madras Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I really want to like the idea and the intentions are good, but I don't think this is the best solution (despite the excitement). Last season Fulham finished 7th and I wouldn't want them representing us in the CL (if they could fluke past 4th, 5th and 6th). I'm not against something fairly radical being introduced though, I think its essential to the evolution of the PL that we stop the monotony and the great gulfs that are forming. Just maybe not this idea. What if the 7th place club qualified and knew they were guaranteed £40m for qualifying and spent the lot investing to make themselves competitive? If they didn't qualify for the next few seasons then they'll have a wagebill that they can't maintain. Depends on their wage structure though. If they had to move a player or two on then they wouldn't even feel the hit. Spread the wealth. At the minute the rich are getting richer and opening it up a bit has to be a good thing. why not do it for the premiership title then ? top 8 clubs go into play offs to decide the title. it's wrong and defeats the point of the league system. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ketsbaia Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I really want to like the idea and the intentions are good, but I don't think this is the best solution (despite the excitement). Last season Fulham finished 7th and I wouldn't want them representing us in the CL (if they could fluke past 4th, 5th and 6th). I'm not against something fairly radical being introduced though, I think its essential to the evolution of the PL that we stop the monotony and the great gulfs that are forming. Just maybe not this idea. What if the 7th place club qualified and knew they were guaranteed £40m for qualifying and spent the lot investing to make themselves competitive? If they didn't qualify for the next few seasons then they'll have a wagebill that they can't maintain. Depends on their wage structure though. If they had to move a player or two on then they wouldn't even feel the hit. Spread the wealth. At the minute the rich are getting richer and opening it up a bit has to be a good thing. Yeh spreading the wealth is a good thing. I guess there isn't a solution thats financially but competitively fair for everyone. Strangely enough, this season seems to be an anomaly because theres a genuine chase for 4th place. But with the differing financial situations at Liverpool, Man City and Aston Villa, maybe leaving things as they are for a couple more years could finally see the gap bridged. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
midds Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I really want to like the idea and the intentions are good, but I don't think this is the best solution (despite the excitement). Last season Fulham finished 7th and I wouldn't want them representing us in the CL (if they could fluke past 4th, 5th and 6th). I'm not against something fairly radical being introduced though, I think its essential to the evolution of the PL that we stop the monotony and the great gulfs that are forming. Just maybe not this idea. What if the 7th place club qualified and knew they were guaranteed £40m for qualifying and spent the lot investing to make themselves competitive? If they didn't qualify for the next few seasons then they'll have a wagebill that they can't maintain. Depends on their wage structure though. If they had to move a player or two on then they wouldn't even feel the hit. Spread the wealth. At the minute the rich are getting richer and opening it up a bit has to be a good thing. why not do it for the premiership title then ? top 8 clubs go into play offs to decide the title. it's wrong and defeats the point of the league system. The league is the league though. The team that finishes top is the champion. That would stay the same. There would be 3 more teams to make up the CL places. 2nd and 3rd would go straight in but the 4th place would be a competition. What are you getting at? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
madras Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I really want to like the idea and the intentions are good, but I don't think this is the best solution (despite the excitement). Last season Fulham finished 7th and I wouldn't want them representing us in the CL (if they could fluke past 4th, 5th and 6th). I'm not against something fairly radical being introduced though, I think its essential to the evolution of the PL that we stop the monotony and the great gulfs that are forming. Just maybe not this idea. What if the 7th place club qualified and knew they were guaranteed £40m for qualifying and spent the lot investing to make themselves competitive? If they didn't qualify for the next few seasons then they'll have a wagebill that they can't maintain. Depends on their wage structure though. If they had to move a player or two on then they wouldn't even feel the hit. Spread the wealth. At the minute the rich are getting richer and opening it up a bit has to be a good thing. Yeh spreading the wealth is a good thing. I guess there isn't a solution thats financially but competitively fair for everyone. Strangely enough, this season seems to be an anomaly because theres a genuine chase for 4th place. But with the differing financial situations at Liverpool, Man City and Aston Villa, maybe leaving things as they are for a couple more years could finally see the gap bridged. there quite often is a chase for 4th place....everton, spurs (twice) now man citeh,us, Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdckelly Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 last season fulham finished 7th, 19 points behind 4th placed arsenal and 19 points ahead of 18th place us, are they serious that a club can finish as close to relegation as 4th but still might get the cl spot ahead of the 4th placed team if luck goes there way. This is about how to make the big wigs in prem hq more money by selling the rights to these games separate simple as, how long until a play off for the right to be called champions i wonder. