2 weeks ago it liked wide open on relegation Now it looks like us, Leicester and Forest will all struggle to get past 30 and so be on our way down
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/65224836 Hasn't this happened to Brighton a couple of times already this season. Shambles.
This is good for us. This will essentially confirm Palace's safety. More likely to be on the beach next week.
I'd suggest that another reason why it's good for us (well, for anyone who still thinks we can stay up) is that it avoids the points being shared. I get that a draw means only two points are handed out, rather than three. But survival requires us to finish 17th, not 12th. If three, or maybe four sides, just keep on losing over and over again, the survival line will be lower than if everyone is taking points off everyone. Palace in particular winning every match, except for next week, would be far more helpful to us than them drawing the odd game, winning the odd game, and losing the odd game.
It does mean we’re banking on Leeds continuing to lose, rather than keeping 2 teams in touching distance. Of course both viewpoints require us to get points, which we won’t.
Absolutely. But that's the penalty for being in our position. We don't have the luxury of keeping the entire bottom 9 within the relegation battle, to see how the next few weeks pan out. We need the survival line to be as low as possible, and that means letting the likes of Palace and Wolves beat those who are below them. Pick just the three or four sides, and hope we can catch them. But such a theory really is only for those people who think we can still escape. The reality is that we're going down, regardless of other results.
Palace could have done this to Leicester last week tbh, given the number of chances they had. I don't know what's happened to Roy since he's been away, but this has been one heck of a turnaround in what you expect from a Roy Hodgson team.
Palace can fall over the line from here, if they want to. 33 points from 30 games (and a better than anyone below them) - they aren't going down. But if these last two games are anything to go by, I think they might do it in a bit more style than just falling over the line. In a weird sort of way though, it might help us next week. We usually perform better against sides who come with attacking-intent.
Liverpool defenders have still given up defending for Lent ……VVD is having a bad game and AAT is being ……….well AAT (overrated). 2-0 Arsenal.
