Now the madness of the Super League has died down, maybe we can have a conversation about where we’re heading.
The Super League proposition was an odd one. It wasn’t good versus evil. It was bad vs evil. It was a film where every character is flawed, and you picked the lesser villain to root for.
Think about who you cheered this week.
Boris Johnson, the man that said he’d lie on the runway at Heathrow rather than expand (then expanded). Famous for the biggest lie put on a bus, ever.
Rupert Murdoch, the person that started the pillaging of football in the 90s, currently allowing his opinion presenters to shed doubt on vaccinations in a country that lost 500k to covid, just to own the libs. Climate denial as his own country burns.
Gary Neville, voice of the people… except when he played for the richest club in England that bought success year after year and had some weird thing going on with referees that the referees now admit to. Oh, he’s also financially doping his Salford FC club despite Scholes saying they wouldn’t. Oh, and there are also accusations that he uses his elite celeb powers to land special treatment with the locals. Oh, the man of the people ALSO works for Rupert Murdoch. Oh, guess which dreamboat has a 50% stake in his club? PETER LIM, the man that I wrote about who owned Valencia, who let a super agent run riot, that led fans to oust Nuno after he got them into the Champions League because they believed he was part of the team that destroyed the soul of their club. I wrote a scathing piece about Nuno when Raul was trying to hire him at Arsenal, read it, then PLEASE tell me if that’s who you’d jump into business with if you cared about the beautiful game.
…voice of the people? Fuck off.
We all fell for it in the moment though; when your world is under threat, you’d rather have the voice with you than against, but never forget, many of them were protecting their own piece of a pretty ugly pie.
Where were these voices when working-class fans were priced out of football?
Where are these people NOW on systemic racism?
Where are these people when fans get fucked around with scheduling for the global audiences?
At the trough.
The closest I’ve ever come to losing my life was on Clerkenwell Road after a night out. I had just bought an amazing kebab. I was jogging across a road that was on a red light and I dropped the kebab bag, horrified, I turned back to save the meat box, I snatched it away like a hero, not realising there was a car powering at me… the Ford Focus brushed the top of my head at 30mph. It was a near miss and a lot to put on the line for a £6.99 after-hours feast. That would have been lights out for me. I have never done something so stupid since.
Football is the kebab in the bag. The fans are my head if I’d been hit. We saved the game, we’re dreaming of the feast ahead, but we haven’t seen the car careening at us.
Did that story work? Maybe not.
Point is… what does this near-miss for UEFA mean?
‘PUNISHMENT’
Puuuuurlease. I just don’t believe there can be a punishment from the biggest clubs after this near miss. UEFA needs to have a good Champions League. Punishing mega clubs would be a weird move. They’ll take execs off their committee roles. Strip them of their board seats. But punishing the clubs is punishing the fans and their big sponsors.
Even the stripping of exec roles… Agnelli leaves the ECA Chairman role and is replaced by the guy the lobbied for the Qatar World Cup? Have you read a single thing about the build for that World Cup? Is that what saving the game was about? Fucking hell people… we’ve just let the fox into the hen house.
Back to it. You can’t have a Champions League without the big names.
I think the most likely outcome, which is rumoured to be happening, is a kick-up in revenue for the CL. $4 billion added to the pot.
It’s also rumoured that there will be a backdoor way for big clubs to get into the tournaments via coefficients.
The rumblings are that we’ll end up seeing the same format that was on show for Super League… but with competition at the heart of it.
Florentino Perez came out and added more weight to the story I wrote the other day. He literally said the big clubs don’t make money. That complaint is hilarious, he’s complaining they don’t make money because they waste it all on agents, transfers, and wages. HILARIOUS but important to compute… if big clubs feel like the game is fucking them, they will continue working to change that.
I think the Super League is dead but the drivers underpinning its appeal are not going away.
The big idea is this: How do you put more money in the pockets of clubs that bring the big money?
There’s talk of relaxing FFP so Manchester City and PSG don’t have to fret about their financial doping.
Will the big voices go to war for those unfair practices? No way. We’re baseball fans watching Sosa and McGwire slug it out for the home run record in 1998. Here for the spectacle, not the details. As long as the football is pretty, we don’t see the grimness of what it’s become.
This failed coup will not end ‘innovations for the good of the game’, it’ll just shift the way they are sold.
Financial security for the few won’t sell. But more quality? Maybe that will. Reducing the number of teams from countries that don’t sell eyeballs will happen and that might not see such a vitriolic reaction because it won’t affect the key nations in the mixer, it’ll affect the smaller ones. Is that fair? No. Will there be hashtag campaigns to protect Bate Borisov? No fucking chance.
