Sports

The Problems with the New Champions League Changes

BRETT VAN ZOELEN | CONTENT WRITER

UEFA plan to make sweeping changes to the current Champions League format ahead of the 2024 season. Some of these involve safety nets for some of Europe’s largest clubs, and fans are concerned because this policy resembles the European Super League debacle of 2021. However, some aspects of the new format are on the right track to making Champions League a more inclusive competition that can help smaller leagues in Europe grow.

The European Super League was originally backed by 16 founding clubs from Europe’s top five leagues, with notable absentees being French giants Paris SaintGermain and six-time Champions league winners Bayern Munich. Supporters everywhere voiced their outrage at the concept due to concerns that the league would effectively dismantle the football pyramid. In essence, the European elite are selling out the fans in return for a more financially stable system without the fear of relegation. This new elitist version of the current system is largely problematic due to how it maintains the status quo. Football as we know it has been a pyramid system since the first division was founded in England in 1888. This format has allowed clubs to work their way up from the national leagues all the way to the top, its principles owe its foundation to sporting principles, the Super league undermines all of that. While the division system would still be around to some extent, the worlds most popular clubs leaving would cause viewership to go down and bring further financial troubles on already struggling lower league clubs. With only three of the 16 founding members still officially trying to bring the concept to fruition, its controversial place in the football world has been taken by the “Legacy” qualification method that is part of the Champions League changes. Fans have compared this to the Super League as it could bail out European giants that fail to qualify through traditional means. While this is not quite as extreme as the Super League, it is more evidence of the footballing hierarchy that supporters fear. Since the beginning of club competition teams have mostly earned their place on merit and giving a free pass to bigger clubs not only threatens the smaller local clubs, but also the quality of competition, as the 36 teams taking part in the competition may not necessarily be the best in Europe. Fans have also reacted negatively to the idea of more games being played per season. The new group stage format would see the number of guaranteed games played in the competition increase from six to ten. Managers have also expressed their concerns over player protection, arguing that adding more games to the already-packed calendar could damage young players’ careers due to fatigue. The belief is that footballers are playing too many games, while some fans do not believe this to be an issue because footballers are very well paid. However, matches every three days for clubs playing in four competitions is arguably too much, and anymore would be at the physical expense of the youth. The only real up-side to this competition format is that the top teams from smaller leagues will be handed more opportunities to play against the elite teams in Europe. This will make some of the smaller leagues more competitive, but more importantly it will allow them to level the playing field in terms of funding as their seasonal revenue could significantly increase, closing the gap between themselves and the so called “top five” leagues. Football is slowly becoming more of a business every year; the problems have begun to pile up much faster because of billionaire owners with no respect for the sport buying up the elite clubs of Europe. Additionally, as the game has slowly become more monetized, there have been more consistent attempts to dismantle the football pyramid, which has caused supporters to be fearful of further changes, as it seems the sport is moving closer to a system reminiscent of the US franchises like the NFL, that threatens to undermine footballing history and culture. The negatives outweigh the positives, but the new format brings some good ideas to the table and if UEFA can tweak the system they are currently proposing, then European football can continue to grow.

