Premier League 2

[rurikbird]

A new ‘Premier League 2’ division will replace Under-21 football this season, with teams now being able to field Under-23 teams instead.

Liverpool will be one of the teams in the inaugural new format, which sees three games played at the club’s senior stadium per season.
Therefore, Liverpool’s home fixtures are yet to be confirmed, due to the ongoing work at Anfield.
Teams will also be able to field three over-age players, plus an over-age goalkeeper.
The Premier League describe PL2 as “a new competition with a greater focus on a level of play in terms of technicality, physicality and intensity to bring players as close to first-team experience as possible.”
There are two divisions, with promotion and relegation between the two adding to the competitive nature of the new league. Liverpool will be one of the 12 teams in division one.
Division 1
Arsenal, Chelsea, Derby County, Everton, Leicester City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Reading, Southampton, Sunderland, Tottenham Hotspur
Division 2
Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Brighton & Hove Albion, Fulham, Middlesbrough, Newcastle United, Norwich City, Swansea City, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers
Liverpool say their opening fixture against Southampton on August 14th is yet to have the venue decided, but the Premier League have the venue listed as being at the Reds’ Academy in Kirkby.
Liverpool PL2 Fixtures

August
Sunday 14 – Southampton (H) 1pm BST, venue TBC.
Monday 22 – Chelsea (A) 7.05pm, at Aldershot Town FC.
Friday 25 – Arsenal (A) 7pm, at Emirates Stadium.
September
Sunday 11 – Leicester City (H) 2pm, venue TBC.
Monday 19 – Tottenham Hotspur (A) 7pm, White Hart Lane.
Sunday 25 – Sunderland (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
October
Monday 17 – Manchester United (A) 7pm, Leigh Sports Village.
Sunday 23 – Everton (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
Saturday 29 – Manchester City (A) 1pm, venue TBC.
November
Sunday 20 – Reading (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
Monday 28 – Derby County (A) 7pm, venue TBC.
December
Sunday 11 – Arsenal (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
January 2017
Monday 9 – Leicester City (A) 7pm, Holmes Park, Leicestershire FA.
Sunday 15 – Manchester United (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
Sunday 29 – Sunderland (A) 12 noon, Eppleton Colliery Welfare Ground.
February
Sunday 5 – Tottenham Hotspur (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
Sunday 19 – Derby County (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
March
Monday 6 – Reading (A) 7pm, venue TBC.
Sunday 12 – Chelsea (H) 1.05pm, venue TBC.
April
Monday 10 – Southampton (A) 7pm, Staplewood Training Ground.
Sunday 23 – Manchester City (H) 1pm, venue TBC.
May
Monday 8 – Everton (A) 7pm, Southport FC.

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This is interesting – will it help our young players develop? I wonder if teams will treat it seriously – if they do this could be actually a very decent competition, given the amount of young talent on the books of the richest clubs.

 

[FoxForceFive]

If the club price this properly, kids tickets for a quid & adults at a fiver or less, this could get a helluva lot of younger fans involved.

 

[6TimesaRed]

It still will be seen as non competitive.. So I don't see much difference to this than the previous set up..

They need to do what they do in Spain and intergrate B teams into the football league

 

[6TimesaRed]

How the feck did Derby end up in Division 1?

Must be something to with the Academy Status or something..

 

[rurikbird]

It still will be seen as non competitive.. So I don't see much difference to this than the previous set up..

They need to do what they do in Spain and intergrate B teams into the football league

I am not sure that's a better way – it undermines the integrity of the lower-league competition and also it's debatable whether it's good for young players to play against physically stronger older pros all the time. I think this sounds like a promising idea with a mix of youth players and up to 3 senior players from each team; I'm curious to see if it will work in practice.

 

[Dreambeliever]

Good concept, hopefully the players and fans take to it.

 

[rurikbird]

The increased diversity of the games programme should help toughen young players up for the demands of first-team football but Roddy refuted the argument that has reared its head again after England's disappointment at the recent European Championship finals in France that academy graduates are made too comfortable.
"Do I think players are soft in this system?” Roddy asked. "No way. These players are trying to create a career for themselves in the hardest league in the world. It's self-evident that our players have got to be among the best players in the world if they’re going to play in it.
"We have got more talent pouring into the league than anywhere else on the planet. We had 67 debuts last year. The pipeline is still there. When we started out people would say there was no English talent, but now people say there is English talent but it needs an opportunity. That is a seismic shift from where we were only four seasons ago."
"This is not university after school for the players," Scudamore added. "This is a first job."
Scudamore also said that the integration of Premier League category one academy graduates into the EFL Trophy should sooth any concerns that supporters of lower-division clubs have for their heritage.
"This is the beginning and the end of B teams - this is it," he said. "That's the whole point of it, to be honest. We are absolutely consistent on our view about no B teams in the regular Football League.
"Yes, of course we know some of our clubs would like B teams. We look abroad and we see the benefit of B teams. It's just for the English football structure and pyramid, it doesn’t work, and so this is it,” he added. “We can console all these worried Football League clubs’ supporters. This isn’t the thin end of the wedge, this is the wedge."

More: http://www.premierleague.com/news/66244

 

[gareth_thomas]

Fan involvement is key. Bigger crowds = increased pressure and enjoyment. I imagine a lot of families would love to regularly attend these games. They just need to be advertised and priced accordingly.

 

[gkmacca]

Fan involvement is key. Bigger crowds = increased pressure and enjoyment. I imagine a lot of families would love to regularly attend these games. They just need to be advertised and priced accordingly.

I think it needs much more than that to improve it. It's good they're trying something, but the old system was wretched. I still think, at that level, they need a proper reserve system, with a mix of ages, so the youngest can start getting used to playing against experienced pros. And there needs to be a change in the attitude of coaches, too - so many, ours included, don't approach the games in a competitive spirit, so the players tend to treat each game as a training session and walk off unaffected even if they get thumped. That's one problem when we try to promote some of them to the first team - they're just not used to playing in games that matter. Yes, you have to work on technique and tactics but you also need to create players who'll fight to win.