When was the last time we played any of this lot? AZ Alkmaar (Holland) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/nether...hting-az/1516/ FC Basel (Swizerland) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/switze...fc-basel/2174/ Benfica (Portugal) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/portugal/benfica/1679/ Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/german...frankfurt/979/ Fiorentina (Italy) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/italy/...orentina/1259/ Genk (Belgium) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/belgium/krc-genk/228/ Ludogorets Razgrad (Bulgaria) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/bulgaria/fk-razgrad-2000/ Olympique Lyonnais (France) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/france...-lyonnais/884/ Napoli (Italy) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/italy/ssc-napoli/1270/ Rubin Kazan (Russia) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/russia/rubin-kazan/1852/ Salzburg (Austria) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/austri...-salzburg/165/ Sevilla (Spain) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/spain/...bol-club/2021/ Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/ukrain...-donetsk/2254/ Trabzonspor (Turkey) - http://uk.soccerway.com/teams/turkey/trabzonspor/2213/
'the media could not get enough of us under the previous two managers.' That had a lot to do with the fact we were the proverbial "breath of fresh air" (I got tired of that in the end). People accept us now as an established Prem team and therefore we're yesterday's news. The benchmark was set, Laudrup surpassed it last season an may even do so again. Who knows?
If we finish mid table after a decent shot at the European competition then I'd be more than happy , bigger clubs have tried it and have nearly paid the price in losing their PL status so for us to stabilise would be an achievement in itself .
Me too - I would bite your hand off for 10th now! I know there have been times this season when we have been all over the shop (eg second half performance against St Gallen on Thursday), but overall I think we are having a solid season based on the fact that Laudrup has had to keep on tinkering with the team in order to play midweek European matches. The next two month "European break" is crucial. It gives us a chance to play a regular team every match - having said that we have got some extremely tough fixtures coming up (Everton, Chelsea, Villa, Man City and Man U twice). Everton have been our bogey side but I have a feeling....................
I would agree with this, though our inconsistency has been a major issue this season, I don't see Laudrup staying beyond this season though!.............
Just take a long hard look at the progress that our last two managers are achieving and tell me laudrup has made us better or even on par with them......It's there in black and white for all to see that we have lost our way and nothing more than a team going backwards...
Yep - our name is there in black and white as a Club going backwards: The Full Europa Cup Draw (First Leg 20th February 2014, Second Leg 27th February 2014) Ajax v FC Red Bull Salzburg Anzhi Makhachkala v KRC Genk Dynamo Kiev v Valencia CF Esbjerg fB v Fiorentina FC Chornomorets Odesa v Lyon FC Dnipro v Tottenham Hotspur FC Porto v Eintracht Frankfurt Juventus v Trabzonspor Lazio v Ludogorets Razgrad Maccabi Tel Aviv v Basel NK Maribor v Sevilla PAOK Salonika v Benfica Real Betis v Rubin Kazan Slovan Liberec v AZ Alkmaar Swansea City v Napoli Viktoria Plzen v Shakhtar Donetsk
Just look at some of the RUBBISH teams we are in the mix with - Ajax, Dynamo Kiev, Valencia CF , Fiorentina, Lyon, Tottenham Hotspur, Porto, Eintracht Frankfurt, Juventus, Lazio, Sevilla, Benfica, Swansea City, Napoli. We really are going downhill. I just can't wait until we are playing Mansfield, Bury, Rochdale, Hartlepool and York again (no disrespect to those Clubs).
Dai, we will never be on par with the likes of Everton and especially Liverpool, given the financial clout and the enormity of the clubs compared to us. However whilst this season has not been great in terms of football on display after Laudrup guided us to a top 10 finish and the League cup, followed up by being 10th at the moment plus reaching the knock out stages of the Europa, I would say that heavily outstrips any achievements that BR has done at Liverpool, as a club of the size of Liverpool should be challenging for top 4 and league titles. We have to wait till the end of the season to compare. However, should Laudrup get us anywhere in the league from 9-13, I'd call that a success, whereas anything other than top 4 this season for Brendan will be, without question, regarded as failure. So let's wait until the season is over before comparing the successes of our previous managers against Laudrup this season.
