Our relationship with the Champions League

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ric
  • Start date Start date
nmc said:
Unlike when we have been Champions - Chelsea will benefit from being in Pot 1 - so a soft draw will be lined up for them in te Group stages. That said they may do an Arsenal and depart in the knockout stage when they have to play someone decent. I just love the way Arsenal fans bitch about having to play the likes of FC Bayern - they clearly think you can win the Champions League playing the likes of Club Brugge in every round. They should try a group of death one year!
Click to expand...
Hello everyone. Chelsea fan.

We were 2nd seeds in 1999 (thanks to the two European trophies we'd won in the previous 15 months) but came within 12 minutes of eliminating Barcelona in the quarterfinals before losing in extra time.

We were 2nd seeds again in 2003 but reached the semifinals that time.

We have been in pot 1, on merit, every other time we've entered the tournament. This includes 2015 when we'd still have been in pot 1 even if the regulations had not been changed to guarantee top seeding to the Champions of England.

The rule change means that being in pot 1 is not as big an advantage as it used to be, but, when we have been top seeds, it's because we've earned it. In any case, we've done OK in those seasons when we've been outside the top pot and you are now doing OK from outside it too. It's not the be all and end all.

Today, Chelsea are still England's highest ranked team although you will overtake us if you reach the semifinals. I hope you do that. In fact, I hope you win it.
 
Looks like we'll never embrace the competition we all want to be. Uefa will always be in charge so I can't see anything changing.
 
A question that should be asked is: does anyone actually want us to improve our relationship with UEFA?
UEFA don't or they wouldn't be bashing/tying to cheat us constantly,
The media don't, they say they do as a stick to beat us with, but recently they've started posting about how we need an old style top 4 as apparently (and completely incorrectly) we had a better chance at winning.
Other club don't as we might become to comfortable and keep them out.

So really the champions league hate us as much as we hate them, but fuck 'em.


I will say though I think singing Bluemoon instead of booing would be a good idea, something to say we still hate you but more supportive of us rather than just a plain negative sound
 
It's hard to love a corrupt competition. PSG were wrongfully eliminated with 2 none penalties given against them so the UEFA darlings could progress, nothing magical about that.
 
Brendan110_0 said:
It's hard to love a corrupt competition. PSG were wrongfully eliminated with 2 none penalties given against them so the UEFA darlings could progress, nothing magical about that.
Click to expand...

PSG were eliminated because they were fucking wank.

They have 1 pass that wasn't a kickoff in the last 20 minutes. They had 3 kickoffs.

The referee didn't make them blow a 6 goal lead, he didn't stop them literally stringing 2 passes together either.

He didn't smash an own goal.

The Suarez penalty was bollocks, but there's another 5 goals that were down to PSG being bottlers.


If Barcelona are UEFA's darlings who can't go out, why did the referee "let" them go 4 down in the first leg?! Or get into a position where they needed 6 goals on Wednesday?!


Anyone who watched that match can't blame anyone except PSG because they gave away 4 of the shittest, weakest goals you could possible concede. If anyone has been bought out, it's the PSG Players.
 
Dave Ewing's Back 'eader said:
I get the impression that Uefa have a 'preferred' winner. It might vary each season but yer can bet it will come from Barca, Bayern, Real and one other. We will never be the 'one other'!
Click to expand...
I disagree about a 'preferred winner'. I do genuinely think the best clubs usually win it (or atleast get the furthest in the competition). Last season we didn't get through against Madrid because we were completely toothless and couldn't score a single goal in 180 minutes. Had we done, we would have been playing Athletico in the final (both teams are hardly UEFA darlings).
 
citymad said:
Looks like we'll never embrace the competition we all want to be. Uefa will always be in charge so I can't see anything changing.
Click to expand...
I fully embrace the competition, it's the best competition in club football bar non. I do definitely think there is division amongst people under 30 and those over 30 (younger people tend to prefer the Champions league).

I do think we'll buy into fully one day, I think that it's a gradual thing for us, more nights like Monaco, PSG, Barca this season will help. Eventually I'd imagine UEFA will be forced to reform and that will result in a more honest, less corrupt management of the competition, but if we were upset about corruption then we should be booing the FA cup and the premier league as well!
 
Last edited:
Bilboblue said:
Couldn't disagree more, I find it completely the opposite.
Click to expand...

