Interesting view - what is their advantage over you in "quality" and potential to recruit? I don't see it. They have; good keeper, some midfield skill, poor defence (not quite as leaky as yours), no attacking threat at all (whereas Saints are scoring well). High wage bill, (Barton still on loan @80K a week amongst many others), expensive management team, restless investors.......... Who would you rather be?
I'd much rather be us, but QPR could string together some results if they can find even one striker capable of scoring on a semi-regular basis.
No, we'll stay up. 1- Manager- Even though some fans don't like him anymore, I still think that he is the best young english manager around because he wants to learn, he wants to improve and he is strives for his teams to win and play pretty football, if Cortese sacks him ( I doubt it ) it will be a huge mistake because I think he is a superb manager. 2- Players- Yes, our defence isn't the best, but we've got a great midfield and attack, better than Norwich's, Villa's, Swansea's, Reading's and Wigan's in my opinion anyway. Clyne, Schneiderlin (one of our best players), Lambert, Lallana, Ramirez, Davis, Cork, Rodriguez, Mayuka and Lee that's a pretty good front line there. Davis and Schneiderlin in midfield and Ramirez-Lallana-Mayuka and Lambert/ Rodriguez what a great attack. If we get a good defender and left back in Jan then we will put teams to the sword on our day like we did with Villa. 3-Schneiderlin, I think he has been our best player so far this season.
I voted to get relegated based on today. The most important thing for me is the financial stability of the club. I am amazed that some people really want to take a punt and gamble only three years on from virtual disaster and closure of our club. If I were to be told that the championship is where we will be for the next five years, then so be it, I'll still renew my season ticket. Do I want to stay in the Premier League? Yes I do. But I want to stay a club first.
Out of interest, why is Adkins referred to as the best young English manager around? He is 47 years old and the grey hairs are sprouting (though that may have just happened this season due to Premier League stress).
The solution is to get the balance right. Fans will always scream for investment in players, but we are not in a position to know our financial situation. There is an ongoing cost to signing players (as Pompey sadly know). Better to be relegated in a sound financial position and go again for promotion than to end up in administration. If you forget your history you are doomed to relive it.
Again it's an urban myth concerning their players , they actually sold at a profit , it was the wages that sank them , Redknapp actually bought well but never the truth get in the way of a bullshit story . In 2005 when we went down it was a slow painful death of false dawns , lies and awful purchases , you are correct though it's a balance and we need to push the boat out more as we all know the team/squad is very lightweight , we would lose the bulk of the quality players if we went down as that always happens so it would be a double whammy of relegation and money losses and also the loss of our best players . I fail to see how that is anything other than a complete and utter failure , but we have been here before haven't we ? On a side note , do you believe West Ham will go down this season and do you think their academy will still be as successful as it has been years before ? I ask because I think it will be and they also will not be relegated , buying and investing in youth 50/50 BUT that does not necessarily mean playing 50% youth , a dream an aspiration .
GMI, that's what Fran says in her own comment. Why are you purely re-iterating it as if she got it wrong? She said "there is an ongoing cost to signing players" - that means wages. You then sit and point out wages to Fran...? This point had already been made.
Also you are being hypocritical again. When someone is being optimistic/positive and saying "we will survive or we will buy some good defenders" for example, you start saying how they do not know that. Well once again, you have said "we would lost the bulk of the quality players" and "it would be a double whammy". It's exactly what you're telling other people they cannot say for definite.
But that can be countered by realism over optimism , I would take realism all day long , I get knocked for speculation but others do it and thats what a football forum is about , hearing in what I think is happy munchkin talk of how Nigel is great as a manager and a superb guy is repetitive and also boring to me personally , his self indulgent poems or art of war quotes are ****ing comical to say the least . He is a nice guy no doubt but in my opinion out of his depth and people faux shock when he gets the boot will make me want up vomit . I think I have covered most things there , nothing hypocritical .
Whether being hopeful or being a misery guts is being realistic will not be clear until the end of the season.
You do realise I believe we need to invest? ..... but not "at all costs". You just fail to read, or choose to read what suits your argument and nothing else.
You don't listen or read do you? You take half of someone's opinion and think only black and white; think grey as there is a lot in between. When asked outright, I voted "relegated"; I stated we need to invest in defenders... I have answered the questions posed. Why don't you? You continually write "at all costs"... yet fail to identify "all costs". Until you do, "at all costs" to me will mean spending until we are bankrupt, which will make me think you don't care about the club having a future or that you enjoyed the threat of our club going out of business a few years ago.
I think you are the one being a tad over the top , if you mean that I started Global Thermonuclear Warfare on the World to distract the Premiership into postponing the League and then starting again in 100 years so we could keep our place then "at all costs" is a bit too much , if however you take "at all costs" by spending all the money the League and Sky have given us then us spend it , we did not have it last year did we ? If we failed we could start again , we would lose players but we would be in almost the same position as we were 2 seasons ago when we came up to the Championship , thats worth a price paying in my opinion .
