[More info about play-offs on the BBC here )
So, they want to have play-offs for fourth place in the EPL? Why?
As some wag pointed out on the BBC comments section – isn’t that (play-off for 4th) what they do already? From five of the last six seasons, only the ‘Sky 4’ of Man United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool have made the Champions League.
So who would play off? Fourth to seventh places?
Fourth to seventh seems likely, as these clubs would be getting a European slot anyway. (5th, 6th and 7th would be going into the Europa League.)
It all seems a bit pointless to me. Why not have a play-off for the teams finishing 7th to 10th for the final Europa league spot? This could mean that bottom half placed clubs could still have something to play for as late as the last few games of the season. It would also mean that any club finishing in the top half of the table has a chance at a European place.
It would still mean that the top six league places are guaranteed a Euro spot based solely on their league placings, and rightly so, but having a 7th – 10th play-off opens up the possibility and the excitement of a play-off competition, extra games and revenue, and the eradication of some teams having nothing to play for from February onwards.
With six games to go in last season’s premier table, 10th place Man City on 41 points were only 7 points clear of Wigan in 17th, one spot above the relegation places.
So we can see that this would open up the league in terms of mid-table clubs still having something to play for.
One final thought, for those that think the league position is all. Another possible scenario is that the team finishing seventh could go straight through to a play-off final, and only the two teams finishing 8th and 9th could play off, giving the 7th an advantage over the teams finishing below them.
So, they want to have play-offs for fourth place in the EPL? Why?
As some wag pointed out on the BBC comments section – isn’t that (play-off for 4th) what they do already? From five of the last six seasons, only the ‘Sky 4’ of Man United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool have made the Champions League.
So who would play off? Fourth to seventh places?
Fourth to seventh seems likely, as these clubs would be getting a European slot anyway. (5th, 6th and 7th would be going into the Europa League.)
It all seems a bit pointless to me. Why not have a play-off for the teams finishing 7th to 10th for the final Europa league spot? This could mean that bottom half placed clubs could still have something to play for as late as the last few games of the season. It would also mean that any club finishing in the top half of the table has a chance at a European place.
It would still mean that the top six league places are guaranteed a Euro spot based solely on their league placings, and rightly so, but having a 7th – 10th play-off opens up the possibility and the excitement of a play-off competition, extra games and revenue, and the eradication of some teams having nothing to play for from February onwards.
With six games to go in last season’s premier table, 10th place Man City on 41 points were only 7 points clear of Wigan in 17th, one spot above the relegation places.
So we can see that this would open up the league in terms of mid-table clubs still having something to play for.
One final thought, for those that think the league position is all. Another possible scenario is that the team finishing seventh could go straight through to a play-off final, and only the two teams finishing 8th and 9th could play off, giving the 7th an advantage over the teams finishing below them.
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