UEFA have 'treated us with contempt': Liverpool fans
Liverpool have been “treated with contempt” by UEFA after being forced to play in the first qualifying round of the Champions League.
That is the view of Les Lawson, spokesman for the Liverpool International Supporters’ Club.
He welcomed the European champions’ inclusion in next season’s competition, but criticised European football chiefs.
The club will have to play in the first qualifying stage, with no country protection. That means if they get to the third qualifier they could be drawn against Everton.
Lawson said: “UEFA have been caught with egg on their faces over this because the FA put the first four in the Premiership into next season’s tournament.
“It means UEFA have had to sort it out and they have done the minimum possible. They have treated their own champions with contempt.
“It is a disgrace, Liverpool are the top team in Europe because they are the holders and have beaten Europe’s best. They are being treated like TNS or other very small clubs. To be told they have to start in the first qualifier is wrong and a real kick in the teeth.”
Lawson’s view was echoed by former Liverpool defender Alan Kennedy, who scored the winner in the 1981 final against Real Madrid.
He said: “Coming in at the early stages disregards where Liverpool finished in the Champions League. They won it, so they should be entitled to be in at the third qualifying round.
“I always expected Liverpool to be allowed back, but I did not expect them to be put in at the first stage, That will hamper Liverpool’s chances later in the season with so many more games to play.
“There are six qualifying games now even to get to the group stages, but if Liverpool had finished fourth in the Premiership all this would not have happened.
“There’s a lot of hard work to do and some of the players who won it will not be here. Some have been told they are leaving and it means Rafael Benitez will have to spend probably double what he intended with 55-60 games next season.”
Liverpool will now start the defence of their crown a month before the Premiership starts, with the first leg of the first qualifier on July 12/13, the second leg a week later and the second qualifier on July 26/27 and August 2/3.
The tour to Japan, which clashes with the second qualifier, is now clearly in doubt, although the club could send a shadow squad to the Far East. If they get to the third qualifier the European Super Cup will be a couple of days after the second leg.
Friendlies against Bayer Leverkusen and Cologne, plus the pre-season training camp in Switzerland on July 11, will have to be amended or abandoned.
Lawson added: “We are being treated like nobodies. We are their champions - the best in Europe – and we’ve won it for the fifth time. Only two clubs have better records. We deserve to be treated with some respect and put into the third qualifier.”
Former Liverpool captain and assistant boss Phil Thompson, added: “We are delighted we are back in. It is a great decision for football. It has taken a long time to get to this stage and it has been a big worry. I’m glad they have now made this decision.”
In a Sky Sports interview, he added: “It’s going to be a busy summer and that is the downside. But what Liverpool wanted was to be able to defend their title. We have to come in at the first qualifier – so be it.
“Rafa Benitez may have to have a re-think over his pre-season plans, the training camp and the trip to Japan.
“But it is still fantastic for every Liverpool fan. The players will not object to extra games because if it was a choice between this or playing in the UEFA Cup I know what every player would take.
“Winning the trophy in Istanbul and being able to defend it has put Liverpool in a fantastic light once again.”
Former skipper Phil Neal added: “We are delighted that as holders we are in it. We are in at the first stage and that may mean abandoning a pre-season tour, but so what? We are back in and that is all the matters.
“Benitez is searching to improve his squad. He needed a bigger squad anyway to be able to compete in the Premiership and Europe.
“It is going to make it a long season, with the Super Cup and World Club Championship too, so he will need a bigger squad to handle this.”
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