The European Super League

Strictly speaking this is not a 1980s blog. But I had to have my say on these mad proposals for a European Super League.

Nostalgia ain't what it used to be. But the events over the past weekend have left me looking back to the 1980s with a tinge of sadness. Forget the violence, decaying stadia and declining attendances. At least there seemed to be some form of attempts at playing the sport on a level (muddy) field.

Of course, there were incidents of club chairman attempting to make the relatively rich that little bit richer. After all, this was the decade where greed is good became a mantra for many. The change in gate receipt sharing, the rows that led to a television blackout, and the first murmurings of a Super League were signposts pointing heavily towards the formation of the Premier League in 1992.

Here's where the story ends. The Premier League launch combined with the change in European club competitions is when the history of football was kicked into the net bulging with cash. With the Premier League came Sky, and their admittedly excellent wall-to-wall coverage of the sport. With the Champions League came the top four trophy that Arsene Wenger was often ridiculed for mentioning. Football, as we knew it, was gone forever.

Why bother with something as insignificant as the FA Cup if staying in the Premier League or getting into the top division provides financial glory? Who cares about claiming silverware in domestic cup competitions if fourth place in the Premier League is more profitable? Football without fans is nothing, but by the way we're going to move your match without much notice to an inconvenient date/time. No trains running, you say? Oh well.

Football before 1992 would soon become a thing that many would like to sweep under the carpet. But to many of us, the sport back then did exist and felt a bit more real. It might be a case of having my memories blurred in a nostalgic haze, but I'm not sure I care that much. The proposals for a European Super League - whether it happens or not - feels like the final straw to me.

Obviously the Champions League in the current format simply isn't good for these so-called big clubs. They need guarantees that they can stuff their faces at the top table of European football. Having clubs like Leicester and West Ham qualify through league performances simply will not do. The original safety net - top four qualification - needs adjusting. Let us organise our own party, but good luck getting an invite.

Oh for the days of the old European club competitions. An era when champions played in the European Cup, league performances were rewarded with a spot in the UEFA Cup, and when teams would bust a gut to win their domestic cup to enter the criminally underrated European Cup Winners' Cup. Sportsnight and Midweek Sports Special on a Wednesday. English, Scottish and Welsh teams flying the flag against European giants. I know I sound like Ron Manager, but it's hard not to when you yearn for a return to those memorable European occasions.

Look at some of the winners of the European Cup in the 1980s. Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Hamburg, Steaua Bucharest, Porto and PSV. The kind of clubs that this current shower probably don't want anywhere near their private party. Even with the current Champions League setup we probably won't see a Romanian, Portuguese or Dutch club win the tournament in the near future. But at least they have the opportunity. The European Super League closed shop goes against everything that sport stands for.

The Premier League has a lot of faults. Yet it is a league that clubs can gain entry to via performances on the football pitch. The story of Leicester in 2015/16 showed that miracles do happen and that even in this era of new money that a club can punch above their weight. We may never return to a decade like the 1980s, when clubs such as Ipswich, Watford, and Southampton finished runners-up in the top flight. But at least clubs can dream.

I'm ashamed that my club (Arsenal) are involved in any of this tacky mess. At a time when we are fighting hard to finish 10th in the Premier League, our participation in the launch of the European Super League is laughable, but even if we were ten points clear at the top of the table (stop laughing) I would hate the fact that the name of our club was being dragged through the mud. I grew up believing that my club did things the right way. How has it come to this?

I have a feeling that the European Super League will not happen. It seems to me that this is just a case of these clubs trying to flex their muscles and shape the new Champions League format to their liking. But it also strikes me that they have followed this approach and completely underestimated the response it would generate. To many supporters, this could be the point of no return. The final ties may have been cut for good. Why should we bother if they treat us, and football in general, like this?

Will these club owners care? Possibly not. Supporters to them will come and go, but as long as the money comes in then why should they care if they annoy their fanbase? If some choose not to renew their season tickets, then there will be a few thousand others who will step into their place. But maybe one day they will push supporters too far? Perhaps enough really will be enough and fans will vote with their feet. And remember, football without fans is nothing.

I'm really not sure where I'm going with this. Apologies if it has turned into a middle-aged man blathering on about the good old days and how football isn't what it used to be. I'll happily admit that I view the 1980s through rose-tinted glasses, even if I do recognise that it was far from perfect. But I'm glad I got to experience football before it began in 1992. Money is the root of all evil, and from 1992 onwards it has been flooding the sport we love. If this European Super League does go through then the lunatics really will have taken over the asylum.