Football survives eternal and sustained disappointments based on happy fleeting endings. How far away we feel the illusions of a past that was always better, while agony seems to take hold of us.
In no case do I seek to discredit a European competition, which discovers promises and uncovers territories covered by the mantle of modest football, while illuminating countless homes on cold winter nights. Teams from all over the continent ride to shake off their anonymity, so it would not be fair to let such a competition fall into oblivion.
On the contrary, my intention is to point out how damaging it can be for a top team to participate in it. First of all, in terms of morale. Being accustomed to the gold medal, it can be difficult to get excited about any other metal. Likewise, the image of these teams is damaged to unsuspected levels, branding them as insecure and cracking both their staff and their internal structure. Next, we move on to the economic aspect. Any team aspiring to win their domestic championship is expected to advance beyond the group stage of the continental competition. Any early elimination will mean irrecoverable losses, since the compensations of both tournaments are far from comparable.
Let’s give names and surnames to these giants that will face a host of Davids: FC Barcelona, Sevilla FC, Borussia Dortmund, Porto FC and so on.
These teams will fight for the Europa League with the same impetus they would fight for the Champions League or the neighborhood league. Next season they will come back stronger than ever and with the ball always on their side.
Foot Renegades 