Football
19y

COLUMN-Soccer-Parma's reserves raise questions about UEFA Cup

By Simon Evans

MILAN, April 29 - A mixture of reserves and youth
team players performing in front of a crowd of just over 7,000:
that was the scene for Thursday's UEFA Cup semi-final, first-leg
between Italian club Parma and Russians CSKA Moscow.

What has happened to a tournament which for decades was
considered one of the top competitions in the sport?

When it began in 1971-72, as the successor tournament to the
Inter City Fairs Cup, the UEFA Cup was clearly the "number two"
trophy on offer in European football behind the European Cup
then reserved solely for the champions of each domestic league
in Europe.

When UEFA changed the format of the European Cup from
1992-93 with the birth of the Champions League, the second
trophy continued to enjoy some popularity due to its more
traditional knock-out structure.

The decision to end the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1999
and allow the winners of national cup competitions to enter the
UEFA Cup also strengthened the competitions status.

But as the Champions League has expanded, now featuring a
32-team group stage, the UEFA Cup has faded further into the
background.

The crucial factor is that instead of just the champions of
powerhouse nations, such as England, Italy and Spain, entering
the Champions League, the top four clubs from those countries
are handed a place in the premier tournament inevitably
weakening the field for the UEFA Cup.

UNUSUAL POSITION

Enter Parma -- a team in the unusual position of fighting a
relegation battle while in the last four of a European
competition. No team has ever achieved that particular double -
relegation and a European trophy in the same season.

Parma finished fifth in Serie A last season but this year
have struggled and are still heavily involved in trying to avoid
the drop to Serie B.

As coach Pietro Carmignani said after his weakened team
played out a dull goalless draw with CSKA "Serie A is our
priority".

It is hard to criticise Parma for putting the long-term
future of their club before that of the chance of glory in
Europe.

Since they lost the backing of the financially troubled
local firm Parmalat, Parma have had to cope with limited
resources and they are likely to be put up for sale during the
close season.

Given their record of qualifying for European competition
for each of the last 13 years, during which they have won the
UEFA Cup twice, Parma, a club with an excellent youth system,
look an attractive buy.

But if they were to become a Serie B club with few assets
their future would be highly uncertain and they could face the
real risk of returning to where they were for most of their
history -- the lower divisions.

Carmignani believes it is not worth risking an injury to
their top scorer Alberto Gilardino which could hamper their
chances of that vital Serie A survival.

DEVALUES COMPETITION
But Parma's approach does devalue the competition. England's
League Cup -- and even the FA Cup -- are examples of how a Cup
can be devalued by teams opting to play weakened line-ups and
UEFA will surely be worried about other clubs prioritising other
competitions.

There are many clubs that still find the UEFA Cup a
prestigious competition.

Central and Eastern European clubs and teams from
Scandinavia, with little chance of progress in the Champions
League, relish the chance to take on clubs from the big leagues
in the western half of the continent.

In the major leagues, clubs like English side Middlesbrough,
who had a full house for their tie with Lazio earlier in the
competition, clearly enjoyed a rare taste of European
competition.

There are plenty of teams who, with little chance of
Champions League glory, would lap up the added glamour of
international competition.

But it is not only Parma who have opted to put a greater
focus on domestic action -- another Italian club Lazio,
disappointed not to be in the Champions League, also fielded
second string players in their UEFA Cup games this season.

For the elite clubs a place in the UEFA Cup would represent
failure and they might be tempted to follow those examples and
keep their best players for the domestic title race.

It might be better for the UEFA Cup if, in such
circumstances, those clubs decided not to take a place in the
competition at all -- and left it for those who would enjoy it
more.

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