It seems that every year people come out with comments about how there may be fewer points needed to survive and i noticed that after 26 games last year the table was: This year after 22 games it's: In 4 games time (when the tables will be more comparable) it looks very likely that the teams will have a few points less this year than last. 2 points: 1 - May well mean that survival is only 33 points(ish) rather than 37. 2 - Villa, the rubbish team who was one of the worst in years, had 16 points after 23/24 games last year. Bloody hell.
It could well be the case, and the bottom 3 could all end up on under 30, but I reckon 17th place will still be 35 points-ish. This year's bottom 4 are all as bad as each other, there's no one team that looks doomed more than the rest for me, but I do expect Palace to spend and click, under Allardyce.
Palace are the worry. Out of the bottom 5 i would pick their squad, their team and their manager. They are also likely to spend. The good news is it does look likely that fewer points are going to be needed. The bad news is that teams like Watford are unlikely to be dragged in as they're already on 24 points. That Boro loss last weekend was massive, if they were on 23 points then - as I don't think Leicester are going down - it would be looking bleak. 16 games to go, possibly not much more than 16 points needed.
I think the bottom 6 are all pretty poor TBH and any 3 of them could go. I do think our time has come sadly but I cling to my glimmer of hope that my eternal optimism gives me. Watford have gone into a bit of a free-fall too but think they'll puull it around OK. We have Spurs, Palace, Southampton next 3 Hull have United, Liverpool Arsenal Palace have Bournemouth,, us and Stoke Swansea have Southampton, Man City, Leicester That's the bottom four - out of all of them, I'd rather have Palace's fixtures but, as we've seen, anything can happen on any given day (i.e. Swansea at Liverpool)
Boor are the ones we need to catch. I fully expect Hull to go, and still think Swansea will go. Palace should be okay with the squad they've got but stranger things have happened. Watford also dropping like a stone.
Take a look at our last ten or so fixtures - we play either teams in top four (three or so) and the rest mostly in the bottom half so our survival could be manageable. If it does go down to last fixtures in May we have Hull, Swansea and Chelsea ( who will be champs and on the beach).
It rarely works like that though, in fact I'd go so far as to say it may have the opposite effect. Chelsea will already be champs and will therefore be playing with complete freedom, looking to put an "exclamation point" on their title win, so to speak. It's not like their players will even be particularly worried about avoiding injury as there are no international tournaments this summer....
Conte doesn't seem the type to let his players go on the beach either, assuming they do win it of course.
Fully aware of our recent survival history, but with returning players and runaway champions(?) they have nowt to play for in the last game of the season. Also we are facing a less daunting fixture list than recent seasons. I also know that none of the games are played on paper but was alluding to us having a possibly stronger team ready for the run in.
Didn't you get beat by Chelsea on the last game of the season, when they were last crowned champions?
Yep, and at their place IIRC. We seem to meet them at season's end so there could be an omen, but hopefully they will have hangovers or holidays in mind.