Having the biggest brands in football in the biggest tournaments is a premise you could sell, just not at the expense of competition. But what if the new Champions League changed how you gain entry to it? What if they created backdoor entries and more wild cards. What if making the semi-finals of Europa landed you into the Champions League? It’s usually BIG teams that make the final 4, it certainly has been of late. What if they brought in a rule that if you qualified for Champions League domestically and made the semi of Europa, that extra spot was given to 5th place in the league the team was from. Would fans protest that? Doubtful.
‘I don’t make the rules’ shoulder shrugs from most.
Case in point: Did anyone protest Champions League teams getting a parachute reward for dropping into the Europa League for finishing 3rd in the group stages? Is that fair? It’s absolutely not. Rich teams fail, then get another crack in a lesser comp with a HUGE reward and fans don’t bat an eyelid. How can anyone tell me it’s fair that United could take our Champions League place if we get to the final of the Europa League.
‘I don’t make the rules’ shoulder shrug. Right?
The problem with all the innovations on the table NOW? They don’t help Stan. If he wants to get back to the top, he has to do it the hard way or short cut it by spending out of his own pocket, which he won’t do. That’s the desperate choice he faces now, does he have the stomach for proper investment?
If he doesn’t, what do Arsenal fans want in its place? The best owners in football tend to come with nasty baggage. Would you take wealth at Arsenal from someone that chops up journos? Newcastle fans were bang up for it, they protested FOR it. This goes back to the original point, there are no ‘we got our club back’ solutions to this mess. Every choice that would affect our future for the better is likely a moral dagger to the soul of the game and our own personal principles.
The Super League failed because it bypassed the competitive nature of the sport we love. The level of unfairness it presented was too obvious. But don’t kid yourself that football isn’t brutally unfair now. Arsenal lost our perch as the top club in Europe because billionaires whitewashed their reps in our league and purchased success at unprecedented levels. That wasn’t fair. We did things the hard way and we got absolutely nothing out of it. Our stadium was pointless. Our love affair with the idea of FFP faltered because UEFA let it slide.
Unfairness, led by the richest, will find its wicked way again, but next time, it’ll be more subtle.
Fans won the battle of the Super League, but the war goes on, the owners learned a key lesson of modern history: You cannot take over the world through brute force. The people will not tolerate it. However, that does not mean the world cannot be taken over with a softer type of raw power.
That’s the next move, keep your eyes peeled.
Right, see you in the comments and tell me how YOU would make football better.
Kphoebe- No.. I’m a Cubs fan… grew up very close to the Cubs/Card rivalry, basically in my backyard. The Cubs were a very traditional team.. didn’t even have lights back then… so I would get home from school and the games would be on. Loved listening to the very boozy Harry Carey as well. My sport was always football(soccer here.. I know, I hate it too.) .. I was part of the initial wave of kids who grew up playing it at a very young age…as the sport took hold in the 70’s, taught the game by an Arsenal loving… Read more »
Almunia, thanks very true.
Of course, as Arsenal fan we don’t want to be punished. There should be a punishment of some sort but they must find a way of making sure it’s on the owners, not the fans. As I said, points deduction won’t work because the 6 teams will actually be punished differently. With regard to UEFA, they won’t want to risk self-harming. Very tricky because they have to be seen to have done something.
Bring back public flogging, that would work – the fans would enjoy that!
Dissenter
The legal eagles at the six will be all over this . Sky are hyping this just willing the PL to clip the clubs wings . Why ? Well quite simply they Sky want the power taken away from the six as they know the other 14 clubs have no clout to stand up to Sky.
As for any fines they would just be deducted from the TV money when distributed
Pedro, “purists want entertainment, but sponsors aren’t interested in a final of Leipzig vs Atalanta.” For a marketing man, you got it wrong. People wants unpredictable sport Entertainment. Sell them a good story and they will buy it. During Newcastle purple era, the biggest draw in the Premiership was Liverpool v Newcastle. Why? because it has crazy entertaining games that finished 4-3. It had drama. It had personalities. Before Wenger, Arsenal was seen as the boring cup team winning 1-0 to Arsenal, everybody in defense and Lump it to Wrighty. Suddenly Arsenal became a sought after team. Sponsors came in… Read more »
I still can’t see what rules have a been broken and I have read the rule book.
The funny part is Everton’s statement actually was a breach of the rules as was any individual speaking out against another club
Josh’s Stoke barb is the equivalent of Marie Antoinette ‘let them eat cake’. An out of touch and ignoramus utterance.
The KRONKS have us all by the curly’s.
No intention of selling .
