More Ibrox Feel-Good European Football Lies Come To The Fore In Dodgy Internet Graph.

You might have seen this one going around; that the Ibrox club is third on a list of co-efficient points garnered by teams in Europe over the last five years. And I don’t know exactly how that data was extrapolated, but the spin being put on it, that it’s a representation of which clubs have the highest standing in terms of their continental endeavours is plainly utterly ridiculous.

“(The Ibrox club rank among Europe’s elite for their performances in Europe in recent seasons, it has been revealed,” writes Aiden Smith from The Evening Times. It’s a lie. It’s a joke, in fact, and how anyone could possibly believe that I do not know.

But he cites a graph put together by a site called Swiss Football Data, which does indeed rank them third in its particular table … but that table does not represent what Smith is trying to suggest that it does.

It’s something to do with national co-efficient points, it is not related to club’s overall scores although that’s how we’re being asked to look at it and read it.

But for God’s sake, you only have to glance at the thing to see who is in fifth place to understand just how ridiculous what we’re being encouraged to believe actually is; it’s Real Madrid, and if you’re sitting there thinking “how can Ibrox possibly have more UEFA co-efficient points in the last five years than a team who actually won the Champions League in that time?” then you’re at least on the right track because of course, that’s insane.

According to UEFA, Madrid’s co-efficient score overall puts them third in Europe, not the club from Ibrox.

Only Manchester City and Bayern Munich rank higher.

The Ibrox club is on the European list, but they are 27th behind Shakhtar Donetsk, West Ham and of course, Eintracht Frankfurt. Feyenoord are only just behind them.

And yeah, we’re miles off it on that list which is shameful, as we’re down in an appalling 55th position, which to be frank is a disgrace which our board should be thoroughly mortified by, but at least we’re willing to confront the reality of this and not indulge in preposterous exercises like this one in spin and fantasy football.

The media in this country is an embarrassment on days like this.

Imagine presenting information like that which suggests that the team which last season had the worst Champions League Group Stage record in the history of the tournament is outperforming Real Madrid …

I mean that’s just toe curling awful, that makes the whole journalistic class up here look stupid.