Manchester United: The Perpetual Rebuild

PETER GEDDES | CONTENT WRITER

The story of the last nine years at Manchester United is a winding tale, and, despite a few ups, it has been dominated by many, many downs. It is safe to say it is something of tragedy of missed opportunities and squandered talent, and this season has been no different. With the reign of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer finally coming to a dismal end and the interregnum of Ralf Rangnick petering out to make way for the new heir apparent, Erik Ten Hag, where can the club go from here and what is to be done with their dysfunctional playing squad? Despite the recent reversion to mediocrity, there are some things for United fans to be optimistic about. Even more than the appointment of Ten Hag, there appears to be a real shift in the make up of the backroom staff and those making decisions higher up. Ed Woodward left his role as chief executive at the beginning of the year to be replaced by Richard Arnold, who appears to be something of a change of pace, seemingly more willing to install a hierarchy beneath him of people with real footballing knowledge. Whether the recent changes to the recruitment team as well as the roles of John Murtaugh and Darren Fletcher make a positive impact remains to be seen. What we can say is that there is an appreciation at the club that the methods employed since 2013 have been inadequate. What the club must demonstrate is an overarching plan which harmonises with the ideas and methods of the new manager, who will be tasked with building a winning team. Even during the brief moments when the club has looked most stable, there has been a disconnect between recruitment and the needs of the manager. As for the man himself, I do not think they could have made a better appointment. For once they have picked someone whose career is on the up. He has a clear tactical plan both in and out of possession, a strong resumé despite his lack of experience at the biggest clubs. The primary alternative, Mauricio Pochettino, has a similar lack of league titles, does not promise the same brand of football, and has just come off a pretty terrible year in Paris managing some of the best players in the world. Manchester United are attempting to emulate Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola, and of the available candidates, Ten Hag is the best fit for that job. So, now that they have a manager, a refreshed club hierarchy and somewhere in the region of £200 million to spend, what should be done to improve and mould this squad of players?

Source: ANP

As of the time of writing it is all but confirmed that Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata, and Edinson Cavani are all leaving. There are at least another five first team players that ought to be moved on. That leaves a sizable hole in midfield and up front, as well as a defence which no one is happy with. To have a maximum effect on the squad, I think they should aim to look to bring in perhaps as many as four or five players; a holding midfielder, a striker, a centre back, a wide attacker and probably a full back. You also could include a second midfielder and a back up goalkeeper should Dean Henderson be sold. The number of positions needing reinforcements means that United need to be more efficient in the transfer market, too often have they overpaid for players that weren't the right fit. I'm going to focus on the two positions that most need reinforcements, priority ought to be defensive midfield and centre forward. Many candidates have been rumoured for both with Declan Rice, Kalvin Philips, and Aurélien Tchouaméni the biggest names for the ’6’ role while Christopher Nkunku, Lautaro Martinez, and Patrik Schick have all been touted as options as forward option alongside Cristiano Ronaldo. Tchouaméni seems the best option, but if they can't get him, I would recommend Edson Alvarez from Ajax or Ruben Neves from Wolves. Both could probably be signed for the same or less money than Tchouaméni and almost certainly less than the two English internationals. Alvarez obviously has the previous connection with Ten Hag and can also play at centreback whilst being excellent on the ball. Anybody who has watched the Premier League consistently over the last three years will know how good Neves is, the only surprise is that he has not moved to a bigger club

sooner. A striker is a bit trickier; goal scorers will be in high demand this summer with Manchester City, Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona, and Paris Saint-Gerrmain all likely to be in the market. It is further complicated by the presence of Ronaldo who is likely going to remain for at least one more season. Therefore, United are likely to want someone young and of high potential who is willing to play second fiddle for at least a season beyond that someone who can play with back to goal and take part in build up is going to be at the top of the list for the new manager. Of the options I listed before, Nkunku and Schick are the more likely. Nkunku would be very expensive, but he is versatile and exceptionally gifted. If needed he could be moved out to the left. Schick is a more traditional centre forward and his ceiling is certainly a lot lower, but he's a solid player who could be used in a similar manner to Sebastian Haller at Ajax. Jonathan David and Darwin Nunez are also both solid options but there is likely to be a lot of competition for both. The other positions, though less urgent, are likely to be more troubling due to the dilemma of dealing with incumbents. Often in football things aren't quite as bad as they appear and there are plenty of players in the United squad that could turn things around with a good pre-season and solid coaching, the difficult part is identifying who is not going to make that recovery and moving them on. The task for Ten Hag is huge and the problems won't be fixed in one window but what United do in the next three to four months will tell us a lot about what the Ten Hag era is going to look like and how deep the reforms at the club have gone.