Also from the TF podcast. Adam Crafton from the Athletic on the three main reasons for ESL’s rapid collapse. 1. Failed gamble that Bayern and PSG would fall in line 2. No major broadcaster come forward to publicly offer backing (and Amazon came out against it) 3. Major stakeholders (players and managers) public spoke out against it. He added that fans, media, govt etc created a groundswell that ‘spooked’ the English clubs. Mentioned that Spanish fans weren’t as passionately opposed to the plan as British fans were. Not sure if he’s on target with the 3 main reasons for the… Read more »
Afc forever That’s the second time you’ve made me laugh. Kroenkephobe Were you reading the lads earlier talking about the 50th game at OT? Now that’s where a man can be seriously re-traumatised (I love that word,are you taking credit for creating it?). Anyway i was wondering, given that Riley is still so hugely active/ influential in the game are Arsenal not mad not to be screaming for an investigation into that game ? We all know that there were decisions in that game that by their sheer inexplicability and volume were indefensible. Make the bollox explain them . Genuinely.… Read more »
Almuniasaynomore – going back to your earlier post. To punish or not? It’s a fine line but ultimately some form of punishment has to be at least be seen to be handed out, and monetary fines aren’t going to impress anyone given the resources that Roman, the Sheikhs, United or even Stan have at their disposal. This project was targetted at the CL (clubs still wanted to play in their domestic leagues) so the most fitting sanction would be a European ban, probably of a short length. As I mentioned previously I’d expect that the clubs themselves and UEFA would… Read more »
Midwest My bad. Almost as insensitive as calling a Gooner a Spud given the cubbies/cards rivalry. Never managed a visit to Wrigley unfortunately but I saw the White Sox which was pretty ordinary. . I was very much an NL guy for some reason. It started with my affinity for the Mets but I also enjoyed the spectacle of pitchers batting (although there’s also DHs in the NL this year I see). I imagine playing soccer in the US was a pretty cool experience. Better facilities, coaching, pitches and levels of sportsmanship than the UK experience I suspect. But the… Read more »
It does make me laugh all this talk about ‘entertainment’ like football is just another leisure choice like going to the cinema or a nice meal out with some friends. It certainly wasn’t the way I viewed it nor the way my mates looked at it when we used to turn up every week in the rain, the snow to watch the lads play Coventry or QPR. Number one we wanted to win in any way we could. ‘Entertainment’ was an added (and not essential) extra. If we battered the Spuds by kicking them up in the air for 90… Read more »
It’s all started.
La Liga is demanding greater financial control over Qatar ( PSG) & Abu Dhabi (Man City), probably in view of the huge debt Barca & Real now carry..
Meanwhile, Barca and Real are digging their heels in about the Euro Super League.
With any luck, we could get sensible reform on the back of this ESL fiasco. Bring it on.
Jesus fuck I cant believe what Pedro has written here , its almost like he wanted ESL to happen and is sad its not happening. Wow , so we need to feel guilty about ESL not happening because the ones who were on the fans’ side were scum. When the fuck has Stan Kroenke ever raised his voice for anything ? Where the fuck was he hiding when FFP started to fail , did he release any statement ? Busy waiting, to buy Usmanov shares so he could own the club . You say everyone was busy protecting their piece… Read more »
Hi Almunia That clip sickened me watching it again. I suppose trauma is by definition re doing the original experience so I think a lexicographer or a psychologist would disregard it with the ‘re’ attached. My kids say I already invent enough baffling words so I should probably quit while I’m ahead. I saw the original game on the box and tried immediately to put it out if my mind so many thanks to whoever put it on here a month or so ago. But the one sidedness and lack of protection for our boys was shocking wasn’t it. Compounded… Read more »
Terraloon
I agree that no laws or regulations were broken.
They never withdrew from the league, never played a game outside of the normal footballing norms.
I’m just bristling at the idea of the likes of West ham or Burnley owners trying to gang up against the clubs that made the premier league what it is.
The embarrassment of a failed coup and dealing with the anger of the fans is enough punishment for the 6 clubs that attempted the breakaway.
Andy 1886
Exactly. But as Versailles and Hitler’s exploitation of it proved too great a punishment only justified the guilty parties feeling aggrieved. I’m thinking of the attempts after ww2 to prevent rather than punish. Weren’t very successful either,only created other,bigger monsters. Poland suffered far more under Russians than nazis for example. Is there any conflict whose resolution points the way forward? I’m stumped.
Rather than asking the heads of owners, we ne need to quickly swing the pendulum and turn the spotlight on the greedy bastards in UEFA, premier league and even the broadcasters. Aren’t these the idiots that will schedule games for late night Monday nights that makes it cruelly difficult for away fans to attend? Aren’t these the same bastardos that were charging the UK domestic audience ridiculous sums as PPV during the pandemic? Maybe we can have Gary Neville use his bully pulpit on Sky sports to go after employers when they shaft fans This battle with the ESL has… Read more »
I am really apalled at what Pedro has written here but not surprising because he was Pro-ESL . Liverpool fans want FSG out , the owners who won them a PL and UCL . Meanwhile Pedro is out here telling us Kroenke is a good guy compared to others , in your own words Pedro we rather choose a lesser evil . I for one second will not believe anything KSE says.
