The problems we have with football in Britain and I dare say in Europe too are created by the Champions League. It has devalued every thing except winning the domestic league and clubs are putting qualification for the CL before everything else. The knock on affect this has is to devalue domestic cup competitions and also the UEFA cup. It was said by many that winning the UEFA Cup was in some ways more difficult than winning the European Cup because you were playing the 2nd and 3rd place teams in some very strong leagues. I remember when it was European football week, i loved it .. When I was a kid the 3 cup competitions were at the same level, it was only when I got older I saw the difference and even then, being a cup winner, any of the 3, was amazing. Now you have teams putting out silly squads in domestic cups, these cups will never appeal unless everyone takes them seriously. I don't like the direction football is heading toward, the CL must go back to being the winners of their respective league only, but money is in control of football now.
Tend to agree - and it's going to get worse. Sooner rather than laster we're going to have a European League and fixtures like Arsenal - Wigan will be a thing of the past. We'll be flying out to Spain, Germany, Italy every week and having to put up with continental refs that cheat for the Spanish clubs week in week out. Money has basically ruined football and without a complete collapse I dont see a way back.
There is no way back unless money is removed. They need to scale everything right back so that tickets, salary and prize money all drop to a reasonable level, but you can't do one without the other.
I think that's a slightly catastrophic view, but I take on board the sentiment. The idea of the 39th game in Asia has been floated already, but that's largely a commercial venture as an 'extra cirricular activity' and whilst it's not inconceivable that a pan European league could be a reality, I think the recognition that the English game and indeed the individual European leagues are valuable commodities in their own rights will keep them from being swallowed up by some kind of expansive replica of the Champions League.
I think there's a case for top League team of 16 countries go into a knockout. Venues initially at the home drawn club, at semifinals neutral grounds.
Agree, those Tuesday/Wednesday nights at Highbury in the CWC or EUFA Cup were great nights. However I do remember Spartak Moscow rocking up one night and sticking 5 past us, that wasn't so much fun....
I agree with the OP. The champions league has destroyed the whole domestic scene. Even the notion of having 4 teams of certain leagues going into the Champions League is nonsense. The purpose was suppose to be the best in each league playing against each other. Now the champions league has become so increadible that it's taking over everything, like a big fat blob consuming everything in its path. Even on this board im hearing that we have to get into the top 4, we don't care about any domestic cups etc....Let's not get started on the impact its had on International football. The World Cup is just boring now. I remember it was so exciting to watch, the passion the players used to show, now they couldn't give a t0$$. It's sad to see and hear.
Good point Lazarus - the impact on international football has been immense. Too many players would rather get back to the safety net of their clubs where they're pampered and adored by everyone and paid £200k a week rather than wear their national shirt, it is very very sad...
Remember Rooney's response to the crowd when we got spanked in the world cup? Instead of showing shame for being pants, he acted petulantly. Very true Grizzly, if your getting paid 200k, why do you need the hassle....
The likes of Rooney certainly p#ss me off with their attitude but it started with Scholes for me, the bloke who called time on his international career 7 years before he ended his domestic career, only to then come out of (domestic) retirement a year later - the bloke's a disgrace and has led to a number of others retiring from international football but collecting paycheques from their clubs for years to come...
I think that description of an all engulfing blob to be quite accurate of the CL, like a disease there is no cure for, laying waste to everything in it's path. It needs to be stopped because this is being driven by nothing but greed. If you ever needed proof think back to when the greedy bastards added a 2nd group stage and attendances dropped that season.
Whilst I agree with the sentiment that money is making football less fun than it used to be, the champions league is not some kind of evil system that is out to destroy everything good about football. We all enjoyed the home game against barcelona last season right? Or liverpool amazing comeback in 2005? And what about in 2006 when Campbell scored to put us ahead in the final? Obviously that last one wasn't a great example given how the game ended but the point is that the champions league must be doing something right if it can give us great moments like those.
The Champions League gives me a buzz that the other competitions don't. I do enjoy watching Arsenal play a European style more than their league style. I get where you are coming from, but I don't think the Champions League in itself is a bad thing at all.
Serious question mate, how old are you ? Trust me, 2nd round Eufa Cup games at Highbury against Hadjuk Split or Panathinaikos were just as intense - I think there was more of the unknown then though, no live TV, no internet, when these teams turned up on the night the first you knew about their form/players/league position was by reading it in the programme !
I did not enjoy Liverpool's comeback in 2005. The sight of Steven Gerrard cheating in front of millions around the world and stealing the trophy from Milan was sickening. A travesty and a dark day for football that was exaulted in this country because it was an English team that won. It will remain one of the most blatant acts of cheating in football history. Players and clubs are more than happy to cheat in the CL because of the money and singular importance placed on the trophy.
I don't think we're in any position to be saying things like that, considering the pedestal we place Henry on.
Think you're being a bit harsh there Jayram, it was an incredible comeback and Milan, of all clubs, are not innocent in these matters. Far from it.
The competition itself isn't bad but the money involved is, it is this that is ruining football. If it was just a case of being crowned the Kings of Europe thats one thing, but clubs just want to get into the thing even though they have no chance of winning it - to the detriment of their domestic leagues.
I'm in two minds about this. When it was the old midweek EC/UEFA/ECWC format one thing that was noticeable was that our teams rarely played top notch teams. E.g., LFC first 2 wins in EC were against Borussia, Bruges, Forest v Malmo. It was very rare to see big blockbusters; I can only recall 1 game vs Real Madrid, a couple vs Munich. It was also loosing it's shine as I remember LFC regularly handing out 5-0 beatings to Benfica in the quarter finals at a 3/4 full Anfield. As for teh domestic league, evenb in the old days they were always 2 teams fighting for the league title, and the rest fighting for a top 6 place to get into UEFA cup. I don't think much has changed in that sense; the league is just as important, but teams now can fight to compete for a place in a fabulously glamorous competition. The Champions LEague group format has also given us so fantastic games between the grandee teams, which in teh old fomrat might have never happened. If we didnb't have the CHampions League, we'd be clamouring for it, and it is an extremely successful and lucrative alternative to an all out Euro League. It's also a model that is followed by the wannabe sports of RU and RL would it too (if only it were played elsewhere). Remember the UEFA Cup was also often referred to as the "Cup for teams that didn't win anything". The big looser is the FA Cup and that is something to be regretted. I think what might happen rather than an all out Euro League is that we will start to see Champions League games taking place at weekends to maximise TV. That would mean more league domestic cup games shifting to mid week. I'm, easy about that - I just love watching football.
