‘City title win not possible under big two’s plans’

LEICESTER City’s historic Premier League triumph would not have been possible if Project Big Picture had been implemented, Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl believes.

The Saints manager was unsurprised to see the revolutionary proposals – which would have given greater power to the so-called ‘big six’ sides – unanimously rejected by top-flight clubs.

The Austrian feels Liverpool and Manchester United’s plans were short-sighted and would have detracted from the entertainment and unpredictability of English football.

He also feared they threatened to severely limit the number of potential champions, referencing Bayern Munich’s domination of the Bundesliga and Juventus’ stranglehold on Serie A, as well as City’s thrilling surge to the title in 2016 at odds of 5,000-1.

“I am not really surprised (about the rejection of the plans) because when you hear the rumours around the fans and everybody, you could feel immediately that there is not a big support for this idea,” he said.

“I think it’s short thinking because maybe you get immediately a little bit more money or a better advantage for yourself.

“But in the end it ends up in a league that maybe has one champion for the next nine years like in Germany or in Italy. For me, it’s boring, to be honest.

“What I like so much about the Premier League is that we have every two, three years a new champion. ‘A Leicester’ will never be possible with these changes.”