So here is the thing, it’s not the NFL. And while the Americanization of European sport is happening, it’s completely unnecessary here. NFL (regular season) schedule is not a good comparison because it’s not seeded. UCL is seeded. What’s the point of finishing in Pot 1 if a Pot 4 team is going to get an easier schedule? It makes no sense. For example, Aston Villa got the easiest fixtures compared to the three English teams that finished in higher pots than them. That’s simply should not be happening in a seeded draw. Combining that with the extra games and an extra round for all but eight of the advancing teams, this is not an improvement
Yeah it could certainly be tweaked for next year; for example maybe if you finish Pot 1 you get an extra Pot 4 opponent and one less Pot 2 opponent; but the whole thing is such a cash grab that UEFA/club owners/etc would probably not want to sacrifice and extra high profile game for an easier game. That’s why this is bad. And the fact that the change was unnecessary in the first place