*Official* English Football Season 2013-14

[Pothas]

Speaking of Lukaku, please don't go to Spurs. Would be great If he stayed at Everton.

 

[Uppercut]

Rumour has it the next Football Manager will have a "Sherwood Mode". Have to get Spurs to 4th with tactics disabled.

 

[marc71178]

Ha I never even thought of the keeper situation. The ban might have actual consequences.

Although if Pinto goes down injured no doubt there'll be "special dispensation" to sign someone better.

Apparently already had special dispensation to sign a replacement for Valdes.

 

[Furball]

That gulf people used to go on about between the Prem and the championship, I reckon it's not really there so much anymore. Most clubs in the championship have been in the prem and therefore have had the parachute payments etc, and as a result the gulf is championship to league one.

My theory is that the gulf's actually between the top 6 or 7ish teams in the Premier League and the rest of the Premier League. I don't think there's a huge amount between the dross that comprises the bottom half of the Premier League and the top of the Championship; the main gulf is how much the teams in the Premier League can overpay spanners like Danny Graham.

The big gulf financially seems to be for teams who get relegated to the Championship and who subsequently don't get promoted quickly back to the Premier League; quite a few teams have really struggled financially to adjust to life outside the Premier League (Leeds, Southampton and Coventry to name 3 although Southampton have recovered quite nicely.) As long as teams aren't getting promoted and spending spastic money (looking at you QPR) I reckon Corrin's right that there'll be a gap that emerges between the Championship and League One.

 

[GIMH]

My theory is that the gulf's actually between the top 6 or 7ish teams in the Premier League and the rest of the Premier League. I don't think there's a huge amount between the dross that comprises the bottom half of the Premier League and the top of the Championship; the main gulf is how much the teams in the Premier League can overpay spanners like Danny Graham.

The big gulf financially seems to be for teams who get relegated to the Championship and who subsequently don't get promoted quickly back to the Premier League; quite a few teams have really struggled financially to adjust to life outside the Premier League (Leeds, Southampton and Coventry to name 3 although Southampton have recovered quite nicely.) As long as teams aren't getting promoted and spending spastic money (looking at you QPR) I reckon Corrin's right that there'll be a gap that emerges between the Championship and League One.[/COLOR]

Spot on, and also if you look at those teams you named who didn't go straight back up, the parachute payments were one year only back then I believe so that made a quick return vital even moreso.

 

[Furball]

Spot on, and also if you look at those teams you named who didn't go straight back up, the parachute payments were one year only back then I believe so that made a quick return vital even moreso.

I suppose there is a bit of a gulf between the divisions as all 3 relegated clubs are well in the hunt for promotion immediately back to the Premier League, but having said that big-ish teams like Birmingham, Bolton and Blackburn who were in the Premier League not long ago are all really struggling, or are at best battling for mid-table mediocrity.

 

[Pothas]

Yeah we are in agreement here, my difference with Corrin is that he seems to fear for the future of league one and two and I don't.

 

[Furball]

Yeah we are in agreement here, my difference with Corrin is that he seems to fear for the future of league one and two and I don't.

The Premier League and Champions League are so all consuming though.

I wouldn't fear for the future of the lower leagues, it's one of the great things about English football that you get the likes of Brentford pulling in crowds of 7-8,000 in the third tier. But I think Corrin's right in that there's a danger of a glass ceiling forming where it becomes very difficult for a team in the lower regions of English football to ever really break through into the upper echelons of the Championship.

 

[Pothas]

You need money to do anything, that is without doubt but I would certainly not rule out clubs repeating what Swansea have done in recent years. The Champions League certainly dominates all though. There is more chance of me seeing Brentford in the Premier League than a West Ham fan is to see them in the Champions League. My point is that does not kill football, people just keep on going to it regardless.

 

[Cabinet96]

I think globalisation might become a problem for the popularity of the football league. I basically follow **** all with the football league; it's much easier to follow La Liga and the Bundesliga. And obviously there's no comparison when it comes to standard.

 

[Furball]

You need money to do anything, that is without doubt but I would certainly not rule out clubs repeating what Swansea have done in recent years. The Champions League certainly dominates all though. There is more chance of me seeing Brentford in the Premier League than a West Ham fan is to see them in the Champions League. My point is that does not kill football, people just keep on going to it regardless.

West Ham a bad example IMO, they've got the London factor. Sunderland or Aston Villa is a much better example IMO.

West Ham are based in London so could potentially attract the support of some crazy billionaire; they've got a big fan base, good academy, massive local population from which to draw talent and being based in London have a massive advantage in attracting young 20-something men in terms of a place to live. Them playing in the Champions League is more "unlikely" than "impossible".

The big issue IMO is kids, how do you keep them interested in the likes of Brentford when they can watch Messi, Ronaldo and co on TV every week? You're seeing the knock on effect up here; when I worked at Hampden you'd see kids birthday parties where loads of the kids would be in Real Madrid, Barcelona, or whoever the EPL flavour of the month was (and I'd wager in the last year there'll have been an upswing in Bayern Munich kit sales), whereas 10 years ago the same party would have been full of boys in Rangers and Celtic kits, with the odd kid in whatever ****ty wee local team's kit they supported. Now Rangers and Celtic have been relegated to the status of ****ty wee local team.