In Freefall: Wombles Fall Through Trap Door

OLI GENT | SPORTS EDITOR

Ididn’t think I’d be writing this after a wonderful start to the season and a record that includes six promotions, that my club, AFC Wimbledon, have been relegated from Sky Bet League One, signalling their first relegation since the phoenix club was formed from the bottom in 2002.

Everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong for the Dons, as they sought a costeffective scheme that would allow them to save precious finance after the gargantuan expenditure on the fairytale return to Plough Lane. Head of Youth Development Mark Robinson was entrusted with the full reins after his caretakership steered Wimbledon clear of the League One drop last season, and his approach of blooding in youngsters he had developed through the academy was refreshing to see, as the playing budget had again been slashed, making it, in former chairman Joe Palmer’s words, ‘uncompetitive’. The problem with an ‘uncompetitive’ transfer budget is that the Dons shared a league with some of the biggest fish in the English footballing pond: Sheffield Wednesday had had their fall from grace, Portsmouth and Sunderland continued to waiver in the third tier, with Ipswich Town, Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic and Charlton all former Premier League sides with pockets deeper than Wimbledon could even dream of. It's been a campaign that started with such promise for Robinson’s young guns: former Chelsea academy graduate Luke McCormick was the statement signing, ably supported by homegrown heroes Jack Rudoni and Ayoub Assal in what seemed to be a frightening attacking midfield trident behind the aerially imperious Ollie Palmer, but the threadbare nature of the squad took its toll over the course of the 46-game season. A real profligacy in front of goal was not aided by lack of any real quality backup for the fatigued Palmer, as injuries hampered any real impact promising Aaron Presley could have, with the Brentford loanee clearly not good enough for the third tier. Terry Ablade was another panicked loanee picked up from Fulham, but the young Fin struggled to break into the first team in a recurring theme of poor recruitment from the Dons’ hierarchy: youngsters from Premier League and Championship academies making their first real move into professional football, trying to make the step across from youth league to the land of the journeymen. Henry Lawrence, another capture from Chelsea, was also strapped to the treatment table for much of the season after highly impressive performances at right-back, promptly earning him a call-up to the England Under-20’s squad, but deeper questions remain about his relationship with Robinson amidst questionable absences and droppings in key games, with natural left-back Paul Osew preferred. Robinson himself must take some of the blame; he was stubborn in his team selections, as shown with Lawrence, and his persistence to play the stuttering Anthony Hartigan in the engine room was another. As the results worsened, the Dons finished the season winless in 2022, their last victory coming in December against Accrington Stanley, Robinson got more and more desperate in what seemed to be a selfish stab to save his skin. He began to chop and change his line-up regularly, cutting out any real momentum gained from decent performances, as his systems highlighted that he had departed from all his previous principles to save himself: 3-4-3, 3-52, 3-4-1-2, 4-1-3-2… he tried them all, but nothing worked. Wimbledon wobbled. They weren’t good enough. They went down. The interim reign of Mark Bowen was bittersweet, but the same issues remained: players threw in the towel when the going got tough, and even the experienced voices of Messrs Bowen nor Eddie Niedzwiecki couldn’t rally the troops, with the Dons throwing away leads in four of Bowen’s seven games in charge to hammer home the mentality message.

Source: Public News Time

But it’s not just the mindsets of the playing staff that have got to change. Those upstairs in the boardroom must also take a look at themselves. Their cheap cop-out to back Robinson instead of going through the proper replacement process for Glyn Hodges was mistake number one, and their continued backing and lack of ruthlessness when results got bad have ultimately sent the club packing. But the issue runs deeper than that. There are people within the Dons Trust who firmly believe that as long as the club remains fan-owned, rid of any outside investment, whilst still playing at the spiritual home of Plough Lane, it doesn’t matter what happens on the pitch. Wimbledon Football Club should never have that mentality, and most within the fanbase are now of the opinion that backing from beyond is necessary in order to truly compete and look to overtake the villains from Buckinghamshire. But without serious clearance this summer, there’s a long way ahead of them yet.