A LEAGUE NOT OF THEIR OWN

~ Posted by Tim de Lisle, December 8th 2011

British football is reeling today, and European football is smirking. A bizarre sight confronts us: the two best teams in England, the Manchester clubs, are heading for the Europa League after tumbling out of the Champions League. It’s like Meryl Streep not being nominated for an Oscar and having to make do with the Baftas instead. Patrice Evra, the Manchester United left back, calls it a “catastrophe”.

The comment is a reminder that Evra has all the diplomatic skills of a guy who, at the 2010 World Cup, was both captain of the French national team and one of the leaders of a mutiny against the management. But he is essentially right. Man United don’t need the Europa League, a tournament designed for medium-sized teams.

The Europa is played on Thursday nights, which leaves teams exhausted at the weekend, which in turn short-changes the fans. United are lagging well behind Man City in the English Premiership, the competition that counts now the Champions League has gone. United should give up their place in the Europa League to a team who will see it as an adventure, not a catastrophe. If that isn’t allowed, they should field the reserves who played in this year’s Carling Cup—essentially a bunch of teenagers, with poor old Michael Owen acting as a rather harassed PE teacher.

Why, you may be wondering, doesn’t the same apply to City, also heading for the Europa? Because they have won only one trophy in 35 years, not one a year like Alex Ferguson. Because they haven’t been in three European finals in four years—their last and only one was in 1970. Because they have deeper pockets and greater strength in depth. And because it will help to level the playing field.

If City go into the Europa and United bow out, the Premiership race will instantly be less one-sided. That 6-1 drubbing changed a lot. United are the underdogs in Manchester now, grinding out charmless 1-0 victories while City score goals for fun. Things are so bad for United that neutral fans may almost be coming round to them.

Tim de Lisle is editor of Intelligent Life and was editor of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack