Villa, Wolves, Leeds and Brighton are doing ok. Burnley have had a great run at it, and have assets to show should they drop out this season. West Brom have done ok over the years. Sheff Utd 1 season wonders. Surely we have to dare to dream again? To see our club be the very best it can be. It's a big ask, but who knows.
And the captain of the Scottish national team as well as being a star for the European & English Premier league champs. Not a bad hand to hold ? They proved themselves once they arrived at their new clubs. Done very well, all of them.Why would the money men take a great financial risk on 4 players who were not in Messi's or Ronaldo's proven class ? Ask for more and they may not have been transferred. Prudent trading on both ends of each deal.
I agree with you. For me, the enjoyment came from seeing a team performing well and giving the fans something to cheer for. Being in the Premier League felt a lot less satisfying for me because the pressure on the lads came from so many different angles. In that last season, there were so many factors as to why we were going to struggle (which makes our start all the more impressive), but a lot of media outlets and pundits didn't really account for that. We were never going to win the PL so I ask myself, is finishing 16th/17th a prize worth singing about as a fan? Sure, it makes the club money, but what does it do for the fans? Nothing. I'd rather be challenging in the Championship or League One for a title than being PL also-rans every year. Now we are off the radar, it feels more enjoyable again. We aren't being linked with loads of names anymore, we are just doing our own thing and that feels much, much better.
Ehab probably got his idea from Polo, what he is doing with players is very similar to what you do in a stud farm with horses. You buy them young, train and develop them and sell them, hopefully for a profit I just hope he doesn't go to the lengths to check their bloodline like is done with horses.
Why not aspire to be top end of Championship / (realistically) bottom half of PL? And to 'do it properly'. Use the money to build an infrastructure that lasts, and maybe one day establish ourselves as a mid-table PL club? Sorry but I don't want to settle for seeing my club challenging for a L1 title.
I don't disagree with either of you, but I just find the reward a poisoned chalice. Unless there's a total rehash of the Prem, which isn't going to happen, it's just something I'll have to live with. In the meantime, I can enjoy the here and now.
I thought the plan was to get to the transfer window and then sell anyone we get an offer for........
I would prefer us to be a yoyo club in the Championship/Premier League than League 1/Championship. That said, League One football is not a disappointment, so far.
I found our time in the Premier League immensely frustrating at times, elating at others. Some of those frustrations were down to how the PL is configured, others were down to the self-harm inflicted by our owners (plural, Bartlett/Duffen and Allam). That said, some of my greatest City memories came in the PL (Arsenal 2008, Cardiff 2014, Swansea 2016, Liverpool 2017). In summary, I want Hull City to alternate between winning the Championship play off final in odd numbered years, then finishing tenth in the PL and being relegated for pro-supporter irregularities in even numbered years!
I find the football itself almost as enjoyable to watch in whatever league we're in. What makes the higher leagues a better experience is the bigger crowds, generating a better atmosphere. Not just now obvs...
Nah, you're seeing it already, several PL clubs are already the starting gate for a breakaway, the football landscape is ripe for change, and that means the end of the PL as we currently know it. For now, it's going to be better to be a Championship/L1 side with a nucleus of homegrown young players and a smattering of experience, which is what we currently have. Besides, it's still a position from which we can laugh at Scunthorpe and Grimsby.
Whatever the plan was, or is, Terry accepted the gig and screwed up big time, albeit he wasn't helped by Ehab which comes as a surprise to no one! At face value in recent seasons since 2008 we've had some absolutely brilliant days when we surpassed what I ever thought we may achieve as a club. Seeing City play in The Prem, the promotions, watching City in China, fantastic memories! That said what have to show now for all the revenue we secured in those heady days, not a lot. That for me is gross mismanagement! We are very much back almost to the days which began just before we moved to The KC when Peter Taylor was in charge, a young team with some experience on the verge of positive days ahead on the pitch. Ehab has achieved financial stability, but at what cost? As for Terry, until he rights his wrongs of last season and gets us back into the Championship, I'm still not convinced. Whatever this season holds, let's hope we can get back in the stadium soon and support the lads!
Honeyman alluded to stuff behind the scenes pre-match that won't have helped and probably contributed to gutless form post lockdown, but I agree McCann had enough in the squad and points already on board from January to March to eek out survival. He clearly isn't blameless but there's clearly been behind the scenes stuff we're only partially aware of. He did very little wrong the first half of last season and done very little wrong so far this season, so it's reasonable to assume there's stuff went on behind closed doors.