 

[GIMH]

I think globalisation might become a problem for the popularity of the football league. I basically follow **** all with the football league; it's much easier to follow La Liga and the Bundesliga. And obviously there's no comparison when it comes to standard.

Where I worry more than Pothas is probably because my team is in decline. We struggle, always, being in the shadow of two huge clubs in possibly England's top football City, but with us a shambles on and off the pitch, and both of the aforementioned neighbours resurgent I worry about where our next generation is going to come from. With the way football is reported and covered these days, even young lads with hugely devoted dads are going to be tempted by the Prem clubs.

That being said, some people love attaching themselves to an underdog, lower league clubs will get people through the dates who maybe don't at that point regard themselves as supporters but fancy watching a live game and some of them get hooked.

Where I have real fears though, are that we either go down the closed shop route, or we see reserve teams in the premier league. Because of the loan system I don't see the latter as something that will happen in the short term but one day? Maybe. And by closed shop, Super League did it, could see a lot of prem/champ teams pushing for it, a two tier Premier league that you have to be elected to or from. But then the resistance would be massive so I dunno.

 

[Pothas]

Yeah I am sure the current state of our clubs influences the way we see things at the moment.

I think it is important to remember that people are more then capable of following more than one side. I know it is not really seen as the done thing in England butl oads of kids go to to watch Brentford and I don't doubt that a a lot of them have a Premiership side as well, you certainly see a Chelsea shirt from time to time. If your local side is doing well and you are into football then I think you are likely to go along now and again, even if you do not become a real fan, even more so if it is in a nice stadium with good facilities. It is a book that I have a few issues with but there is a good chapter on this in Soccernomics.

 

[Pothas]

I think globalisation might become a problem for the popularity of the football league. I basically follow **** all with the football league; it's much easier to follow La Liga and the Bundesliga. And obviously there's no comparison when it comes to standard.

Certainly if you don't want to watch live football in a stadium (something I will never understand) that is true but I think there are enough people that enjoy going to watch games live, and that want to take their kids, to keep it going.

 

[GIMH]

I'm only going to one more game this season, against flibberty's lot next week and I'm already getting withdrawal symptoms

 

[Pothas]

Yeah I have missed the last two home games because of work and it is really not right.

 

[GIMH]

For one reason and another I've missed a **** load this season. Been a **** season but I'm still gutted every time I'm not there to support them

 

[Tom Halsey]

Where I have real fears though, are that we either go down the closed shop route, or we see reserve teams in the premier league. Because of the loan system I don't see the latter as something that will happen in the short term but one day? Maybe. And by closed shop, Super League did it, could see a lot of prem/champ teams pushing for it, a two tier Premier league that you have to be elected to or from. But then the resistance would be massive so I dunno.

I'm pretty sure this wouldn't be allowed to happen under FIFA regulations. Rings a bell that they made some sort of law whereby each FIFA member that already has one has to keep their promotion/relegation system. Whether this would/could be enforced in practice though I don't really know as I don't know this area that well.

 

[Cabinet96]

Yeah I am sure the current state of our clubs influences the way we see things at the moment.

I think it is important to remember that people are more then capable of following more than one side. I know it is not really seen as the done thing in England butl oads of kids go to to watch Brentford and I don't doubt that a a lot of them have a Premiership side as well, you certainly see a Chelsea shirt from time to time. If your local side is doing well and you are into football then I think you are likely to go along now and again, even if you do not become a real fan, even more so if it is in a nice stadium with good facilities. It is a book that I have a few issues with but there is a good chapter on this in Soccernomics.

This was sort of my point though. I think less kids are having second teams in the lower leagues, and having them more across Europe. That's certainly the case with me.

Going to the ground is a fair point. But I doubt I could really gear myself up to go and watch Barnet in the Conference when I don't care that much about the result. Especially when the substitute is watching a really high level game, albeit not with the same experience. I guess people are just different like that though. I go to enough cricket to make the odd trip to the Emirates enough for me. If you're used to going every fortnight I could understand why you'd hate the idea of not doing so.

 

[Furball]

Where I worry more than Pothas is probably because my team is in decline. We struggle, always, being in the shadow of two huge clubs in possibly England's top football City, but with us a shambles on and off the pitch, and both of the aforementioned neighbours resurgent I worry about where our next generation is going to come from. With the way football is reported and covered these days, even young lads with hugely devoted dads are going to be tempted by the Prem clubs.

That being said, some people love attaching themselves to an underdog, lower league clubs will get people through the dates who maybe don't at that point regard themselves as supporters but fancy watching a live game and some of them get hooked.

Where I have real fears though, are that we either go down the closed shop route, or we see reserve teams in the premier league. Because of the loan system I don't see the latter as something that will happen in the short term but one day? Maybe. And by closed shop, Super League did it, could see a lot of prem/champ teams pushing for it, a two tier Premier league that you have to be elected to or from. But then the resistance would be massive so I dunno.

I don't see the closed shop route ever happening. The top end of the league might turn into a closed shop but at the end of the day the top 6 clubs need 14 other teams to beat, you might as well give the illusion of competition by rotating those sides every year.

I know that sounds patronising but ultimately a Man Utd fan or a Liverpool fan wants to see their side win. It might mean a bit more for them to beat each other but whether they're pumelling Stoke, Tranmere or York City really doesn't matter.