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Platini elected as Uefa president


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Former France captain Michel Platini has been elected as Uefa's new president, ahead of rival Lennart Johansson after a vote in Dusseldorf.

Johansson, 77, has held the post for the last 16 years.

Platini wants to limit the number of Champions League places to three per country, rather than the current four

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/6284365.stm

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So, what's the general opinion on Platini's desire to reduce the number of Champions league entries from England, Italy and Spain?

I personally like it. I don't see how a team that finished 4th in Italy (especially this year, when the league is filled with mediocre sides) deserves to play in Champions League. I think that it would actually make league play more important in the big leagues if 1 less squad earned entry to the tournament.

I'm actually a bit old school and as I liked it better when Champions League was only for league Champions. I wouldn't mind if each league was allowed two teams (the league champion and the winner of each league's national cup...if the same team won both, then the 2nd place team on the table gets the 2nd spot). However, I know that will not happen.

I'm curious for other people's opinions.

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Guest Jeffery S.

I did not like Johansson on a human level. I think he was clued out to the realities of the human side of the game. I will never forgive UEFA for obliging Spanish teams to play their matches the day of the terrorist attacks on the trains in Madrid. That was disgusting, insensitive, distanced, inhuman. Would not expect other from Swedes, who live on a different planet and are in a bit of a shell when it comes to basic human realities being more important than football.

Platini might be better in this regard, he has a populist streak and is tuned in to details, is a bit more egalitarian. Thus tries to counter the power of the big European clubs. As for the question of teams getting into Champions: once you decide that not only the winners of each league are going to play, you have to have a decent, competitive competition from the start. Eliminating top sides in the top leagues which are light years ahead of even the winners of lesser leagues means you have worse teams playing in Champions. Is that what we want, a lower quality competition with worse teams just because of pure nostalgia for the old system, or because we want to be populist and let the champion of Andorra or whatever small, barely professional league in instead?

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quote:Originally posted by VPjr

So, what's the general opinion on Platini's desire to reduce the number of Champions league entries from England, Italy and Spain?

I personally like it. I don't see how a team that finished 4th in Italy (especially this year, when the league is filled with mediocre sides) deserves to play in Champions League. I think that it would actually make league play more important in the big leagues if 1 less squad earned entry to the tournament.

I'm actually a bit old school and as I liked it better when Champions League was only for league Champions. I wouldn't mind if each league was allowed two teams (the league champion and the winner of each league's national cup...if the same team won both, then the 2nd place team on the table gets the 2nd spot). However, I know that will not happen.

I'm curious for other people's opinions.

I like the current format but I could live with the idea of reducing the max number of qualifiers to three from each country from the current four. There is too much of a discrepancy in quality between the national champions of the top four or five and the rest of the continent to justify restricting the tournament to only the champions. Personally, what I want to see is is quality and entertainment. That means the best sides in UEFA matched up against each other. Restricting it to only the league champions doesn't ensure that you will see the best sides in Europe. Plus, In some instances, the prior year champions are only a shadow of themselves the following year ( when they get t play in CL) after a summer full of player movement.

What I expect from the CL is to see the best team, for a given year, in Europe crowned. Restricting entry of only the prior years champions doesn't ensure that that will happen.

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quote:Originally posted by Jeffrey S.

Is that what we want, a lower quality competition with worse teams just because of pure nostalgia for the old system, or because we want to be populist and let the champion of Andorra or whatever small, barely professional league in instead?

I noticed that the loudest cry to return to the old formulae comes from places where the depth in quality sides is the shallowest within their national championship. Scotland is a good example. There are two powerhouse clubs that have been splitting the championship amongst themselves for over 50 years. Of course, if you are a celtic or Rangers supporter you would love to be in Champions league and not have to face AC Milan, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Bayern etc. It would automatically boost your profile and standing immensely.

I noted that many who long for the good old days of the old formulae are the scots. I'll bet you might find the same sentiment in places like Holland and Belgium.

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Eliminating fourth place qualifiers is the right thing to do. You don't get a medal for finishing fourth in the Olympics, and if there are three teams ahead of you then you are not the champion of anything and don't belong in Champion's League.

This will definitely help middle leagues like the SPL. I could see the SPL getting two "straight to the group stages" spots, and possibly a third into qualifiers. Teams like Hearts, Hibs, Aberdeen, and maybe Kilmarnock would get a somewhat frequent shot at CL. They would also have a greater incentive to compete for thrid place (and occassionally knock off an Old Firm side having an off year for second - like Hearts did to Rangers last year and maybe Hearts or Aberdeen this year). The same would apply to Holland.

Yes there will be some nasty blowouts to start with, but as some of the better (but not best) teams in England/Italy/Spain start to receive less CL money from missing the odd year, and more teams in the middle leagues start to consistently make the CL, the transfer of money will lead to the middle leagues PARTIALLY closing the quality gap, and the competition will get better. The CL money may increase the financial gap inside national leagues, but it will close the gap between national leagues.

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Eliminating fourth place qualifiers is the right thing to do. You don't get a medal for finishing fourth in the Olympics, and if there are three teams ahead of you then you are not the champion of anything and don't belong in Champion's League.