Almuniasaynomore As much as Versailles provide AH with the ammunition he needed to play to the less well educated the added bonus of the great depression probably sealed it. The French thought that the settlement was far too generous but the Americans softened and the Brits sided with them. By the time the Dawes Plan and the Young plan came along Hitler’s message was too engrained with the German masses even though reparations were effectively suspended. A bit like the idea that somehow the Labour Party in the UK were somehow responsible for the global economic crisis of 2008. People… Read more »
Pedro has sadly failed to read the room . Diabolical of you to suggest UEFA to blame for Arsenal being in this mess , when you were actively trying to kick Wenger out who kept us in this competition . Its not UEFA’s fault if Arsenal are being run by an incompetent chap from US who doesnt even know the color of our Away jersey . You kept telling us that we need to make smart decisions off the pitch , you cited Leicester as the prime example of it . Now you blame UEFA for not enforcing FFP ,… Read more »
Dissenter
You are the President of La Liga ( he near enough used those exact same words as you when talking about Barca and RM yet no mention of Atletico) There are no plans at all to punish the rebel 3 in Spain
What he did say however or shall I say hinted at was the Barca and Real wouldn’t take up the invitation to participate in next years CL
DivineSherlock
“Pedro has sadly failed to read the room”
The room is quickly brushing under the carpet the event and pointing at others.
Related to shame.
Kroenkephobe I’d say every gooners remember where they saw that one, there’s probably a little stain of sick there still. Strangely enough the one that broke my heart wasn’t that or even the 8-2, it was the 4-2 loss after Keane and Vieira squared up in the tunnel. I often reference the lge cup final loss against Birmingham as the match which ended me with Wenger but I think it was that match where I first realised Arsenal’s time at the top was over. Tell you what,it would be some survey to conduct. What was the most outrageous decision utd… Read more »
The Le Grove Arsenal room that is.
A few notable exceptions from that.
Andy 1886
I’ve been trying to explain that to a lad in work all day. If you conflate the two issues you’ll only make a solution more difficult. For now the immorality of uefa/fifa must be set aside until these boys are dealt with. Only then can you turn your attentions back on the big 2 organisations. Otherwise you’ll fall into trump’s great fallback ‘ whataboutism ‘. Focus on a greater evil to deflect from your own wrongdoing. Hence the break away group must be dealt with first,only then can greater reform be sought.
Ishola70
Surprised that Pedro thinks we shouldnt be Kroenke out, Josh Kroenke said with a straight face that his father couldnt talk to fans because of the pandemic , How many years has the pandemic went on ? I know what he will counter with , saying we always wanted an owner who wont meddle too much . Guess what Pedro he brought international embarassment to our Club .
I didnt even get his Baseball reference , Never watched a single minute of that sport . What was that about ?
Almuniasaynomore
What punishment do you suggest be handed out to the renegrade clubs.
It’s amusing to see commoners think they can hurt billionaires and not hurt the clubs they profess to love.
Whatever financial punishment is doled out to Arsenal. It will be from the purse of Arsenal FC as an entity. Kroenke isn’t going to move cash from another business to cover it
You’re letting the success of crushing the ESL -12 go into your head. You’ll end up making the mistake of the victorious, like was done in Versailles.
Ok I just can’t stay away..love u guys..Bertie Mee please inform us when this is gonna happen. AFC sincere condolences. Lost my mum a lil while back and she was a fount of wisdom. There are only 3 blogs i read every day. This 1, Arseblog and 7am. All different in their own right but all excellent. I urge all of you who want to get an insight on SK and his set up go to 7am and read what Tim had written this very day. Explains an awful lot
Andy 1886 The Labour Party weren’t responsible for the crash in 2008, but they were responsible for the housing bubble, that pushed house prices out of reach of much of the working class After the Second World War, for around 50 years we had net immigration running at around 40,000 annually, and house prices used to double every 10-12 years Blair then came in and opened the floodgates, made it easier to get a zero deposit mortgage, than a mobile phone Immigration then went from net 40,000, to net 300,000+ p/a, and our overall population was increasing by over 500,000… Read more »
Dissenter
Read my post 18.22. I really don’t see this as a victory. I think that there is a moral obligation on the prem lge to punish the 6, not because I think it will have any effect on them but because an example must be set even if it’s only symbolic. Are you suggesting that a millionaire caught speeding shouldn’t be punished because the poorly paid police officer can make no dent in his finances with a measly fine?
The premier league better tread softly on this matter… No rule was broken.
The lesser 14 clubs(pushed by sky) are about to embark on a journey of no return. A power grab that will ensure no one complains when next the super league comes about
Ok if no rules were broken, then I can say, as we type, lawyers are adding in these new bylaws, etc into UEFA/FIFA.
