Snorky's Shame
Well-Known Member
I don't think Arsenal is blowing this.
I don't think Arsenal is blowing this.
So, Chelsea or Frankfurt?
I lean towards Frankfurt, personally. But I don't think there's much difference.
RoflKinda cheering for Chelsea so we can have two all English finals.
I don't know if I've ever enjoyed watching a team more. I'm sad this season is over. They were a special team. I don't know if we will ever see a team from outside the "Top 5" do the things they did again.Ajax has virtually won the Eredivisie. Up three on PSV with a +14 advantage on goal difference. Goal Difference is the first tiebreaker in the Eredivisie.
I don't know if I've ever enjoyed watching a team more. I'm sad this season is over. They were a special team. I don't know if we will ever see a team from outside the "Top 5" do the things they did again.
Just saw the other day that Juve have won 8 times in a row
I want to say that Paris, Bayern and Juventus have won 20 out of the 21 league titles possible between them the past seven years. I just think the European Super League is inevitable at this point. Kind of wish they went with regional leagues first like a BeNeLux League or an Iberian League.
That was more of a tournament than an actual league though.
If you are club outside the big five league and your make the Champions’ League on a semi-regular basis, you will absolutely dominate your league because the money from the Champions’ League will dwarf your rivals. Just look at the dominance of Celtic, BATE, Ludogorets, Olympiakos and Basel. The dynamics of European Soccer changed with the expansion of the Champions’ League in 1997 (first year second placed teams were added) and 1999 (expansion to 32 teams).
15 million euros of Group Stage prize money goes a long way in Greece.
The main problem I have now is half the teams are from the big 4 leagues. So a team like Leverkusen can lose 12 matches and gets into the CL Group stage over Ajax who goes to CL Semis and wins domestic double.That was more of a tournament than an actual league though.
If you are club outside the big five league and your make the Champions’ League on a semi-regular basis, you will absolutely dominate your league because the money from the Champions’ League will dwarf your rivals. Just look at the dominance of Celtic, BATE, Ludogorets, Olympiakos and Basel. The dynamics of European Soccer changed with the expansion of the Champions’ League in 1997 (first year second placed teams were added) and 1999 (expansion to 32 teams).
Inter was a clown show in Europe this year.
This seems harsh - they finished even on points with a team in the final. Their group had two semi finalists, and they probably go through if the fixture list was different and Barca was playing for something against Spurs.
The reality is UEFA has massive financial incentive to have more clubs from the major leagues. And yeah it stinks that Ajax has to go through qualifying, but Dutch clubs have been terrible in Europe lately - take away this year, and Ajax themselves haven’t got out of the Champions League group stage since 2006! They have their best team in probably decades and they were a minute away from the finals - seems like a fair result. They’re going to sell probably 5ish of their best players and will drop down quite a bit.
I also guess I don’t understand why it’s “they should prove it on the field!” for teams who finished 4th or whatever in leagues that have a ton of recent positive history, but a team from a country whose coefficient is lower than the Czech Republic should get automatic entry. Shouldn’t they have the same standard to prove it?
I also guess I don’t understand why it’s “they should prove it on the field!” for teams who finished 4th or whatever in leagues that have a ton of recent positive history, but a team from a country whose coefficient is lower than the Czech Republic should get automatic entry. Shouldn’t they have the same standard to prove it?
I'd just like to see the 4th place team be forced to play teams from other associations vs. just make the group stage. It used to be just one round of a two-legged playoff. But for instance in 16/17, Spain + Italy didn't win in that round. Then again, that side of the qualification wasn't any champions... all 2nd/3rd place teams from lesser associates.Clown show is harsh, but let's not forget that Inter needed a win against PSV, in Milan, to go through, and they couldn't do that. They didn't score a goal in two legs against Eintracht, and went out by losing 1-0 at home. Plus, during all this, you had Icardi and his wife going crazy and undermining everything. It was not a good campaign from a team that was supposed to be challenging for the Serie A title at the beginning of the year.
That said, I see your point here. That's why I'm conflicted. Would I rather have a shitty 4th place Italian/Spanish/German team in the CL or like Goteborg? I think probably Goteborg, personally, but I totally get wanting teams like Inter there instead.