This will definitely help middle leagues like the SPL. I could see the SPL getting two "straight to the group stages" spots, and possibly a third into qualifiers. Teams like Hearts, Hibs, Aberdeen, and maybe Kilmarnock would get a somewhat frequent shot at CL. They would also have a greater incentive to compete for thrid place (and occassionally knock off an Old Firm side having an off year for second - like Hearts did to Rangers last year and maybe Hearts or Aberdeen this year). The same would apply to Holland.

Yes there will be some nasty blowouts to start with, but as some of the better (but not best) teams in England/Italy/Spain start to receive less CL money from missing the odd year, and more teams in the middle leagues start to consistently make the CL, the transfer of money will lead to the middle leagues PARTIALLY closing the quality gap, and the competition will get better. The CL money may increase the financial gap inside national leagues, but it will close the gap between national leagues.

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Personally, I'd like to see it returned to a Champions only tournament. That would make it's title a little more truthful. Whatever revenue is lost would/could be gained by the UEFA cup having quality sides in it, making it a meaningful tournament for the public instead of just being a place for the likes of Bolton, Chievo, and Mallorca.

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quote:Originally posted by Jeffrey S.

Would not expect other from Swedes, who live on a different planet and are in a bit of a shell when it comes to basic human realities being more important than football.

That is a pretty racist generalization especially coming from someone with a long record of accusing others of being racist/biased against various latin countries and ethnicities.

I would be in favour of the old system with only champions playing and preferrably played right after the season ends so it is definitely the best teams playing. This would be possible because the tournament would be much shorter with fewer teams playing. Unfortunately I doubt they would make as much money from this format so it is unlikely to occur. For similar financial reasons I think it may be difficult for Platini to get his ideas approved. I would be for the reduction of the 4th team if it amounted to the total number of teams being reduced. I would be against it if they are just going to be replaced by mediocre teams from lesser leagues.

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Guest Jeffery S.
quote:Originally posted by Grizzly

That is a pretty racist generalization especially coming from someone with a long record of accusing others of being racist/biased against various latin countries and ethnicities.

I would be in favour of the old system with only champions playing and preferrably played right after the season ends so it is definitely the best teams playing. This would be possible because the tournament would be much shorter with fewer teams playing. Unfortunately I doubt they would make as much money from this format so it is unlikely to occur. For similar financial reasons I think it may be difficult for Platini to get his ideas approved. I would be for the reduction of the 4th team if it amounted to the total number of teams being reduced. I would be against it if they are just going to be replaced by mediocre teams from lesser leagues.

It is not racist, it is sociological, but it is not scientific, I'll admit that; I am typing, but with a cause. They are totally insensitive to political realities in some parts of Europe, they are floating in a cloud half the time. The Norwegians are similar, the naivety is maddening at times, and I say it as I work a lot with Scandinavians, have been doing so for a dozen years. They are cultured, can be liberal, often know how to talk and listen. But can also be shockingly naive and insensitive to other realities. And inflexible like walls when dealing with anything but their cold, clinical, ingrained, politically correct model of social democracy.

I wrote to Johansson after the Madrid bombings asking for his right hand man, also a Swede, to resign, after forcing Spanish teams to play on a day a few hundred were killed and thousands were maimed by a terrorist attack, which had people all over the country weeping in the streets. That was sick, and it pissed me off. If it had been a Brit or an Italian at the helm that would never have happened, as the political savvy and experience with such things is other.

But you don't clearly give a damm about such reflections, as you are equally clued out. I say basic human considerations have to always be over and above playing the game, since the game only exists as something valid if it too reinforces the best of humanity.

Johansson was notoriously lost in such matters, which is why I am glad he is out. But have not too much hope in Platini either, most footballers lost their best years of their lives for education and have great problems making it up, which means that they have huge holes in their way of understanding the game as well, especially in the big picture; they can coach and explain tactics, know how a dressing room works, but usually do not have a grasp of the whole.

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quote:Originally posted by Jeffrey S.

I wrote to Johansson after the Madrid bombings asking for his right hand man, also a Swede, to resign, after forcing Spanish teams to play on a day a few hundred were killed and thousands were maimed by a terrorist attack, which had people all over the country weeping in the streets. That was sick, and it pissed me off. If it had been a Brit or an Italian at the helm that would never have happened, as the political savvy and experience with such things is other.

Why was UEFA involved in that decision? Isn't the cancellation of games something that is decided by the FA?

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Guest Jeffery S.
quote:Originally posted by RJB

Why was UEFA involved in that decision? Isn't the cancellation of games something that is decided by the FA?

It was a decision made by general director Olsson, who just resigned. That guy was a nightmare, he outraged Spanish fans with his comments. The decision was 100% UEFA, and attributed to Olsson, it was on a Thursday and was an UEFA Cup day, Barça was in Glasgow, and requested to postpone. I think in fact the Spanish federation asked for a general postponement of all Spanish club games. Not surprisingly no Spanish team got a result that day, every player had his head elsewhere, as is normal. But apart from results, football can and should stop when the reality of the world warrants it (like with the rioting in Italy, with games stopped indefinitely).

Having said all this, maybe I am a hypocrite as I went to see a game on the morning of the terrorist attacks in Madrid. It was so early I did not know what really had happened yet, I knew there were deaths, but had no idea of the magnitude, nor indeed if it had been a terrorist attack or an accident. Columbus Crew were training in Barcelona and played a friendly vs. the Barça B team, at 10 or something in the morning.

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