Ok, how are we going to get another 35-40 points this year? Win our home games V Stoke, Sunderland, Wigan, Fulham, Southampton, Swansea, Reading, Villa, West Brom = 27 points Draw home games V Everton, Newcastle, Spurs = 3 points Win away games V QPR, Reading = 6 points Draw away games V Wigan, Swansea, Southampton, West Ham = 4 points Seems simple on paper but can we do it or even get more?
There will be some surprise results, both positive and negative. Realistically, the games where we have dropped points are the home games against West Ham and QPR - the other result are probably what we would have expected in terms of points, except the point at White Hart Lane being a bit of a bonus. So instead of being on 3 points, we perhaps would have expected to be on 6.
Funny thing, I was searching news channels for items about QPR fans throwing themselves in front of tube trains, Reading fans jumping off bridges, Southampton fans burning their season tickets and abandoning ship to follow Pompey, Villa fans burning effigies of Lambert, Wigan fans chanting "Martinez out" and "Whelan get out of our club", Swansea fans calling for Laudrup's head, and even Stoke fans chanting Harry Rednapp's name. But do you know what, there was nothing. Can't understand it.
There's a difference between sanity and reality ..... I truth, some of those points look achivable, some less so - there maybe games where we "expect" a win (Stoke, Wigan, Fulham at home which we drew last year, Baggies at home which we lost) but might not get the desired result and the odd game where we expect nothing (Arsenal at home for instance) where we may nick a point if the team selection and tactics are better than last Saturday. Right here, right now, the points haul from Kent's post looks "ambitious" but the season has already turned up a surprise or two so who knows what will happen ?
did anyone see where we'd get 47 points from this time last season? we had five points at this stage last year - we had three this time around. there's realism and then there's totally over the top panic stations! i'm a realist - i said i felt we'd get around the 40 point mark this year and i still think that. i personally see 40 points being enough but its too early at this stage to say. football is a funny old game. what i do know is that we are far from doomed right now but if our fans think we are then it will get through to the players. its suicide. fans have to remain on side of management and players or we may as well give up now. we're all supporters of the club so do just that please! we've had things a million and one times harder than this. i find all this stuff about sacking the manager or getting rid of players absurd and embarrassing.
I have to admit to having concerns currently but I think that we have been a little unlucky too. I looked at the table over the weekend and my honest feeling is that the bottom six look like being the bottom six at the end of the season and it is a case of the order they end up in. I am not trying to be negative, but realistic.
its any three from qpr, reading, norwich, saints, wigan, villa, stoke, swansea, west ham and west brom as far as i'm concerned. so that's ten teams. some are more likely to go down than others but it is totally realistic to say that we could finish above all of those teams mentioned. we may finish below the lot of them too! teams have good starts, teams have bad starts, some indifferent, but all will have a bad run at some point and be dragged into it.
i find all this stuff about sacking the manager or getting rid of players absurd and embarrassing.[/QUOTE] Totally agree. And, as Superman points out, relegation can become a self-fulfilling prophecy if the fans start to get on the backs of the players and manager. We seem to be struggling to find a system that works at the moment, and both 451 and 442 have failed badly on one occasion. But I'm sure at some point it will click and we'll start to pick up more points. It's certainly possible, even if this league. (Look at West Ham - they have 11 points from 6 games - proof that you don't need to be Man City to have a decent run in this league.) I am also starting to think that 40 points may not be needed this season. The potential clubs in danger may pick up points off each other, but I can't see any of them getting many points from MU, MC, Chelsea, Arsenal or Spurs (and perhaps Liverpool now that they've got going).
