Quote Originally Posted by Power_n_Glory View Post
I'm not saying money doesn't matter. I'm saying there is too much of an emphasis on money in football. It was always going to end up going this way. Clubs are forgetting about basic coaching and development. The answer is always to buy and some clubs just don't have that option and it leads to these sort of problems.
Yep, I don't disagree with you there, the culture of football is deteriorating. But doesn't that coincide with the rise of the mercenary footballer? Bosman wanted the entirely lop-sided privileges afforded to the professional footballer (in comparison to the average joe) and at the same time wanted the average joe's contract conditions (or at least to cherry pick the useful bits). You think of Scholes, Giggs, Adams, don't you need those types of players to build a meaningful club culture and history? Where are they now? Who are the equivalents?

We'll see what happens at Barca now, will they stick with the academy approach or will they tip it in favour of writing even bigger cheques? Should Ajax consign themselves to feeder club status now and be happy with it? What about this Euro league that's being formed bit by bit? Utd ditching the FA Cup so they could go on money spinning tours. Money is stripping football of everything that matters to the fan. Chelsea turbocharged the decline, city have fitted a rocket engine. None of it is any good and even when we talk about trophies, how much do they really matter any more in the scheme of things? City have just "won" their first in 44 years, give it 3 more seasons and it'll be routine.

It's not even about the money, it's about greed. Greedy players, greedy agents, greedy TV companies, greedy authorities (look at those corrupt shits at FIFA and UEFA). They're all sucking the life out of the game and praying for sensationalism like Sunday to disguise the rats nest.

Meanwhile you have Wenger saying it's crazy and coming 3rd anyway. Is he really the "loser"?