The away goals rule - do you think it is fair?

H

Herro You

New member
This morning (or last night) Valencia was leading Dynamo Kiev 2-1 at the Mestalla, holding a 3-2 lead on aggregate, having drawn the first leg 1-1.  So, we see that Valencia is holding a winning position.  However, with 15 minutes left, Diev scored, and all of a sudden Valencia are losing.  My issue with this is that it is not in the spirit of football to instantly go from a winning position to a losing one.  Goals count for one - this isn't Rugby, or American football etc.  To me, it just doesn't seem right.  Away goals are just as bad as the infamous "golden" or "silver" goal debacles that were eventually abolished.  They are an artificial way of ending a game that detaches from the traditional conventions of football.

I also remember 2 seasons ago in Germany - Nuernburg had lost the first leg of the German FA Cup (semi or quarter, cannot remember) 1-0.  Fast forward to the second leg and they are winning 2-0.  In the very last minute, their opponents score ONE measly goal, and all of a sudden knock Nuernberg out of the cup.  So, you go from leading 2-0, and 2-1 on aggregate, to losing the tie, despite that fact that you dominate the game and win it comfortably. 

What does everyone else think?  Should away goals be abolished?
 
I know to some this may NOT seem fair but i think its fair, scoring goal away is harder than scoring a goal at home
 
Merengues said:
I know to some this may NOT seem fair but i think its fair, scoring goal away is harder than scoring a goal at home
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I don't think that is relevant.  The whole point of having strong support at home is to gain an advantage!  Its just ridiculous. 

By the way, it is debatable, since it seems these days that most ties are actually decided on away goals.
 
Herro You said:
I don't think that is relevant.  The whole point of having strong support at home is to gain an advantage!  Its just ridiculous. 

By the way, it is debatable, since it seems these days that most ties are actually decided on away goals.
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The strong support you get at home makes you a harder team to beat, you have thousands and thousands of people cheering for you, the opposing teams will be intimidated by that thus for not putting in a good game, but i understand your point of view as well, Madrid have been knocked out of many competitions by that Illustrious AWAY goals rule lol
 
i think its unfair esp when the team that loses is playing better, as soon as the opposition score the away goal they tend to sit behind the ball and defend for the remaining time left...but im surere sooner or later they will abolish this rule as well (I hope!)
 
Merengues said:
The strong support you get at home makes you a harder team to beat, you have thousands and thousands of people cheering for you, the opposing teams will be intimidated by that thus for not putting in a good game, but i understand your point of view as well, Madrid have been knocked out of many competitions by that Illustrious AWAY goals rule lol
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I know, that is the whole point of being the HOME TEAM - to get an advantage!  Both teams have a chance to be at home, thus both having the same advantage.  I mean, its like Lyon playing Barca and Lyon's goals counting as double because Barca has an advantage in having Messi in their team - see what I mean? 

Being stronger at home is the very essence of football - look at Liverpool in the 70s - teams and players were petrified at the very mention of Anfield.  If they had away goals back then it would have been a whole different story.
 
shamoosey said:
i think its unfair esp when the team that loses is playing better, as soon as the opposition score the away goal they tend to sit behind the ball and defend for the remaining time left...but im surere sooner or later they will abolish this rule as well (I hope!)
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And if there was no away goal rule? They would just sit back and defend from kick off, waiting for the return leg to play properly at home. You see that now in Europe. Teams are generally more defensive away from home. The away goal rule is meant to give away teams an incentive to score. Thats how it works. I think its fair. The only way a football game could be decided on one scoreline would be if the teams played at neutral venues with equal seat allocations. That is what you see in cup finals - hence no return leg or away goal rule. If they scrapped the away goal rule, you would LOADS of penalty shoot outs, and while they are dramatic, I prefer watching a football game.

It is also why, in the league, teams play everyone home and away, to make it as fair as possible. You'll say why isn't the rule implemented here then? Well, that would be very impractical wouldn't it? After all, if you want to win the league, you have to win your away games too.
 
Well, we saw in the Inter v Man Utd game that Mourinho's tactics were to sit back and defend and keep a clean sheet - he knows that when they go to Old Trafford, all they need is one goal and it is all but over, whereas if they went for a win at home, and conceded a goal, it would be Manchester's tie to lose.  So see what its done - its actually reduced the incentive to score at home, and shifted it onto playing away.  I don't care about the tactics team play - if they set out to play for a 0-0 draw then so be it, its football and it will lead to negative publicity, unpopularity amongst the fans etc and the club will not benefit in the long run.

As I said, football doesn't need an artificial rule or scoring system like the other sports to boost excitement.  If a 0-0 draw suits MY team's opposition, then the onus is on MY team to circumvent that.  Defending is an art form just as much as good attacking play is (this, coming from a striker/winger) and is just as much part of the game as scoring goals.
 
MJaY said:
And if there was no away goal rule? They would just sit back and defend from kick off, waiting for the return leg to play properly at home. You see that now in Europe. Teams are generally more defensive away from home. The away goal rule is meant to give away teams an incentive to score. Thats how it works. I think its fair. The only way a football game could be decided on one scoreline would be if the teams played at neutral venues with equal seat allocations. That is what you see in cup finals - hence no return leg or away goal rule. If they scrapped the away goal rule, you would LOADS of penalty shoot outs, and while they are dramatic, I prefer watching a football game.

It is also why, in the league, teams play everyone home and away, to make it as fair as possible. You'll say why isn't the rule implemented here then? Well, that would be very impractical wouldn't it? After all, if you want to win the league, you have to win your away games too.
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i see what you mean but i still think its unfair to decide if a team goes through because they scored away, im sure we have all been peed off when our team gets knocked out because the other team scored away but hey im sure it will not be, not any time soon anyway :mrgreen:
 
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