Everyone likes an underdog. Thats one reason why America has not embraced European soccer. In Europe, the league is generally won by a team from an elite group of around 3 teams, who rotate winning the league. Rarely does a team out of these elite few even come close to winning. For instance, when was the last time anyone except for Manchester United, Chelsea or Arsenal ever threatened for a title. Just imagine, the top 8 seeds make a playoff tournament, and scrappy Fulham upsets the mighty red devils. That would be absolutely incredible, and a great story to tell your kids. Sure, that could happen in the FA cup, but no one really cares so much about that. If Man U gets upset in cup play, they couldjust get back up and win the league, which is what actually matters the most. Imagine how that would be if a team could lose one game and automatically lose the premiership, regardless of how many points they have. Puts on a lot of pressure doesn't it? Another argument for playoffs, is that a team can only prove its the best by consistently winning under pressure. If Manchester United are really the best English team, they should breeze by all their opponents. Right? With playoffs, the best team is truly proven to be the best team by winning matches against other good teams, as opposed to beating on clubs like Wigan every other week to gain easy points. I still think that the top 4 from the regular season should qualify for the Champions league, but an additional 5th should be added if the winner of the playoffs did not finish in the top 4. Heres how the English Premier league playoff bracket would look in an 8 team playoff, with my predictions .
1) Man United Man United
8) Fulham -----------
Tottenham Man United
4) Man City ----------- -----------
5) Tottenham Man United
-----------
2) Chelsea Chelsea Arsenal
7) Everton ----------- -----------
Arsenal
3) Arsenal ------------
6) Liverpool
Manchester United still wins in the playoff scenario, but other teams would now have another way to catch up to them, as opposed to winning all of their games and hoping Man U lose a lot of theirs.
Against:
No! This is how it has been for years, and its working fine. Why would you fix something that is not broken? The team with the most points already proved that they are the best team by being the most consistent this season. What if they just happen to have an off day in the playoffs, and lose to a team who didn't even qualify for the Champs league. It just doesn't add up. Teams like Man U and Barcelona deserve the cup the most, and it would be outrageous for a team like Fulham or Everton to have OK seasons and still have a chance to win it all. In addition to all this, if there is a playoff format, all the Magic of the Champions League and other cup competitions will disappear. Upsets are a part of those competitions. We don't need to bring it into a league that already has a good system, just for a few thrills and good stories.
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