BPL teams (not) taking the EL seriously?

BusterLfc wrote:Yeah imo half of the teams that get eliminated in first KO round would win EL comfortably anyway. Dnipro reached the final last year ffs

Any decent team can with, they just don't give a shit imo

Uh that's not really true as they are all entered into the competition and only one team wins it.

Your statement makes no sense as "any decent team can win it" well actually only one decent team can win it.

And with a CL spot on the line the whole "We weren't trying argument is pretty much dead."

Hell Chelsea saved there season one year by winning it.

I can't believe people still think like this, it's usually a built in excuse from EPL fans when there teams get beat by German, Spanish or Portuguese teams they think they should beat because they don't watch other leagues.

And for the record, not making it your number one priority and not trying are two totally different things.

agree

Of course the majority of the teams don't give a shit about it, some don't even want to qualify lol for example West Ham this season

If anyone actually cared about the competition how come teams like Fulham, Braga, Dnipro etc play in the finals?  It will probably get more interest from the teams now due to the winner getting a CL spot but still many teams especially from stronger leagues bring out their 3rd team even in KO games so it pretty much tells you the story.

And yeah any decent team can win it or at least reach the finals as you seen from the previous couple of seasons. CL is the only relevant euro club competition now. Winning EL is like winning Capital One Cup. (ofc it's not a bad thing if it happens)

Are you telling me Liverpool and Tottenham went out to Besiktas and firenze because they didn't care?
They didn't care about winning the third biggest trophy in club football and reaching CL football with it?

Right.

I didn't say all of the teams don't care, but many of them don't, the importance of it is like a league cup for many teams ,they don't want to win it so desperately whereas in the CL all of the teams give 110% of their effort.

For which teams would you say the EL is as unimportant as the league cup?

BusterLfc wrote:Of course the majority of the teams don't give a shit about it, some don't even want to qualify lol for example West Ham this season

If anyone actually cared about the competition how come teams like Fulham, Braga, Dnipro etc play in the finals?  It will probably get more interest from the teams now due to the winner getting a CL spot but still many teams especially from stronger leagues bring out their 3rd team even in KO games so it pretty much tells you the story.

And yeah any decent team can win it or at least reach the finals as you seen from the previous couple of seasons. CL is the only relevant euro club competition now. Winning EL is like winning Capital One Cup. (ofc it's not a bad thing if it happens)

This really isn't true.  Maybe West Ham isn't making it there number one priority because they don't think they can win, did you ever think of it that way.

We heard this same line of BS when Man United got thrashed by Bilbao, here was there starting 11 that game, and the players they left out

   01 De Gea
   03 Evra
   05 Ferdinand (Smalling 63)
   06 Evans
   21 Rafael yellow card
   11 Giggs (Welbeck 68)
   13 Park Ji-sung
   16 Carrick (Pogba 63 yellow card)
   18 Young
   23 Cleverley
   10 Rooney
Substitutes

   40 Amos,
   12 Smalling,
   20 Fabio,
   22 Scholes,
   42 Pogba,
   14 Hernandez,
   19 Welbeck

That was pretty much there strongest side.  They were "trying" the just got clobbered by a team they thought they should beat.

Fulham were trying when they lost in the final, Chelsea were trying when they won it etc etc etc.

Last year was a great tournament and the structure lead to Dnipro  in the final as they went through Olympiacos, Ajax and Brugge to get to the final so it broke out to an easy draw for them.

Whereas Fiorentina and Roma played in the second round against each other as did, Villareal and Sevilla, Wolfsburg and Inter.

To say any tournament is easy to win is total nonsense, especially one with

Wolfsburg, Sporting, Celtic, Inter, Napoli, Liverpool, Besiktas, Ajax, Villareal, Sevilla, Monchen, Zenit, Bilbao (see what they just did to Barca), Everton, Spurs, Fiorentina, Roma and then the provincial sides.