Trust me, they will be there for the future….
Some sort of censure or punishment should be metted out.
Someone has to pay for the anxiety they caused me darn it!!
If they deducted points if I was the “big 6” I’d agree together and go the route rangers took and all agree to accept relegation instead . Wouldn’t affect the big 6 financially because by virtue of their power for sponsors and Tv deals they’d instantly just turn the championship into the premier league such would be the interest . Watch how the14 would squirm when they realise the sponsors abandons them and they try to figure out how they going to pay their players
Rich
Labour won the election in 1997, but New Labour was a Conservative idea. It was the idea of a Conservative group who had taken over Labour. Their idea was that entrusting everything to market forces was the best way to get things done, which was fundamentally an anti-Labour idea. But it was a Conservative group running the party. Mrs Thatcher herself said her greatest achievement was New Labour.
Rich, a lot to dissect there. Housing is obviously a big issue. If you’re old enough then you’ll remember Maggie’s ‘Right to Buy’ in the 80’s whereby local authority housing stock was sold off dirt cheap to tenants (not so much to do them a favour but to ensure a nice new band of Torie voting home owners forever grateful). Shame the money from these sales wasn’t permitted to be invested back into new housing stock. Shame also that many of the buyers sold their properties bought at under market prices to wealth slum landlords and buy to let chancers.… Read more »
The creation of the ESL was not of itself a mistake. However, the manner in which it was kept a secret and the modus operandi is flawed. Josh Kroenke has now conceded that any future plans must be carried out by consulting the fans and bringing them on board. Perhaps this is now the time for the AST to have a discussion with the Board about appointing Non Executive Directors who represent the Supporters interests something which might boost confidence in what the club is currently doing I made the case when the ESL was first announced that whilst I… Read more »
Perhaps in the short term this ESL failure works out well for Arsenal. I just read Josh Kroenke’s statement about rebuilding trust amongst fans (blah blah blah) , commitment as stewards etc. Is it wishful thinking that money will be spent in the summer to try to persuade fans of the Kroenke’s commitment? I have as much disdain towards them as absentee owners as anyone but there may be a silver lining… before we boot them out 🙂
Wengaball
“Wenger was laughed at for saying 4th place is a trophy”
___
And rightfully so. Absolutely embarrassing to claim 4th place “is like a trophy” for a club like Arsenal. Wenger should be ashamed of himself for that comment. .
Intresting to see how quick some are to forgive the club. Arsenal really do have a spineless fanbase.
“What the Kroenke family needs now to do in the short term is be far more proactive in the
club’s affairs and provide the finance and ambition to make the club more competitive than
it has been until now under their stewardship.”
Nope, what they need to do is pack their bags and clear off. It’s not just a Kroenke thing, I’d like the other billionaire investors at City, Liverpool and Chelsea etc. to do the same.
Josh Kroenke, sir you are unfit to wash my ass. You are the Hunter Biden of football! You should turn to crack and meth as maybe then you to would have a excuse for how poorly unfit you are. I would rather see you with hookers on crack, so I can at least say “Oh that Josh, at least he is having a great time”
“Josh Kroenke said with a straight face that his father couldnt talk to fans because of the pandemic , How many years has the pandemic went on ? “
Josh obviously wasn’t talking about the COVID pandemic, but rather the “indifference pandemic “ , which has afflicted the billionaires disproportionately and for a very long time.
Unlike covid, no one’s working on a vaccine.
Wingdings “And rightfully so. Absolutely embarrassing to claim 4th place “is like a trophy” for a club like Arsenal.” Not quite what was said. At the 2012 AGM, Gazidis and ‘Kroenke were heckled by the shareholders, one accusing them of “ruining the club” with their ‘long pockets, short arms’ approach to running a football club. Arsenal at the time had gone on an unbeaten run of qualification for the Champions League, always finishing in the top 4, despite making profits on transfers. So Wenger spoke up, saying: “For me, there are five trophies, The first is to win the Premier… Read more »
Punishment should should act as deterrent against anybody who still had not got the fact that they have lost. Paraphrasing the speech by Mal in the movie Serenity: As sure that as I know anything, I know this. They will try again. Maybe with the very same clubs, maybe with another group of clubs, in a year from now, 10 they will swing back to the belief that they can make football more profitable. I do not hold to that. So no more running, time to misbehave and make them understand that football does not belong to them. They may… Read more »
Andy “Nope, what they need to do is pack their bags and clear off. It’s not just a Kroenke thing, I’d like the other billionaire investors at City, Liverpool and Chelsea etc. to do the same” 100%. I don’t want Abu Dhabi Oil State Vs Qatar Oil State in a Champions League semi-final nor do I want a Russian crook handing out £1.15 billion quid to a yo-yo club. I certainly don’t want Americans trying to impose on our great game time-outs, quarters, endless commercials or Go- Go Girls in gold bikinis on rollerskates, waving fucking pom-poms. No to foreign… Read more »
AFC Forever
Arsene Wenger has revealed that he will be happy to see Arsenal consistently finish second in the Premier League for the next 20 years, insisting that his priority is for the club to be competing in the Champions League year after year.
