Baring a huge miracle tonight, it appears that France's UEFA coefficient will sentence teams from Ligue 1 to drop in the Champions League. Meaning the third team in will have another round of games to qualify for the competition. Portugal looks likely to gain in the coefficient race. A large part of this is the fact French teams have done miserably in the Europa League, while teams from Portugal and the likes have done well (Porto holds the title currently). The two teams from France this season could not even get out of the group stages! Losing to the likes of Red Bull Salzbourg.
What is shocking to me, is that clubs from Portugal and even Ukraine have a better run in Europe than those from Ligue 1. The argument that France does not hold on to its best players is also moot since Portuguese teams are always being poached for both their players and coaches! France, similar to Portugal, has become a gate way league - Brazilians via Portugal and African players via France. So why are the French sides in such trouble when it comes to Europe? Being able to consistently place teams into the 1/4 finals of both the Champions League and Europa League should be a priority for Ligue 1, instead it appears to be an unintended consequence when it occurs.
French teams will continue to lose their players if they cannot offer European football. They have been warned.
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