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OzzieMandias Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I'm surprised how many people favour the crap status quo. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazza ladra Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Another step on the slippery slope towards an American-style playoffs system. There was a time-- as recently as my youth-- when how a team performed over the long haul of a season was what really counted. To win the pennant was an achievement. Only the team that won the league advanced to the playoffs. Then they introduced divisions (first two, then three or four) and playoffs and "wildcard" teams, which hadn't even managed to win their divisions, and all manner of bullshit until the season itself didn't really matter anymore. It's all about jockeying for position in the playoffs--- when the the real competions starts. These changes merely debased the baseball season; for other sports it was much, much worse. Hell, half the clubs in the basketball, hockey, and soccer leagues make the playoffs. Some achievement. Barring a promotion- relegation system, there has to be something in place to keep half the fans interested througout the campaign. So the champion crowned at the end of the season is the winner of a short tournament. It's all good for television revenue though... and, afterall, isn't that what it's all about? We Americans love it; it gives us the opportunity to gather around the water coolers and discuss our favorite commercials. Welcome to the future, suckers! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bealios Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Good idea. Think it should be top 3 get the automatic spots and the next 4 play off for one place. IF you finish 4th, tough. Its only a very recent development where 4th place gets anywhere near the "Champions" League. THe team that finishes 7th still has to beat 2 team above it to get to the CL, and can't embarrass themselves any more than teams have done in the past. Those worried about the 7th place team embarrassing themselves should think how can it be any more embarrassing than our CL year (Partisan) and Everton's. UEFA/FIFA will like this as well, as it might mean that English clubs lose the stanglehold they would have had on the competition for years, if it wasn't for Barcelona happening to have a good side. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Offshore Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Do any other leagues do this? And will EUFA even allow this if we're the first to suggest it, seem to remember they came out pretty quick to when it was mooted to have the FA cup winners given a champs league place a few seasons ago. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Brazilianbob Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I think the real issue here is the fact that billionaires who have invested in EPL clubs outside the top four may well chuck their hand in if they cannot get into the CL If they do that we may well see some big clubs going to the wall i.e. Man city if their owners pull out, Villa, etc, even Sunderland, but would that be a bad thing? Seriously though, either way this is a scenario the EPL must avoid, hence the carrot and stick idea of the play-offs for the 4th CL spot. They are probably taking the private view that Liverpool/Arsenal will probably qualify anyway and will get even richer from the added gate money the play-offs will generate, whilst keeping the CL wannabees relatively content. As for the 4th placed team finishing 10 points clear of 5th, and still having to take part in the play-offs, it is no different in any of the other league play-offs. The point is if they want CL football finishing 4th is no longer a guarantee because they know there will be 3 other teams waiting to battle it out at the end of the season and it is akin to a cup final for the teams that make the final play-off places. Bring it on I say!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueStar Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 League Cup winners don't deserve a CL place like. I could just about be persuaded to give the FA Cup winners a place but not the League Cup winners. It's a nothing competition imo. Would it not suddenly become a much bigger competition if there was a champions league spot at the end of it though? Imagine teams would take it much more seriously. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NG32 Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 I'm game for it, the league is standing still, i'd also like to see a champs league spot for the FA cup winners. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AyeDubbleYoo Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 There shouldn't be four Champions League places anyway, it's ridiculous. The idea that people can celebrate coming fourth like they've won the league is stupid. I would much prefer to see the CL kept just for 1st place. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
