Mr Angry

Michel Platini has been laying into the G14, actually 18 of the top clubs in Europe, over their plans to sue FIFA in the Belgian courts for the use of their players in international competition.

Platini is on the executive committee of UEFA and is going to run for its presidency next year so its no surprise he has it in for the G14 because they pose a real threat to UEFA over the running of the Champions League, who gets the huge sums of money it generates and the possibility of them setting up a rival league.

Platini says G14 has ‘no legitimacy’ and they must make demands through existing bodies, which they’ve probably done and got no where. When you’re paying players £100,000 per week and they come back from friendlies injured for three or four months no wonder the clubs are pissed, and FIFA and UEFA aren’t paying the medical bills.

It’s easy for Platini to say the clubs ‘are only following the money trail’ but so are FIFA and UEFA and cutting out a lot of the meaningless friendlies that pop up all through the season would be a good way for them to placate the clubs a little.