Exactly. I started watching back in the 90s when the Italians and the Spanish clubs were the top spenders. We couldn't compete with them on that front. We couldn't afford wages for the likes of Kluivert, Batistuta etc.
They offloaded their unwanted players to the Premier League. Retiring players like Casiraghi, Ravanelli. Players who failed there like Henry, Bergkamp. The English league lost the likes of Mark Hughes, Gary Lineker and Ian Rush to Barcelona.
Still, we did it the right way. Shared TV money almost equally amongst our competitors and created a competitive league that many around the world enjoy.
Now Barca and Madrid are skint and their leagues have become so uncompetitive due to TV money distribution that it's unappealing to people. This was what Perez was talking about when he said people want to see competitive matches. The cheek of him when his club is largely responsible for turning La Liga into a joke.
The English 6 have given the Italians and Spanish a way out largely because of how greedy our owners are. The owners of our own United have tarred the legacy of the club at the behest of the struggling continental clubs who used to lord over the English clubs (and for the money as well.) It's kind of heartbreaking.