Did anyone else hear the ridiculous ramblings of the uefa president michel platini about how the premiership is run by chairman from abroad who get their clubs into debt and thats how they win the premiership. He seems to forget chelsea is a rich mans plaything and wheras Man ure and liverpool are owned by americans they still make a profit over they year. He conveniently forgets teams like Real Madrid in Spain who are in the fianancial mire too, or does this french idiot just open his big gob to annoy us english. He should concentrate on his own league which is about as exciting to watch as seeing paint dry.

....... He should concentrate on his own league which is about as exciting to watch as seeing paint dry.

That might have been the case a decade ago, but I've seen some excellent games in France since. Whereas Lyon may have had it all their own way for first place recently, competition for other European places and against relegation has been intense.

Their standard is of a higher technical level as well, IMO.

He has a point that plenty of Man Utd's profit (if not all) will go towards servicing the debt created by the Glazers.

That might have been the case a decade ago, but I've seen some excellent games in France since. Whereas Lyon may have had it all their own way for first place recently, competition for other European places and against relegation has been intense.

Their standard is of a higher technical level as well, IMO.

He has a point that plenty of Man Utd's profit (if not all) will go towards servicing the debt created by the Glazers.

Yes he does have a point
And yes the technical level of French Players iS of a much higher standard compared to English Players due mainly to the Footballing Academy that France has and we dont as yet
However as President of UEFA its wrong that he should come out with such statements as "its a good thing that England didnt qualify for the European Championships"
Ask any England fan,or for that matter any football fan if England not qualifying is a good thing and you wont get many positive comebacks

Yes he does have a point
And yes the technical level of French Players iS of a much higher standard compared to English Players due mainly to the Footballing Academy that France has and we dont as yet
However as President of UEFA its wrong that he should come out with such statements as "its a good thing that England didnt qualify for the European Championships"
Ask any England fan,or for that matter any football fan if England not qualifying is a good thing and you wont get many positive comebacks

Did he actually say that "its a good thing that England didnt qualify for the European Championships"? I read it as "if England aren't good enough to qualify then the tournament wont miss them."

Did he actually say that "its a good thing that England didnt qualify for the European Championships"? I read it as "if England aren't good enough to qualify then the tournament wont miss them."

To be honest i havent heard him say it myself,it was quoted on football focus sat afternoon so im guessing its correct

To be honest i havent heard him say it myself,it was quoted on football focus sat afternoon so im guessing its correct

I think the football focus are being mischievous and are miss-quoting him. Here are his quotes:

"What does England's absence mean to me? Nothing," Platini told the Daily Mail.

"They had only to qualify on the pitch. I do not wish to say that we miss England.

"If England are not capable of finishing in the first two teams from a group of six, that is their problem.

Here are some links:

http://www.sportinglife.com/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/08/06/07/manual_123540.html

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_3661142,00.htmlhttp://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11966_3661142,00.html

Yes he does have a point
And yes the technical level of French Players iS of a much higher standard compared to English Players due mainly to the Footballing Academy that France has and we dont as yet


Wow!! That must mean that the technical level of Scottish players is better than English players as we beat France in our Qualifying group.:hihi::hihi:
Comming back down to the ground again, I think you will find that The French "Techies" won't even make it to the semis so you will need to find another "excuse" for England's failings.

And yes the technical level of French Players iS of a much higher standard compared to English Players due mainly to the Footballing Academy that France has and we dont as yet

That's one way to put it. Another would be that they have a higher technical level because, for the past 20 years, they've been scouting former French colonies in Africa and actively encouraging young players to play for France instead of the nation they were born in. Look at this list: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/3151583.stm

Some of the most prominent French players from the past decade were born in Africa: Viera, Zidane, Makelele, Desailly, etc. A lot of countries do this but when you look at the link you'll notice far more players headed towards France than any other country. They haven't just encouraged one or two foreign players to complement/improve the existing team, they've built the side around foreign imports!

So, it's a little rich for Plantini to call English clubs "cheats" because they seek to import the best talent and it's also quite humorous to watch him preach about clubs having too many foreign players when HIS country is the Arsenal of international football.

So, it's a little rich for Plantini to call English clubs "cheats" because they seek to import the best talent and it's also quite humorous to watch him preach about clubs having too many foreign players when HIS country is the Arsenal of international football.

But aren't Arsenal full of French players? ;)

That's one way to put it. Another would be that they have a higher technical level because, for the past 20 years, they've been scouting former French colonies in Africa and actively encouraging young players to play for France instead of the nation they were born in. Look at this list: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/3151583.stm

Some of the most prominent French players from the past decade were born in Africa: Viera, Zidane, Makelele, Desailly, etc. A lot of countries do this but when you look at the link you'll notice far more players headed towards France than any other country. They haven't just encouraged one or two foreign players to complement/improve the existing team, they've built the side around foreign imports!

So, it's a little rich for Plantini to call English clubs "cheats" because they seek to import the best talent and it's also quite humorous to watch him preach about clubs having too many foreign players when HIS country is the Arsenal of international football.

Very good points.

