København manager off base

Leading into Wednesdays UEFA Cup match between F.C. København and Manchester City, Løverne manager, Ståle Solbakken posed some heated comments towards the English Premier League side.

Speaking to Ekstra-Bladet said:

"The amounts of money that has been mentioned are incredible

"I think that such incredible sums will take part in destroying football."

"They are creating too big a mental distance between what we call reality and then Manchester City.

"The hardest part for City is that they, by tradition, are not a big football club and therefore all the money in the world does not make a difference for them."

"They brought in Wayne Bridge even though he is only marginally better than what they had already and that says how hard it is to get the best players even though you have lots of money."

With the respect for the long-time Norwegian international Man City is not "destroying Football" nor is even a link in the long chain of the games emergence into a worldwide business vehicle. While I don't dispute his concerns that are based upon a wide variation of clubs underlying financial strength, the beautiful game became a business vehicle long ago my friend and one of the reasons these clubs are meeting on the international stage.