Other games (2024/25)

[54]

1 minute ago, Froggy said:

 

Tgarve is right though. Nobody cared when it was Frankfurt or Sevilla getting a spot in the Champions League via the Europa. It's only an issue now because of who the finalists are. 

 

I do find it funny that some people think the 5th place finishers in the league have a right to be in the Champions League, yet the Europa League champions somehow aren't worthy. 

I think the issue people are having is more to do with the overall feel and structure of world football at the moment, and how this, rightly or wrongly, has the feel of an ever increasing trend of football being for the few elite clubs and not for everyone as a whole Mainly based on the fact that this final has come off the back of a structural changes to the competitions, that was made to appease the Super League clubs which just so happened to include both Man United and Spurs. Especially when you add in the financial disparity between leagues being so vast, the Premier League has such a financial advantage to the rest of Europe, the fact that Man United can have such a tragic season, finishing potentially 17th, but still have more than enough to beat the 4th best side in Spain over two legs, should quite frankly be cause for alarm. 14 of the top richest 30 clubs in the world are from England, with Brighton having a bigger revenue than Roma and Napoli, thats not a good thing, and is tantamount to wealth hording. 

 

It's also very disingenuous to compare Frankfurt and Sevilla's situation to the same as Man Uniteds, Man United and Spurs have a revenue of £770m and £615m respectively, whereas Frankfurt and Sevilla's is £245m and £199m, and I think the thing most people are annoyed about,  and I could be completely wrong here, so please correct me if i'm wrong, is that the trophy means something to Sevilla and Frankfurt, Man United fans won't really remember it in 5 years time for the most part, and it feels like its being treated by the club as just a mechanism to get into the Champions League not for the trophy itself, in a way that almost discredits the competition they're actually trying to win.

 

I do agree with you about the Champions League thing though, I think its fair enough that if you win the second tier system, you get to compete in the main on. 

[Froggy]

1 minute ago, 54 said:

It's also very disingenuous to compare Frankfurt and Sevilla's situation to the same as Man Uniteds, Man United and Spurs have a revenue of £770m and £615m respectively, whereas Frankfurt and Sevilla's is £245m and £199m, and I think the thing most people are annoyed about,  and I could be completely wrong here, so please correct me if i'm wrong, is that the trophy means something to Sevilla and Frankfurt, Man United fans won't really remember it in 5 years time for the most part, and it feels like its being treated by the club as just a mechanism to get into the Champions League not for the trophy itself, in a way that almost discredits the competition they're actually trying to win.

 

I will correct you on this one. We look back on our Europa League win with Mourinho very fondly, and the loss against Villarreal still hurts.

 

The prestige and financial gain from playing in the CL is just so huge that it becomes the #1 priority, but it's not like we don't care about the trophy. 

 

It was the same when we won the league cup. People think we approach these competitions like we're still the dominant side under Fergie and it's not the case. All silverware these days is hard to come by and we want to win things, especially given the season has been so poor. 

 

I don't think we'll beat Spurs, but I really fucking want to. I really wish it was Bodo/Glimt instead and I'd be looking to the final with huge confidence. 

[Andy84]

4 minutes ago, Froggy said:

 

I will correct you on this one. We look back on our Europa League win with Mourinho very fondly, and the loss against Villarreal still hurts.

 

The prestige and financial gain from playing in the CL is just so huge that it becomes the #1 priority, but it's not like we don't care about the trophy. 

 

It was the same when we won the league cup. People think we approach these competitions like we're still the dominant side under Fergie and it's not the case. All silverware these days is hard to come by and we want to win things, especially given the season has been so poor. 

 

I don't think we'll beat Spurs, but I really fucking want to. I really wish it was Bodo/Glimt instead and I'd be looking to the final with huge confidence. 

You don’t think you’ll beat Spurs? Will be a fairly comfortable Man Utd win in the end 

[Rich]

Couldn’t think of a team I’d rather play in a final than Spurs, like.

[Froggy]

16 minutes ago, Andy84 said:

You don’t think you’ll beat Spurs? Will be a fairly comfortable Man Utd win in the end 

 

Our team seems to struggle with the physicality of the Premier League. Dorgu, Garnacho, Hojlund etc. get pushed off the ball easier in England but not so much when playing a European side. 

 

I just wanted to avoid a Premier League side completely, especially one that has already beaten us three times this season. 

[Super Duper Branko Strupar]

The most annoying thing about the teams that have got to the final is they're due some pain due to their terrible decisions and performances for a while. But yet again, because of favorable conditions for however long, one of them is going to get a reprieve. Which is wholly undeserved.  

[buzza]

Would rather Spurs wont the final than Manu. Think Manu would benefit much more if they won It and got CL and would be more of a danger to us in the future.

