I'm not claiming any of that whatsoever you've just come to those bizarre and non sensical assumptions, and you're just now turning the argument around to this because you can't progress with your argument that it means we're going to finish the season on a downer. 1. We were in 3rd and the start of year now we're in 5th with games in hand on 4th. Doesn't mean we're going to continue to slide to potentially 8th place. 2. Goal scoring hasn't been good recently, but no real evidence to say that won't change. 3. I'm not suggesting that, I'm suggesting it isn't as impacted as you make out - our collective souls been ripped out, confidence lower than the Titanic etc. As I said the Cup final was a comfortable loss, which is far more easy to take than a narrow loss when you think you should have won.
1. So you agree 5th places is lower than 3rd and if therfore on the slide.(in 3rd and about 7 points clear of 5th at one point) 2. So you agree the side has an issue scoring goals. 3. You're agreeing that confidence is low , but taking issue to the Titanic reference.
1. It would be a bit strange to disagree that 5th place was lower than 3rd really wouldn't it? However "sliding down the league" is giving an impression of a team in freefall that are continuing to drop further. Thus I think your extrapolation of this into a potential 8th finish is a bit far fetched right now. 2. Right now, yes. Not something we can't improve on though, and saying "we don't score goals" is taking it a bit far. 3. Results can affect confidence, but I don't necessarily think that confidence is low right now. The cup final will have been a blow, but something they can quickly get over.
Right so now that we've established that you agree with what I said in the 1st place here's a few questions. 1. Why is suggesting Fulham and Brighton could finish above Newcastle so far out of the question? 2. Why should I ignore current form? 3. What is the problem with being content with the situation overall even if they finish 8th ?
No, I fundamentally disagree with everything you said in the first place, which was regarding a handful of new year results and how they are going to mean we are going to continue to decline and go down the league, backing this up by confidence being destroyed by the cup final. 1. Could happen but unlikely. Nothing that is mathematically possible is out of the question. 2. Because you are focusing on 6 games out of 23, because we had a similar spell at the start of the season, and because you are bringing things like confidence into the equation which you can't predict. 3. Looking at it as purely a comparison to last season, 8th would be an improvement on 11th and we've got to the cup final, so thoroughly decent in that respect. But from 3rd at the start of the year to finishing 8th would have been a big decline.
I'm talking about the bigger picture man, not this little 3 Questions game. Anyway you're predicting a continued slide, I'm predicting an upturn and we're both predicting we'll be twatted by City. Is that a compromise?
Those 3 questions are the points Ive been making the entire time.... you disagreed then agreed in the end. The only thing you seem to disagree on is confidence which until they won a couple of games I'd say is very low. This ahh never mind we just lost a cup final idea I'm afraid I don't buy.. that will have gutted them. We can discuss the side arguments all day long but nothing i said was ever about those
I wouldn't disagree with something like "is 5th place lower than 3rd" cos only a lunatic would. All I've been debating is how recent form (actually only a handful of games) isn't precedence for going forward long term. Howe seems like an expert in confidence and mind work (look what he ****ing did last year to a team that was bottom of the league), so worries about this run and it's affect are finally minimal for me.
This is a game that won't affect confidence no matter the score. If we win or draw, then awesome, if we lose, then we expected it, if we loose heavily, then hey it's just Man City.
I see it very differently because I think losing any game impacts confidence. If they get the beating I expect after losing a cup final ...ouch .. good luck to howe saying a few words, but they'll need a scrappy win before any confidence starts coming back. To us it's just like oh well **** it.
With Liverpool and Chelsea being so bad this year, I'm surprised Man City aren't romping to the title. Arsenal have admittedly been brilliant, but still City are below their usual standards. So that's why I think there's a small, but very small, chance of getting something here. City always crush us, them hammering us 5 nil last season in the middle of our run didn't take us down. I guess most teams have this mentality considering how often City smash a team - Man United's run only really started after City battered them 6-3.
I think Liverpool are getting back to form .. I actually think it's a shame Newcastle couldn't capitalise on the position they found themselves in. The games vs Leeds Bournemouth and West Ham were key.
Liverpool still have a major ****ing problem in midfield and are never that convincing, I don't see them going going on a run like Man U. Casemiro has been awesome for Man U and the main reason they got that good, Liverpool by contrast haven't upgraded there midfield and have a huge gap there. Henderson and Milner just ain't the players they once were. Liverpool are snapping at our heals like Fulham, Brighton etc and a definitely improving, but I don't see them going on any massive runs. Spurs are generally better than us, and should cement 4th, unless they go significantly downhill or we go on a run ourselves.
