Wenger's parting shot

[Wokingclaret]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44077078" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[tim_noone]

He's not far wrong! It will I'm sure Happen.

[bfcmik]

Why would the Premier League clubs vote to move their fixtures from the Saturday? He is just trying to reinforce the argument being put forward by the top 6/7/8 clubs to change the way prize-money is distributed to give more to the big clubs.

[RammyClaret61]

In the Premier League all clubs are equal, except some are more equal than others.

[Colburn_Claret]

I'm sure they would love it, but I can't see it happening.
They have no need for more money, so the question is just greed. Why would premier league clubs step aside to give them a free role at weekends. He needs to give his head a shake. No one is going to vote for self destruction, so therefore they'd have to quit. Arsenal fans sulk about not being in the top 4, how would they react to being bottom of the European Super League.

If it were to happen, just look at the Championship. A Premier League without the top 6, but adding the top 6 from the Championship, would be a far more exciting League. A much more level one as well, where most teams would fancy their chances.

[Inchy]

I can see it happening because football is all about money.

Imagine if the top six in England and top 3/4 in France. Germany, Spain, and Italy all broke away from their respective F.A.s

It would take some organising but it could happen. Fifa and UEFA wouldn’t care as their all about the money.

[turfytopper]

There was talk of a European break away league bsck in the 80s. It was partly that demand and pressure from the top 5 (as they were then and it included Everton) which led to the creation of the Premiership and the Champions league.
We now have the Premier League, not a European league but the richest league in the world, with managers and players from all over the world, owners from all over the world and watched on tv all over the world.

So we have a world league based in England. Why over here at least, would they want to have just a European league now?

[fatboy47]

This particular golden goose has been firing out lots of lovely golden eggs for a long time.

I hope those who wanna mess around with it have read the proverb.

[Claretforever]

So champions League attendances are deindlingnunless it’s the big clubs playing. Here’s a novel idea, why not just have a competition for country Champions so you are almost guaranteed that the biggest clubs from each country are playing each other?

[agreenwood]

I’m not convinced people wouldn’t get bored with the elite playing each other every week.

Those games are special because they only happen a few times a season.

It’s the same with local derbies. The infrequent nature of them feeds the hype and interest.

[No Ney Never]

Let's say that in this new league there are teams from England, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Portugal, etc. How many teams are going to be relegated per season to allow the club finishing top of the domestic league in each country to gain promotion to this European super league?

[Firthy]

""It is inevitable. Why? First of all, to share money between the big clubs and small clubs will become a problem."

Wenger, 68, added: "The big clubs will say: 'if two smaller clubs are playing each other nobody wants to watch it. People want to watch quality. So we have to share the money but nobody is interested in you'.

I used to have a respect for Wenger but that's gone out of the window. He's now on my prick list. Basically, smaller clubs are a problem and don't provide the quality so the big 6 don't give a toss about them and want all the money.

Money has already ruined football and he's confirming what we've all known for years that the top clubs want to ruin it even further.

[Firthy]

Let's say that in this new league there are teams from England, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Portugal, etc. How many teams are going to be relegated per season to allow the club finishing top of the domestic league in each country to gain promotion to this European super league?

There won't be any relegation or promotion. There's no way they'd relegate Man City etc and allow a Burnley or Bournemouth to replace them.

[Garnerssoap]

Given we’ve qualified I’m game

[Firthy]

And I forgot to add his arrogance is only superseded by Ian Wright's who has come out and said he doesn't want SD as the next Arsenal manager. Which I'm quite pleased about but it doesn't excuse his arrogance.

[Colburn_Claret]

""It is inevitable. Why? First of all, to share money between the big clubs and small clubs will become a problem."

Wenger, 68, added: "The big clubs will say: 'if two smaller clubs are playing each other nobody wants to watch it. People want to watch quality. So we have to share the money but nobody is interested in you'.

