[Football] Jonathan Wilson's article on Man City cup final.

[Weststander]

Nuno kept a tight group of starters this season, I suspect they had the lowest number of them in the PL. That's sustainable over c40-45 games in a season (factoring in a cup run), but not if they go deep into the Europa League. Nuno's got a big decision to make on that front.

That will be answered by another spending/‘loaning’ spree this summer at Molyneux.

Expect to see a further batch of international and U21 names.

 

[Stat Brother]

 

[Brovion]

I see your point but I disagree for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, these "fans" are not for life, and almost certainly won't pass their love of their English club down through generations. They can and will get bored and move on over time, and even if they don't, other young fans will not be attracted to the Premier League in the way they were.

Secondly, I would imagine the TV revenues require a lot more than just the plastic supporters of each club to watch each game. A Liverpool fan in China might tune in to watch Brighton v Liverpool, but a Man City fan probably won't bother. I used to be somewhat of an armchair Barcelona fan as a teenager and would watch every game of theirs I could, but you wouldn't catch me watching Real Madrid v some unfashionable cannon fodder, to use your term.

The only thing I think the PL has got going over other European leagues is that there are 6 top clubs, who can attract a good neutral audience for each match they play against each other (I make that 15 games over a season, is my maths accurate?) whereas it's not really more than 3 anywhere else.

Likewise I see your point and I accept that armchair Liverpool fans won't want to watch Man U - but I don't think that matters. (I don't watch any PL matches that don't involve Brighton). The piece referenced in the post below articulates my point to a large extent:

There's a follow-up piece today, which looks at a study proving today's (TV) audience now prefers to watch 'stars' entertain them, rather than actual competition:

“The classic notion of a pure sporting contest in which the outcome is unpredictable has been replaced with one in which the preference is for sporting entertainment delivered by superstars,” they wrote. “The unpredictability of the outcome no longer matters for television.”

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/may/20/football-tv-manchester-city-watford-fa-cup-final

And I think armchair fans do pass it down to their children and fans stay loyal the same way Man U fans have done for generations in places like Surrey - although to counter that argument a bit a few years ago I worked as a contractor in an IT department with a load of Indians. Those who were interested in English football (which was most, a sign of the PL's global reach) all supported Man U. However midway through the season one switched to Man City, and explained it by saying "It's still Manchester isn't it?"