Hard YES. Impossible NO. In my 18 previous seasons, I have been in a league level higher than my manager level on 6 occasions (including last season). Only once in those 6 seasons did I fail to make the Champs league. And I won the league on 2 occasions. Plus, if you are L27 and playing in L28 league, then your scout list should be full of 7* players to compensate for the difference.