“I am very proud of the attitude, the behaviour and the quality of our season. I will defend that until the end. As long as you are second in the league, I am ready to sign for the next 20 years and stand up for that.” – Arsene Wenger
Lol lol lol.
Valentin
Your post was ideological, nostalgic, aspirational, romantic sentimentality. Loved it.
Just after the ESL more greed on display, just look at this from Ilkay Gundogan:
“With all the Super League stuff going on… can we please also speak about the new Champions League format? More and more and more games, is no one thinking about us players?”
Unbelievable.
Top four trophy? Revealing who’s won the most ‘Arsene Wenger trophies’! In honour of the ‘Arsene Wenger Trophy’, we present the clubs that have claimed this non-existent piece of silverware (by finishing second, third or fourth – the champions have no need to claim such nonsense) since fourth place in the Premier League first provided a route into the Champions League (2001/02 on). 8. Everton have won one ‘Top Four Trophy’ (AKA an ‘Arsene Wenger Trophy’ 7. Newcastle United have won two ‘Wenger Trophies’ – In 2002 and 2003. Joint 5th. Tottenham have won six’Wenger Trophies’ – In 2010, 2012,… Read more »
ES – Your season ticket would have entitled you to watch PL and maybe FA Cup games.
To watch the ESL you’d have had to pay another wodge because the ESL would be against the top teams in Europe each week. Don’t think for a minute that Koenke and the board wouldn’t increase ticket prices for Arsenal v Barca.
Dela Mere Boris + Blair are big state Tories, Thatcher economically was a liberal The two philosophies are chalk + cheese Andy1886 The growth within the housing market was at least steady until they combined cheap mortgages and mass uncontrolled immigration If Europe invested their way out of the debt crises? Then I must of missed it…. The US had a budget deficit of 4.8% when the pandemic hit The idea you can spent your way out of a 10% deficit is insane, it’s the equivalent of trying to pay your mortgage by going to the casino We’ve gone from… Read more »
Austerity has suppressed UK economic activity for the last ten years and kept resources under-utilised. This is why the UK has experienced the slowest recovery on record. While the quantity of jobs has increased, they have often been low quality.
Rich, honestly please: for the love of God give “economics” a rest.
You’re on much sounder ground (and much much more interesting) when you stock to football and football analysis
Nobody whinges about the economy more than poor people.
Jamie
“Nobody whinges about the economy more than poor people.”
So true
You don’t give a toss what it’s called so long as it works for you.
Langqualidie
Actually you are incorrect my season ticket covers EPL, European and a fixed number of Cup games. If there is an increase in european games then of course the price of tickets would be
increased.
For the record the club reduced the price of Season Tickets when we started playing in the
Europa Cup as opposed to Champions League.
Moreover my season ticket does not include the Carabo Cup and I have never chosen to
go to these games.
Tim Stillmans article on the Kroenkes is just bang on. It’s the incompetence that makes them intolerable.
For clarity the Season Ticket includes 10 games in Cup Competitions. In the Champions League
the maximum number of home games if you reach quarterfinals is SEVEN and in Europa Cup
is EIGHT. So to exceed quota you need to play two or three home games in FA Cup.
It has been a very rare occurrence that Arsenal have exceeded the 10 game threshold even in
the Wenger era.
You gotta lie at the lies by Perez yesterday
He said there were only 40 Chelsea protesters and implied they had been bussed in by UEFA
He also said without the ESL no club in the world can afford to buy or pay the salaries of Star players and they’ll cease to exist. If that’s the case Haaland better just retire because if Real Madrid can’t afford to pay for him right now then what’s the point in being a footballer right?
Great post Pedro – back to your best again. No war and peace sized epic post from me this morning, just a quick round up of the news. The Kroenkes are in denial claiming, “it wasn’t our idea, they made us do it” – honestly, you do believe us, right? How pathetic to cross the pond to quell the fans anger and then cry, “it’s the fault of others, we were just sheep like and lost our way. The others are the bullies, not us. They made us do it” Yeah, right! I think I could honestly say after 10+… Read more »
shit!!!!!!! was supposed to be an abridged version post today.
That’s ADHD and hyperactivity for you!
