I think the answer will come not so much in where we finish this season (although we ought to be really disappointed with anything less than a top 10 finish) but more what we do in the summer transfer window. If we sell and buy well and are able to attract quality to the squad then we really ought to be able to say how far we have come. I am not saying we should never sell any of the "targets" for other clubs but we ought not to let them go unless and until we have quality lined up to replace them - if we lose Henderson/Gyan/Flash we need quality in to fill the gaps - these are really important players for us and we have to replace with talent not mediocrity. There is always an argument that if a player wants away then let him go, we can`t afford to lose him on a Bosman - the answer is though, surely, that depends on how important they are to us as a player - if they stay and we finish 2 or 3 places higher as a result what does that mean in terms of PL cash. I like SB,, love what he is doing with the squad but this close season is the real test for him. Anyway - am I safe in assuming we`re not going down yet??
To answer your last question Cyprus I believe that our expectations ARE higher than our current achievements and that we should NOT change them. Yes we can go toe to toe with the "top" clubs, isn’t it therefore realistic to do the same against the "lesser" teams?
How far? When we play well and get points from the top teams, it appears that the regular excuses like 'they' had a bad game and no longer said -we even get credit these days vis-a-vis Chelsea and Arsenal away
its not consistent enough Myrtle, still got the usual Arsenal/ref had a bad day **** at the weekend from many quarters
