[Albion] Apparently 8th place "still gets Europe", if...

[pigmanovich]

5th most dropped from winning positions (22 points). Last minute winners probably 10 points gained?

Bit disingenuous to compare points dropped from winning positions overall and points gained *at the death* - this will look a lot more favorable if we compare points dropped from winning positions overall and points gained from losing positions overall.

 

[Justice]

False equivalency.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Football supporters can be thoughtful, but boy do they cling to tropes and make themselves look silly.

The Big 4
The Big 6
Nobody can compete with....
Football has changed and is now dominated by one club.
Football has changed and is now dominated by two clubs.
Football has changed and is now dominated by three clubs.
Football has changed and is now dominated by four club.
None of the other clubs can hope to win anything.
Since Leicester won the League, none of the other clubs can hope to win anything.
Manchester City are in a league of their own.
This season with no club running away with it, the EPL is shit.
Any one of 6 clubs could win the league, the quality is that poor.
The EPL is the best league in the world.
Palace winning the cup shows how far City have fallen.
Since Wigan beat City, the cup has been devalued.
After United ducked out of the FA cup the competition has been devalued.
Nothing can beat the magic of the cup.
And so on.

Football is apparently all about opinions.

 

[Lenny Rider]

Nonsense.

If we want to maintain a big squad and keep hold of some very decent players with enormous potential (rather than loaning them out) who might get restless with so few minutes available in domestic competitions (Yalcouyé, Tzimas, Watson, Gomez, Gruda etc), the Conference League is absolutely perfect for giving them more game time.

Playing teams you've never heard of through the season with really interesting European destinations for fans whilst performing in a competition where we would be one of the favourites to lift our first major trophy would be awesome.

You've not thought this through properly have you!

Looks like we are going to have to agree to differ old boy, but that’s the beauty of the Albion

 

[Bold Seagull]

It’s interesting because I do, not about the model per se, but elements of, in terms of an argument for a combination of not only promising youngsters but a more PL ready player.

At this moment, it is only heightened because of the City result yesterday….

The goalscorer yesterday could have been an ideal signing, I think Andy Naylor in The Athletic had identified him as a good option, obviously we’ll never know if we enquired, but would have improved us.

Anyway, can’t change anything, best to look forward…..

I think it is difficult for a club in the table battling like we've been doing for top 7 in the last 3 seasons to also be battling in the cups. CP have been no where near top half for most of the season, but with relegation months ago, could focus on the cup. Look at their victories; City, Villa, Fulham - all massively invested in the league to fight for Europe.

Palace's good fortune has been as much about having a poor start to the season as it has been about genius recruitment. It has come together for them as it does sometimes when an underdog wins the cup - hence it still has a bit of romance.

Perhaps we just need to be a bit out of the fight for Europe to concentrate on a cup? Although that is as silly a suggestion as many others...

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

I think it is difficult for a club in the table battling like we've been doing for top 7 in the last 3 seasons to also be battling in the cups. CP have been no where near top half for most of the season, but with relegation months ago, could focus on the cup. Look at their victories; City, Villa, Fulham - all massively invested in the league to fight for Europe.

Palace's good fortune has been as much about having a poor start to the season as it has been about genius recruitment. It has come together for them as it does sometimes when an underdog wins the cup - hence it still has a bit of romance.

Perhaps we just need to be a bit out of the fight for Europe to concentrate on a cup? Although that is as silly a suggestion as many others...

All very true, but are we making it unnecessarily harder for ourselves.

 

[peterward]

This thread will die after 4pm today.

Our European dreams formally ended by an unholy trinity of Atwell, Palace and Potter.

 

[tstanbur]

post shite for months

Quick copy and paste and there’s your signature sorted. You’re welcome

 

[oldboyroy]

This thread will die after 4pm today.

Our European dreams formally ended by an unholy trinity of Atwell, Palace and Potter.

Or failing that, we end it ourselves by not finishing 8th anyway. Imagine the scenario where we need a win at spurs (very probable to win) and Atwell is the ref for it and ultimately rules out a goal or nailed on penalty for us which is confirmed on Var..........run by Salisbury

 

[Machiavelli]

I think it is difficult for a club in the table battling like we've been doing for top 7 in the last 3 seasons to also be battling in the cups. CP have been no where near top half for most of the season, but with relegation months ago, could focus on the cup. Look at their victories; City, Villa, Fulham - all massively invested in the league to fight for Europe.

Palace's good fortune has been as much about having a poor start to the season as it has been about genius recruitment. It has come together for them as it does sometimes when an underdog wins the cup - hence it still has a bit of romance.

Perhaps we just need to be a bit out of the fight for Europe to concentrate on a cup? Although that is as silly a suggestion as many others...

That's part of it but they've also escaped the injury toll that has blighted our season. This is in part due to the 'intensity' that FH requires, and the transition to it. I think it's also a feature of the profile of our squad: we have lots of very promising youngsters and those towards the end of their career all of whom are more injury-prone, whereas so many of their starting XI are in the 'peak' moment of their careers roughly in the 24-29 age range.
It's striking that the team that started for them yesterday is probably their first choice XI and I'd be interested to know how many games they've started with those XI (but also with just a few alternatives).

 

[Weststander]

That's part of it but they've also escaped the injury toll that has blighted our season. This is in part due to the 'intensity' that FH requires, and the transition to it. I think it's also a feature of the profile of our squad: we have lots of very promising youngsters and those towards the end of their career all of whom are more injury-prone, whereas so many of their starting XI are in the 'peak' moment of their careers roughly in the 24-29 age range.
It's striking that the team that started for them yesterday is probably their first choice XI and I'd be interested to know how many games they've started with those XI (but also with just a few alternatives).

And their tactics. They spent yesterday and most games sitting deep, just two or three runners in rare moments of transition. They simply don’t put in the km shifts of Albion teams. Similarly Everton, Forest, Villa.

 

[Bozza]

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

Apparently so, the same trophy many on here labelled Micky Mouse yet now we all want a piece of, roll on the end of the season an the unveiling of the inevitable shit 25/26 kit offerings…..

Before XL and XXL sells out in 48 hours and isn’t available again until Feb 2026