Playoff for the fourth CL spot? (1 Viewer)

[Cormcolash]

It's another fucking shit idea that exists solely because the people in charge know they can make shitloads of money off it.

 

[Unicron]

liverpool have been outside of the top 4 about ten times in fifty years. the gap is real. don't kid yourself that if it came down to it fergie would put out a team with gary neville in it.

Pool are probably the only club of the current big four that on a timeline of that length that have shown that degree of consistantcy. United have been in the second division in that time, Arsenal have had long periods of miserable mid table finishes, Chelsea between the early 70's and when Matthew thingy wot Ken Bates had killed in a chopper crash came along in the 90's with money were a nothing side really when it came to honours, far more likely to be competing for the spot as 3rd/4th/5th best club in London then bothering Arsenal or Spurs. They're not even one off the traditional "big 5" English league clubs.

 

[billygannon]

Scrap the Champions League and restart the Zenith Data Systems/Simod Cup.

 

[washingcattle]

Scrap the Champions League and restart the Zenith Data Systems/Simod Cup.

Agreed

 

[Hector Grey]

harding?

 

[ratmonkey]

This silliness has been knocked on the head.

 

[washingcattle]

the Thought of three merseyside derbies prevails.

There were too many holes for it to work.

 

[Serpico]

Pool are probably the only club of the current big four that on a timeline of that length that have shown that degree of consistantcy.

I'm surprised at you dude. If you actually check the facts, the most consistant team of the 20th Century in English football is, in fact, the Arsenal.

http://www.arseweb.com/99-00/century.html

NEVER go crediting the scousers with undue kudos, it just stokes the fires of delusion they continue to burn in.

 

[washingcattle]

Yeah Okay Arsenal have been consistant too but the point he was trying to make is that up until very recently the top four positions in England were all up for grabs and the world of ridiculous finacncing of clubs has now put pay to that

 

[Serpico]

I was just clarifying a fact. And fair play to yourselves for coming third in that table.

In terms of finance, I'd be interested to see how many poor clubs have spent any time at the top of English football, ever. When Arsenal were cleaning up in the 30's they were known as "the Bank of England".

I know there's a perception that it's easier to buy the league nowadays, and without question the gap between rich and poor is bigger than ever, but I'm not so sure the league was ever that open to teams with less money winning trophys.

I think some of the teams people think of as being small were acutally spending all around them. I'm thinking particularly of Brian Cloughs Forest and Howard Wilkinsons Leeds, they were both big spenders for the time.

 

[washingcattle]

Yeah i totally agree with you on Brian Clough and Howard Wilkinson but at the same time this was at a time when Irish and Scottish were considered foreign players and the big money sums were almost always propping up other clubs in the league/division. This money doesn't stay in england anymore so clubs have to find cash from benefactors to buy players.

I suppose things are different for English clubs simply because English players really can't play abroad. (only Owen Hargreaves has succeeded in this in the last decade. Fuck David Beckham) So while the big money goes abroad to foreign clubs the money coming in from the same markets is non existant. Therefore as a business model the only way to succeed in england is either as

A. A corperate backed buying club.
B. A selling club
C. Bring youth team players through the ranks and buy when possible sell to balance the books (Arsenal and Evertons model)

I hated the fact that we had to sell Big Dunc and Wayne Rooney to stay afloat but it had to be done and while top four clubs will never know what that's like it's common practice for a lot of clubs who don't have infinite overdrafts.

I'm going off the point here but basically even when Wilko and Cloughie were spending the English clubs benefitted now that's gone and it's more important to have a great chairman/owner than a great team, cos fuck it you can always just buy a new team.

Oh and this is by a supporter of the team that's been looking for a big investor for years but can't coax one to buy the team with not one but two white elephants on the fucking jersey.