So, it's a little rich for Plantini to call English clubs "cheats" because they seek to import the best talent and it's also quite humorous to watch him preach about clubs having too many foreign players when HIS country is the Arsenal of international football.

Where's Platini said that?

Aren't you getting him mixed up with Sepp Blatter the FIFA president?

Where's Platini said that?

Aren't you getting him mixed up with Sepp Blatter the FIFA president?

http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=726375

As it goes; I do agree with him regarding foreign owners, the 39th game and even debts but it does seem that Blatter and now Platini are always looking for any old excuse to have a pop at the English. The reason for him speaking about this appears (to me) to be because it's starting to look like English clubs may dominate the Champions League. But then AC Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona, etc have been overspending for years, now it's suddenly cheating because it's English clubs? Sounds like jealousy mixed with sour grapes and a hint of anglophobia to me.

If he wants to do something about "cheating" he could start by clamping down on dissent and diving, scrap seeding in competitions (which pretty much guarantees small clubs will never win) and make the champions league a competition played between league champions instead of the stupid system we have now where clubs who finish 5th in their domestic league can win it.

Oh and another reason why this stinks (coming from a man in his position) is because UEFA have not only been compliant in turning football into a business but they've encouraged it (and benefited from it themselves).

Wow!! That must mean that the technical level of Scottish players is better than English players as we beat France in our Qualifying group.:hihi::hihi:
Comming back down to the ground again, I think you will find that The French "Techies" won't even make it to the semis so you will need to find another "excuse" for England's failings.

Oi Jock
when did i ever make an excuse for us not making the Euros???
We didnt make it because we werent good enough,just as your lot weren't
And who says the French "techies":huh: wont make it to the semis?,are you glazing into a crystal ball while tucking into your haggis

That's one way to put it. Another would be that they have a higher technical level because, for the past 20 years, they've been scouting former French colonies in Africa and actively encouraging young players to play for France instead of the nation they were born in. Look at this list: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/3151583.stm

Some of the most prominent French players from the past decade were born in Africa: Viera, Zidane, Makelele, Desailly, etc. A lot of countries do this but when you look at the link you'll notice far more players headed towards France than any other country. They haven't just encouraged one or two foreign players to complement/improve the existing team, they've built the side around foreign imports!

So, it's a little rich for Plantini to call English clubs "cheats" because they seek to import the best talent and it's also quite humorous to watch him preach about clubs having too many foreign players when HIS country is the Arsenal of international football.

True
All im saying is that the Academy that France has in place is of a higher standard than most if not all Footballing Nations and is the main reason why France have been more succesful than England,Germany,Spain,Italy ect ect over the past few years
Whether they were born in France or not,its the academy that has brought them through and made them the players they are
And France arent the only team to field "non international" players
The R.O.I built their team around players not born in the country
The Germs main striker Miroslav Klose was born in Poland
Cesc Fabregas is Catalonian not Spanish (pushing it a bit i know but Catalonians do consider themselves to be Catalonian and not Spanish)
Kronjcar (Croatia) born in Austria
Even Argentina had a right back called Brown who was born in Yorkshire

http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=726375

As it goes; I do agree with him regarding foreign owners, the 39th game and even debts but it does seem that Blatter and now Platini are always looking for any old excuse to have a pop at the English. The reason for him speaking about this appears (to me) to be because it's starting to look like English clubs may dominate the Champions League. But then AC Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona, etc have been overspending for years, now it's suddenly cheating because it's English clubs? Sounds like jealousy mixed with sour grapes and a hint of anglophobia to me.

If he wants to do something about "cheating" he could start by clamping down on dissent and diving, scrap seeding in competitions (which pretty much guarantees small clubs will never win) and make the champions league a competition played between league champions instead of the stupid system we have now where clubs who finish 5th in their domestic league can win it.

Oh and another reason why this stinks (coming from a man in his position) is because UEFA have not only been compliant in turning football into a business but they've encouraged it (and benefited from it themselves).

Totally agree

You forgot Colin Kazim Richards for Turkey. As for France, I personally think they won't get past the group stages.
At no time was, or ever has been, the use of a crystal ball helped me with my predictions. It's all my own Bull***t. ;)

You forgot Colin Kazim Richards for Turkey. As for France, I personally think they won't get past the group stages.
At no time was, or ever has been, the use of a crystal ball helped me with my predictions. It's all my own Bull***t. ;)

France better win the bloody thing
Have got em in works sweepstake

English clubs may be embarking on ruling Europe for a few years, but the
sad fact is, not many British players will be involved in it all. At the moment,
I feel that Blatter's 'suggestion' of the 6+5 system is the best way to go, but
if we wrongly continue to let the running of Britain be decided in Brussels, we
will continue to have crappy European laws and rules, thereby, hindering
the education of good young British players.
I also think that Platini is having a dig at the amount of money in the game these days and it just happens to be Britain's turn to be swamped with dosh. (There IS far too much money involved). After saying that, Platini wasn't slow in moving to Italy when they were rolling in big money!
I think the term is ..... selfish, money grabbers!