"It means more than a trophy"

Tottenham's Hugo Lloris on the importance of qualifying for the Champions League.

The game is screwed.

 

It's ridiculous that finishing fourth is now considered more important than winning the FA cup.

 

Money money money.

 

If the FA (is it their choice) had any balls or respect for the competition they would make the FA cup have the 4th place. Crazy they don’t really.

 

Unfortunately mate that would require them growing a pair and standing up to the Premier League.

 

Personally I'd go back to the old format of the European Cup, the UEFA cup and the Cup Winners Cup with only the league champions getting into the European Cup.

 

Winning the JPS was one of the most FANTASTIC feelings I have had in football, along with,.......We are premier league say we are premier league

 

a run in the champions league brings in more cash than the FA cup to a club...and for the players it gets them shown on a larger stage and enhances their chances of an international career.

 

But is that what sport should be about Dragon?

 

it is absolutely not Sir. Its a sad indictment of the way the game is... Many clubs, and not just the English premier league, set out with the hope of a Champions league place above domestic knock out trophies. Its also ad that certain players pull out of representing their National sides over their present club sides.... Ryan Giggs is the obvious example here.

 

But that just underlines the money is king issue that has controlled football since the premier league took over. Back before the premier league there was still international careers for those players good enough.

 

The title needs to be changed, for it is not a Champions League. How can a team in second, third or fourth place be deemed Champion. They are the runner up, and 3rd and 4th. The whole racket is to make richer clubs richer against all other clubs. It is one reason why I never watch or have interest in these trophies.

 

Totally agree here... the amount my chest swelled with pride was immense.... but lets not forget our other Play off Finals victory in Cardiff... the Lads parading the winners trophy around two fabulous stadiums was immense. Oh and BTW that day when Little Clint sewed it up for us was perhaps the most emotional day of my life as a BFC supporter.. I will confess I cried like a child as the emotion was that Huge... I just wish 20+ years on the present generation of Reds fans could have that moment of true exstacy... granted for us who were there the first time around it may be minutely a tad less... but I doubt it.... But that day is in my heart for eternity.

 

Modern football is rubbish.

 

George Boardman, Eddie Loyden, Les Lea, jumpers for goalposts?! Marvellous.

 

EDDIE
EDDIE LOYDEN

LA LA LA LA LAAAA LA LA

He was fantastic in the air

 

It’s not just teams at the top end either who don’t value the cups.

Look at Newcastle under Ashley, regularly comfortable in mid-table yet they’ll play weakened teams in the cup.

Leicester in the quarters of the league cup with little to no chance of relegation or making the top 6 yet they rest players against City & get knocked out.

The games gone. What I find even weirder is fans who have this mindset as well.

I’d much prefer to get relegated & win a cup than sit in mid-table. I’d also much rather win a cup & sit in mid-table than qualify for the champions league.

 

It's very very sad but also true in modern football. Not for the fans, although even that appears to be changing, but certainly for the big clubs and their owners. Getting in the top four gives a club Champions League nights and prestige for the next season. It gives them access to the elite players who may not fancy Thursday nights in Bulgaria. It gives clubs that elitist feeling of being at the very top table of European football. How they fair in the tournament matters less than BEING THERE and getting the money it brings. An FA Cup win is special for fans, but is small fry for the big clubs, pretty much forgotten by the following August. Arsenal have won three FA Cups in four years but no one sees that as a great achievement, you'd be forgiven for thinking that they'd not won a sausage since 2005. It's a sad indictment on our game but unfortunately as money dictates, the only way of regenerating interest in our premier cup competition would be to give the winners a Champs League place. Which in itself is sad and rather devalues the FA Cup. But welcome to football in 2018.

One thing I would look at is making the League Cup EFL clubs only. Scrap the Paint Pot Trophy and allow all 72 football league clubs the chance to win the League Cup. I actually think that would be pretty competitive, especially if the winner got a Europa League place. Then the FA Cup may be of more interest to the big clubs as it's the only domestic cup that they could win. At present, there seems to be little more importance attached to the FA Cup than there is to the League Cup. If a Chelsea or a City win the League Cup in February, I get the impression they tick the domestic cup winners box and aren't overly bothered over the FA Cup. As a traditionalist, I'd like to see that relative associated value reversed.

 

Definitely. I've been completely turned off European competition by the tedious group stages, and seeing the same fixtures year after year. So much so that I've stopped watching even the knockout stages. Which is a shame, as this season I have missed some absolutely insane matches. If that doesn't convince UEFA that going back to a straight knockout tournament is the way to go then nothing will. Of course they know it's far more exciting, but the product on the field takes second place while ever they can eek as many fixtures as possible out of the tournament and sell them to TV companies in emerging markets.

 

I have said for a while that the League Cup should be scrapped, but actually your idea makes a huge amount of sense.