It's a grind to win the tournament and I'm not saying this to be an EPL hater but it is generally EPL fans who pull this nonsense of oh we just didn't try.  No the fact is that the EPL has been poor in Europe for a while now and you are reaching for reasons to explain it.

Just go and watch an EL game, even if they bring out their first team, teams are playing like it's a training ground that's why there's often more than 5 goals in EL games and if they reach quaters/semis they actually take it serious and attempt to win the whole thing. Not gonna point out any team but pls just watch a game especially a group match. Please point out where I said any tournament is easy to win? And where have I even mentioned PL or Liverpool? Quit writting stuff I didn't even say.

Yes, every team values the tournament differently.  That is the same for every competition not just the EL.

To say they didn't try is nonsense.  They lose for a number of reasons, but not trying isn't one of them.  Yes the EL tests the strength of your entire squad not just your starting 11.  It's a big tournament and it's a grind to win it, if teams don't prioritize it it's more likely because they don't think they can win it not because they don't care.

If you win it you get a guaranteed spot in the CL (Not even 4th place in the EPL or La Liga gets you that) and a spot in the European Supercup, plus obviously winning the Europa League which again will save a managers job or a teams season.

Any team can win a tournament which has been seen by Greece wining the Euro's.  Is West Ham more likely to finish 4th in the EPL or win the Europa League?

I'd say the latter.

So IMO it's foolish to not try and not to mention it makes your players and your manager look bad to lose to some of these teams. These are professionals of course they want to win and keep there jobs.

BusterLfc wrote:Just go and watch an EL game, even if they bring out their first team, teams are playing like it's a training ground that's why there's often more than 5 goals in EL games and if they reach quaters/semis they actually take it serious and attempt to win the whole thing. Not gonna point out any team but pls just watch a game especially a group match. Please point out where I said any tournament is easy to win? And where have I even mentioned PL or Liverpool? Quit writting stuff I didn't even say.

I'm guessing your an EPL fan because EPL fans have a superiority complex (I don't know why recently or really ever in Europe) and say this crap that teams don't try.

And don't give me this if you watch it crap.  You're obviously the one that doesn't watch the EL as can be seen by that crap you're saying.  The stuff your saying is flat out untrue and you don't have a leg to stand on.

I watch the games all the time, I like the EL I find it in some ways more entertaining then the CL (In someways).  Yes teams let there hair down so to speak and you get to see big clubs go away to grounds they would never go to and it's a masive game to that club so yes big teams get the best shot the smaller teams can give them.

That doesn't mean there second string team still shouldn't beat that smaller team as I'm sure that second string team was 10 times as expensive.

Again your argument holds no water.

Dnmac4 wrote:Any team can win a tournament which has been seen by Greece wining the Euro's.  Is West Ham more likely to finish 4th in the EPL or win the Europa League?

I'd say the latter.

So IMO it's foolish to not try and not to mention it makes your players and your manager look bad to lose to some of these teams.  These are professionals of course they want to win and keep there jobs.

Then why didn't West Ham even want to take a part of it and instead they'd rather play their youth team and lose to some Romanian team. You're contradicting yourself.

BusterLfc wrote:Just go and watch an EL game, even if they bring out their first team, teams are playing like it's a training ground that's why there's often more than 5 goals in EL games and if they reach quaters/semis they actually take it serious and attempt to win the whole thing. Not gonna point out any team but pls just watch a game especially a group match. Please point out where I said any tournament is easy to win? And where have I even mentioned PL or Liverpool? Quit writting stuff I didn't even say.

Does this ring a bell?????????

Yeah imo half of the teams that get eliminated in first KO round would win EL comfortably anyway. Dnipro reached the final last year ffs

Any decent team can with, they just don't give a shit imo

Please point out where I said players don't even try, ofcourse they will try, that's what they are paid for, but many teams in a tactical way treat it like it's a league cup trophy and not a european cup, where in CL it's a completely different story.

