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The Curse Of The Europa League


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Welcome to miserable bastards corner. I'm not so sure that our involvement in the Europa League in its current form is such a good thing. We lost the league last season for two reasons. The obvious one is that we lost to the Tims four times. The other reason is the curse of the Europa League. In my opinion, our poor start to the domestic season was due to our players exertions in the EL and the fact that they hadn't had a proper summer break. After losing 3 of the first 6 games it was always going to be an uphill battle to win the league. In his post match after the last game of last season McInnes complained that "the close season is ridiculously short."

The EL is the competition nobody wants to be in. Clubs like ours don't want to start our seasons a month before everybody else. The prize money is so shit that its hardly worth our while bothering. Playing in the EL didn't Motherwell much last season. The big boys don't want to get involved either because playing in the EL often screws your domestic season. Look at Everton - last 16 of the EL, a dismal 11th in the EPL.

The format desperately needs changing. There are too many games. We would need to play 23 games to win the trophy. I'd change the format to a straight knockout cup competition, 2 legs each round apart from the final and no replays. This would allow the first / qualifying round to take place after the start of our domestic season. Okay, we might get knocked out in round one and only play two games but at least it wouldn't fuck the rest of our season.

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It's like signing internationals. It gives the players experience, value and enjoyment but with the added hinderence of fatigue and injuries.

 

Ho hum. We get a jolly now and again and it gives us something to get excited about. I'm all for it.

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Welcome to miserable bastards corner. I'm not so sure that our involvement in the Europa League in its current form is such a good thing. We lost the league last season for two reasons. The obvious one is that we lost to the Tims four times. The other reason is the curse of the Europa League. In my opinion, our poor start to the domestic season was due to our players exertions in the EL and the fact that they hadn't had a proper summer break. After losing 3 of the first 6 games it was always going to be an uphill battle to win the league. In his post match after the last game of last season McInnes complained that "the close season is ridiculously short."

The EL is the competition nobody wants to be in. Clubs like ours don't want to start our seasons a month before everybody else. The prize money is so shit that its hardly worth our while bothering. Playing in the EL didn't Motherwell much last season. The big boys don't want to get involved either because playing in the EL often screws your domestic season. Look at Everton - last 16 of the EL, a dismal 11th in the EPL.

The format desperately needs changing. There are too many games. We would need to play 23 games to win the trophy. I'd change the format to a straight knockout cup competition, 2 legs each round apart from the final and no replays. This would allow the first / qualifying round to take place after the start of our domestic season. Okay, we might get knocked out in round one and only play two games but at least it wouldn't fuck the rest of our season.

 

Totally agree.

 

It is essentially a complete waste of time.

 

I'd not be averse to us getting eliminated earlier than last season.

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Why do folk think the EL is a waste of time.

 

Last time I looked it was a trophy that all major Italian teams won in the hey day of footbsll the 90s.

 

Second last time I looked it was the same tropghy sevilla lifted a month ago.

 

It's a brilliant tournament

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Guest milne_afc

Dortmund still de rigueur, are they? LOL

 

Mouse is right. We should always be looking to win matches, anything else is pure faggotry.

 

FFS, statman. If we make it to QR3 we'll be seeded and won't be drawn against BorDort - safe passage to QR4 from there.

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Dortmund still de rigueur, are they? LOL

 

Mouse is right. We should always be looking to win matches, anything else is pure faggotry.

 

FFS, statman. If we make it to QR3 we'll be seeded and won't be drawn against BorDort - safe passage to QR4 from there.

Ouch. Epic fail on my part. I had been pedaling the Dortmund in Qr3 before and obviously forgetting todays changes.

 

Group stages all the way for me now tbf. Rijeka is the big one - if we win that it be a landmark moment for this team

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It's a big comp for a club like us and like Rijeka if we could find our way to the group stages we'd probably get a couple of results as it isnt the biggest comp for lots of other teams. Especially those that don't look upon progressing rounds as the highlight of their season

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Good point that. It sucks, fitba is all about cash now

it is largely about cash which is why the Europa league could be very important to us. For a club with our budget a run in that competition could be a huge boost.

 

Money aside I can't be doing with the negativity above. Great chance for us to play different teams, give our players a chance to challenge themselves and if we do well raise the profile of the club.

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Christ on a bike, bottom six is where we were and now we are finishing top 3 we are not happy with Europa fixtures.

 

These are very important fixtures for the lads to skidaddle off on ridiculous benders and act revolting for several days while dragging the clubs name into the gutter.

 

The first thing I thought when I read this Macedonia team had a big hooligan following was....aye aye, good times ahead for the Aberdeen support, bringing disgrace on the City is half the fun of these jaunts.

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Imagine folk enjoying Fitba.

 

Fucking arseholes the lot of them.

 

That's a bit basic.

 

My point is slightly more complex in nature.

 

European football has changed for the worse, much worse, since seedings and stupid money became involved.

 

Now it's the likes of MasterCard calling the shots.

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There is no curse of the Europa League… unless you happen to be a money grubbing c*nt in the EPL, where the games are an inconvenience compared to the bank rolling English game...

 

For us ? 5 years of European football and there's no reason why we couldn't bank roll a sustained title chance, a new stadium, decent training facilities, scouting, networking and who knows afford to secure players who might get us the Chumps League group stage. We simply won't and can't do a great deal with SPFL money alone, and as is clearly evident teams from Macedonia and Croatia are far from pushovers these days.

 

We can blame our own foootballing authorities for all of this (and they have to accept some of the blame) but it's our own fault that Aberdeen and the Scottish game is in such a shit state. Thankfully we've got Yule and a few sugar daddies here and there wanting to invest in the club, but we all know that it's not going to change over night.

 

To be a team that secures 2nd place in the League for the next 3/4 seasons, wins the odd domestic cup and gets into the Group Stages of the Europa League ? That's better than we deserve frankly, and so much better than we've had for the most part in the past 25 years...

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Players want to play in these games so it is a great selling point for getting better players to sign. Look back at the Mcghee managing era and no cunt in the team was interested in playing for Aberdeen.

 

Much rather be playing shitty european teams than fighting it out in the bottom 6.

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