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March and Knockaert, our starters in most games, do not trouble PL full backs. I didn't think this was even debated any more.

Or stick with CH, and hope that Locadia/Ulloa make the difference.

Sacking a plethora of managers hasn't done Villa, Sunderland and Birmingham any harm.

OK. Let's say Pardew, Hodgson or Carvahal had been parachuted in, in mid December, following the sacking of Hughton. In the real world of working with a given squad, how would they have got more wins from a squad devoid of pace (other than Izquierdo), top flight strikers, a RB weakness, no...

Ignoring the statistical evidence as pointed out by @ElPresidente about the alleged bounce factor.

Good points. But I think the three relegated clubs will go down clearly on points. The number of wins and having goals in the team will determine who stays up. Last season the three lowest scoring clubs, had the fewest wins and went down. Boro's defence was very good, but they stunk the PL...

Summed up perfectly.

Don't let facts get in the way of a flawed argument.

:thumbsup:

Hopefully Izquierdo starts every game now.

This. That's my analysis too. Hodgson, Pardew, Carvahal, Moyes, Lambert would also have really struggled to get wins from our pre-Locadia squad. Their new clubs all have a number of match winners and real pace, as well as being PL savvy.

The Everton game stands out. Neutral football writers said we were better against a terrible Everton, but naively game the ball away at the opposite end at the death, allowing a counter. (West Ham, about to win at Smellhurst, famously did the same thing then). Bmuff - we were better, until...

Before Locadia and Ulloa, did you think we had enough to stay up? Where were the top flight quality strikers, wingers with pace to regularly beat their PL full backs, goals from midfield, pace in CM and a RB good enough for the PL? The table doesn't lie, the Albion rarely scores. Hughton...

Great post. There were no perennial strugglers left in the PL (Villa and Sunderland), and the others all have strengths in their top flight quality squads assembled over many windows. Should Wolves and Villa go up, I predict them learning from the PL struggles of Mboro, Albion, Hudd and...

:thumbsup: Belatedly, the manager's been given the tools.

To me, squad quality with top flight quality match winners, keeps clubs in the PL. Good managers, like Hughton and Rafa, need that as a bare minimum. Albion, Newcastle and now it seems Hudd failed to bring in top flight quality last summer, and so have been falling steadily. Carvahal, Pardew...