That's different DH I just don't like seeing City buying the league, for me anything is better then that except Chelsea. What is going on elsewhere does not affect my enjoyment or otherwise of a Spurs game. There is an interest if it's a points/position rival but otherwise no.
I am not surrounded by Spurs fans in my armchair. Although having said that I am virtually and we are having this conversation so even that is changing
I can understand (but disagree with) fans who'd want to lose a game of little consequence in order to stop Arsenal winning the league. What surprised was how many fans who said they'd happily throw a CL place in order to achieve the same outcome. Seems a bit like cutting off your nose to spite your face.
I also can't wrap my head around the pre City narrative that Arsenal would have won the league "because" of Spurs. That's far too simplistic. Had it happened, Arsenal would have won the league because they were superior to City across 38 games, of which our game against City was just one. Even if we'd beaten City, the argument could just as easily be made that Arsenal won the league "because" they beat us at home a few weeks earlier, or that they won the league "because" we took points off City at the Emptyhad. So either way, we could have been "blamed" for Arsenal winning the league. There's no logic to it.
They had a slump in form over the (notoriously testing) mid dec-jan period. Which coincided with Citeh going into hyper-drive. A manager with nous will take due note of this fact.
To throw a CL place we’d have had to have it. Though if we did throw it, it was thrown well before City. All we ended up cutting was Arsenal’s chances of winning the league, and even then to say “we” feels like a stretch as if we actually could’ve affected anything, we lost at home to the best side in Europe. We’d lost to considerably poorer teams at home prior to that.
because realistically, you would expect arsenal to beat everton at home and you guys beating city in the penultimate game would be pivotal and effectively put arsenal in the driving seat to win. Yes the 36 games before that play a part but its the finale that counts. It's like when John Terry slipped over and missed the winning penalty, of course people laugh at him as it was his fault and rightly so but actually, going through the argument chelsea should have maybe won it beforehand, anelka could have banged his in, cech could have made his saves so how does Terry get the blame. Of course he does and it's just a footie banter narrative
I was simply making the observation that a number of fans were quite clear that even if they could gaze into a crystal ball and see Villa dropping points to both Pool and Palace, they'd still prefer us to lose to City.
I think it's more human cognitive bias and down to our tendency to simplify things and reduce them to singular and therefore more manageable events or phenomena rather than taking the time and effort to understand the bigger picture. We do it the whole time in education, politics and relationships, why would sport be any different? But yes, when it came to Terry slipping I will make an exception. That was divine retribution on account of him being John Terry, Supreme Bellend and Captain of Scum.
That 'slump' consisted of three defeats. The first of which arguably isn't even that bad on paper. Villa (A) West Ham (H) Fulham (A) Just goes to show how impossibly fine the margins of error are at the very top of the summit. One wrong step and you're done.
Of course theres a bigger picture to it all. Lets say your match against City was the final match and not the 2nd to last, where a City draw and an Arsenal win makes them title winners, would you object to the headline of you guys gifting arsenal the title even though theres a few permutations in there but ultimately spurs taking points off of city?
He’s ott and annoying but the bigger fish to fry thing to Robbie always makes me laugh and first thing I thought off when I read your comment
If there was a chance of us improving our standing, such as CL qualification, I would want us to win. If the match was inconsequential to our own season, it wouldn't bother me nearly as much as it would other fans if we won anyway and 'handed' Arsenal the title. I certainly wouldn't want us to throw the game as some were suggesting we should prior to the City game. In fact, the eventual result against City was probably the best outcome to satisfy all fans. We played really, really well - probably our best performance since beating Villa 4-0, but lost anyway. So pride survived intact and so did banter.
Of course the ideal outcome for banter would have been beating City, and then results on the final day putting us in the CL and Arsenal still not winning the League. Audere est facere
City went four games without a win in November/December including the 3-3 draw with Spurs and 4-4 draw with Chelsea. That was the big opportunity for another challenger to take advantage, but nobody did. It was a rare chance, not seen previously. Arsenal got 89 points and it should have been enough. But they dropped points when it mattered - notably at the end of December. I don’t that by the time Spurs played City at home, the die was cast and whatever chance might have presented itself in December had long gone.
Just heard a prediction for next seasons top 8. 1.Arsenal 2,Man City 3.Liverpool 4.Chelsea 5.Man United 6.Newcastle 7.Villa 8.Spurs We've been written off. That's always good.