Same here. The under 30's have been warped by marketing into thinking that the champions league is the best competition on the planet.

Personally I don't mind it but that more because of the away trips. I still very rarely get emotional about the games and I can't see that changing but some of the football played by some of the teams were competing with pisses all over watching Middlebrough or Manure park the bus at our place. So all in all I enjoy the trips and the football displayed but I've just not got a connection with the competition in the same way I do with the league.
 
RACHACE said:
Same here. The under 30's have been warped by marketing into thinking that the champions league is the best competition on the planet.

Personally I don't mind it but that more because of the away trips. I still very rarely get emotional about the games and I can't see that changing but some of the football played by some of the teams were competing with pisses all over watching Middlebrough or Manure park the bus at our place. So all in all I enjoy the trips and the football displayed but I've just not got a connection with the competition in the same way I do with the league.
Click to expand...
Chelsea Fan.


100% agreed. Back in 2012, I was telling anyone who would listen that I would gladly have swapped the two trophies we won that season, FAC & CL, for the Premier League that you won. The CL is a great competition. Much better in my opinion than its predecessor, the European Champions Cup, but it still means way less to me than the domestic title.

And, no, I promise you that has nothing to do with the current league table.

Edit: -

I also fully agree with those of you who continue to boo uefa's anthem. Not withstanding the fact that I like the new president, who strikes me as a bright bloke, there are so many reason's to boo that organisation. FFP is just one of them.

I'm sad to admit that my own club had been one of the most enthusiastic supporters of that horrible set of regulations. We had climbed the tree by spending a lot of money and we supported this bad rule in an effort to pull the ladder up after us. When your club & PSG started to spend big also, I said I hoped that you'd drive a gaping whole through the plan of the old money clubs (and Chelsea) to create a closed shop for themselves at the top of European football. Gald to see this is what seems to have happened.
 
Last edited:
The experience we have gained in the competition will soon be of no use to us as those who have gained it will be gone. As long as our defence isn't a priority we wont be winning it anytime soon. Making us hard to beat would greatly improve our chances and may also change supporters attitudes towards it. The league title is still the one for me.
 
Think the booing has ran it's course now and think we've made our point.
Never really taken to the Champions league, not for any reason in particular but the Monaco game I think has slightly changed my opinion but that's mainly down to what a great game it was rather than the competition it was in
Premier league comes first for me all day long but wouldn't object to winning it
 
I appreciate many City fans have moved on from the booing, but I can't forgive Platini, UEFA, Gill, United, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, and a host of other cartel clubs for doing what they did to City. Bar Bayern, all of those clubs were £billions in debt, and still increasing, filed and diverted their revenues through tax havens, broke the law regarding signing players, yet UEFA at the time and still to this day, turned a blind eye, while making a point of targeting and attacking City(and PSG) in the media and in public.

It was a well organised campaign from the very top of UEFA against City, and nothing was going to stop UEFA & Co from doing as much damage to City as possible. And look where Platini is now. Not to mention the position Gill holds at UEFA. I'm still booing.
 
B\connellblue said:
The experience we have gained in the competition will soon be of no use to us as those who have gained it will be gone. As long as our defence isn't a priority we wont be winning it anytime soon. Making us hard to beat would greatly improve our chances and may also change supporters attitudes towards it. The league title is still the one for me.
Click to expand...
We'll mostly be losing players that had experience in going out at the group stage or round of 16 and keeping players that have made a semi final and hopefully at least the quarters this year, not too worried.
 
Brendan110_0 said:
It's hard to love a corrupt competition. PSG were wrongfully eliminated with 2 none penalties given against them so the UEFA darlings could progress, nothing magical about that.
Click to expand...
correct.

I go to every CL game , I attend the away legs entirely for the jolly. the matches are meaningless. i'm not even sure i'll actually go to the stadium next week. I may just stay in Nice and get stitched up from the comfort of the hotel bar.
 
Bill said:
correct.

I go to every CL game , I attend the away legs entirely for the jolly. the matches are meaningless. i'm not even sure i'll actually go to the stadium next week. I may just stay in Nice and get stitched up from the comfort of the hotel bar.
Click to expand...

I doubt the hotel will show the footy, and it will be very expensive at the bar. May as well take a few cans to the beach and listen on the wireless.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Unread Posts

Don't have an account? Register now and see fewer ads!

SIGN UP
Back
Top