- May 26, 2004
- 4,780
- 2,108
Do we want it? Or do we need it? Let’s examine the case of European football next season.
European football for a fourth consecutive season would be a good achievement, a solid sign of progression, and a remarkable feat given our start to the season. With the revamped Europa league, we can expect bigger TV revenues with the centralised contract. Alongside the gate receipt and sponsorship deals we can make based on being in Europe, this means money. It’s not on a par with the Champions League, but it’s better than nothing.
More money, more games, more strain our players. The scheduling of games on a Thursday often means we have very little time to prepare for league games, especially if we are travelling to Eastern Europe. Is it a surprise that our best form of the season has come when we are only playing one game a week, with a settled formation, players and tactics? Then there is the problem of King and his knee.I do not think chopping and changing the side every three days is helpful, although at times Ramos seemed to pick his line ups based on who arrived at the ground first.
However, on the flip side, we have a very big squad, and plenty of young players with potential. Whereas the depth of squad that a team like Fulham has, for example, would be stretched to its limits, we have plenty of quality that is not playing. The reserve teams of the last few weeks have shown this. If we want to keep players like Bale, Dawson, Huddlestone, Bentley et al, do we need as many cup games as possible to give them enough game time? Is the Europa League a chance to give our youngsters some valuable game time?
In my opinion, we should be able to compete on more than one front. The quality of our team, and a lot of those that will be competing in the Europa League, should allow even our ‘squad’ players to perform will and get results. The 4 team, 6 game format allows for a slip up or two, and under Redknapp I think younger players will be used if needed. Key to this is a good start to the league campaign. Start well, and both the League cup and Europa League are luxuries, matches we can experiment and if we don’t get the result we want, it is not a massive concern. Start the league badly, and not only do we need to win in the league, but we need to win in the cups to salvage something and get some momentum going.
European football will not just keep our current players content, but help attract new ones. Again, it’s not that Champions League, it’s not going to attract world class players, but it can get that next tier of player, ones who could become world class. It also raises the profile of the club, and if we do well our Uefa coefficient improves so that when, if, we get the holy grail of Champions League football we do not get a horrible draw.
In the end, I think European qualification, especially through the league and after the start to the season we had, would be another sign of our continued progression, whereas a season without Thursday night football would be seen as a step back. Perceptions can be so important in football; we need to keep moving on up.
European football for a fourth consecutive season would be a good achievement, a solid sign of progression, and a remarkable feat given our start to the season. With the revamped Europa league, we can expect bigger TV revenues with the centralised contract. Alongside the gate receipt and sponsorship deals we can make based on being in Europe, this means money. It’s not on a par with the Champions League, but it’s better than nothing.
More money, more games, more strain our players. The scheduling of games on a Thursday often means we have very little time to prepare for league games, especially if we are travelling to Eastern Europe. Is it a surprise that our best form of the season has come when we are only playing one game a week, with a settled formation, players and tactics? Then there is the problem of King and his knee.I do not think chopping and changing the side every three days is helpful, although at times Ramos seemed to pick his line ups based on who arrived at the ground first.
However, on the flip side, we have a very big squad, and plenty of young players with potential. Whereas the depth of squad that a team like Fulham has, for example, would be stretched to its limits, we have plenty of quality that is not playing. The reserve teams of the last few weeks have shown this. If we want to keep players like Bale, Dawson, Huddlestone, Bentley et al, do we need as many cup games as possible to give them enough game time? Is the Europa League a chance to give our youngsters some valuable game time?
In my opinion, we should be able to compete on more than one front. The quality of our team, and a lot of those that will be competing in the Europa League, should allow even our ‘squad’ players to perform will and get results. The 4 team, 6 game format allows for a slip up or two, and under Redknapp I think younger players will be used if needed. Key to this is a good start to the league campaign. Start well, and both the League cup and Europa League are luxuries, matches we can experiment and if we don’t get the result we want, it is not a massive concern. Start the league badly, and not only do we need to win in the league, but we need to win in the cups to salvage something and get some momentum going.
European football will not just keep our current players content, but help attract new ones. Again, it’s not that Champions League, it’s not going to attract world class players, but it can get that next tier of player, ones who could become world class. It also raises the profile of the club, and if we do well our Uefa coefficient improves so that when, if, we get the holy grail of Champions League football we do not get a horrible draw.
In the end, I think European qualification, especially through the league and after the start to the season we had, would be another sign of our continued progression, whereas a season without Thursday night football would be seen as a step back. Perceptions can be so important in football; we need to keep moving on up.