HibeeJibee Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 In the wake of the Old Firm drawing each other in that League Cup Semi-Final, manager of the national team Gordon Strachan has called for measures to be taken to ensure Rangers - and Hearts & Hibs - are back in the Premiership ASAP. Possibly even for next season. Although he hasn't gone into the detail of what that might entail, it could presumably include a temporary restructuring of the top tier... maybe a move to 14-team Premiership for 1 or 2 seasons... or the temporary introduction of extra promotion/relegation or playoff slots? It surprises me that Strachan would make these comments, given he has previously remained notably circumspect on the whole Rangers and "Armageddon" topics. Interesting to see if the SFA themselves have anything in mind. Thoughts? http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/6054676/Fix-this-mess-Gord-calls-for-big-3-return.html?teaser=true GORDON STRACHAN has insisted we must manipulate the game to ensure Rangers, Hearts and Hibs are ALL back in the top flight next season.The Scotland boss was delighted to see his old club Celtic land Gers in the League Cup semis. Strachan believes Scottish football has missed the Glasgow derby and reckons the Premiership has suffered with three of the country’s top five clubs plying their trade in the Championship. http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/530715/Gordon-Strachan-league-engineering-Rangers-Hibs-Hearts Scotland manager wants to see Rangers, Hibs and Hearts go up - Strachan pleads for league 'engineering' to get Rangers, Hibs and Hearts back to the top GORDON STRACHAN claims Scottish football might need to engineer change to get Rangers, Hearts and Hibs back into the top flight.Speaking on Sky’s ‘Goals on Sunday’ programme, the Scotland boss said getting all three promoted is for the good of the game. This season only one team is certain of climbing up from the Championship. One other team could gain promotion via the play-offs but one club is guaranteed to spend another term in the second tier. Strachan reckons the hype at the impending Old Firm League Cup semi-final shows how much the game has missed the Glasgow derby. And he reckons finding a way to “manipulate” the leagues to get all the big guns back in double-quick time would be a good move. He said: “Somehow we have to get these three teams back. People say you can’t manipulate it, but I think you must to get them back in the Premiership. “Then the game will grow again, with the crowds and money and excitement.” On the Old Firm cup-tie, he said: “The top league has missed Hearts, Hibs and Rangers, so to get that fixture back is fantastic, as all the talk is administration and all the rest of it. “The phone-ins are filled with all these kind of things. We need Rangers back. They were punished and something had to happen but it’s left Scottish football short.” Rangers started again in the bottom tier while Hearts dropped out of the top flight after administration and a 15-point penalty. Hibs’ abject failure last season saw them relegated via the play-offs. SFA and SPFL chiefs may secretly agree with Strachan, but finding a fair way to do it would be hard to do. http://sport.stv.tv/football/298092-strachan-manipulation-could-be-needed-to-get-big-three-back-in-top-flight/ Strachan: Manipulation might be needed to get big three back in top flight Gordon Strachan has admitted that Scottish football might need to "manipulate" Hearts, Hibernian and Rangers back into the top flight for the good of the national game. The three clubs find themselves battling for a route back to the Premiership this season, with the Gorgie club currently occupying top spot in the Championship table. Rangers will now face rivals Celtic for the first time in nearly three years in the Scottish League Cup semi-finals, with Strachan expressing his view that the return of the fixture is a good thing for the sport in the country. "The top league has missed Hearts, Hibs, Rangers, so to get that fixture back is fantastic, because all we talk about is administration and all the rest of it in Scotland," the Scotland boss said on Goals on Sunday. "The phone-ins are filled with all these kind of things. We need Rangers back. They were punished and something had to happen but it's left Scottish football short." Interest in the second-tier has subsequently been high this term, as three teams fight for a maximum of two promotion places, with top spot in the Championship going up automatically while the second, third and fourth placed teams contest a playoff with the Premiership's second bottom-placed side. "Somehow we have to get these three teams back," Strachan continued. "People say you can't manipulate it, but I think you have to to get them back in (the Premiership). "Then the game will grow again, with the crowds and a bit of money, and excitement." Financial meltdown at Ibrox meant Rangers started the 2012/13 season in the bottom tier of Scottish football, with Ally McCoist's side since winning back-to-back promotions to rise through the league pyramid. Hearts were docked 15 points for entering administration in June 2013, subsequently suffering relegation from the Premiership, with Edinburgh rivals Hibernian joining them after defeat to Hamilton in the playoffs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dee Man Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 f**k that. I read a piece by Iain King yesterday saying it was a mistake to "put Rangers down"(!) to the bottom tier. He reckons the best option "for Scottish football" would've been to have them in the Championship. I know this is covering old ground but why would a new entity have the right to be promoted up through the leagues? These folk just don't get it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainkev Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 It's a nice wee reminder that despite all the goodwill Strachan has built up since he begun turning things around for the national side he's still a bit of an arse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casual Bystander Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 The Scottish Sun. That says all that needs to be said about this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrif John Bunnell Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Idiotic comments from Strachan really. I doubt he would have made those comments if he was speaking with a Scottish media outlet. His current universal approval rating amongst Scotland fans should see him dodge too much flak over this. That might change with poor results against Southern Ireland and Southern Britain though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross. Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Strachan would have been better not commenting on it. The clubs are where they are on merit. If they are good enough, they will be back in the top league when they deserve to be. If they are not good enough then it will only serve to weaken the game if they are promoted by default. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HibeeJibee Posted November 3, 2014 Author Share Posted November 3, 2014 The Scottish Sun. That says all that needs to be said about this. Tbf, I just quoted the first 3 articles which came up with an online search, as sources. He made the comments on Sky Sports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7-2 Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 A high profile SFA employee wants the leagues manipulated to ensure that 2nd Division Rangers, currently on course not to gain automatic promotion, and, oh yes, of course, Hearts and Hibs too, can play in the top division? I am astounded that Campbell Ogilive and his fellow Hampden suits would even consider such a thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casual Bystander Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Tbf, I just quoted the first 3 articles which came up with an online search, as sources. He made the comments on Sky Sports. You've edited that, you initially only had the Sun quoted. Equally I'll amend my comments to refer to the media in general who would publish a 10 page pullout if they could find two bum fighting in Old Firm tops. Classic sensationalist bullshit. Strachan should really shut the f**k up as he's earned the support of the fans for his work with the national team, but this sort of "big team" rhetoric only makes people think he's a c**t. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swello Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 The irony is that through all the madness of the past few years, we actually have a decent 4 division setup now - the addition of playoffs to the Premiership (I wish we could manipulate these division names to f**k) was the missing piece and so for the first time in ages - we shouldn't be even thinking about touching anything other than giving Doncaster his P45 for singularly failing to get a headline sponsor. The weird thing about Strachan's comments are the timing really. The (the) Rangers scenario has almost played itself out now - they've been through the bottom two tiers and are a stick on for the play-offs at least and will likely be back next year anyway after rightly serving their punishment, along with Hearts you'd imagine. That will probably leave us with only 1 of the "big" clubs in the Championship next season and as we've lived quite happily with teams like Hibs and Utd being relegated in the past - it's not a big deal. It's revealing that some people in the game and in the media miss the OF games more than others.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casual Bystander Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Anyone want to guess on the number of Scottish based players that played in Scotland's last game? I'll give you a clue. It's not more than 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunning1874 Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Interested to see how this works after Hibs finish seventh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRob72 Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Anyone want to guess on the number of Scottish based players that played in Scotland's last game? I'll give you a clue. It's not more than 1. Good to see you back CB, I thought you'd gone and done a 'Confi' on us!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weirdcal Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 arrrgh my life is incomplete without the newco team being in the top flight or last seasons poorest two teams being there.. damn those teams for not going bust / getting more points. how dare they compete with each other. ^ can i get a job at the SFA, i promise to do exactly as the title says SFA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williemillersmoustache Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Hibs would still f**k it up manipulation or not and end up in League 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ONeils40yarder Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 The establishment are clearing the way for league reconstruction already to ensure that 'Lanarkshires Premier Club' are given safe passage to remain in the top-tier. Strachan is merely a patsy on this occasion. Its quite comical that these 'big' city Clubs can plunder down the leagues but a wee diddy mob like Motherwell are regarded as too big to go down by the footballing authorities. 16 team league next season and Motherwell to remain in the Premier League, whether we finish bottom or not. Watch this space, you heard it here 1st. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moo Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Ginger p***k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1320Lichtie Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Wasnt happy to see him say this after all the good work he has done with the national team, still love the guy but he should keep his mouth shut if he is going to haver pish like that. Teams are where they are on merit and you cannot go manipulating league structures purely because you think some clubs are to big not to be in the Prem, thats not how football works and its insulting to the teams like Hamilton who have went up at the expense of Hibs after playing them off the park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lodmoorhill Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Way to go Strachan. In fact why don't we just disband all the diddy teams so that the ugly sisters can mutually w**k each other off every week? I had a lot of respect for Strachan until now. What a tube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrif John Bunnell Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Hibs would need some kind of Italian FA special to be manipulated back into the Premiership. I remember the current incarnation of Fiorentina being allowed to skip an entire division on their way to Serie A. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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