Jose’s right, Europa rule is so unfair
JOSE MOURINHO is back to his charismatic best. He’s good value in press conferences and has become one of the Instagram sensations of 2020.
It may be a case of ‘only singing when you’re winning’, given his Tottenham side are doing so well, but it’s nice to see him with a smile on his face, as opposed to the sulk we often saw when he was Manchester United manager.
He did have one moan this week though – when he said he didn’t like the rule that let teams that finished third in their Champions League groups joining in the Europa League knockout stage.
Mourinho said: “When you have eight new teams in the competition that belong to another level, and they drop to the Europa League, of course the level of the competition is going to improve. No doubts.
“When the quality improves, the attention improves. It’s a good thing for the competition.
“But, from a sport point of view, I do not think it is fair. A team that doesn’t succeed in one competition drops to another.”
I agree with Jose when he says the rule is unfair.
Fast-tracking ousted Champions League teams through to the knockout stage of the Europa League, as a reward for their failure, goes against the fundamental principles of sport.
If you lose a competition, you’re out. Better luck next time. Not, ‘OK, you lost that, so have a crack at this instead’. I disagree with Jose (above left) when he says it is a good thing for the competition though.
Teams dropping down from the Champions League do improve the overall quality and therefore increase interest in the Europa League.
This is especially true when you have big teams like Manchester United or Ajax slipping down.
But that process of increasing the quality and interest in the competition actually decreases the Europa League’s credibility and prestige.
It makes people see the competition as a consolation prize because it’s where failed teams go.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating. When Manchester United dropped into the Europa League last week they were mocked by rival fans.
It wasn’t seen as a positive opportunity to win a decent trophy. They were laughed at, and the Europa League was laughed at, too.
Many teams fight all season to have the opportunity to compete in the Europa League, often with smaller squads and tighter finances.
To qualify and then get out of the group stage is often a huge achievement and should be seen as such. They shouldn’t be ridiculed.
I don’t expect the format to change, though. I imagine UEFA will consider viewing figures far more important than the Europa League’s credibility or fairness.