Players getting relegated...

[The Great Mass Debater 1,078]

So I was sat there on the toilet, contemplating many a thing and I came to the subject of relegation. Forget about what relegation means currently, and cast your mind back to a couple of decades ago, before football was about egos, player power and big time charlies. Consider a time when players generally stayed with their clubs, and football was more of a job than a brand or an identity.

 

The original concept of releagtion was that over the course of a season a teams players would have proven that they were nto really playing at the right level. The team would be relegated as a way of rebalancing the league - taking out the weakest players at one end and promoting out the strongest at the top. As football was less about money and celebrity, generally the players would stay with the club, and compete at a level more reflecting their abilities - and if they were good enough they would come back up.

 

Relegation now however, has morpher into something else. With the exception of the Russel Martins of this world, the club takes the hit and the players walk away. Surely this cannot be right? The season ends and the powers of world football say ''Ah, Norwich City, you and your footballers have not been quite good enough for the Premier League this season - you should compete at a lower level, so sayeth the table''.  But the players, they say ''Ah yes, but I am a Premiership footballer - my ego professes this. Never mind that I have spent the last year proving this is not so, I want I want I want and you cant make me''. Throw in the financial problems and what do we get? The same players jumping ship back to the league theyve just proved theyre not good enough for, creating a perpetual pool of inadequate players, to be picked up by faltering clubs. PLayers like Bassong are prime examples. Get relegated, throw the toys out of the pram, tell anyone who will listen what a big star you are and hey presto, move engineered.

 

So, considering that the original idea of relegation is not to punish a football club (or its fans) but to return the playing stock to a level that more befits their ability to help balance out the leagues, how would you feel if the relegation sentence didnt just apply to the clubs? What if FIFA introduced a rule that meant if a player gets relegated, they are only allowed to play at the level they have been relegated to for the next season (ie they could transfer to another second tier club in our case, but were embargoed for a calender year from moving up a level). This would mean the parachute payments would have some more authenticity to cover the cost of not jetissoning your entire team. Wage drops would have to be a mandatory part of a players contract for it to work. But wouldnt it have an interesting effect on the commitment of players when it comes to fighting for the shirt. No more ''well I dont care because Ill just get a move to another Premier League club''.

 

As a parent to young children, it strikes me how much the behaviour of some footballers mirrors that of a toddler. Toddlers need discipline to learn respect - so too IMO do footballers. Player power has turned many a footballer into the disgusting non-role models we see so often splashed all over the tabloids. Perhaps a measure like this might bring back some of the more positive attritbutes we would hope to see from our heroes.

 

So purely for football debate, because of course non of us are on a FIFA comittee - what would you think of this idea?

[Daz Sparks 1,151]

Great idea fella.

Mail it to the PFA.

[Duncan Edwards 2,221]

It wasn''t the players fault that Houghton was manager. Why punish them?

 

 

[Norfolk Mustard 94]

I''d love to see your idea implemented!

Given we''re all driven by self interest, the fear of relegation would finally impact all parties. Good! As a player it must be hard to accept the actions of anyone not pulling their weight because they think they''ll simply depart to a higher league should relegation occur.

This plan seems an effective - and way overdue - leveller to me.

[Bill 1,788]

I don''t remember you squeaking when we signed Olsson

[ZLF 271]

How would international transfers work?    OK for a player just back in the champs to go second level sides in span, itally and france but top sides in holland, scotland, portugal etc?

 

 

Good idea,   expect the human rights lawyers would boost their earnings telling us why it cant work...  

[Norfolk Mustard 94]

Paul''s Ferry:

It wasn''t the players fault that Hughton was manager. Why punish them?

>>> 

Because instead of taking action they remained passive acceptors - unforgiveable! Sunderland players became vocal when Di Canio was going off the rails and forced their board into a rethink. I wish our lot had done something similar - and if the OP''s plan was in place, they may well have done so!

[Bill 1,788]

absolute nonsensewhat happens to the players who give it their all but are relegated because their club has signed a lot of these ''don''t care'' players ?likewise the old bo llox about human rights lawyers - the players sign contracts, it is up to the clubs to draw up the required contracts and if not it is their mistake... so get yoru head out of the Daily Mail and look up employment lawwhere was the squeaking when we signed Whittaker when Rangers farked up, and the youth player we signed for diddly squat ?the OP is nothing more than childidh petulance that the same activity that allowed us to earn tens of millions in the PL has come back to bite us on the ar se .... that''s all

[The Great Mass Debater 1,078]

[quote user="City1st"]I don''t remember you squeaking when we signed Olsson





[/quote]

 

Olsson only signed for us after he stayed with Blackburn in the Championship so Im not quite sure what point you''re trying to make here...

[Tetteys Jig 830]

Nice idea, but it''d be hard to implement. Imagine we had a guy who ran out of contract but he got relegated with us. Would he be punished? How could they govern it if he moved abroad? I just think like a lot of things, nice idea but try implement it and you can see why it hasn''t happened.

[Tetteys Jig 830]

You''d end up with a bigger divide between the top 7 or so and the rest as well, we''d get a fair few join us ''on loan'' as well.

[The Great Mass Debater 1,078]

Well there would have to be a ranking system which stated which leagues were equivalent. A similar thing is done already within European competition for the top leagues when it is decided how many champions league places each country gets. FIFA would have to decide where Scottish Premier League ranked in relationship to other leagues etc - might drive some interesting loopholes. Out of contract players would still have the same embargo. The interesting ones would be those on season long loans, how getting relegated with another team would affect their future with their parent club. Theyd probably have to be exempt

[? 0]

Just one question Mass, what about the freedom of movement argument, as in the Bowman ruling?? Nice idea but it could never happen as far as the current law is concerned.

OTBC

[? 0]

Bosman sorry grrrn autocorrect!

[The Great Mass Debater 1,078]

Well, as with most spectrums, the swingometer as John Snow (the old guy who deos election night, not the one that makes my mrs giddy) would use is often fluid. There was too much of a movement towards ''club power'' and Bosman changed all that. The consequent violenet swing towards player power though has probably coincided with the players behaving like the John Terrys and the Ashley Coles of this world. Which noone wants to see. Perhaps we need a swing back towards the middle-ground somewhat

[? 0]

Guess what Mass, I totally agree with you! The Bosman ruling gave far too much power to the player''s and as such really made contracts meaningless.

However there would need to be a total about change as far as the law is concerned and I doubt that will happen. Maybe UKIP could have a word!? ( irony guys before I get shot down for mentioning UKIP)!

[Norfolk Mustard 94]

With UKIP''s involvement perhaps it could be known as ''The Farage Ruling!''