h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.uefa.com/competitions/UCL/news/Kind=1/newsId=268457.html

According to the FA, the top four premiership teams will qualify for the Champions League.

According to UEFA, if Liverpool were to beat AC MIlan, the FA would have to drop Everton to let them in.

THE FA say they will ask UEFA for a fifth place if Liverpool win the final in Istanbul.

The UEFA website (above) contains a table of qualifiers for next season. Which includes four from England, four from Italy and a place for the Title Holders (TH) as one of the sixteen teams going straight into the group stage. Along with the Champions and Runners Up of both England and Italy. And the 3rd and 4th place teams from both countries go into the qualifying rounds.

My brain hurts.

Am I the only person thinking that these arguments are a little premature?

Everyone in the media seems to have written off AC Milan, I mean, they're only the current holders as opposed to Liverpool who are a mediocre team in Europe who've managed (much like Leeds) to surprise a lot of people through luck and sheer grit.

I still think Milan will win, so I wish everyone would calm down (excuse the pun) and stop creating problems where there aren't any as yet, and may well not be any at all.

"they're only the current holders"

No they're not, Porto are.

Oh, and if AC Milan beat liverpool (and I agree they probably will, but I said that about Juve and Chelsea as well), then the table published by UEFA of the places for evry nation on theirt website are still peuliar (which was my main point in starting this conversation)- The table allows 16 places straight into the group stage, including Italian Champions, italian Runners-Up and the CL title holders. So, if the title holders are in the top two in italy (which Milan are guaranteed), then tghat's only fifteen teams, with sixteen to come through the qualifying. Which country would get a team promoted to the group stage in that scenario, and what knock-on effect would that have for the qualifying rounds (which is the stage I'm really interested in right now...)

in march the FA announced that arsenal or chelsea would be automatically qualified if they won "big ears" no matter where they finished in the EPL; now they don't want to do the same for liverpool.

UEFA rules are contradictory; an FA can ask for the CL winner to be entered, but two different sentences in the same paragraph give two understandings: the winner will either replace the last qualified club (who play UEFA cup) or will be allowed over and above the norlam allotment...

one good thing: the special one isn't involved to further stir up what looks like an already inflammatory situation!

CL title holders? i'm 99.73% certain they don't automatically qualify; notice no number on the TH line in that table, which i think only concerns the organization of the table IF the holder is qualified.

That's a very good point Egon. They're not actually the holders. I'll shut up until I've had my regulation 4 cups of coffee next time....

as the special one said: rafa, hold THIS!

pedantically, porto aren't the holders any more - there was a special ceremony the other month in Istanbul (not Constantinople) when they handed the trophy over.

i tried to get News 24 Sport to run the pictures, but no-one really seemed interested.

Am I correct in thinking that a similar situation has happened before, when Real Madrid won the Champions' League, but had a crappy season at home? I believe they knocked Zaragoza in the UEFA that season.

Of course it would add so much relish for the average scouser to knock Everton out of the competition.

B

I think it was Real Socieded that got shunted to make room. But yes, it did happen.

That's absolutely right about Real Madrid. They couldn't be denied a place in the Big Cup on the basis that they're really really important to the marketing of football etc.

Erm... I don't know if anyones told you, but we've (Everton) have already qualified.

Woohooo!!! Happy days are here again. Stuff that Liverpool - with due respect

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/e/everton/4527837.stm

Everton may be Europe - but look who Arsene is predicting will play in the final next season

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/a/arsenal/4523051.stm

i thought he was going to tab OL for the next big ears final, like the 5er did this year...

i always liked arsène a lot, but isn't he getting either a bit dotty or a bit... well, doesn't he resemble more and more a certain knighted football personality?