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Not a game, but Florist have been deducted 4 points!
They get promoted with a squad worth £12m, try to compete with clubs with squads valued at £1bn, and get punished for it. Admittedly they went a bit nuts but I can’t see what is ‘sustainable’ about making the PL a closed shop.

Looks like Leicester will also be punished for their temerity in breaking the monopoly, as if relegation wasn’t enough.

I’ve posted before that I would scrap all FFP rules, retain fit and proper persons tests for owners but apply better, don’t let countries own clubs directly or by proxy, and then let normal business rules apply. If an owner wants to chuck money in that’s their call. If they lose interest and the wages can’t be paid, bye bye club.
 
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They get promoted with a squad worth £12m, try to compete with clubs with squads valued at £1bn, and get punished for it. Admittedly they went a bit nuts but I can’t see what is ‘sustainable’ about making the PL a closed shop.

Looks like Leicester will also be punished for their temerity in breaking the monopoly, as if relegation wasn’t enough.

I’ve posted before that I would scrap all FFP rules, train fit and proper persons tests for owners but apply better, don’t let countries own clubs directly or by proxy, and then let normal business rules apply. If an owner wants to chuck money in that’s their call. If they lose interest and the wages can’t be paid, bye bye club.
Do you not think the big clubs will just spend more and the smaller (ambitious/stupid) clubs will just go to the wall without controls. I’m not sure any of the football authorities are capable of initiating and operating any ‘fit and proper’ regulations either.
 
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Do you not think the big clubs will just spend more and the smaller (ambitious/stupid) clubs will just go to the wall without controls. I’m not sure any of the football authorities are capable of initiating and operating any ‘fit and proper’ regulations either.
Just like now you mean? Possibly but at least we wouldn’t have anoraks going on about FFP all the time. Perhaps we could devote the savings from FFP admin into better fit and proper persons tests and implementation.
 
Just like now you mean? Possibly but at least we wouldn’t have anoraks going on about FFP all the time. Perhaps we could devote the savings from FFP admin into better fit and proper persons tests and implementation.
I’m all for that.
 
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They get promoted with a squad worth £12m, try to compete with clubs with squads valued at £1bn, and get punished for it. Admittedly they went a bit nuts but I can’t see what is ‘sustainable’ about making the PL a closed shop.

Looks like Leicester will also be punished for their temerity in breaking the monopoly, as if relegation wasn’t enough.

I’ve posted before that I would scrap all FFP rules, retain fit and proper persons tests for owners but apply better, don’t let countries own clubs directly or by proxy, and then let normal business rules apply. If an owner wants to chuck money in that’s their call. If they lose interest and the wages can’t be paid, bye bye club.

Agree with all of that. The only thing I’d add is to ensure clubs aren’t thinly capitalised, i.e., there’s not too much debt in there that can force a club under. If someone wants to invest in a football club then it should be ordinary risk equity and not a debt instrument secured against the club’s assets.
 
The owners should just have all foreseeable costs locked away in an account held by the FA. If you want to sign some knobhead who has played five games for Dynamo Kiev on an eight year contract worth £50m then good for you but if you can’t afford that amount up front then you don’t do it. If the foreseeable costs go down the owner is reimbursed. If you want to stagger a transfer over five years then cool but those instalments are ready to go from the off.
 
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WELL?



Arse 0 - Queens Park Rangers 4

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Arsenal suffer hefty 4-0 defeat against QPR in behind-closed-doors friendly... with first-team stars Thomas Partey and Takehiro Tomiyasu in action ahead of title clash against Man City



    • Arsenal fielded a weakened side for Thursday's behind-closed-doors friendly
    • Thomas Partey and Takehiro Tomiyasu started the game to get valuable minutes
By DOMINIC HOGAN

PUBLISHED: 20:08 AEDT, 22 March 2024 | UPDATED: 21:25 AEDT, 22 March 2024






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Arsenal were thumped 4-0 by QPR in a behind closed doors friendly on Thursday in a bruising defeat without some of their headline stars.

The Gunners are currently without Declan Rice, Aaron Ramsdale and Bukayo Saka - who has since left the side with injury - who are on England duty, while the likes of William Saliba, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Kai Havertz are also unavailable, along with seven others.

Mikel Arteta and Co have had just over a week of preparation time ahead of next Sunday's huge clash with Manchester City in what could be a title-deciding match at the Etihad.




However, the Spanish boss will be hoping for a much-improved showing after watching his side lose heavily against Championship opposition.

Though the majority of the side was made up of fringe players, both Thomas Partey and Takehiro Tomiyasu started the game, with the Japan international earning himself a new contract earlier this week thanks to his fine form.

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Mikel Arteta's side were handed a bruising defeat by Championship side QPR on Thursday

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Takehiro Tomiyasu was handed minutes from the start as he continues to build back from a calf injury

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Michael Frey scored twice for QPR either side of half-time in the bruising 4-0 defeat

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Likewise Marti Cifuentes took the opportunity to rest a few of his first-choice stars, with ex-Arsenal youngster Chris Willock on the bench and Asmir Begovic, Kenneth Paal and Lyndon Dykes not involved.

The Ghanaian midfielder had the best early chance with a shot on goal that forced a good save out of QPR's back-up stopper Joe Walsh, but the Gunners could not find a way through.



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Ilias Chair, who earlier this season was sentenced to a year in prison in Belgium after fracturing a truck driver's skill with a rock on a kayaking trip, was also in action.

He is believed to be appealing the verdict, having also been ordered to pay the truck driver some £13,400 in compensation.

Rangers ultimately dominated the tie, with Michael Frey netting twice either side of half-time, and foals from ex-Liverpool midfielder Elijah Dixon-Bonner and Ziyad Larkeche completing the rout.

While it was not exactly the result that Arteta will have wanted, he will at least have been pleased to see some of his first-teamers get some minutes in their legs after injury lay-offs.

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Arteta will at least have been pleased to see some of his younger stars get valuable minutes

Partey has played just 276 minutes across six league games this season - an average of 46 minutes-per-game - while the versatile Tomiyasu has been out since early February with a calf problem.

Equally, seeing the likes of Amario Cozier-Duberry, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Taylor Foran feature heavily will please the boss as his younger emerging talents get a taste of the action against seasoned professional opposition.