Things show little sign of returning to ‘normal’ when it comes to the Premier League.
The shameful six Premier League clubs who were part of the attempted grab for money and total power, finding that the worst that could happen was the status quo continuing.
Man Utd, Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea, joined forces with three Spanish and three Italian clubs, in order to try and set up a European Super League where they as ‘founding members’ would take part every year, without having to qualify.
This in reality, if successful, would have totally devalued the domestic leagues and other European football competition, to such an extent as to make the dirty dozen so rich and powerful, that almost certainly no other clubs could hope to sustain a challenge against them in the future.
Fans of all 20 Premier League clubs, including those who are fans of the six in question, appear to have made clear that they aren’t prepared to accept a return to that status quo.
Now on Thursday morning we have seen Henry Winter, arguably the top football journo in the English media put this out…
Henry Winter – Chief Football Writer at The Times via Twitter – Thursday 22 April 2021:
‘The last 40 Premier League meetings – at which the [‘big’] six would brief the Premier League CEO the day before, that they want x, or if not they will leave – are now a thing of the past.
‘No more big six b.llocks.
‘The Premier League 14 non-plotter clubs hoping the shamed six change some of their execs who have so antagonised in meetings. “We hope that the clubs get fresh faces to run them now as [Manchester] United have done,” says one club official. “It will help a lot to mend fences…’
So, the ‘other 14’ clubs, not just their fans, appear to have also grasped that the spell is now broken.
The six Premier League clubs who tried to do the dirty on the rest, now instead finding out that they have lost the biggest game of ‘Call My Bluff’ ever.
As Henry Winter indicates, for so long sadly, these half dozen PL clubs have successfully bullied and dominated the rest, the implied, or even at times express, threat always hanging over the ‘other 14’, that if they don’t let the ‘big six’ get their own way, they (the big six) will go off and do their own thing and leave the rest with nothing, instead of the crumbs off the big six table that currently and in the past they have been entitled to.
Even when they attempted that last grubby theft of total power only six months ago, Project Big Picture, there were no repercussions when they were exposed and blocked from their attempt to seize complete control.
Instead, they were allowed to carry on as before, using this implied threat to keep the other 14 in line.
No more though now, hopefully.
The threat of going off and doing their own thing now ringing very hollow.
The shameful six Premier League clubs playing their trump card, the European Super League initiative launched, then within 48 hours all of the half dozen English clubs pulling out (of the ESL not Premier League!), saying they were all very sorry, had made a mistake, hadn’t realised what they were doing, hadn’t had any intention of harming football or disadvantaging other clubs, as well as many other apologies / excuses that only the ultra gullible would remotely consider as believable.
The six have found their bluff called and it is clearly not a viable thing, for them to form their own competition and seize all the power and almost all of the cash, at the expense of the rest of football.
So the return of fairness in football, one member one vote.
Well, it remains to be seen, BUT this surely has to be the turning point, the other 14 clubs must press on now and make it clear that all future decisions will be based on what is best for all 20 members of the Premier League at any one time, not be bullied into going along with what the self-appointed big six want to dictate.
I think that part of this turning point must also include supposedly impartial senior figures at the Premier League being replaced, the likes of Gary Hoffman and Richard Masters resigning, or sacked if they refuse to do the honourable thing. New people brought in as they (Hoffman and Masters) appear to have been clearly part of this process whereby the tail (big six) have for years wagged the dog (twenty PL clubs as a whole).
All decisions in the future to be made by all 20 PL clubs, not a handful in control and the full meetings of all the Premier League clubs simply having been window dressing in the past.
