Champions League struggles towards a finish

UEFA have announced that they intend to have the Champions League final played in Istanbul on Aug 29. I’m sure they are aware that is an ambitious plan but it is not beyond the realms of possibility.Reports suggest that the German Bundesliga is working towards a resumption very soon with some even speculating that it could be as early as the May 9, less than two weeks from now.

Whatever Germany can achieve in the next month or so is likely to serve as at least inspiration for other major leagues to follow and possibly a blueprint for football’s return. It seems clear that any return to action to complete this season will involve matches being played behind closed doors.

Regrettable though that is, it’s still a lot better than cancelling the 2019/2020 season as it stands. As the German league is preparing to play again, the neighbouring Dutch league has already been abandoned. There will be no relegations or promotions in the top two leagues in the Netherlands and no champions declared.

One manager, Cambuur’s Henk de Jong, called it “the biggest disgrace in the history of Dutch sport” after the decision robbed his side of the chance to win promotion to the top division.

He’s right to be upset and it seems to me that cancelling the season at this point is much too early since it’s difficult to know what the situation might be in just a few weeks. In fairness to the Dutch football authorities, their hands were rather forced by the government’s decision to ban major events, including sports events, until September.

If that ban gets extended, it will seriously jeopardise the prospects of Dutch teams playing in European competitions next season.

Such are the complications that UEFA face with the Champions League and the Europa League: many different countries at different stages of their response to the pandemic and making different calls on when and how football should be allowed to be played again.

There’s not much else that UEFA can do other than set dates, be flexible, and hope for the best.

They have shown a willingness to be flexible with the option being left open of playing the quarter final and semi final Champions League ties as one-off games rather than over two legs.

This definitely increases the chances of completing the current season’s Champions League tournament and may add some extra drama and excitement to it as well if such a move gets the go-ahead. Playing behind closed doors will also minimise the home advantage of a scenario like this.

The other thing that UEFA should be congratulated for is showing a bit of patience, unlike the Dutch. Instead of rushing to make binding decisions now (which in the Dutch case will almost certainly lead to legal challenges), they’ve set a path to work towards and made it flexible enough to change as circumstances evolve.

Even with that approach the logistical difficulties faced in trying to complete the Champions League might still prove too much. UEFA also knows that a cut-off point is required in order to try and make sure next season’s tournament can be played without too much disruption.

It’s a delicate balancing act that all leagues face and UEFA’s predicament is more complicated given the number of different countries, authorities, and clubs that they need to coordinate. Completing the Champions League by the end of August will be a minor miracle if they can achieve it.

For now we all continue to wait, but there’s a growing sense that some of the waiting might just be over soon.

Craig Wilkie. Football Writer. Football Coach. Football Fan.

The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of The Star