BTW St.G, you could have provided a link for people to actually read the good news: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22579588 Some people wouldn't have dared believe it..!
Yes, but just wait for the snow. Then the torrential rain. Then the flood [in the valleys] and then we'll have 3 days of watery sunshine and it will be Autumn. Read familiar..?
Not a worry, exactly, but has anyone else noticed that the points gap between West Brom in 8th on 48 points and Liverpool in 7th on 58 points is almost as big as the difference between already relegated Wigan in 18th on 35 points and West Brom? If Liverpool win tomorrow, and West Brom lose, then there will be a clear gap between the top seven and the rest of us. Does this mean that there are now two leagues within this league, the 'Super Rich' clubs and the others? This could be contstrued as further excitement for the bottom thirteen, but it also highlights the very obvious difference between the so-called 'big' clubs and the rest. There will probably be a call for a breakaway faction, of the teams that consider themselves 'better than the rest' and the 'makeweights'. One could, of course, point out that Saints did rather well against some of the teams who feel that they are in the elite group, so maybe the points gap is not desperately important. But, if we want something to worry about, how about trying to find a way to extricate ourselves from the bottom two thirds next season, bridging the gap and joining the 'top teams'. Or, we could just enjoy the success that we have very clearly had over the past three seasons, and realise that with a settled squad and management structure we will be pushing even harder next season to prove Saints are deserving of their place at the top table, with definite aspirations to be a truly great team. So, no worries, then.
With good reason, we wouldn't want the internet to run out of pages now would we? You've wasted two by starting this thread alone!
There is definitely a very large gap...it's even more stark when you look at the goal differential, as there are no teams within 20 goals of that top seven. That said, Everton may not be in that group for long. Moyes' management will be missed, but his ability to constantly refresh their talent base will be missed far more.
Given that the thread is titled 'Nicola is staying and so is everybody else', I think we aught to acknowledge that the club would be better off if at least 12 players were shipped out and 4 or 5 new and hopefully improved versions sign.. because if they all stay there will be too many and it don't matter how you spell it!
