Football Banter

I think Man City achieved a new Champions League record.

They are officially the worst English team to have entered the competition by only getting 2 points in their group. Blackburn were the previous record holders in the 95/96 Champions League by getting 4 points in their group.

I think Mancini is not the right manager to take Man City to the next level. He is good in managing in domestic competitions, but he is absolutely clueless in Europe.

What does it say about the rest of the Premier League when Man City get battered and bruised in Europe, but are still second and unbeaten in the Premier League?

City have not won a single game in the group stage,the first English club ever to do so

they have a team of indeviduals, not team spirit at all, bunch of big names doesn't always cut it.. no logic in their squad at all, its just a bunch of names, nothing more.

on another note wtf is with glen hoddles hair?

On Arsenal.

Why should they give a fuck about topping their group?

If you have aspirations to win the Champions League then you must realise that eventually you have to face teams like Barcelona sooner or later.

(04-12-2012 22:10 )dan g 27 Wrote:  On Arsenal.

Why should they give a fuck about topping their group?

If you have aspirations to win the Champions League then you must realise that eventually you have to face teams like Barcelona sooner or later.

your supposed to give yourself as much as a chance as possible, wenger underestimated olympiakos.

(04-12-2012 22:25 )Fernandez Esperenda Wrote:  

(04-12-2012 22:10 )dan g 27 Wrote:  On Arsenal.

Why should they give a fuck about topping their group?

If you have aspirations to win the Champions League then you must realise that eventually you have to face teams like Barcelona sooner or later.

your supposed to give yourself as much as a chance as possible, wenger underestimated olympiakos.

I just don't buy it.

If I was managing Newcastle, I couldn't give a fuck if I got Barcelona or AC Milan in the next round.

If want to win the Champions League, you have to beat the best at some stage, there is no avoiding that.

And now that I think about I couldn't give a fuck really, who Newcastle get in the Europa League, if we want to win, we have to beat the best.

(04-12-2012 22:33 )dan g 27 Wrote:  

(04-12-2012 22:25 )Fernandez Esperenda Wrote:  

(04-12-2012 22:10 )dan g 27 Wrote:  On Arsenal.

Why should they give a fuck about topping their group?

If you have aspirations to win the Champions League then you must realise that eventually you have to face teams like Barcelona sooner or later.

your supposed to give yourself as much as a chance as possible, wenger underestimated olympiakos.

I just don't buy it.

If I was managing Newcastle, I couldn't give a fuck if I got Barcelona or AC Milan in the next round.

If want to win the Champions League, you have to beat the best at some stage, there is no avoiding that.

And now that I think about I couldn't give a fuck really, who Newcastle get in the Europa League, if we want to win, we have to beat the best.

While I understand your thinking the reality is that clubs want to top their groups to get an 'easier tie'. They want to maximise their chances of progressing through the competition. The further they get, the more money they make. Also the TV companies and UEFA etc want to see the top teams playing each other in the later rounds. It makes the competition more attractive to a wider audience, in turn making advertising more attractive to businesses, leading to more money pouring in through the coffers. Who says football is no longer a sport

^^ It's all about priorities. Ordinarily, getting top in the group would be important to get a potentially easier tie to stay in the competition longer, but clearly Wenger currently sees the league as a bigger immediate priority than that, so he rested big players with that in mind.
Had Arsenal won their last couple games and been riding high in the league I'd guess he would have sent one or two of those guys out to Greece, at least as subs, to get the result and top spot, but as things stand, the next few games running up to, and across christmas, could determine whether Arsenal have any hope of being in the Champions League next year, so they are a higher priority.

This also kinda indicates where Wenger sees his teams place, get as far as possible in the Champions League, and qualify for next year via the places in the Premiership, in other words, they aren't serious contenders to actually win the Champions League, they are just there for the ride.

(05-12-2012 07:29 )bytor Wrote:  

(04-12-2012 22:33 )dan g 27 Wrote:  

(04-12-2012 22:25 )Fernandez Esperenda Wrote:  

(04-12-2012 22:10 )dan g 27 Wrote:  On Arsenal.

Why should they give a fuck about topping their group?

If you have aspirations to win the Champions League then you must realise that eventually you have to face teams like Barcelona sooner or later.

your supposed to give yourself as much as a chance as possible, wenger underestimated olympiakos.

I just don't buy it.

If I was managing Newcastle, I couldn't give a fuck if I got Barcelona or AC Milan in the next round.

If want to win the Champions League, you have to beat the best at some stage, there is no avoiding that.

And now that I think about I couldn't give a fuck really, who Newcastle get in the Europa League, if we want to win, we have to beat the best.

While I understand your thinking the reality is that clubs want to top their groups to get an 'easier tie'. They want to maximise their chances of progressing through the competition. The further they get, the more money they make. Also the TV companies and UEFA etc want to see the top teams playing each other in the later rounds. It makes the competition more attractive to a wider audience, in turn making advertising more attractive to businesses, leading to more money pouring in through the coffers. Who says football is no longer a sport

Fair enough, I can't argue with that logic.

Arsenal have finished runners up in their group and it's probably cost them. Look at the teams they could face next:-

Barcelona, PSG, Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Malaga or Juventus.

It goes to show that finishing second in the group has consequences, which for me is all the more reason why they should have taken every game in that group seriously. If Wenger underestimated Olympiakos then he hasn't learned from previous experience. Olympiakos have played Arsenal many times in this competition and have pulled off a few victories too.

They'll probably draw Barcelona or Bayern and get beat - and then Gunners fans will have even more to moan about. It's sad what's happened to Arsenal in recent years - no trophies, low finishes in the league. Is it really possible that this is the same club that went an entire season unbeaten to win a league and cup double? Seems like a long, long time ago now.