Must we? Really? Cant we just take the money and stay in the Championship, clearly the best league in Europe for the fans.
I think you might find some who are enjoying this year, as regards excitement, but I don´t think you´ll find very many who would turn down the chance of promotion, and for god´s sake don´t whisper it anywhere near Colney, or you might get an earful.
I agree that there are times when I think it would be good to not be promoted and go into every game knowing we have a good chance of winning it. Thi must be the closest the Championship has been for years and I would say any of the top 8 have a realistic hope of promotion with just 8 games to go. We'll have a better idea after the Easter Monday games. Having said all that, if I had to choose, I'd like us to get promoted, but wouldn't be too disappointed if we didn't - if that makes sense.
I'm also surprised how many want auto promotion and not a playoff final at Wembley. That has to be the way to go up surely? What a day out.
I like the Tuesday night games and hated most of the 2 seasons in the Premier League under Hughton. Soul Destroying! So I'm not as desperate as some to see go up but it seems like the PL is the "place to be" and where all the money is. How about we go up to the PL and give the games a damn good go, instead of trying to defend our way to survival every season.
As a watford fan i usually think "yeah it's nice down here so happy not to want promotion". However, the way we've been playing for large parts of the season and the feelgood factor around the place just now I think I'd be able to live with it if it happens! As for the play offs - yes it's brilliant when you win but it's bloody awful when you lose and feels much worse than losing a cup semi or final..
No brainer for me Premier League all the way, if Swansea can establish themselves in the top flight then surely a club of our size can ? I must be in the minority but I hate this division and want us to get out of it as soon as possible. Would any of you guys seriously want us to end up like Ipswich
......You don't have to tell us about losing play-off finals mate, especially when it's on penalties !
Definitely want us to go up. When the parachute money runs out we'll struggle to hold onto our better players and to attract better ones in. Plus with the amount of cash under the new Sky deal and our lack of external debt we must surely see redevelopment of the ground to get the capacity north of 30k which has got to be the way to grow the club over the long term and to hopefully let a few more people go to watch the matches. Annoyingly the gulf in funds between the Prem and Champ mean that from a cold hard business point of view it is well worth a season or two of Hughton-esque pain are well worth suffering for the financial clout it gives the club. We have never been better placed financially than in the past couple of years and we desperately need to get promoted and kick on otherwise we could end up an upper mid table Champ club occasionally having a bad year and ending up in L1 again. All that being said I loved the season we had in L1 and it has been nice to go to matches this season with the feeling that we have a more than even chance of winning rather than wondering how many we would lose by or when we would score our next goal so I can understand from a football point of view why some would wish to stay down.
I just hope than when we do go up some of our fans don't get all delusional again. The step up to prem will be a hard one again and without spending super amounts of money we will be a bottom half team
No brainer. Championship, eventual financial mediocrity, or even meltdown. EPL, land of milk and honey. For our clubs long term survival, and possible success, the sooner we are in LaLa land the better. We may not survive, but we will be in an immeasurably better position for having been there next season.
my sentiments exactly! overall i DO want us to go up(and i think we will),but its great to play all our games expecting to win
I think last time around we got 'cocooned' by Hughton's negative tactics and setting his teams out not to lose. The first year back under Lambert was as exciting as seasons get - because the team (on his instructions) didn't have that inbuilt fear factor. If we do go up under Neil, I'd suggest next season would be more Lambert-esque than Hughton's preferred three banks of four defending
The way we've played in the last couple of games, perhaps the players don't want promotion.... I think Norfolkbhoy is spot on. By being in the Premier League we can develop as a club, which the way the finances in football are going, that's crucial right now. Give it 5-10 years, and the teams who haven't achieved promotion recently will be their own mini league between 10th and league one. Teams who've flirted with the Prem will have much greater resources, and I'd much rather be in that club, even if it does mean some time in the championship. For now, promotion is crucial.
I am somewhat undecided and can see both sides of the argument. I have really enjoyed this season but appreciate that to get on we have to go up. It is a dilemma.
Reading all this has been enlightening. I have actually changed my mind on the back of opinions on here. I was greatly concerned that we would go through another ground hog day i.e. get promoted, compromise on player purchases and spend an unpleasant season or two with our backs to the wall. I asked myself whether I wanted this - answer no! However many on here emphasised the cost of NOT doing so and I'm now convinced! As an aside I'm just wondering if playing the world cup in winter will suddenly even up the EPL with everyone away in foreign climes - could this be the year to have a crowd of really high quality journeyman players?
Not sure if I'm reading this correctly, but I'd imagine all domestic leagues would be suspended for the duration, so nobody would be advantaged / disadvantaged by losing players to the World Cup?
