Time for a champions league reboot

Just as the champions league is a tough competition with several top sides from the top leagues in Europe, the 'old' UEFA Cup was also a tough competition for the very same reason.It also contained teams about to become domestic champions and finals involved new champions while the old champions final could feature teams already deposed.

The Champions League is unquestionably a better version than the previous one but it's come at the expense of losing what was a very good competition in its own right. Two if one includes the Cup Winners Cup, particularly as that competition could also feature teams among the best of the rest.

We could retain the best aspects of the champions league and get the other stuff back with a limit of two clubs in the CL from each league currently getting 3 or 4 places. This maintains the strength of the CL by allowing, for example, Real and Barca, Man City & Chelsea, Bayern & Dortmund, Benfica & Porto, Juventus & Milan etc while adding glamour to the Europe (which really needs to be renamed) teams like Inter, ManU, Liverpool, Arsenal, Atletico.

If domestic cup winners were included in the renamed Europa it would be a large tournament but they could split it into two halves, mostly knockout, so there are not too many matches and the two winners of each half BOTH get places in the CL next time but they still play a Cup final, the winners getting a spot in the CL group stage itself.

Winning domestic cups means one can compete with the glamour names of Europe as they are no longer all in the CL and the two CL places available make the second tournament a whole lot more attractive.

You might argue that the big teams won't go for it. But I don't see why not. If you're Arsenal, Liverpool, ManU, Everton, Spurs for example, three of those are not going to get in the CL.

Currently they'll be faced with only one place for the Europa - people forget that two of the three spots go to FA and League Cups - and coming up against many underwhelming names. They'll also consider themselves at a disadvantage the following season by having to play Europa while their other rivals can focus on the league.

All of Arsenal, Liverpool, ManU, Everton, Spurs could instead be looking forward to a more meaningful tournament competing with the sort of teams regularly and currently making the CL quarter final stages.
There really is room for two top tournaments and with no falling from one to the other.

Last day at work. Ever

Today was my last day at work, 10 years ago.

Ten years of not having to work for a living. Bliss.

A few words on Breaking Bad

I loved it.

I began watching for the first time a couple of weeks ago and saw all 62 (I think) episodes, finishing up Saturday. Doctor Who was the only other TV or Movie I watched in that time.

The Sopranos edges it for me but it was a great two weeks. The use of music was very effective, especially where it just seemed so inappropriate to the scene, like the prison killings, but worked superbly.

The pre opening title scenes were unique. Never seen anything even close to that style used.

Great TV.

Tumbleweed and FIFA

No premier league football again. Unlike a lot of fans, I quite liked the weekend breaks of the last few years. No Saturday matches but there would be England games on the Friday and Tuesday plus the associated newspaper reports and blogs. It was fun.

For some reason, FIFA has now increased the gap between the two international games and there are two weekends with no premier league. Same for other countries.

So we actually have three weeks with no premier league football and only the same number of international matches to compensate.

I can't help but wonder if this is connected to world cup 2022 when they are talking of moving it to winter.

The adjustment required to domestic leagues to accommodate such a move goes beyond the seasons immediately prior and after the world cup. This will be even harder to sort out if the leagues are to have international breaks stopping domestic football for three weeks at a time.

Expect to see FIFA dropping the idea in a couple of years time, claiming how they are 'helping' by doing this and ignoring they created the problem, then worsened it, in the first place.

edited....it seems I was mistaken about the three week gap. It was just the usual two weeks. The same two international games were just Weds/Mon rather than Fri/Tues. The lengthening of the gap between them must have just made it seem like a three week gap overall.

You turn if you want to. The manager's not for turning

Roy Hodgson was never my choice as a manager for England. But I thought he did rather well at Euro 2012 given the lack of preparation time and the personnel difficulties adding to problems.

I thought there were positive signs leading into the World Cup suggesting his first choice tactics were not really those of the Euros after all. Results aside in Brazil,  there were still reasons to be optimistic. I saw no reason for him not to stay on.

But how can he defend that dismal showing last night? What on earth was wrong with saying "yes, it wasn't good was it. We'll have to put that right for Monday." That's all he had to say.

“The fact is it was a big night for Wayne, with a lot of responsibility weighing on his shoulders"

Really? Superstar Rooney with all his experience, 96 caps, captain of Manchester United, been England captain before. In a friendly against Norway. That was a weight on his shoulders?

“I thought the performance was quite good"

Dear god.

“...Sterling, Sturridge and [Jack] Wilshere. These players have the potential to lead us forward and excite football crowds."

But not, it seems, for Hodgson's England.

"Although I risk being in a group of one, I have been watching football for a long time and nothing you say will change what I see.”

Unbelievable arrogance. Somebody in authority needs to decide what Hodgson sees is no longer important. He reminds me of someone else who was not for turning.

Show some sensitivity, UEFA

UEFA has already come down heavily on Polish football club, Legia, for what most people think was the mildest of transgressions.

Instead of naming a player for the match squad and not playing him because he was suspended, they simply didn't name him for the squad for the duration of his suspension. They didn't even choose a replacement so they didn't even gain by having an additional player.

So when he appeared for a few minutes in a match already over as a contest as Legia were winning 6-1 on aggregate, UEFA decided to reverse the result and Legia lost their victory and place in the next round of the Champions League.

Celtic, the opposition on the lucky end of the travesty of a decision took their place and justice, of sorts, was done when they lost from a winning position.

But the fans of Legia just staged the protest in the picture. UEFA is investigating.

Hopefully they'll understand the fans' frustration and take no action. They really ought to be able to just issue a "watch it" warning. But don't bank on it.

Anything more will just be bullying.