Tuesday, November 2, 2010

UEFA Champions League is no match for the FIFA World Cup


If you're looking for the best soccer action, look no further than the UEFA Champions League.

From Jose Mourinho to Sir Alex Ferguson, there hasn't been many arguments against their claims that the standard of play in the Champions League is superior to what we see once every four years in the FIFA World Cup.

Ferguson recently was interviewed in the Guardian, and he comments on how the UEFA Champions League has overtaken the World Cup as the biggest tournament on the planet.

"Have you seen the last six World Cups? Christ, you'd be better going to the dentist's."

Ferguson guided Man United to the Champions League trophy in 1999 and 2008. A perception has grown that the group stages of the competition can be predictable, even mundane at times -- there was something distinctly low-key about United's arrival in the mountains of northwest Turkey to face Bursaspor -- but Ferguson argued that the competition does not need a change in format.

Ferguson did acknowledge that it is not until the knockout stages of the competition that it tournament truly comes to life.

"It's a natural thing, the same as the Premier League," he said. "The fact is you won't get the same crowd or attention or drama if you saw Arsenal, for example, playing against one of the smaller teams rather than playing United. It's the same in Europe but, in my mind, this is the best competition in the world now – better than the World Cup. Yes, you have to get through the group stages before you get to the stage where it gets really exciting but it's still a fantastic tournament."

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