PS. That sentence doesn't mean it's easy to win lol

BusterLfc wrote:Then why didn't West Ham even want to take a part of it and instead they'd rather play their youth team and lose to some Romanian team. You're contradicting yourself.

Because IMO, they don't think they can win it or don't have the squad to compete on 4 different fronts.  Yes the EPL has the insane Capitol One Cup, why, I have no idea I think one or two other leagues have something similar as well.  So it would be League (EPL), EL, FA cup and Capitol one Cup.  

And also I don't know why I have to explain this, not wanting to take part in it and nor trying while in it are two different things.  I'm sure if they pulled a draw like Dnipro did last year there not wanting to participate in the EL would fade away real quick.

The reality is some teams from a certain league cough EPL cough don't want to get embarrassed as the EL is a tournament that can embarrass you where as losing in the CL is seen as acceptable.

BusterLfc wrote:Please point out where I said players don't even try, ofcourse they will try, that's what they are paid for, but many teams in a tactical way treat it like it's a league cup trophy and not a european cup, where in CL it's a completely different story.

PS. That sentence doesn't mean it's easy to win lol

Again,

Any decent team can with, they just don't give a shit imo

I'm assuming you meant "win" instead of "with".  Your sentence connotates they don't give a shit hence there not trying.  Or else they would win it as any decent team can win it, right?

So if the players are trying, the teams scouts have done there job in scouting the opposition (which they are paid to do and are professionals) and they put out a strong side then they should win.

But according to you they lose because they don't give a shit. Not that the other team was better over two legs.

Thread has nothing to do with PL teams though, RWO.

Well, I read about why West Ham doesn't take the EL seriously, the squad that ManUtd fielded when they went out against Bilbao, Liverpool and Spurs going out to Besiktas and Firenze and whether they cared or not etc.

Or which title would you suggest?

Some teams do ( Southampton) Some don't.

In general they don't though mainly because the media see it as a waste of time so now everyone believes it

It's absolute bollocks though and depressing that teams that will never qualify for Europe again like Hull and they just throw it all away because you fear of relegation for some reason.

Yet get relegated anyway

BusterLfc wrote:Of course the majority of the teams don't give a shit about it, some don't even want to qualify lol for example West Ham this season

If anyone actually cared about the competition how come teams like Fulham, Braga, Dnipro etc play in the finals?  It will probably get more interest from the teams now due to the winner getting a CL spot but still many teams especially from stronger leagues bring out their 3rd team even in KO games so it pretty much tells you the story.

And yeah any decent team can win it or at least reach the finals as you seen from the previous couple of seasons. CL is the only relevant euro club competition now. Winning EL is like winning Capital One Cup. (ofc it's not a bad thing if it happens)

Love you Buster, but this post is utter horseshit.

EL is a massive competition and winning it is a lot more valuable than finishing in top 3/4 of a your respective league.

We (Liverpool) didn't get eliminated of EL last year because "we didn't give a shit". We were eliminated because we faced a better team that outplayed and out tacticed us

Serie A teams stupidly did not take EL as seriously as they should have. Generally, it payed more to be in high midtable in Serie A than to win the EL.

However, that mentality cost Serie A their fourth spot (and might cose the BPL theirs).

The EL is a difficult competition, and juggling both it and the league is very difficult.

5 teams were supposed "favorites" last year that couldn't get the final CL spot in their respective league. Liverpool, Inter, Napoli, Fiorentina, and Seville. See how Seville winning it made this season much better for them, while the rest are again the EL.

I'd actually argue that Italy are the only major country that takes it less seriously tbh

Borussia Dortmund already gave out the statement that they're in it to win it ^^

Great Leader Sprucenuce wrote:I'd actually argue that Italy are the only major country that takes it less seriously tbh

Last year, all Italian teams were in it to win.

Didn't work out, but I hope they have the same mentality now, especially with a CL spot as a prize.

Dunno why teams don't try tbh.

We got to the quarter finals the last time we was in it and really should have got to the semis, i'll remember those games more than i ever will majority of PL seasons tbh.