First part of the story below is a non-issue about Platini planning to try for cup winners in the CL again in a couple of years. There’s a whole lot of spin around this decision and there seems to be a campaign to paint the new CL proposals as a defeat for Platini.
In reality the biggest change has been the emphasis on more champions getting into the CL than can currently qualify. The qualifying rounds haven’t been properly clarified anywhere yet but from reading between the lines I think that the champions of the smaller leagues will be in a separate strand of CL qualifying to the runners up in Scotland, 4th place in England etc. That ensures more teams in the group stages are national champions but also makes qualification harder for the minor places from the major leagues which is a good thing.
Platini to resurrect cup proposals
14/11/2007 - 08:40:39
UEFA president Michel Platini remains determined to see domestic cup winners qualify for the Champions League, despite failing to garner enough support for the proposal this week.
Platini was unable to convince Europes five big football associations of the merits of his plan, which would have seen the FA Cup winners take one of the four spots currently given to the top four in the Premier League.
We can do that in three years. We can come back on that, he said.
Platini denied being forced into an embarrassing climbdown over the issue, claiming it proved he was willing to listen to the concerns of others.
He explained their fears, saying: The leagues are not in favour because they have to sell their own leagues and if they lost one of the four Champions League teams, they think they would have more problems selling their TV rights.
Platini scrapped the proposal in return for securing a deal where, from 2009, six spots in the competitions group stage are reserved for league champions from the bottom 40 countries in Europe.
My best message is to have six more champions in the Champions League, he said.
Platini also insisted the English authorities will have to work hard to convince him to back their bid to stage the 2018 World Cup.
I hope for you it will be England but at the moment I have nothing to say, he said.
You will have to convince me.
If there are two or three European countries going to bid, they all have to convince me.
Platini expressed his concern about the dangerous influx of foreign investors into the Premier League, dubbing them speculators, whose primary interest was in making money.
Money is important in football, I can understand that, he said.
But I dont want this money to be the boss of football.
Yet, Platini a legend as a player for France and Juventus has no problem with the amount of money players make as long as clubs are not spending beyond their means.
He is also not worried that the Premier League is increasingly becoming saturated with overseas talent, although he believes Englands recent international failures are a consequence of this.
Platinis real concern over foreign players surrounds clubs academy systems.
He wants to stop Arsenal and Manchester United snapping up Europes best young players while they are still teenagers.
He said: I am totally against this philosophy.
I like (Alex) Ferguson, I like Arsene Wenger theyre good friends of mine but dont like the system to pick the best players from all the youth categories in all the countries.
Its difficult for those countries.
Platini believes players need to be nurtured in their country of origin until they turn 20 or 21 and pointed out that in England there are regulations preventing clubs poaching young players from each other.
He said: I want to protect the people of 14 years old, 15 years old.
On the subject of racism, Platini acknowledged UEFAs disciplinary commission were sometimes too soft.
He revealed he was unhappy with the decision to fine Montenegrin side FK Zeta only 12,700 in September after their fans racially abused two Rangers players.