I think everyone will get fined a bit of money and things will go back to how they were. And FFP is a joke. If city can escape through court arbitration then everyone would feel safe in the knowledge UEFA is weak and can’t do anything. What the super league would do is put pressure on UEFA to actually raise the prize money in participating and winning the CL. Everything else won’t move a needle because football is set in its ways. Anyway back to football things. I have been watching Alternatives to our CAM problem if Odegaard isn’t possible… Read more »
Tony
You are a part time content creator for Le Grove
Dark Hei
Not really just always hyper in the mornings, but before I had business to deal with.
Now fully invested in retirement I have much more time to enjoy life.
Any prediction for the game?
Almunia Roy Carroll… That was the guy’s name – he should have had the self honesty to call it as a goal but SAF would have slaughtered him. One that sticks in my mind, although details are hazy, was a league game at OT against Sheffield Weds. I think manure scored twice in injury time to win. The ref was basically letting the game continue until the three points were secured. Not sure who the ref was. Hi Tony You’ve very accurately summarised the Kroenkes’ behaviour since the ESL cancellation which makes their position even worse. Despite their wealth, they’re… Read more »
Hi Kroenkephobe I think it’s a lack of cultural understanding and intelligence on the Kroenkes part. Class is something taught or part of breeding/genes and i doesn’t matter what a person’s wealth is to be considered classy. The Kroenkes have the money to buy anything on the planet except class. It’s something they will never have no matter how hard they try to have us believe they do. If they had any sense what so ever they’d be remorseful funding a full TW and have Nagelsmann and his choice for manager to start the next season. Hope your mindset has… Read more »
We have some Le Grovers here based in the States. If they could arrange some Gooners from LA and Colorado to demonstrate in front of the two KSE stadiums there at 6 pm London time for the support of the Gooners in London, that could draw the attention of those American multimedia and KSE. We “international” fans would love to contribute to the same cause.
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Nelson
I agree with you to blast the Kroenkes with negative press, especially with Murdoch on the war path to obliterate the ESL.
Most of it will wash over their heads, but slowly some will stick probably more with Josh than Stan.
Tony
Well in response to Pedro’s line that “But don’t kid yourself that football isn’t brutally unfair now.”
Arsenal, pleading poverty, with big names and big wages, we are still un competitive. The game still has hope since it still doesn’t reward incompetence.
I can’t forsee the results as this Arsenal team is only consistent when in comes to knock out competitions. We are like a latter day Rafa Benetiz team.
Everton is a hot and cold team as well. What are the odds of Theo Walcott putting one in our net, lol.
We should be punished by having a transfer embargo placed on the club for 3 years. That way the Krankies will not have to take anymore flack about not spending money from thier own pockets, Arteta would not be able to squander what little money we have on useless, costly journey men looking for a retirement package and we may at last begin to see some talent from the U18s and U 23s emerge. It would probably benefit the club!
Aussie
Careful buddy. They will just extend Willian.
Tony Wenger’s last year was torment for me We obviously have different pain thresholds mate. His last decade tormented me! It all goes back to the 8-2. I’m still not thinking positively about tonight’s game despite dearly wanting to. Football pulled itself back from the brink this week, but it still feels super shoddy and those quarter arsed apologies that you highlighted from the toupee’ed terrorist made it worse and left me thinking they’ll return to the charge. I hope you and your son have a top time watching it together. My mum and her husband are staying at the… Read more »
AussieGooner If I were the governing bodies I’d look at how a salary cap could be laid on us and all ESL participants. If say £150k a week and rigid guidelines put in place for bonuses, signing on fees etc. Tell the rest of the leagues it’ll apply to them in 3 years. With all changes and deal making timing is crucial, so with the current turmoil now might be the best time to introduce some sanity to clubs’ wage structures for clubs. Such a move might makes players think more about running contracts down. Players currently breaking this cap… Read more »
Good reading on KSE and Arsenal debts, and issues with the new UEFA changes
https://7amkickoff.com/index.php/2021/04/22/arteta-takes-fire-josh-faces-the-fans-and-why-the-new-uefa-rules-need-to-be-scrapped/
Kroenkephobe
Some TLC from mum will be sure to get your Arsenal mojo rumbling.
A win would give us the PMA jolt for next week.
End of the 2008 season was the beginning of my Wenger decline with equal dislike of Wenger and the hierarchy.
The anger turned to pain when it was clear that Wenger was going nowhere if he continued to bring in CL money.
Then the muppets making the decisions gave us Raul, Vinai, Emery, Edu and Arteta and wondered why the wheels kept falling off.
Comedic soap opera stuff.
Enjoy your day with the family.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oS4SoDumT6M
Wiggy the chef
I don’t know prior to posting if this link will work.
If it has what the ? Certainly not about the ESL
https://twitter.com/cityreport_/status/1385244979346427904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1385244979346427904%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=
Yep it did
And they talk about transparency!
