The Drop from CL to Uefa!! Should it BE????

[Pottertons]

I was just thinking about this today and I have to say that, I truly don't think that it's fair that the teams eliminated from the 1st rd of the CL are automatically entered into the 3rd round (i think....isn't it) of the UEFA cup.

It degrades the level of competiton in the UeFA cup. Plus, it gives those particular teams a 2nd chance to prove themselves.

If you're entered into the CL, then you're supposed to show & prove there. If not, you're fininshed. Done deal.

it should be one league and 1 league only.

Your thoughts.

[Parkhead_Faithful]

Didnt uefa eliminate that particular drop with the new champions league format?

[Pottertons]

OOOOoooops!!!!

[cosmosRIP]

No they didn't and you are right, it is total BS and devalues the UEFA Cup.
The Cup will have a new format next season, adding a group stage, but they are still retaining this bit of nonsense.

[Canadian_Supporter]

Originally posted by cosmosRIP
No they didn't and you are right, it is total BS and devalues the UEFA Cup.
The Cup will have a new format next season, adding a group stage, but they are still retaining this bit of nonsense.

A group stage in the UEFA Cup? Noooo..... the one thing I love about the UEFA Cup is the format. In many ways I find it more exciting then the Champions League.

[cosmosRIP]

8 groups of 5, top 3 advancing, the teams only play each other once rather than home and away.

[Canadian_Supporter]

Originally posted by cosmosRIP
8 groups of 5, top 3 advancing, the teams only play each other once rather than home and away.

Thanks for the explanation...

Sounds like the Inter-Toto Cup format in the mid-90s.

Will the group stage start in the first round? I assume they will still have a preliminary round?

[cosmosRIP]

It's all right here:
http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UEFACup/news/Kind=1/newsId=80410.html

[Canadian_Supporter]

Originally posted by cosmosRIP
It's all right here:
http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UEFACup/news/Kind=1/newsId=80410.html

Thanks! I was just about to head over to uefa to search the site, but you saved me a few steps. :)

[aloisius]

I know I’ll be going against consensus on this, but I think it’s a great idea.
1. It ads quality to the competition. Since the introduction of the rule there was always at least one CL team in the final and two all CL finals.
2. It allows champions from smaller countries that fail to make it in the CL to have a meaningful Euro season. I wonder what Celtic fans think of this. If there wasn’t this rule their European season would have been over in August last year.
3. The “if you failed in one competition, you shouldn’t continue in another” argument. You could argue that all UEFA cup teams failed to reach top positions in their leagues. Why is it better to finish 5. in the league than to finish 3. and than lose in the 3. CL preliminary round?

[comme]

I don't have a problem with the teams losing in the prelim rounds going through, it's the ones who finish 3rd in their group and still get through to the UEFA. They have already played a minimum of 6 games, so why give them a second chance?

[Pottertons]

"2. It allows champions from smaller countries that fail to make it in the CL to have a meaningful Euro season. I wonder what Celtic fans think of this. If there wasn’t this rule their European season would have been over in August last year."

- aloisius -


Forget the fact that a smaller team has a chance of getting anything out of a european title.

the fact remains that EVERY teams goal in life, is to reach the top. In the case of Europe, the top means the CL. So when a team reaches that spot on the table, they should live with the fact that they've got what they wanted.

It's pathetic. You can't sit there and say "Oh well....we'll give it our best shot, and if not we'll settle for the UEFA cup and try our luck there"


Furthermore, I have to wonder if the "champions from smaller countries" or teams that are'nt usually classed as strong euro competitors, simply just bottle it in the 1st rd so that they can get something out of it.

I can almost guarantee that we'd see a much more intense competition from 1st rd play if "The Drop" was eliminated.

[Matt Clark]

The argument that the UEFA cup is no longer as strong as it was and therefore the CL drop-outs actually help make it a better competition is one of those nauseating cop-out arguments so typical of this pastic football era.

Here's how you make the UEFA Cup stonger WITHOUT using shithead ideas like the drop-down:

Take the teams that finish third or even fourth in their leagues and put them in the UEFA Cup. Not the "Champion's" League.

End of ********ing story.

And the group stage idea is a crap one as well.

[Father Ted]

I also think the Champions League has too many teams that finished 3rd and 4th from countries like England, Spain, Italy etc. When was the last time Chelsea were "Champions" in England or Newcastle for that matter.
It is just a money making scheme for UEFA. Maybe I'm old fashioned but I prefer the old days when Champions were Champions and the Cup Winners cup also existed.

[Matt Clark]

Well yes. Sadly we're being drowned out by the excitable muppets who think the The Also Rans League is "sooper".

[Oscar]

Include me with the excitable muppets :D

The Champion's League level of play is the better for it by letting in multiple teams from the bigger and better leagues. Unless you want to see the type of game like Manchester against Panathinaikos every other week, I don't see how anybody could disagree.

If these champions from the other countries really are better than the non-champions of the bigger leagues, then they'd be making it into the CL with the qualifiers like Partizan Belgrade did. If they aren't, they won't, like the rest.

Letting only the champions play would be great if the playing field was more even like in the old days... they aren't.

From 97/98 (too lazy to check earlier seasons) to now, there have always been 3 teams from the big four leagues in the semi finals of the CL, from 99/00 to now: all 4 teams were from the big 4 leagues. You people think the champions from leagues like, for example, Croatia will suddenly become much better to stand a chance against the big money teams from Spain, England, Italy and Germany? I don't.

[Pottertons]

Point is, it's degrading and un fair.

If anything, it should be like this.......

any team who does not feel that they stand a good chance in the CL will have a choice.

Either take the drop to the UEFA cup or stick to your guns.

Anyway, isn't it usually the teams that have dropped from the CL who have won the UEFA cup.

I'm a Liverpool fan and even I think it's unfair. (in reference to our 2001 title)

It's a total slap in the face to those who have given their all to get somewhere.

[Oscar]

Point is, it's degrading and un fair.

¿Letting teams play with each other when the outcome will most likely be a monster score would be better? Panathinaikos would even be considered better than most teams you people would like to see play in the CL, just so you know.

Anyway, isn't it usually the teams that have dropped from the CL who have won the UEFA cup

I don't know if they usually win or not, they go far into the UEFA Cup when they drop off at least, which only shows that they're better.

[Pottertons]

You've completely lost me mate!!!

I can't figure out if you're for or against the idea.

[Matt Clark]

I'm a Liverpool fan and even I think it's unfair. (in reference to our 2001 title)

Which we won by competing in the competition from the get-go. We finished fourth in the 1999/2000 season after a last-day defeat to Bradford and missed out on a Champions League place as a result. We beat Rapid Bucharest, Slovan Liberec, Olympiakos, Porto, Roma, Barcelona and Alaves to win our third UEFA Cup and seventh major European trophy.