Why are Toon fans resigned to the fact that we'll slip down the table due to Europa??

Fine, give an opinion, but do you not think it'd be sensible to give a reason why other than 'its happened before!'? We're not where we are on blind luck, and if you think our players are relegation fodder you want your head examined.

 

Erik is just yanking a few chains Colly. I have to say this is much better bait than on the other thread Erik. You must always draw the reader in with a few half truths.

 

Read the Spurs board, hilarious. Obviously they've taken the whack on the arse off Chelsea with their usual bad grace and bitterness. But then there is a post about telling UEFA to stick the Europa League. Like it is a serious option! I'm sure their hierarchy will see no problem in blackballing themselves with UEFA!

 

Your argument is ridiculous, it's like the morons that claim we'll fall down the table because Stoke did when they were in Europa. You can't claim we'll get relegated because - "I've seen all this before".

The teams you have mentioned made it there on momentum and team spirit, not really due to much player quality. We have team spirit, fantastic manager, fantastic scouting system and fantastic quality within the team.

All we need to do is strengthen certain weak points and we'll be able to truly solidify our place.

Momentum and team spirit can only get you so far, you need a long term plan and quality to be able to survive for a significant period of time.

 

I heard this and it was very worrying. Im excited for Europe next year but yeah facts are irrrefutable, we could struggle. I look at it like this , im fairly fit and even travelling abroad to watch football does me in, so no idea how the players could be affected, super fit as they are. I once went and played football in Amsterdam and came back a mess. Although that was unrelated.

I would feel more confident if we could strengthen the spine of our team, but as it stands we are more immediately looking to other areas, well, defence. I cant be arse going into it all , but for example as well as perch did I dont see him deputising for tiote long term and thats providing we keep tiote anyway. Ideally we would have solid back up for all our stronger players and its not the case at the moment, in fact some are leaving apparently


all a bit doom and gloom, didnt mean that , still enjoying last season of course

have to wait see how the window pans out really

 

Stats in isolation mean nothing though, and that study doesn't show that we'd have a 40% less chance of winning, it shows that of those games 40% of teams did, there is a difference. Did it look at any other factors, like weak teams who've qualified through good cup runs or the fair play league, or the standard of opposition for the following game?

I'm not saying it won't take a toll, but extrapolating a stat like that to 'we'll win 40% less games' is daft.

 

Yeah you are right of course, there will be numerous variables, its the sheer amount of games involved that means there must be something in it, along with logic. I dont for one minute think we will lose 40% less games , I just think we could struggle due to being overburdened.

 

People using Stoke as the example are mad. Pardew is a much shrewder cookie. You only have to look at the two games this season! In all seriousness I think we just have to be sensible. Will people get upset if we use it to just give young and fringe players a chance? The risk is we'll bomb early but I'd have no problem with it.

 

Pardew is going to do what he thinks is best for the club, we've got to get behind him just like we always do.

 

Not sure about that. We had to play a couple of games with NO CBs. Tiote had a few injuries. Marveaux was injured all season. HBA and Ferguson picked up bad injuries in pre-season which meant they weren't really fully fit until the last 10 games. Santon had a few injuries at the start. Raylor has been injured recently, only just come back. Obertan missed entire second half of season pretty much with an ankle injury. Haris Vuckic? Remi Streete? Don't think we were fortunate whatsoever; especially when we had one problem position and then BOOM long term injury for Saylor

 

All those teams are actually very small clubs that formed great young teams before selling all their players. Villarreal this year were a bit of a freak. By December, the entire XI that started their first league game had all acquired long-term injuries; which I think you will agree is pretty rare...

 

We're in good nick for next year IMHO. Assuming our first 11 is unchanged, some shrewd additions,plus a sprinkling of youth will allow us to progress. The Europa could be the making of a few of our fringe players...

 

Let's hope so, can honestly see the Europa be the making of a few of our fringe players which can only be a positive.

 

I have no idea what you're talking about.

I don't think I've mentioned Stoke at all.

