.... I am interested to find out where Saints fans think we will be. I will give an example of six other clubs, just vote the one that you expect that Saints will most closely resemble in 2014... 1) Middlesbrough (Biggish club but mid table in the Championship) 2) Nottingham Forest ( Biggish club in the Championship playoffs) 3) Norwich (Biggish club newly promoted but with a modest budget) 4) Wolves (Biggish club but always involved in a relegation battle) 5) Stoke (Biggish club now firmly established as a mid-table Premier League club) 6) Everton (Biggish club always around the top half and European qualification) Please state if you think we will be like another club not mentioned. Edit: having read HR's "end of 5 year thread" I thought it might be fun to see what we think of this question now. For the record, originally I voted Stoke City, but we are already above them after 4 years!, now I would vote Everton. I think that I can safely rule out Boro, Wolves and Forest now...i think that we may be rubbing shoulders with the Mersey teams at the end of next season.
I think it's honestly too early to say. It all depends on the players we can attract while in the Championship, and of course keeping our best players at the club too....
Hi, with the offer to pick another team i will go with Fulham - sometimes surpassing expectations, finishing 8th other times flirting briefly with the bottom 6. Never quite knowing how good or bad the season will be but fairly established in the top flight. i would be more happy with that
I think our natural level as a club is top half second division/bottom half first division. Anything above that and we've had a good season, anything below and we've had a bad season.
No idea. I'd hope we're in the Premier League, but if we wern't its not the end of the world. I'd like to think that Fonte, Lallana, Schneiderlin and possibly Lambert if he's still going strong would be at the heart of the side with Adkins still manager.
Not a hope, we will have a completely different set of players and a new manager, although still the same fans, thats just the way the world is.
This is 3 seasons time, not 10 years down the road. Fonte will be 30, Lallana 26, Schneiderlin 25 and Lambert 32. It's not out of the question that all 4 could still be Saints players.
It's obviously impossible to say, but we could be relegated this season and be back to square one (sorry). I wouldn't expect us to really challenge for promotion this season this season or next, maybe the one after if we build solidly... So I guess that makes us Nottingham Forest.
SH what are you on about. With a few new players in key positions then we could easily be a promotion contender this season or next. Which season will depend on the investment! With players like fonte, lallana and chamberlain (if he says), morgan then we can easily push for a top half finish.
I think we CAN push for promotion this season and I'm sure Nigel will get the players looking up towards the play-offs at least but we have to be realistic, yes we brushed aside most teams last season and won comfortably on occasion, this league is as competitive as ever and about 13/14 teams could go up. I'd happily be proved wrong, but if we build the squad and keep our key players this season, we'll definitely change in 2012/13.
We could, but I wouldn't say easily. We could also lose our first six games and then all say we would be happy to finish 21st. Maybe I am a pessimist but I would not be complaining if we finished above some of the Championship regulars like Palace, Derby, Bristol City and were happily in mid-table. Going up this season is a real long shot in my book, I'm immediately looking at West Ham, Reading and Forest as teams that I don't think we will be able to get near.
But you said not even next year for a promotion push.... BELIEVE I think we should get t-shirts like Huddersfield did in playoffs.
Agreed all 4 COULD be with us, but I would be amazed if more than one of them was actually still here.
