5 Facts, Findings And Thoughts About Our Europa League Campaign

 

Lets talk about football eh?

1) The only team to beat us in the group was big spending Athletico Madrid. We had an aggregate victory over Rennes and would have took Udinese to extra time if it was the old money knock competition. We are unbeaten in our last 2 European away games.

 

Lot’s of positives to take from the group in which, we seemed to grow as a team and while we sometimes hung on in games for long spells we competed and looked quite decent.

Progress.

 

2) The competition has brought the resurrection of Georgios Samaras. Last night it wasn’t hard to imagine suitors fluttering their eyes towards him. He doesn’t suit the Scottish game. That is a bigger slight on the Scottish game than it is to him.

3) The needs of the team at that level are far more clearer now than the debacle that was Sion. We did need a number of games to find out where this squad really was at.

 

The outcome is that Dan and Cha Dui Ri are done at this level and while our midfield is comfortable up top we lack the quality. Hooper and Stokes are fantastic domestically but we need a ‘beast’ of a lone frontman.

4) 6pm kick off’s don’t work. Imagine an 8pm kick off for the games against Udinese and Athletico? I’m willing to bet 1 point would have ended up as least 4.

5) The final word has to go to the madhouse that is FC Sion. They appealed to and sued everyone (including an appeal to a court in the fantastically named Canton Of Vaud) that they could think of as their chairman Christian Constantin proved he was wired for sound.

They annoyed EUFA and entertained in the process while we benefited from it.

They are the bench mark and a warning of what happens when you get on the wrong side of the governing body.