Also, LOL @ your second paragraph. Of the 14 players who played in your final game of the season, half had played in your Championship season.

Strengthening weak points is easier said than done. I don't think you'll manage it.

"Momentum and team spirit can only get you so far" - do you think it was anything other than that that resulted in you finishing above Chelsea?

True, but what about Celta Vigo? They were playing in the Champions League when they went down (I made an error in my original post). They even made it out of the group stages!

 

Incorrect re: Celta Vigo pretend know it all. Celta Vigo have been relegated from la liga twice recently, the first time they were in the champions league, but that was almost ten years ago. They played in the Europa a few seasons later and pretty much went bust, subsequently going down.

While I think we will struggle to replicate this seasons form, randomly picking teams from the past 10 years of European football that support your ill-conceived argument is a bit daft isn't it. We could be like Spurs, Lazio, Juventus, Man City, PSG, Zenit, Braga, AZ or Montpellier. Just a few teams who have consolidated or improved their league position after finishing in the Europa league in the past two years.

The final league position of clubs finishing in the Europa is almost as unpredictable as that of those finishing, 9th or 12th. I'll be waiting until we've completed our transfer dealings to comment on how I think well do, but I'd imagine that the so called 'half our team' that played in the championship will be even further diminished next season, and we will continue to add continental talent and blend it with players that have English league experience and a genuine desire to play and perform for the club. It seems so far that doing thus, and forgoing the scatter gun transfer approach most teams currently employ will hold us in good stead both on and off the field for a number of seasons to come.

 

My good man, you appear to be labouring under a misapprehension. I mentioned those teams not as evidence that you would go down, merely to show that – contrary to the comments of some of the mentally unwell who reside on this board – it is actually possible for a side to be relegated the season after qualifying for Europe.

The fact that Celta Vigo’s Champions-League-and-relegation season was ‘nearly a decade ago’ isn’t relevant.

I’m not quite sure what your argument is, but it appears to be as equally ‘ill-conceived’ as mine supposedly is. You cite Juventus, Italy’s biggest and most successful club and one compared to who Newcastle look like Darlington; PSG, a side who spent £75m last summer; Manchester City, who have spent nearly £500m on players in the last 4 years; Zenit St Petersburg, the Russian equivalent of PSG; Lazio, who are consistently between mid-table and the UEFA Cup spots in Serie A; Montpellier, who last season fell to 14th after qualifying for Europe the year previously; and then two teams who have both been in Europe consistently for the last 4/5 years at least.

Unless Ashley invests £30-50m this summer, you’ll drop like a stone. If he does, I’ll reassess my opinion at the end of August.

 

Ok yes, we could drop down or as Clarence Acuna said we could push on to CL. But saying we need to spend £30-50m just sounds naive after the last 2-3 seasons, we need to get the "right" players in yes but they don't have to cost the earth.

 

Thats yet more lazy stat quoting though with no context. Those seven players:

Krul: A 22 year old backup in the Championship. Now a full Dutch international and had second most clean sheets in the league behind Joe Hart.

Coloccini: Had a poor first season in English football. Since then was in the Championship team of the season, North East player of the year last season, and alongside Kompany in the PFA team of the year this season.

Williamson: Backup to Steven Taylor, perfectly adequate at the job.

Perch: No hyperbole involved, our most improved player. Clearly not a centre half, but filling in at holding midfield or fullback he's been no nonsense outstanding. We don't call him Perchinho for nothing. And he's only a squad player.

Jonas: I don't think much needs to said, works his socks off, quality player.

The other two were subs, and were Ryan Taylor who's an adequate utility player, and Shola Ameobi who's been superb off the bench this season.

Drop like a stone without £30-50m? Have you even watched us at all, or seen the signings we've made? Depending on players going out with a new right back and centre half I'd be very surprised if we didn't finish top half.

 

!

 

We would slip down the table even if we were not in the europa league for a start! Chelsea will spen big and do better, Liverpool will do the same and Everton and Fulham wont have to worry about the eurpa league soe they will do bette.