Neat article. But alot of statistics that mean very little relative to the nuances of the sport, styles of play, formations and individual technical capabilities. I missed the authors' coaching and playing credentials amidst all the number crunching.
Does faster and continuous mean a better league? No. Even if it does, define a "faster" and "continuous" playing league. Then, who is better? Is EPL the fastest in terms of running and continuous because of directness and less dribbling and less short passing? Yes. Is it the fastest in terms of technical speed and continuous because of lateral interplay and individual flair? Not even close.
As the article finishes, "the beauty of the game is still in the eye of the beholder" and, to most outside of Britain and the Anglo-fanatics in America, individual technical ability is the key factor in relation to talent and its depth.
EPL can't not be the deepest league in terms of talent when so many of the bottom two-thirds of the leagues' teams have British players from countries like an England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales who are struggling mightily to develop its own players to compete on the world level.
