Rangers and Celtic face Champions League carve-up as UEFA pull up the ladder

[Jase]

It to be expected that teams from the bigger/better leagues will get to the latter stages. All 16 is remarkable but far from outrageous.

But, that said, it shouldn’t be that clubs outwith the so-called big 5 are excluded from having a go.

Sadly these days it is about money rather than football.

 

[Polar bear]

So what you’re saying is... the best teams are left?

Precisely.

 

[tazzabear]

Little Linfield who where knocked out by the champions of England, Manchester city on away goals,and the winners that year who strolled through the competition playing nobodies from a two team league in Scotland.
A bit of perspective would be nice.
A club that's lorded with true european pedigree Liverpool who won it four times playing Mickey mouse clubs virtually every time until the final.
Football is what it is these days and no amount of complaining on a football forum is going to change that ffs.

I’m not decrying Linfield’s achievement in any way.
Well I don’t mean to.
However, who did they beat to get there?

 

[Commodore Carbuncle]

We are just at the beginning of business taking over football. Once the Arab oil countries and the Yanks really get involved, we will be really fucked.

My main gripe just now is teams dropping into other competitions, that’s just plain wrong.

 

[Allybear]

Its so contrived now to suit corporate greed. Money men are running football now, I would love to see champions of smaller leauges (who have every right to be there) throwing a spanner in the works of the bigger teams. Bring the edge back

 

[bpfurian]

I’m not decrying Linfield’s achievement in any way.
Well I don’t mean to.
However, who did they beat to get there?

You played who ever was drawn out of the hat, like every cup competition back then.
That's why I mentioned Liverpool and probably quite a few of the so called European elite clubs, luck of the draw. So had a better chance of winning.
Far far bigger clubs than Linfield never got that far in Europe even back then mate.
That's why I also said who they got put man city who where English champions a team of full time pros against amateur players on away goals.
You could have mentioned that Celtic won it that season, playing against dross up until the final,
The so called elite clubs have always had easier in European football then and now.
Every other day there are threads on here from bears who follow certain clubs,be it English or whatever but not one of them came to our aid,not a single one of them.
One club and one club only helped in our time of greatest need and that was Linfield football club so a bit of respect wouldn't go a miss for the second most successful domestic football club in the world.

 

[Big Blue Bear]

Tbh the CL is boring as feck. The same teams slugging it out year after year.

 

[Geedubya]

Ah, when the "champions league" was just for champions.

It’s still The Champions League - it has some champions in it

 

[Blaew]

The Champions League would be rotten if it was just the champions from each league.

In saying that, it shouldn't be as hard as it is for teams from other nations to qualify.

Ajax reached a semi final yet still had to do qualifying rounds.

The 16 team group stage from 94 to 97 was a brilliant competition.

Hajduk Split, Nantes, Panathanaikos, Ferencvaros, Goteborg, Dynamo Kyiv all played some really good football.

 

[deedle]

This is actually an article by Michael Gannon in today’s Record and not a post.

 

[biodoc]

The trouble with the champions league is it promotes tv money distortion of the competition. If we won a group a German team finishing last in the same group would get more money than we would winning the group. That is when you know the game is fecked.

 

[tazzabear]

You played who ever was drawn out of the hat, like every cup competition back then.
That's why I mentioned Liverpool and probably quite a few of the so called European elite clubs, luck of the draw. So had a better chance of winning.
Far far bigger clubs than Linfield never got that far in Europe even back then mate.
That's why I also said who they got put man city who where English champions a team of full time pros against amateur players on away goals.
You could have mentioned that Celtic won it that season, playing against dross up until the final,
The so called elite clubs have always had easier in European football then and now.
Every other day there are threads on here from bears who follow certain clubs,be it English or whatever but not one of them came to our aid,not a single one of them.
One club and one club only helped in our time of greatest need and that was Linfield football club so a bit of respect wouldn't go a miss for the second most successful domestic football club in the world.

You seem to have a bee in your bunnet and reckon I’m besmirching Linfield’s achievement.
I’ve stated before and will do so again, this is not my intention and not what I have in mind.
By the way, according to Wikipedia, Linfield lost out in the quarters that season to CSK Red Flag 2-3 on aggregate.
The didn’t play Manchester City until 69-70 and it was a ECWC tie.
I do know Wikipedia can be wrong.

 

[Gogso]

Portugal has more successful teams in Europe than France ever had, so why is Portugal not included in the elite countries?

Euro's

 

[tottie beck]

I didnt vote. My answer is answer is NO, but not in the way you might think. They should revert to Champions ONLY with home/away ties for EVERY round and away goals counting as the tie break.

Not popular with some but it would be as competition worthy of the name and offer a shot at glory for successful well built teams from unglamourous leagues.

If the big boys are such great teams, why are they frightened to mix it with the minnows in late summer? I would make the CL for the Champions only from every European nation from Spain to San Marino. There would be no seeding. What the competition loses in quality it would gain in fairness. Runners up and 3rd place teams would compete in the EL. The competition would slowly rival the CL in quality, therefore importance. For what its worth i'd bring back the ECWC too, I no idea why they scrapped it in the first place. You could restrict it to actual winners if you like (if a team does the double they forfeit their place in this tournament) making it smaller than previously, perhaps starting with a round of 32 or 64 and make it one straight KO game per round. If its a goaless draw the home team advances, if its a score draw the away team goes through

If the likes of Man U, Real Madrid, and Juventus don't like this they can eff off and become the football equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters in their closed Super League and leave the rest of us to get on with it. This would have the added bonus of seeing a decline in football tourists (certainly the worst ones anyway, the kind that wave Korean flags at a game when no Korean side are playing) and half and half scarf as well

 

[tottie beck]

So what you’re saying is... the best teams are left?

They are only the 'best' teams because they have been stuffing their pockets for the last 40 years while the rest of us starve. Ask yourself this, would Barcalona be considered a big team in the 70s? I'd argue both Madrid teams had a stronger reputation back then. The fact they only had to finish second in a two horse race to access Group stage money helps them too. No banana skins for them in August