The Rolling Football Thread, season 2023-24 Part 2

[DuncinToffee]

Continuation from this thread

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/sports/4855370-the-rolling-football-thread-season-2023-24?page=40&reply=132530310

Grrrrrr

Just Villa left then Europe wise...

Gillingham have now released a statement regarding this FA Cup replay farce. I'm useless at clicky links 😆 so have copied it from their website:

"Gillingham FC is deeply disappointed to learn of the decision taken by the FA and PL to alter the format of the FA Cup which will include abolishing the 1st, 2nd and 3rd round replays starting in 2024/25.
We join the wider Football community in condemning the path forward chosen by the elite minority.

To have seemingly made this decision without consulting EFL member clubs, nor those in the National League and at Grassroots level, shows a complete disregard and contempt for the traditions of the competition and our Football Pyramid.

729 clubs entered the FA Cup this season, but it appears the views of only 20 of those clubs were of importance to the FA when deciding the way forward for this historic competition. Football belongs to us all not just the elite.

Football fans deserve better.

We hope the FA will consider reviewing its decisions and, in future, include everyone in their thought processes, not just those with the largest bank balances"

🙌

Loads of teams have now issued statements 💪

I just read about this in the newspaper.

The problem is that there is nothing that the FA can do unless we decide that English clubs should not take part in any European competitions.

The other European countries have always been jealous of the Premier League and are doing everything in their power to weaken it.

That was what the Super League was about and because that failed, they are making the Champions League bigger and bigger.

UEFA have asked all the major leagues in Europe to have a maximum of 18 clubs in the league and to only have one domestic competition. France have already done this.

The bigger the Champions League gets the more advertising it will get and the less the PL will get because there is a finite amount of cash. So the PL will get weaker and weaker which is what the rest of Europe wants.

The other European countries have always been jealous of the Premier League and are doing everything in their power to weaken it.

Not in Germany. They like watching the PL, they are knowledgeable about it. But the model of ownership and TV setting the schedule? Horrified them and they don't want it.

Sorry wrong thread

Phew! Should have finished that off earlier, but bloody Tierney was letting them assault us at will as usual. Lovely cute finish from Ødegaard at the end there. Are there any fitter players than Ødegaard and Rice? They just seem to be able to go 100 miles an hour for the whole game.

I turned the telly on just in time to catch Guardiola moaning about too many matches

Been following this thread for a while but posting for the first time as the FA cup replay issue has just made me so angry. Pep is being rightly mocked for his whinging after yesterday's match. There aren't many fans on here who support non PL league teams which is why I have just lurked so far but I am a season ticket holder at Sunderland and therefore bitter rival of @EddieHowesShithousingMags!

Unbelievably, spurs and NUFC for example are flying to Melbourne a few days after the season ends to play in a friendly. Then you have the club World Cup etc. it's seems PL clubs, who play fewer fixtures than clubs in the EFL anyway, love these fixtures but cba with a replay against a league 2 English club which could help secure its financial future.

My own club won the FA cup after a run which included 3 replays. Disappointed they have not released a statement yet condemning the decision.

Boo hiss @thevegetablesoup. 🤭

However. All welcome here, and yep, totally agree. That Australia trip has raised a LOT of eyebrows.

@thevegetablesoup

You might be correct, but as I said above, there is nothing that the FA can do unless we decide that English clubs should not take part in any European competitions.

The other European countries have always been jealous of the Premier League and are doing everything in their power to weaken it.

@Brefugee said above that the German clubs are not jealous, but I am sure that UEFA are.

@Brefugee What do the German fans think about the expanded CL and the Club WC? The schedules of both those competitions will be set by TV companies.

That was what the Super League was about and because that failed, they are making the Champions League bigger and bigger.

UEFA have asked all the major leagues in Europe to have a maximum of 18 clubs in the league and to only have one domestic competition. France have already done this.

The bigger the Champions League gets the more advertising it will get and the less the PL will get because there is a finite amount of cash. So the PL will get weaker and weaker which is what the rest of Europe wants.

What do you mean there is nothing the FA can do? They didn't have to scrap replays. They were not compelled to. The relatively tiny number of English clubs who compete in European competitions have the squad depth they need to cope with the additional fixtures and should get on with it.

I Don't support a PL club either.

Short interlude: Sheffield Wednesday are currently 3-1 up at Blackburn and for about the first time this season currently not in the relegation zone. I. Am. Having. Kittens.

As for the overfull ficmxture list in the PL. Meh. There are 18 teams in the 1st Bundesliga and we're all happy with that. We only have 1 cup competition at that level. We and the clubs are all happy with that. All teams (lower levels have qualifiers - hotly contested) start in round 1.there is no seeding/weighting. Teams lower than the 2nd Bundesliga get automatic home advantage. This season a 3rd division team beat Bayern, then Frankfurt then Gladbach to get to the semis (not without some pitch issues). They were knocked out by a 2nd division team.

Everyone is happy with that. Cup matches go to extra time then penalties, no replays. We're all OK with that (I think the lower divisions might vote for replays at the other ground if it went to a vote.

Weeks with midweek matches (only 2 league matches or so a season, cup matches - always Tuesday or Wednesday - and UEFA competitions are called "English weeks". It's not a compliment. (we have a winter break, makes sense given where some teams are located). And recent coordinated (by fan groups) actions have seen off Monday matches and also a proposal to bring outside investors to the Bundesliga. We are fiercely guarding our 50+1 model of ownership. (I'm a member at my club. It's our AGM tomorrow and we have a say in some club policy. The ultras are encouraging everyone to go to make our wishes known. I'm trying to get the afternoon off to attend.

So that is my view of the BL. I prefer it to the PL and am pretty glad Wednesday will never reach it.

But I read that the replays would be when the CL is. So how can the clubs in the CL take part in the replays?

Exactly, it's all been decided in a very underhand way, the EFL (and non-league) clubs, who it mostly affects have had no say whatsoever. I saw earlier that Man City have 36 players out on loan, Spurs have 13, Chelsea 17, Arsenal 21. It's not even likely these teams will require a replay against lower league opposition anyway well maybe Spurs

And as for moving the date of the final?! I just have no words.

And come on Coventry!!

So are you saying that the PL clubs should have a second team so that their main team can still play in the CL?

Sheffield Wednesday are out of the relegation zone for the first time since August. 🦉⚽💙🤍💙

Forgot to say in my monster post there, as sor the "Super League" the obvious BL candidates rather famously declined very early on in that debacle.

No but with that many players at their disposal they can rotate their squads. I'm honestly baffled that you can defend this tbh. They are shitting on football fans good and proper and I say this as a supporter of a top 6 club.

Great news, fingers crossed they can escape the drop

@Brefugee sheff Wednesday play us on the last day of the season and if our form is anything to go by will beat us, and we have nothing to play for as we are out of play offs but safe from relegation.

Danny Rohl has done such a fantastic job for the owls.

The next few weeks are going to be... Interesting

If we had a capable government that cared about heritage (FA Cup 152 years old), I'd suggest they make a simple change if the FA do not see sense.

There are some sporting events which are obliged to be available on free to view tv, which means that the tv income clubs get is less than if it can be only on Sky or other subscription services. Home Champions League and Europa League added to the list. Could cost several million pounds to the few clubs in European competition.

The govt can't get involved. UEFA/FIFA can (and have) suspended countries for political interference