We are pretty much a quater of the way through the season so it seems a fair point to discuss this years surprise package. There are a few obvious contenders with Southampton, West Ham Chelsea looking good and then you have Liverpool, Man utd and Spurs under achieving. For me though being a Southampton fan i have to say i am surprised at how well our new team have started, we lost what was the core to our team in the summer, but every single replacement looks to be an improvement on the players that left. I personally believe this is down to Koeman he his a great coach and obviously has a remarkable scouting network. West ham have also impressed me and i am shocked to see how well they have done, i don't like big sam's tactics but fair play to him he has mixed it up a bit and seems to of done the impossible and got Downing playing well.
3 teams have surprsied me. 1. Man Utd are still really, really ****. 2. Southampton are doing extremely well, and could well push for top 4 till the end. However, injuries to Tadic and/or Pelle could be very bad news. I really hope they do well, as I'm currently living not too far down the road. 3. Liverpool aren't about 9 points clear at the top is a big surprise. I would add West Ham but they will plummit down the table like a sack of **** come December/January.
Liverpool does not surprise me, a one season wonder and its back to normal 6-9th place for them Southampton and West ham will fall away UTD surprise me by not winning the league after 9 games
West Ham. Obviously they are getting results but it's the quality of their football that is a pleasant surprise. Fat Sam is doing a good job now that he has some decent players. He'll be praying that his front men stay fit and that he doesn't have to select Carroll ever again.
I'm most surprised by Liverpool's drop-off. There's various factors effecting their mojo, so hopefully that's sorted sooner rather than later. Let's be fair, before this turns into a Saints spunkathon... They have some seriously difficult teams to play before we reach half-way, and every single season one club has a great start, before shuffling back into the pack, or like us one year, just about holding it together and finishing about 5th. I think the latter will happen of Southampton. If Tadic gets injured at any point, that's good run over, so I hope they keep him fit all year because they're great to watch as a neutral. I'm really glad they've managed to find a couple of gems, because in the summer is genuinely looked like they were doing a Newcastle!
Southampton but it will fade. Been a great start though especially wity such a **** manager and liverpool buying all your crap.
I voted for the most positive surprise, IMO that being The Hammers' rise to relevance. Will they finish near the top of the table? I doubt it, somewhere around midtable is my guess. But Big Sam's gotten them believing so far... Negative surprises...not really surprised Liverpool is struggling without Suarez, but that Brendan Rogers seems to be pulling his best Arsene Wenger impersonation in that no adjustments being made, or at least none that seem to work. Both of those teams look totally lost defensively.
Saints are easily the biggest surprise. Their bubble will, of course, burst. Fat Sam is the next biggest surprise. He actually does seem to know tactics and how to set a team up to play proper football. 'Pool are definitely not a surprise. I was one of many who predicted their demise back to mid table obscurity once Goofy had left. Neither are United a surprise for me. Without Fergie, United will probably go the way of Derby and Forest, after Cloughie left. £ity must also count as a surprise. I thought they'd run away with the title, but without Aguero they'd be complete ****e. He's their Goofy, this season.
Enough about liverpool and spurs, londons biggest qpr fan is surprised by united. Which means he expected more. This like all cockneys, hes really a united fan.
Ironic that two of the few teams we have beat are Southampton and West Ham. Seems it is the dross we lose to - Stoke, Hull, Liverpool... I voted City. I know they had a slow start last year too, but this year they look awful. Too many good players not to improve.