 

 

Edited 6 hours ago by buzza

[Yorkie]

1 hour ago, Froggy said:

 

Tgarve is right though. Nobody cared when it was Frankfurt or Sevilla getting a spot in the Champions League via the Europa. It's only an issue now because of who the finalists are. 

 

I do find it funny that some people think the 5th place finishers in the league have a right to be in the Champions League, yet the Europa League champions somehow aren't worthy. 

 

54 has covered most of it, but my post (which tgarve quoted) was about the Europa League being devalued as an honour in itself. That's what will happen if it's routinely considered a route to CL qualification first and a piece of silverware second. 

 

If the EL is going to contain fewer teams of really high quality, then there's a significant risk that the Premier League teams are going to dominate for years to come. To avoid that, those teams need to be less incentivised, which is why I suggested binning the CL carrot. Not because it isn't a reasonable reward.

 

Ironically, having more teams qualify for the CL via the league campaign could actually assist with that disincentivising, as that year's respective EL entrants may already be in the race via the league method. Spurs and ManU have had maximum incentive in the EL this year because they've had nothing to play for domestically since September. 

[JT24]

If Spurs win we will never hear the end of Ange spouting his “winning something in second season” nonsense. 

[alexf]

Only silver lining is that one of these teams will lose and therefore have had a rotten season. 

 

I think Man U win. They have Amad back now who is always a threat, whereas Spurs have picked up a few more injuries. There is also the mental aspect, Man U just expect to win finals and will rise to the occasion, Spurs are like us pre-eddie and they are more likely to wilt under the light. 

 

Man U commercially are a monster as well so were less likely to be hurt financially by missing out on CL, their project with Amorim is going to take while and may still run into issues next year, even with a CL cash boost. 

Spurs on the other hand, with a boost of CL money and if they changed manager and had bit of luck with some better signings are not a million miles of being decent again, a lot of young potential in their squad. So I fear they would be a more likely contender to overtake us next season than Man U if they got CL. 

[bobbydazzla]

May 21st is going to be like going away on a family caravan holiday and you can hear your mam & dad shagging in the double bedroom and your nana & granda are shagging on the sofa bed in the living room whilst you're wide awake in your sleeping bag in the single bedroom wishing you'd never been born 

 

 

Edited 6 hours ago by bobbydazzla

[Nucasol]

1 minute ago, bobbydazzla said:

May 21st is going to be like going away on a family caravan holiday and you can hear your mam & dad shagging in the bedroom and your nana & granda are shagging on the sofa bed in the living room whilst you're wide awake in your sleeping bag in the single bedroom wishing you'd never been born

 

 

 

Some deep caravan club scars being reopened there Bobby lad.

 

On the plus side, I see Cindy is back in the old ‘Enders.

[bobbydazzla]

2 minutes ago, Nucasol said:

Some deep caravan club scars being reopened there Bobby lad.

 

On the plus side, I see Cindy is back in the old ‘Enders.

 

Sales of Mansize Kleenex have dramatically increased in the NE29 area 

[STM]

I'm actually going to go against the grain and say that I'd much prefer sides that actually won something to get into the champions league.

 

For example qualification in England should look like:

 

PL winners

Runners Up

FA cup winners

Carabao Cup winners

 

If the PL winners/runners up also win a cup then 3rd place gets in and 4th if both.

 

So if you win Europa Conference/ Europa League then yes you should get in the CL.

 

It also adds more reward for winning cups, which means sides try harder and play their better players, which makes it more enjoyable and engaging.

 

We are just unfortunate that two absolute rotten sides are in the final, in a normal year a Villa or a Forest or us would likely get the benefit.

[Lush Vlad]

35 minutes ago, JT24 said:

If Spurs win we will never hear the end of Ange spouting his “winning something in second season” nonsense. 

Still. That’s infinitely better than Man U winning it. 

[NUFCDoog]

Really nitpicky post probably but its long been a joke/weird that it's called the Champions League like, when 4 or 5 teams from each country are getting in you end up with the majority of teams in it not being Champions of anything.

 

Either change the name of it, or only have Champions, be it league champions or cup champions (not runners up either, they've won fuck all).

 

I know it'll help us probably this season, but finishing 5th in your domestic league and being in the Champions League because of it sounds bloody odd like. (Obviously we did win a cup this year, so all good but still).

 

I'm aware it'll never happen, and if the same team won all their domestic trophies then only one from that country would qualify so some seasons you wouldn't have many in, but it shouldn't be called the Champions League.

[Super Duper Branko Strupar]

I think the co-efficient thing spoils a lot of European competition. And only serves to make the strongest teams stronger. And richer. 

[Shearergol]

44 minutes ago, Super Duper Branko Strupar said:

I think the co-efficient thing spoils a lot of European competition. And only serves to make the strongest teams stronger. And richer. 

 

That's football these days.