I used to have a respect for Wenger but that's gone out of the window. He's now on my prick list. Basically, smaller clubs are a problem and don't provide the quality so the big 6 don't give a toss about them and want all the money.

Money has already ruined football and he's confirming what we've all known for years that the top clubs want to ruin it even further.

Too true.
Apart from City and Liverpool, the rest of the top 6 have played some awful football this season, especially against this each other.
He seems to forget that they haven't won away this year, and only 3 times all season, against these small teams.

[boatshed bill]

There won't be any relegation or promotion. There's no way they'd relegate Man City etc and allow a Burnley or Bournemouth to replace them.

I was thinking this. Could end up with a massive imbalance from one country otherwise.
Daft idea, if you ask me

[ClaretLoup]

""

Money has already ruined football and he's confirming what we've all known for years that the top clubs want to ruin it even further.

In what way has football been "ruined"?

[DCWat]

The backlash from English and German fans particularly would be huge, I suspect this would be enough to see this idea dead in the water. Hopefully it would be the same across most other European countries.

[quoonbeatz]

""It is inevitable. Why? First of all, to share money between the big clubs and small clubs will become a problem."

Wenger, 68, added: "The big clubs will say: 'if two smaller clubs are playing each other nobody wants to watch it. People want to watch quality. So we have to share the money but nobody is interested in you'.

I used to have a respect for Wenger but that's gone out of the window. He's now on my prick list. Basically, smaller clubs are a problem and don't provide the quality so the big 6 don't give a toss about them and want all the money.

Money has already ruined football and he's confirming what we've all known for years that the top clubs want to ruin it even further.

not sure why wenger goes on your prick list for that.

he's only telling you what the owners of the big clubs are saying.

[Firthy]

not sure why wenger goes on your prick list for that.

he's only telling you what the owners of the big clubs are saying.

But he didn't need to say it, not if he cares about football like he tries to make out. Wether or not he's saying it because he believes it or because it's what the big clubs want it still makes him a prick IMO. Next he'll be spouting about our beautiful game, that's if you have enough money to provide the quality.

[quoonbeatz]

ok.

[NottsClaret]

Wenger hasn't been right about much for a while now.

[FactualFrank]

Let's say that in this new league there are teams from England, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Portugal, etc. How many teams are going to be relegated per season to allow the club finishing top of the domestic league in each country to gain promotion to this European super league?

I was thinking the same. Over a period of a few years, one of those clubs could become so weak compared to the rest, that they've no chance of winning it. People would eventually get fed up over the same teams winning it and the same teams coming bottom. A league with no promotion or relegation? No thanks.

[JohnMcGreal]

""It is inevitable. Why? First of all, to share money between the big clubs and small clubs will become a problem."

Wenger, 68, added: "The big clubs will say: 'if two smaller clubs are playing each other nobody wants to watch it. People want to watch quality. So we have to share the money but nobody is interested in you'.

I used to have a respect for Wenger but that's gone out of the window. He's now on my prick list. Basically, smaller clubs are a problem and don't provide the quality so the big 6 don't give a toss about them and want all the money.

Money has already ruined football and he's confirming what we've all known for years that the top clubs want to ruin it even further.

In Wenger's defence, he isn't saying that he's in favour of that happening. He's just describing the current situation and offering his prediction on how it might change in the future.

[RocketLawnChair]

One of the problems with the big six is they think every single football fan as an allegiance to at least one of them and they think if they arrange a league where they play Barcelona every other week we will be falling over ourselves to watch it on a PPV TV package It’s arrogance beyond belief.. I found 95% of the Champions League games dull as dish water because we aren’t in it and haven’t watched one for absolute years and I know a lot of fans who feel the same.

If they want to be popular in Asia and America **** off and play there. If you want to honour tradition loyalty and belonging stay in your cities and towns and play for the people who love you most in the most established sports competition in history which is English Football

[SirAlec]

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[Firthy]

In Wenger's defence, he isn't saying that he's in favour of that happening. He's just describing the current situation and offering his prediction on how it might change in the future.

