I used to be a big defender of the first one over the sequel as well. Though about 10 years ago, I changed my mind fundamentally.
I really love the match music in the first Speedball and its absence in the second was hugely disappointment. Yet, finally, I realized that the larger playfields in Speedball II allow for amazingly nice maneuvers. Strings of passing the ball on feel really good, and the AI controlled players of your own team enable this smartly through intelligent placement and movement.
The team management, admittedly, is a little overcomplex. But, really, you don’t need 90% of it. Simply buying those star players when they become available is the best strategy. So all the upgrading of individual attributes is unnecessary.
My write-ups about the games:
https://www.goodolddays.net/game/id%2C13/Speedball.html
https://www.goodolddays.net/game/id%2C1492/Speedball-2-Brutal-Deluxe.html
