Although Ange Postecoglou expressed little surprise at the proposal for a European Super League, he charged the idea’s proponents with failing to recognize what makes the sport unique.
In the summer of 2021, Tottenham and the other “Big Six” teams enrolled in the contentious European Super League. After a wave of fan objections, all six were ultimately compelled to withdraw from the scheduled competition (ESPN).
A few days ago, it was revealed that FIFA and UEFA had “abused a dominant position” by threatening to impose fines on Super League teams and their players, just when we thought we might have heard the last of it (BBC Sport).
A new European Super League proposal was unveiled shortly after the aforementioned regulation, but it was quickly rejected by numerous clubs throughout the continent, notably the English “big six” (WION).
When the original ESL proposal was made, Postecoglou was still with Yokohama Marinos. Now, the Australian has voiced his worries that the product will become less competitive if more games and competitions are added to the football schedule.
Postecoglou is opposed to the idea of a Super League.
The Spurs head coach said to Football.London when asked if he was taken aback by the initial suggestion, “You’re testing my memory, mate.” Was I at Celtic or Yokohama? I’m not sure! That reflects my current state of affairs! Perhaps a few were taken aback by it. I wasn’t surprised by it.
“I frequently believe that these choices are decided in a room with a few individuals who are not too connected to the real football world. When they step outside that room and encounter reality, they still think it’s a terrific idea.
Since we were recently out of Covid, the one thing that the entire process taught us was that you can’t succeed without supporters. You’re having trouble with anything.
“No one can confirm to me that the product was the same, even though it was still airing on TV.” Our goal was to artificially generate an authentic football game atmosphere. The saying “without the fans, football is nothing” is a bit of a catchphrase, but it’s accurate in a lot of ways.
“It would be ideal if they could gain a better understanding of the emotions of the key players in the game before making any more decisions or ideas.” not only those who endorse. Even the players, though.
“We’re placing so many expectations on players that my biggest concern right now is that the saturation of the product we have will decline. In the end, performances will deteriorate. In the end, more players will be sidelined due to weariness or injuries.
We consistently devise competitions that we believe will be extremely successful. Generally speaking, moneymakers. Which I see because that’s how the game kind of develops, but it won’t work if the players don’t show there and don’t like what they see.
Postecoglou said that although the game needs to be flexible and allow for evolution, individuals making these decisions are not considering the actual conditions of the sport.
“Tradition is not going to always win,” he said. We are aware of that. That isn’t how it functions. To keep up with the speed, the game may occasionally need to advance.
“Before making those kinds of decisions, you should check the room’s temperature, and I don’t think that’s something that’s considered very often. In our game, where there is such a strong emotional and financial commitment, any concept that boils down to numbers will always find it difficult to take off.
If the whole ESL fiasco was good for anything, it was a demonstration of the power that fans still have over the game. The football community, which is sometimes divided because of the tribal aspect of the sport, united like never before in the fight to protect the game’s traditions.