But he isn't speaking out against it either so it looks like he's supporting it. We've known it for a long time but it really is arrogance beyond belief.

So many teams have already lost their identity with the amount of foreign players and something like this would only make it worse.

Would you really want to watch a team of 11 foreigners playing as Burnley every week playing against teams from other countries. I certainly wouldn't.

[Longside4evr]

He states that 16 teams is enough so how would this Europa League work when it contains countries of England, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Portugal, Holland, Belgium,Russia etc
What happens just cherry pick the best and make the league as it appears fit, with our top six then pick the rest if they fit the mould.
What about the supporters who would have to be quite wealthy to follow your team every other week around Europe or do we not matter anymore cos the money in this is to extortionate to take into consideration.
The all thing stinks of greed and it take football far far away from where it came from, only big money people will love this idea and thats whats fighting bleed it till its dry.

[barba]

One pundits idea I heard was that the top 6, if they couldn't negotiate a better TV deal would be to break away and form another league with teams from the lower divisions.

If you consider the likes of Leeds, Birmingham, Sunderland, Sheff Utd etc it's not beyond the realms of fantasy.

[MrVmax]

""It is inevitable. Why? First of all, to share money between the big clubs and small clubs will become a problem."

Wenger, 68, added: "The big clubs will say: 'if two smaller clubs are playing each other nobody wants to watch it. People want to watch quality. So we have to share the money but nobody is interested in you'.

I used to have a respect for Wenger but that's gone out of the window. He's now on my prick list. Basically, smaller clubs are a problem and don't provide the quality so the big 6 don't give a toss about them and want all the money.
Money has already ruined football and he's confirming what we've all known for years that the top clubs want to ruin it even further.

To be honest I have never joined in with this Wenger love fest. Always found him to be very arrogant and frankly classless. It is the easiest thing in the world to be gracious when victorious, not so easy in defeat. Perhaps it's just me but I think he could learn a lot from our manager. Not fit to be spoken of in the same breath as someone like Bob Paisley, now there was a classy manager

[Firthy]

One pundits idea I heard was that the top 6, if they couldn't negotiate a better TV deal would be to break away and form another league with teams from the lower divisions.

If you consider the likes of Leeds, Birmingham, Sunderland, Sheff Utd etc it's not beyond the realms of fantasy.

It will never happen, the governing body won't allow it because it will really show who runs the leagues.

Same as a European super league will never happen because they'd lose too many supporters who can't afford to travel.

[AshevilleNCClaret]

I don't see a Super League forming but I could see them flexing their muscle to get Champions League/Europa League matches playing on Saturday and moving domestic league matches to mid week.

To echo the quote above " Arsenal fans sulk about not being in the top 4, how would they react to being bottom of the European Super League."...
A match like Arsenal-Atletico Madrid made for a compelling semi-final for the Europa League. An Arsenal-Atletico match in a superleague (where they are sitting 14th and 16th in the 20 team table), is not compelling.

[Fretters]

And I forgot to add his arrogance is only superseded by Ian Wright's who has come out and said he doesn't want SD as the next Arsenal manager. Which I'm quite pleased about but it doesn't excuse his arrogance.

He's changed his tune. Just months ago he was saying the opposite.

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[JimmyRobbo]

Sadly, money seems to win out in much of football these days. Without doubt, enormous foreign clubs are envious of TV streams for the Prem league. For us, we have big attendances, sold out matches and a sort of competitive league. With the exception of Germany, the other big leagues in Europe don't. They will drive the move to a European league.

A Greenwood is right, people will lose the desire to watch Bayern v Barce v Man U v Real M every week. It will lose its novelty and will lose its appeal.

They've been parading this idea for 20+ years and it hasn't happened yet. Long may it continue not to happen.