‘Why Europa League Winners Should NOT Qualify For The Champions League’- Manager Arsene Wenger

Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger, has frowned at the fact that Europa League winners, are given an automatic Champions League place.

Manchester United finished sixth last year, but will be playing with Europe’s elite, after beating Ajax 2-0 in the Europa League final in May.

“I was always against it,” Wenger said.

“Because apart from Man United, who did win the Europa League, all the years before it was always a team who was kicked out of the Champions League by having been kicked out of it before.

“You cannot go into the season and think that (you will get into the Champions League by winning the Europa League).

“I always was not in favour of that, because I think at some stage it can influence on the championship, because if a team is in April in a position where they have more chance to win the Europa League they can let some games go in the championship, and not completely focus on that, on the regularity of the competition.

“I will always play a team that has a good chance to win the next game. In the Europa League if we can afford sometimes to rest some players we will do it.

“But we have to adapt to the level of the competition and see first what kind of group we play in.”