UEFA
ENGLISH clubs are set to fight Uefa plans to play Champions
League games on a Saturday.
Following
the high-profile revamp of the competition – which guarantees teams from
England, Germany, Italy and Spain four spots each year – there is a fear
that traditional domestic football could be at risk.
The
Champions League format is undergoing a controversial revamp
Bayern Munich are said to be keen on the new changes
And Premier League clubs are worried that the next step will
be Saturday games – to maximize TV audiences.
Uefa
moved the final to a Saturday night in 2010 and the next step following the
revamp could be for knock-out games to follow suit.
But there is expected to be a lot of opposition to any such
plans – especially if they disrupt the domestic calendar at the business end of
the season.
A Prem
source told the Daily Mail: “This is a red-line issue that
we wouldn’t even contemplate.”
Claudio Ranieri talks about Leicester's first home Champions
League tie against Porto
Whereas Scottish chief Neil Doncaster called it 'the
direction of travel' for the future 2021-24 negotiations, which suggests
Premier League opposition could be in vain.
Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Juventus are all
reportedly in favour of such changes.
But
there is a fear that a closed shop Champions League could spell the end of
fairytales like Leicester, who have enjoyed two wins since their debut match in
the competition.
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