Europa Conference League

[Bell4]

Why oh why?

It’s becoming like the infant school tree huggers egg and spoon race where all competitors get a prize and there’s no losers only learners

For gods sake

If we win , draw or lose on Sat do we qualify

 

[Ball_Sup (Phil)]

I think it's a superb competition. Much more like v like & competitive than the pro celebrity Champions League. Look at the teams in it tonight - proper clubs with loyal, local fanbases.
Sparta Prague, Marseille, Partizan Belgrade, Vitesse, PSV, PAOK ... Whets your whistle that lot.

 

[Bell4]

I think it's a superb competition. Much more like v like & competitive than the pro celebrity Champions League. Look at the teams in it tonight - proper clubs with loyal, local fanbases.
Sparta Prague, Marseille, Partizan Belgrade, Vitesse, PSV, PAOK ... Whets your whistle that lot.

Oh - ok

 

[Berkshire Blade]

It's made the Europa league better and is easily ignored if it isn't for you. Win win.

 

[Eza Blade]

It’s no Anglo Italian cup

 

[Guesty]

I think it's a superb competition. Much more like v like & competitive than the pro celebrity Champions League. Look at the teams in it tonight - proper clubs with loyal, local fanbases.
Sparta Prague, Marseille, Partizan Belgrade, Vitesse, PSV, PAOK ... Whets your whistle that lot.

The first man to win the European Cup with two teams (and actually play in both games) is Miodrag Belodedici.

The teams he won with? Steaua Bucuresti and Red Star Belgrade. Nothing like that will ever happen again, that's what we've lost.

 

[Champagneblade]

Why oh why?

It’s becoming like the infant school tree huggers egg and spoon race where all competitors get a prize and there’s no losers only learners

For gods sake

If we win , draw or lose on Sat do we qualify

They should drop the whole concept of being crap in the Champions League means you get a second dig in the Europa League and being crap in that gets you a shot in the Europa Conference a league. It's unfair on those teams who are part of the field from the start to find they now suddenly have to play Barcelona for instance.

You also shouldn't be able to claim to be Champions of Europe if you weren't good enough to be Champions of your own league but were far past the point of no return on that one!

 

[MunXy]

Some of us can remember when the champions league was just for champions and the other euro competition was for cup winners only.
Now a team as low as 5th can get in the champions league, surely that's a job for trading standards as some teams in the "Champions " league are in fact not champions?

 

[Working Class Hero]

Some of us can remember when the champions league was just for champions and the other euro competition was for cup winners only.
Now a team as low as 5th can get in the champions league, surely that's a job for trading standards as some teams in the "Champions " league are in fact not champions?

More the merrier for me. If England sends 20 teams in to Europe every year we might one day get there. Scandalous that we never have.

 

[Ball_Sup (Phil)]

More the merrier for me. If England sends 20 teams in to Europe every year we might one day get there. Scandalous that we never have.

We accept that in domestic football you play at your level. Against other clubs also playing at that level. So, European football should roughly be the same. First division European football, second division European football, third division European football, etc. That's logical. UEFA set aside midweeks for European football. So, I agree, ALL Premier League clubs should be playing some form of European football.

 

[Badger Blade]

We accept that in domestic football you play at your level. Against other clubs also playing at that level. So, European football should roughly be the same. First division European football, second division European football, third division European football, etc. That's logical. UEFA set aside midweeks for European football. So, I agree, ALL Premier League clubs should be playing some form of European football.

That's how Rugby Union do it, albeit on a smaller scale where the good teams play in the Champions Cup (again, most clubs in there aren't actually champions of anything), while the also rans play in the Challenge Cup, coming up against teams from all over Europe. They've had German, Dutch, Romanian, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian clubs all playing in it.

 

[Micky Narker]

Sixteen European champions with an unseeded draw in a two-legged knockout tournament would be better than inventing new tournaments so we can see West Ham v Dynamo Merthyr Tydfil. If I want proper underdog stories I'll watch the FA Cup.

 

[gordoncharles]

All this complaining about the Champions League isn't just for last season's Champions... so what? It's just a name, a marketing device.

That's why we play in something called "The Championship" when it's not really The Championship and the winners of Division Four are allowed to call themselves the winners of League Two. It's all very confusing but marketing and PR people seem to like it that way, it makes us seem better than we are. Except it doesn't.

Up until fairly recently The Central Midlands League had both a Premier Division and a Supreme Division. I was always hoping they'd bolt on another one on top of that to see how they used the Thesaurus to exceed "Supreme" but it seems now that league has gone a bit retro, but it does now have a Premier North and a Premier South. Two Premiers, there's a novelty.

If the Champions League was just limited to those teams which won their respective leagues last season it would be the dullest competition imaginable and mostly shockingly uncompetitive. Plus it would make domestic leagues even more one or two-sided than they are already and I include the PL in that.

As for these minor competitions of the type Leicester is now playing in, again, what does it matter? That will only continue if it's financially viable which means if it doesn't draw a TV audience it will be ditched.

Personally I miss the valiant efforts of Spora Luxembourg who were once able to pit their limited skills against the giants of European football.

 

[Edgar Allan Poo]

It’s no Anglo Italian cup

Bring it back!

 

[Working Class Hero]

We accept that in domestic football you play at your level. Against other clubs also playing at that level. So, European football should roughly be the same. First division European football, second division European football, third division European football, etc. That's logical. UEFA set aside midweeks for European football. So, I agree, ALL Premier League clubs should be playing some form of European football.

I'd go with that. I think its basically how the Anglo-Italian cup worked, loosely?

At the end of the day I don't really care who we play, but travelling over to Europe to watch the blades play competitive football would be a brilliant experience.

 

[Ball_Sup (Phil)]

I'd go with that. I think its basically how the Anglo-Italian cup worked, loosely?

At the end of the day I don't really care who we play, but travelling over to Europe to watch the blades play competitive football would be a brilliant experience.

The Anglo Italian was basically the top non promoted clubs from Division 2/The Championship & Italian Serie B. Great format...

 

[scouseblade]

Its all about money isnt it though? Whether you like it or not the "Champions" League will continue to be the top 2,3,4 teams from countries domestic leagues. Does it mean that we preclude smaller nations champions - no - its just more difficult for them to qualify. Does a TV audience want to watch Borussia Dortmund v Manchester City? Yes. Do they want to watch Manchester City v Partisani Tirani? No. As for teams coming 3rd in CL and EL, I agree, it should be season over but the tournements are set up as such now that if you finish 3rd you have to play an additional game unlike the past where you just went into the hat (might I add the 4 "best" 3rd place CL teams would get a home draw too!). I am glad they've done away with away goals too.

 

[1973Blade]

Bring it back!

I preferred the Anglo Scottish Cup!

 

[KeyffSmyff]

scouseblade I don't watch CL for the reason you state, although I acknowledge that more people do. Too many games that don't mean anything, between teams that haven't won anything.

 

[Bell4]

It is about marketing

Went into a city centre bar my mate owned a few years ago - the kids couldn’t get enough flavoured shots down their necks and were choosing jugs of various coloured alcoholic liquids in jugs from menus. I stood in the que and ordered my pint of john smiths telling them it was the future - said to my mate he should include the beer as part of the trendy menu - I got some real looks of fascination

Anyway

On to the div 2 game against Swansea Town

 

[Jon Bon II]

Everything is a load of bollocks these days. It's all bollocks if you ask me. Even if you don't ask me, it's still all bollocks.