madras Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 There shouldn't be four Champions League places anyway, it's ridiculous. The idea that people can celebrate coming fourth like they've won the league is stupid. I would much prefer to see the CL kept just for 1st place. thing is there would often be times when the uefa cup was stronger the the european cup because teams who won the league weren't doing so well by the time the european cup came round the following season.. however i agree that 4 is too many. definitly top 2 or 3 though. top 2 with third going into a play off like we had with zaleznicar would be ok. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AyeDubbleYoo Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 There shouldn't be four Champions League places anyway, it's ridiculous. The idea that people can celebrate coming fourth like they've won the league is stupid. I would much prefer to see the CL kept just for 1st place. thing is there would often be times when the uefa cup was stronger the the european cup because teams who won the league weren't doing so well by the time the european cup came round the following season.. however i agree that 4 is too many. definitly top 2 or 3 though. top 2 with third going into a play off like we had with zaleznicar would be ok. Yeah, I just think it puts undue emphasis on coming 4th... it shouldn't be an acheivement in the top division. I know the only way for European football is to get bigger, but a lad can dream. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGuv Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 1st Place - Champions League 2nd Place- Chamions League 3rd Place- Europa League 4th Place- Europa League F.A CUP- Cup Winners Cup League Cup- Cup Winners Cup ??? Would this not mean that people take the Cup's more seriously? And then the Europa League won't be as much of a joke anymore with nothing teams like Bolton getting in etc. Just an idea but of course UEFA would have to bring back the CWC... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ponsaelius Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Do any other leagues do this? And will EUFA even allow this if we're the first to suggest it, seem to remember they came out pretty quick to when it was mooted to have the FA cup winners given a champs league place a few seasons ago. I'm pretty sure the Eredivisie (Dutch) had play-off systems for all their European qualification but scrapped it either last season or the season before. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJbarnes Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Look at some of the teams in the group stages of the champions league. debrecen, besiktas, etc. etc. Surely if they are good enough, teams like Fulham or Everton would stand a chance. I'm not saying they'd go on and win it by any means but they'd probably give it a go, and perhaps go past group stage. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gggg Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Fucking ridiculous but then the Champions Money League has long since given up considering itself a sporting contest to decide who's the best in Europe. If you're not the best in your own league you shouldn't be in it, never mind 7th best. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisJbarnes Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 put it this way. Maybe I'm in the minority here, but seeing a team like Fulham or Everton playing Barcelona would excite me much more than watching Chelsea or Man United. I normally find myself rooting for the other team than the British team. Having a smaller british team as the underdogs would really excite support from the country Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest optimistic nit Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Fucking ridiculous but then the Champions Money League has long since given up considering itself a sporting contest to decide who's the best in Europe. If you're not the best in your own league you shouldn't be in it, never mind 7th best. i'd rather see liverpool or arsenal in it than some shitty team from lithuania. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest schmuck Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Fucking ridiculous but then the Champions Money League has long since given up considering itself a sporting contest to decide who's the best in Europe. If you're not the best in your own league you shouldn't be in it, never mind 7th best. i'd rather see liverpool or arsenal in it than some shitty team from lithuania. the teams from eastern europe are shitty precisely because uefa keep making allowances for the very biggest clubs to reap the most money possible from the competition and maintain their stranglehold despite them winning nothing, there are still just as many good players coming from the belgrades and bucharests of this world but the teams over there are shit because the players with promise are usually in a liverpool or arsenal shirt before their 21st birthday. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heron Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 No. Daft idea. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AyeDubbleYoo Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 Might spread the Champs League money around a bit, that's something. I don't agree with playoffs at all in principle, even in the lower divisions I think the top teams at the end of a season should get the prize. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pav Posted February 15, 2010 Share Posted February 15, 2010 No Wembley final, maybe this will be the Premiership match that is played abroad instead of the 39th game? NO. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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