Tony ESL fiasco has created a perfect storm for the introduction of a sensible salary cap aside mentioned similar yesterday. And timing is everything. It has to be snapped on asap before the end of season to make it applicable to the immediate next transfer window and contract renewal period. A 150k pw or similar level isn’t a restriction of trade or that sorts some would suggest. Astronomical salaries, transfer fees, agent’s cut, together with brother and sister facilitation have in so small way caused the clubs to be in such financial dire situations. Covid19 has been a catalyst of… Read more »
Useroz
Sorry I didn’t see your post yesterday and only did a quick skim this morning.
My post just came off the top of my head having been thinking about salary caps and punishment, so if I’ve used similar or same my apologies it was not intentional.
Some good same page thinking, though
Useroz. Applying a salary cap would do no more than play into the big boys hands it would do nothing to level the playing field. As I explained yesterday prior to the abolition of the maximum wage players wife’s, brothers suddenly found themselves employed in very well paid jobs sometimes at the football clubs more often not at a subsidiary or the like. I am far from sure that the courts based on current law would support a salary cap nor would the players as for setting a level the sun would be irrelevant it’s the principal that would be… Read more »
Tony
Kroenke was wrong, wrong wrong about at least one important point yesterday.
Call me molly coddled but I’ve had some days watching football at Stoke and I never want another. Awful meccano-set ground and overall experience.
Kronke.
It’s up there as one of my least favourite grounds as well.
We stated overnight in a travelogue about a mile or so away from the ground the walk past dozens of logistic companies was bleak enough but there was nothing close to the ground to enhance the experience.
We , that’s Mrs T and me, will never ever go there again
Ray Parlour just heard on talk sport lost all respect for him
That forum yesterday underlines how detached the board are from us fans. I find it funny how they can try to say how hard it was to let 50 odd members of staff go due to the pandemic but are quite happy to sign a fucking Chelsea reject on £200k+ per week for 3 years. All of those jobs could have been saved instead of having fucking journeyman playing for us.
Rich, “Blair running a huge budget deficit during an unsustainable economic bubble, that was bound to burst, and created by his own idiocy”
Simply not true. Try googling historical UK debt and you’ll see that prior to the financial crisis debt was lower than it was under the previous conservative administration.
Anyway, as has been said already no more politics.
This is a very long post from red cafe a Man U forum but really is worth a read First and foremost, let me highlight that this IS NOT another thread debating the merits of a European Super League. There are plenty of threads open already where fans can discuss the respective pro’s and con’s of the proposed breakaway league. I’m not going to offer ANY opinion on the ESL in this thread, the purpose of this thread is solely to talk about the disgusting hypocrisy of Sky Sports and the Premier League. Now, what am I hoping to achieve… Read more »
Kroenke
I echo that. Stoke itself is an absolute shit hole, that and Oldham are two places I never want too see again.
The way they behaved, as a club not just the fans, towards Aaron Ramsey, some young kid who nearly had his career ended, was just inhumane & disgusting. I know the media didn’t help by choosing to heap their sympathy on Shawcross for some reason.
There is no club I hate more, I never want them anywhere near the Premier League.
Good morning by the way !
AFC Forever
We were on the receiving end of so many dangerous tackles. Aaron Ramsey, Eduardo and Diaby.
Ramsey got a double leg break, that is even worse than Anderson Silva’s injury; Eduardo’s injury was so graphic the broadcasters pulled the pics. Diaby’s ankle was fractured and he is a towering guy!
The truth is some people move country and maintain their Englishness, others move away and renounce this as an effort to fit in, be trendy or whatever. Its not surprising to me having lived abroad that an Englishman in America would think the American way of doing things is acceptable with Arsenal football club or football in general. Stop trying to deflect from the problem, Arsenal have systematically declined in all departments ever since Stan Kroenke first started to get involved in the club. From what happens on the pitch all the way through to the scummy way the most… Read more »
Terraloon
Agreed mate. Any ground in an industrial estate is going to struggle to capture one’s imagination but that one took the biscuit. You doubled down on the blandness and nihilism with the travelodge stay. You and Mrs T must have super high levels of resilience!
We also got the full Orc 1000 yard stare leaving the away end. Nice. Made me feel like my favourite team in the potteries has to be Port Vale. Going to read your other post later.
The lowest paid player in a team should earn Not less than 50% of the highest paid player.
If Auba is on 375k per week the minimum at Arsenal should be 187.5k per week.
If Messi is on 500k, the minimum at Barca should be 250k
S
Sid
Your socialist leanings will make Wenger proud
If Diet pep is on 96k per week, gunnersaurus should earn Not less than 48k per week.
I thought hard about the only thing good to come out of Stoke and all I could come up with was Robbie Williams plenty ugly about the place starting with Shawcross and Pulis.
Maybe it will be good for the game if one or more or the big ESL clubs in trouble actually goes bust as the reality of the broken business model they have been following to get where they are will prompt real action.