As the new year begins Football At a higher level there are some matters that are not at all related to normal concern.
Many might say that England’s chances of eventually winning the tournament could well be described only as a ‘freak concern’. Football manager Gareth Southgate’s side are seen by the majority outside of France, at least, as the winners of Euro 2024.
It’s a sense of anticipation rather than empty hope, which is also new to this manager’s career. Part of that is because England have one of the newest players in the team’s modern history, Jude Bellingham.
He 2024 I can make England the best team in Europe and make myself the best player in the world. This could be their year. It can happen.
Arsenal will feel the same way about their chance to win the title for the first time in 20 years, as will football club Aston Villa for the first time in 42 years. Champions League I talked about the return opportunity.
Although a return to the competition that used to be the European Cup and it won’t look like the Champions League we know.
Because these are all old-fashioned concerns about what might happen on the field, they will add up to a tough calendar.
This is where nerves come in handy. There is a sense of dread about the new-style Champions League that will feature much of Southgate’s squad and their main rivals.
After a quarter of a century, Europe’s premier competition will expand to 36 clubs. Thus the nature of the entire opening round will be changed. It is mainly based on the ‘Swiss Model’ used in chess.
All teams will be in the same open group with the matches based on seeding. This represents a blatant disregard for the underlying problem of financial inequality that has plagued the old group stage while attempting to address many other issues.
There will be more big matches between the big clubs, more guaranteed income and it will also try to solve the problem of non-important matches that have characterized this season. The competition for the last 16 teams will now be tougher and there will even be a play-off stage.
This is a direct response to major clubs threatening the prospect of a European Super League for some time, although the change in format was scheduled before April 2021 and the first initial idea of a Super League was mooted. Those who worked on the idea insist that it is the ‘model’ of the best of all possible formats.
It’s still not that easy to define immediately, which makes it difficult to work out what will happen next. Senior football figures believe this could be crucial for the future of the game. Former Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur director Damien Comolli, now overseeing an impressive turnaround at Toulouse, reflects a common sentiment.
‘If it works really well, the Super League is a failure and impossible to return,’ explained the French executive.
“If it doesn’t work well, some people will try to come back and implement the Super League,” he said. So, for me, this is a turning point in the history of European football.’
This section contains related reference points (Related Nodes field).
This statement is incontrovertible but not an entirely unprecedented explanation. This has been said of a number of developments over the past few years, usually in such reviews.
There are so many possible turning points because the game is made so complex. It is no longer a simple pyramid of Egypt. It is a vertical pillar with all sorts of flaws and big actors want to bend it to their liking.
Likewise, the European Court of Justice ruling at the end of December means that it is probably too late for the final form of Super League to capitalize on any misconceptions about this new Champions League.
They never applied under the old pre-authority rules, which are now against European law but have already been changed by UEFA. However, the same decision may open the way for various problems in the future. This war is not over yet.
It is quite possible that the politics surrounding it will be affected by the outcome of another war. The Premier League case against Manchester City over alleged breaches of Financial Fair Play rules is being seen as a potential extinction-level event for football.
Any harsh penalty changes the face of the game. However, the rest of the Premier League will riot.
Players and referees take one knee as part of the Premier League’s campaign against racism before the match between Arsenal and Crystal Palace in South London on August 5, 2023 (AFP/Justin Telles)
It’s just that we might not see a result in 2024, a prospect that has caused a stir in the sport.
The City is likely to face an independent panel by the end of this year, but there may not be a resolution until 2025. Instead, the next 12 months could see developments in a similar investigation into Chelsea.
Amid the many problems off the field, the Premier League could be a proper title race, preferably one involving more than two teams. If City win it again with relative ease, it will not be good for the image of the competition, even if it represents another milestone.
They will become the first club to win four English titles in a row as football manager Pep Guardiola looks to become the second club to retain the modern Champions League by matching Carlo Ancelotti’s fourth.
Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid side could prove to be the toughest opponents for the City players. Football has been moving towards such concentration for a long time.
Guardiola could actually compete for his legacy. Arsenal may well deliver, as they bid for their first title since 2003-04. Although Liverpool are also suddenly looking more serious going into the year.
Below that, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s purchase of a 25% stake in Manchester United could finally change the debate about the club.
Yet it has gotten to the point where the European Union and even FIFA are concerned about the diminishing competition in football. European ministers will meet on January 10 to begin discussing the idea of a sports model for the continent.
FIFA is now looking at ways to make the game more balanced and is now looking at everything from salary caps to transfer restrictions.
International football, by its very nature, cannot escape the world around it. The play-offs for the remaining places at Euro 2024 will take place in March, with Israel facing Iceland before a possible match with Bosnia and Herzegovina or Ukraine.
The possibility of a match with Ukraine is being mooted as senior UEFA figures brace themselves for calls for a boycott of Israel by protesters, similar to Russia, amid the ongoing conflict with Hamas and the bombing of Gaza. are
Players take one knee as part of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement before a match between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur in London on January 12, 2022 (AFP/Glenn Kirk)
No European federation is considering it but The Independent has been told that the associations are aware of security concerns from possible protests if they include Israel in the play-offs.
There is also an irony in this, as international football has quickly recovered from its footballing problems. This is not just because England are aiming to win their first trophy in 58 years or because it is the first self-hosted tournament to be held in a dictatorship since 2016, as opposed to Russia or Qatar in Germany.
It has changed to a pure version of the game. Although there are still big and small countries, nobody is perfect and they cannot buy solutions to problems in the transfer market. Similarly, players are playing for the glory of it all rather than the wages.
England finally have this honor. It’s just that a lot can change between now and the start of Euro 2024.
Teams can suddenly come into form. Kylian Mbappe may have a lot to say about the trophy, especially as he faces disappointment in his club career with Paris Saint-Germain. The French star himself is sure to move to Real Madrid, in what could be the biggest transfer of the year.
Women’s football is nowhere near that financial level yet, but its improvement will only accelerate. It’s getting investment, especially amid the changes to the game within England. There will also be another kind of milestone. Emma Hayes will take charge of Chelsea’s final match before taking over the US Women’s National Team.
In terms of how the game is coached, there may be some net on-pitch change. In the past 12 months, managers such as Roberto Di Zerbi have already scrutinized the parameters of Guardiola’s positional play.
We can see a change in the format of the game for the first time in this period. It can become a less direct attacker with more maneuvers. However, it will not become less athletic. This is where sports science is bringing us.
However, the whole year can be full of changes and a lot of panic.
#Fears #Champions #League #turning #point
2024-08-28 18:50:16
