Greg Clarke has surrendered the FA's moral authority to lead football

Moral authority? The FA? Seems to me it 'd be hard to lose something you never had.

Very sad that our once mighty game is in the hands of a bunch of money-grabbing, self-effacing scumbags.

I'm afraid that they will probably succeed as they will have greased the palms of anybody who can stand in their way, ie, the Government.

Self-effacing Phil?

Funny you mention that, Geoff.

I looked at that a couple of times, thinking... "Hmm, is Phil really meaning that as some form of despicableness of which I am unaware?"

I did have to check the definition to make sure. I think he must have been looking for something a little stronger.

self-serving? Or maybe he meant they are humble and modest about their skills as scum bags? As opposed to say Raiola who boasts about skullduggery?

The final paragraph of the Guardian article seems to take the heat off Parry and the owners of Manchester United and Liverpool, because it says that it was the FA Chairman himself who initiated the talks with those clubs, but why? Why did he only choose to speak to those two clubs? Why did he believe that the other members of the Premier League, should be kept in the dark?

Obviously the FA has been aware of the threats of Manchester United and Liverpool to restructure the share out of TV money etc and it explains why the lap-dog approach of the FA towards those two clubs for the last two decades has diluted its power to govern for the good of the game.

I actually believe that, post-pandemic, we'll see a Premier League One and Two, with a European Super League alongside it, which will be very difficult if not impossible to access. I also believe that it will only be a matter of time until this 'super league' will occupy the weekend TV schedules and the domestic matches will mostly be played on weekdays.

It was such a clear story, the big bad US billionaires backroom plotting with Parry, the original Premier League breakaway architect, to carve up English football to their own advantage, the redistribution to the EFL mostly viewed with total cynicism. The reality turned out to be that the FA chairman initiated and worked on the plans throughout, then sprinted away when they leaked, leaving his invitees to be attacked. That was where our most senior English football man ended up, with his “Big Picture” bid to reclaim the game and the “moral authority” of its historic governing body.

Just another cheap crook.

Greg Clarke: “I was involved early on then walked away” is a bit like Rudolf Hess “Yeah, I was at Nuremberg, I pushed Hitler to become a fascist psychopath, but I did eventually walk away, so really I'm the good guy here.”

Being “involved” is far removed from initiating the whole plot.