Match Day Thread Premier League, Cups & Euro Watch

A final is different in that being only a single game it can easily be rescheduled. But if for the sake of argument there was no way it could be replayed then yes Milan get the trophy. Their performance vs Liverpool's in the game up to that point deserved it (apart from their blatant handball before their second goal).

If you are forced by external circumstances to cut something short then you can only judge on what actually happened, not on your imagination of miraculous comebacks. Games like Istanbul are so good because they're rare so you can't use these outliers to justify not making rational decisions.

 

It is convoluted by trying to apply home/away to something which is statistical. A statistical outcome is flawed imo due to the nature of the game, they very nature that makes the game so popular. I'd one is to be used however, it should be of the simplest variety.

You can't relegate a club who were two places outside the relegation zone when the season was halted and claim it's based on sporting merit and their achievements so far.


As for my personal preference, it would be to have no relegation if the games can't be played but that obviously doesn't look like it will happen. I think it will be the normal version of ppg rather than the weighted though.

 

Sorry but I don't see the difference. There are twenty teams in the league and each team must play each of the others home and away, how can you do that in less than thirty-eight games?

 

Replayed? You mean the outcome so far should have been scrapped and started again? Can't say I agree with that...

And yes Istanbul was an extreme example but the point is anything can happen in football. It's what makes it so popular. Things going against the formbook isn't exactly rare either.

 

Why not? They're only out of the relegation zone on GD and having played more games than Villa. If you have to choose between equally crap teams surely the one that's had the most home advantage is the natural choice?

 

It's just me with a lawyer's hat on second guessing the way questioning may go

I'm not sure if I even understand what I'm saying now

 

The fact is they weren't on course to be relegated when the season was halted, as they were 16th. Therefore you can't relegate them and say it's based on sporting integrity. It'd be wrong.

Moot point anyway I suspect, as now League 2 has used the normal version then I imagine the rest of the leagues here will follow suit if neccesary.

 

We've all been there a few times since March


I'm trying to stop smoking today as well which isn't likely to help. Apologies in advance if I **** you off later @astro

 

The good thing is the PL will actually play the games so now we get to see whether West Ham or Bournemouth actually go down

#bookmarked

 

I'll go neither if they're played out - Norwich, Villa & Brighton was my guess before this all happened and I'm gonna stick with it.

 

The league should have had rules that catered for unforeseen events, and a potential curtailing of the season. It’s incredible that they didn’t. As force majeure clauses exist in virtually every contract you’ll ever see!

But the fact remains that they didn’t have anything in place at the start of the current season. The rules are clear as to what constitutes a season, and also provides the full fixture list for the 38 games that the season is based on. It has absolutely no reference for a season that doesn’t run its full course for whatever reason.

You can’t curtail a season and relegate clubs based on a calculation someone has decided sounds about right, that has no reference in the rulebook, and has zero sporting merit, and then not expect to get sued by clubs who are participating in the richest league in the World.

The bottom line is that the league simply don’t have to choose to relegate sides from the PL if the games aren’t played out, and they won’t, irrespective of grandstanding of the FA. The compromise could be making the next season a 22 club league, but personally I doubt that’ll happen either. The EFL and the FA will just have to suck it up, and seek solace in the £140m cheque that the big league lobs their way every year, for absolutely **** all.

 

Not sure that's totally true. It's The Football Association Premier League Limited, for a start, and, as I understand it, all leagues sit in a national FA framework, who disseminate down rules and regulations from UEFA and FIFA. For instance, in the case of the Dutch FA, it was them and not Eriviste (sp) who cancelled the league and defended their decision in court yesterday afternoon.

 

Yeah but if you make a 22 team PL don't you then have 17 clubs suing the PL for reduced prize money?

And Sky suing that the games they have are devalued by virtue of each being less important now.

 

Give Liverpool the title, relegate Everton, Man Utd and Chelsea... job done #simples

 

No, as the 22 club league for NEXT season would have to be agreed by the current 20 clubs. I doubt they’d want it for obvious reasons, but it might be a way out of a potential impasse.

 

And disband Man City for FFP violations

 

Why not just have them agree PPG then?

 

Oh ffs

As that would be applying rules retrospectively to the current season. Any agreement on an expanded league for NEXT season (I even capitalised it for you to give you a clue) would be in advance of its commencement.

 

Just reading that whichever one they used ppg or weighted ppg, the outcome was the same.

 

It's an interesting analogy though. I presume there is a pre-agreed procedure for that eventuality, but you never know. I honestly would have bitten your hand off at half time for the game to end there, as I thought it would be a cricket score, but Donga is famously pessimistic on these boards.