Aside from the fact that death is getting closer, one of the unpleasant things about growing older is that you hear the same things over and over again about practically everything, including football. You heard all the hot opinions from young, intelligent people who believe they have found the goldmine of knowledge when Sam Leitch aired Football Focus, which was once known as Football Preview, fifty-five years ago.
I say this to show how foolish it is to believe something is completely unique, not to claim to be an authority on the subject.
We've all been there, so you have to be careful not to be condescending or snarky. It does drive you crazy, though, when someone says something so basic that it must be the most creative thing you've ever heard.
This is especially true when they mistakenly believe that you are a certain type that they believe defines your generation and that you must unavoidably fit in. For instance, when Manchester United was demoted, they said, "Seen it, done it."
Even if young Johnny had other urgent trouser-related issues at the time, I recall how catastrophic it was believed to be when Manchester United got demoted the previous time I was 13 years old. As a matter of fact, everything was really painless. What would happen now that they're in even worse shape? The following season, they won the second division with ease, winning by three points ahead of Villa and Norwich. They lost just seven games.
As long as Sky doesn't want to show every game from the upcoming season, you would assume that relegation is one of Dante's seven rings of hell.
All of this is a component of the continuous endeavor to make the Premier League an island of unstoppable genius that is worth the money.
Naturally, fewer and fewer people still think this, and they've forced to use their last remaining resources—showing an increasing number of games—to support the growing notion that it's only football and that the excitement doesn't match the daily dance and exaggeration. Consider the panic that would accompanies demotion this time. We're talking about Manchester United here, Kelly.
Let's imagine that the upcoming season is also a washout. It is not at all improbable. It's bad. Malky Mackay, who is Scottish, inexpensive, and swears like a Poundshop Sir Alex, is unexpectedly hired as an interim manager by Airhead Jim, freeing Ruben Amorim from his waking nightmare when he is fired in November.
It was believed that his seasons at Ross County would prepare him well for his role at United. However, he is clearly without hope, and they end up in 19th place with 26 points. What comes next? Relegation has the upside because they are now the huge turd in a smaller bowl, outspending everyone, and eventually money must count.
As everyone knows, it's much more enjoyable to win big, even in a lower category, than to lose big, in a higher division. It goes without saying that not playing in the Premier League makes life better.
United resumes their winning ways and wins the championship handily. Additionally, they lose nearly everyone for over $50,000 every week and profit handsomely from the sale of the failing "stars," all of whom would be excellent for someone else. They include both Championship grafters and academy players in their lineup.
Scarecrow, the absurd bioform When Jim discovers that he hasn't truly purchased a Nice cookie company, he quits football in shame, claiming he can't reconcile his success with his self-proclaimed, unquestionable genius. In a similar vein, the Glazers decide that second-tier life is not for them, relinquish control of the team, and allow a fan to take over. After a season away from the Premier League, they come back rejuvenated and with a new, less cocky mindset.
However, everything could go wrong. The players are bound by long, costly contracts, no one will buy them, and they won't quit while earning a million dollars a month.
Sponsors pull out in droves, not wanting to be linked to a subpar brand and damage the reputation of their hard-earned noodle business.
Because the hollow-eyed ghoul simply believed they would buy talent in, the academy has been deprived of funding over the years. This football thing is easy, isn't it? And it is now garbage and provides no new talent. The scarecrow In an attempt to show that he is not a dumb, worthless jerk, Jim remains on but fires all of the remaining employees and saves enough money to cover Bruno Fernandes' salary for three days. Smart business. In any case, the Glazers keep giving themselves millions in dividends, to the point where the club is officially deemed insolvent by the spring of 2027.
Which direction will it go then? Relegation would probably be advantageous, provided that it changes the executive and ownership structure and allows them to cease paying Antony's salary. If you stay the same and go down, worse things will happen.
They are obviously in a downward spiral, and something drastically different must occur to pull them out of it. They can't be trusted to make any wise decisions, so it must be forced upon them due to their terrible ownership, managerial performance, and playing staff.
That would happen with relegation. If they don't drop, they may spend a generation in the bottom six and serve as a living example of how foolish it is to run a club like a regular business and chase money at every opportunity. Sheffield Wednesday, Derby, Stoke, WBA, and QPR were all major, top-tier teams when I was a child, but they haven't been in a while. There you have your lesson.
Comments