-place finish in the ongoing edition.
#4 Barcelona (La Liga)
Barcelona fans, players and executives would love to erase 2021 from their collective memory. The year gone by was a complete disaster for the Spanish giants, as nothing went their way, both on and off the pitch.
Rocked by the departure of club legend Lionel Messi, undisputedly the greatest player in their history, Barcelona have endured a forgettable 2021-22 campaign. However, the Blaugrana, who boasted the best team in the world in the early 2010s, have been in decline for a while now.
Barcelona haven't won the Champions League since 2015, and were embarrassingly dumped out of the group stage this season. That marked their earliest exit in the competition in two decades.
They have also conceded the last two La Liga titles to Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid respectively. The Blaugrana are currently 15 points behind first-placed Los Blancos, who are on course to securing a record-extending 35th league title later this year.
It has been a forgettable spell for a historic club that has won six La Liga titles and two Champions League trophies in the last decade.
#3 Schalke (2 Bundesliga)
In 2018, Schalke finished second in the Bundesliga after reaching the Champions League quarter-finals the previous year. Now, they are fourth in the 2 Bundesliga, having been relegated from the German top flight at the end of the 2020-21 campaign.
It's interesting to note that Schalke consistently made decent runs in Europe in the 2010s. They qualified for the Champions League knockout stage five times, including the 2011 semi-finals.
Schalke played in the Champions League as recently as 2019, losing to Manchester City in the Round of 16. They also reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League twice during this period.
The German giants' dramatic collapse from Bundesliga runners-up to relegation in the space of three seasons has been nothing short of astonishing.
#2 Manchester United (Premier League)
Just over six months ago, it appeared English football's fallen giants were ready to launch an assault on the Premier League title. However, Manchester United's heartbreaking loss in the 2021 Europa League final to Villarreal saw Ole Solskjaer's reign unravel at a breakneck pace.
Since Ferran Torres' recent sale to Barcelona, Manchester United have overtaken City as the most expensive squad in the Premier League. Yet the Red Devils are currently in seventh place, and a staggering 22 points off leaders Manchester City. They have already been eliminated from the EFL Carabao Cup by West Ham United, and were quite unconvincing in the Champions League group stage, which they topped.
Manchester United are on a four-year trophyless run, their longest drought in the last 40 years.
Ahead of the 2021-22 season, there was optimism that the Red Devils had turned a corner after their second-place league finish last season. Instead, they're arguably back to square one, and the ongoing season already looks unsalvageable for the English giants.
#1 Juventus (Serie A)
Juventus' signing of Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018 was expected to be the final piece of the puzzle for the Old Lady. The Bianconeri fell short at the final hurdle in the Champions League in 2015 and 2017. By bringing in the Portuguese superstar, Juventus looked to win a first Champions League crown since 1996.
In hindsight, 2018 was the beginning of the end for Juventus' era of dominance. They have been eliminated at relatively early stages by supposedly inferior opposition in each of their last three Champions League campaigns. A quarter-final exit to Ajax and eliminations against Lyon and Porto in the Round of 16 were bitterly disappointing.
However, the most shocking blow was the manner in which Juventus relinquished their 2020-21 Serie A title to Inter. The Bianconeri endured a terrible campaign, finishing fourth, which saw their run of nine consecutive league titles draw to a close.
The departure of Ronaldo and manager Andrea Pirlo has only exacerbated matters. The Old Lady are currently fifth in Serie A, a whopping 22 points behind leaders Inter.
That's a shocking decline for a club that harboured aspirations of continental glory barely a year ago.
