The Official 17/18 UEFA Champion's League and International Club News Thread

[M*A*S*H 4077]

Incredible by Ronaldo

[Senator Clay Davis]

Juve fans gave him a standing O, despite the fact he just eliminated them. Says it all.

[White Out 403]

Juve isn't exactly a weak sister. Serie A is a bit of a joke but they're quality. Seeing Real dismantle them makes me feel like Bayern may be the only real test. Or Barca of course. But Real and the CL just... it feels like a video game.

[Locke]

Thats curtains for Juve. Between the goals and the red for Dybala they're done.

[nik-]

I still think Barcelona might win it all, but Madrid has been ####ing strange all year. Two totally different teams. League lost by November and just cruising in the CL.

Juve is a great team, but this mental wall in the CL is built into them at this point. It's not in Barcelona. But really any of the three could win it.

Really though, a Madrid, Bayern, Barcelona, City final four is fantastic, since I'm assuming City beats Liverpool.

[Locke]

And Bayern seem to haul a pretty poor first leg out of the fire.

[Bagor]

Originally Posted by m*a*s*h 4077

incredible by ronaldo

https://twitter.com/user/status/981263026664955904

[devo22]

we have been really privileged as football fans this past decade. Watching both Messi and Ronaldo in their prime at the same time is a gift.

[Beninho]

Originally Posted by White Out 403

Juve isn't exactly a weak sister. Serie A is a bit of a joke but they're quality. Seeing Real dismantle them makes me feel like Bayern may be the only real test. Or Barca of course. But Real and the CL just... it feels like a video game.

Serie A a bit of a joke? What? It was not a dismantling, it was a close game that was decided by one of the greatest players the world has seen. Juve had multiple high danger chances and had several free kicks right outside the box. A dismantling is what Bayern did to Barca in 2013.

I’m glad you think Juve is quality tho

[devo22]

he's not wrong regarding Serie A. The Milan clubs are a shadow of themselves and Roma is pretty meh. Napoli is having a great year, but between them and Juventus it's pretty much like Dortmund and Bayern. Juventus is awesome, but that's about it. That league is many miles behind the PL and La Liga. It's similar to Germany: one top club doesn't mean it's a great league.

[Beninho]

Originally Posted by devo22

he's not wrong regarding Serie A. The Milan clubs are a shadow of themselves and Roma is pretty meh. Napoli is having a great year, but between them and Juventus it's pretty much like Dortmund and Bayern. Juventus is awesome, but that's about it. That league is many miles behind the PL and La Liga.

Both AC and inter hit a bit of a dark age but I think they are much better than in years past. Roma is still very good, the mid table of serie A has lots of quality. Fiorentina, Atalanta, Sampdoria, Lazio are all good sides. The depth in Serie A is much better than in other leagues. It’s not the greatest league in the world like it once was, but the league is still high quality without a doubt. To say it’s a joke is naive.

[White Out 403]

Until Italy gets more stadiums built serie a will be a 4th rung at best league. Maybe 5th. Roma's new stadium is impressive but Milan needs a new stadium, Napoli, Fiorentona.

If I had to choose between league 1 or serie A i choose Italy but its not a slam dunk.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by White Out 403

Until Italy gets more stadiums built serie a will be a 4th rung at best league. Maybe 5th. Roma's new stadium is impressive but Milan needs a new stadium, Napoli, Fiorentona.

If I had to choose between league 1 or serie A i choose Italy but its not a slam dunk.

You think the problem with Italian soccer is 'lack of stadiums?'

[White Out 403]

Originally Posted by Locke

You think the problem with Italian soccer is 'lack of stadiums?'

Good stadiums to generate money, yes. Italy has a lot of giant stadiums built a half century ago. Money brings in quality players.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by White Out 403

Good stadiums to generate money, yes. Italy has a lot of giant stadiums built a half century ago. Money brings in quality players.

Yeah, but soccer is largely not a gate-driven league. Ticket sales tend to be gravy on top of the TV money.

[White Out 403]

Originally Posted by Locke

Yeah, but soccer is largely not a gate-driven league. Ticket sales tend to be gravy on top of the TV money.

From an article in 2017

From a quick google search:

Here are some data about average "stadium load factor" across Europe in season 2013/2014:
Bundesliga 96%
Premier 95%
Ligue 1 70%
Liga 68%
Serie A 56%

I doubt that attendance has improved much in the last 3 years with these stadiums getting even older. So you have Italian clubs with half full stadiums that likely have no revenue generating modern amenities. It's no surprise quality of play is where it is.

[White Out 403]

well. shut my mouth. watched juve and RM finally in full and the 1st half could have easily been 3-1 Juve to the point where I am so far.

[Locke]

Liverpool vs. City.

Here we go.

[SuperMatt18]

Juventus has had a bit of a down year by their standards - haven't really been as much of a "wall" defensively as usual. The core at the back is aging and sadly I think the two CL finals they lost were their last real chance with that core.

Problem with Italy is that younger generation has no real interest in the sport. It has hurt both their player development, and the gates at the league. 15-25 year olds just aren't as invested in the sport as previous generations were.

Whether that is a cultural thing or just because of all the scandals and corruption the sport just doesn't seem to resonate with the younger generation anymore.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Juventus has had a bit of a down year by their standards - haven't really been as much of a "wall" defensively as usual. The core at the back is aging and sadly I think the two CL finals they lost were their last real chance with that core.

Problem with Italy is that younger generation has no real interest in the sport. It has hurt both their player development, and the gates at the league. 15-25 year olds just aren't as invested in the sport as previous generations were.

Whether that is a cultural thing or just because of all the scandals and corruption the sport just doesn't seem to resonate with the younger generation anymore.

I don't follow them very closely, but going into the match-up with Spurs they hadn't conceded a goal in something like 17 games at home? I can't remember the stats because I've blocked that to enjoy life more, but it was something insane like that. I think that they were/are super solid on the back end and just got beat by a better team.