UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has stated his belief that the current one-legged knock-out format of the Champions League's quarter finals and semi-finals should be considered as a full-time fixture in the competition as it is, in his opinion, “more interesting”
Are one-legged knockout matches the future? Is hosting a mini-tournament at the end of every season a viable option? Let us discuss the possible options -
Advantages of one-legged knockout ties
The main advantage of a one-legged tie is that it makes the competition unpredictable. How many of us would have predicted that Paris Saint Germain would make the final, RB Leipzig, Lyon would reach the semi-finals? Probably, not many. Manchester City may not have lost to Lyon if the game was played over two legs. For underdogs to win a two-legged tie, it would take a lot of effort. But for them to win one game, it is much easier.
Advantages of two-legged knockout ties
The home and away games have been a feature of European competitions so far. It increases excitement and most importantly, mistakes made in the first leg can be accounted for in the second leg. Moreover, more matches means more money for UEFA and more action for us fans.
Mini-tournament at the end of each season?
The idea was well accepted this season. But players would not be in a condition to play a mini tournament at the end of each season. It could only be done in emergency situations. So, mini tournament isn't really feasible.
Our opinion
Two-legged ties have provided some epic encounters such as PSG vs Barcelona or Real Madrid vs Wolfsburg or maybe Liverpool vs Barcelona and many many more. These ties were a treat to watch. Although we would like to see the unpredictability factor, it is , according to us, not as exciting as two-legged ties.
If we could tweak one rule, we would modify the away goals rule. The change would be - In the second leg of a tie, when the scores are level after 90 minutes, the away goals rule should not apply. Let us take an example- Liverpool played Atletico Madrid in the Round of 16. The second leg at Anfield went to extra time. So, Liverpool got 90 minutes to score at the Wanda Metropolitano, while Atletico got 120 minutes to score away goals. That isn’t really fair. The system would be near-perfect if this change is made.
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