[Albion] Is the top 4 really out of reach?

[Machiavelli]

The PL has become a vehicle for six clubs to enjoy the spoils, get stronger and stronger, more elitist and more self-entitled. They have a 15-20 year start on most of us, building up a global fanbase, buying the best players and earning fortunes from European competition. Only mega wealth ( e.g Newcastle ) can threaten and even then it will take years to be regarded as anything but gatecrashers.
We are in Division Two of the PL. 13 or 14 teams, all with ambitions but all conscious how easy it is to fall back again. A very narrow margin between keeping your head above water or not. Any small change in dynamic ( key players sold, manager change, new owners ) can tilt the balance against you. We are overachieving for our status, like many before us. It doesn't last. You become victims of your own success. Players cannot resist the lure of more money and potential trophies to be won elsewhere.
We are playing catch-up. 70% of our history spent in the bottom two divisions. We will never be truly established in the top flight but then neither will any other club apart from the elite. The clubs that generate the main interest, here and globally. Without them, the tv companies have a less appealing package and without them, we don't get our £100m plus per year that helps us keep an advantage over those in leagues below us.
It is uncompetitive. Even when one or more of the Greedy Ones has a below par season, they are expected to bounce back in the next. Football has stood back and allowed this dominance to happen and now it is too entrenched. Unbreakable.
We are bit players, amongst the main cast, hoping one of the stars falls ill and we get our chance. If we take it, great but will it make our careers for the rest of our lives or will we be judged as plucky stand-ins? History suggests the latter.

Agree with this, but would stress the role of the CL in this which emerged roughly at the same time as the PL. I just need to point to the Super League for this, but it has facilitated the entrenchment of a handful or two of clubs across Europe to dominate the latter stages of this competition and their respective leagues.

 

[Bakero]

Seems we're still under the radar.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Agree with this, but would stress the role of the CL in this which emerged roughly at the same time as the PL. I just need to point to the Super League for this, but it has facilitated the entrenchment of a handful or two of clubs across Europe to dominate the latter stages of this competition and their respective leagues.

The game changer was 1997-98 when UEFA allowed multiple entrants from the same country, not just the champions. Suddenly you could finish 2nd or 3rd and later 4th and still have a crack at the trophy. As you say, this allowed the likes of ManUtd, Barca, AC Milan, Bayern etc. to compete every single year whether they won the title or not.

 

[Psychobilly freakout]

The backlog in fixtures, and no doubt an injury or two will curtail any dream of top four.
European football however, totally achievable, by league or cup.

 

[Psychobilly freakout]

The game changer was 1997-98 when UEFA allowed multiple entrants from the same country, not just the champions. Suddenly you could finish 2nd or 3rd and later 4th and still have a crack at the trophy. As you say, this allowed the likes of ManUtd, Barca, AC Milan, Bayern etc. to compete every single year whether they won the title or not.

Are saying it is devalued the competition somewhat in favour of big teams....

I wonder if those entitled teams have thought about starting up some kind of, I don't know, just throwing it out there, a super league or something...

 

[BNthree]

Seems we're still under the radar.

View attachment 156876

Pervis ElseSomeone is my favourite! (They got the Spanish matronymic and patronymic the wrong way round!)

 

[Stato]

We are still just over halfway through the season, so it really means very little at this stage, but over the last four games, it could be argued that we lost out on four points through refereeing errors: Dermot Gallagher said that the ref and VAR got the Welbeck penalty decision wrong against Leicester and PGMOL apologised for Saturday's fugazi.

I mention this not to moan again about officials and VAR, but to illustrate just how close we are. Those decisions get made correctly (and we score the penalty) and we would currently sit two points behind Newcastle with a game in hand. Since the start of this year we have taken 11 points from a possible 15. Without these errors we could have taken a maximum 15. Meanwhile, with one eye on the League Cup, Newcastle have taken 7 from 15 and Spurs have taken only 9 from a possible 21 (although they've played Arsenal once and Man City twice).

Our game in hand is against that shower that had 26% possession and one shot on target on Saturday. Given the obvious superiority and the injustice that will be felt by our lot, I am for once, confident of a result against them. Now I've said that, we'll probably have an outbreak of flu the day before. Those spawny bunch of cloggers just have to run out of luck one day.

I've said elsewhere that I agree with the general view that our squad depth / experience won't cope with the run in as well as the big boys do, but to even be this close after the knock-backs we've had this season is absolutely astounding.

 

[southstandandy]

It is if we coontinue to get shit decisions like on Saturday, arguably denying us an extra 2 points.

 

[Diallo]

Newcastle and Spurs don’t really impress me from what I’ve seen. Got a gut feeling we’ll overtake both of them.

 

[Stat Brother]

Trap game on the horizon.

 

[Joey Jo Jo Jr. Shabadoo]

Seems we're still under the radar.

View attachment 156876

 

[aolstudios]

Obviously strength in depth is the big question mark, but it's worth remembering that Leicester didn't have a squad featuring £50m players on the bench when they won the league.

No disrespect meant but they were relying on Leo Ulloa as their back up striker. I liked Ulloa of course, but is he a massive upgrade on, say, Denis Undav?

Yes. He really was.
He scored crucial goals for them, was an absolute handful as a plan B & could score a pen (for them)

 

[perseus]

I THINK WE WILL RISE TO 4TH BUT KEEPING 4TH TO THE END OF THE SEASON MAY not occur

 

[ConfusedGloryHunter]

I THINK WE WILL RISE TO 4TH BUT KEEPING 4TH TO THE END OF THE SEASON MAY not occur

Whisper it mate, don't shout it.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Newcastle and Spurs don’t really impress me from what I’ve seen. Got a gut feeling we’ll overtake both of them.

This, absolutely. Neither is anything special. Any Albion fan who thinks otherwise is just suffering from historical inferiority complex. Off yer knees serfs! 4th spot is clearly there for the taking

 

[aolstudios]

This, absolutely. Neither is anything special. Any Albion fan who thinks otherwise is just suffering from historical inferiority complex. Off yer knees serfs! 4th spot is clearly there for the taking

This ^

 

[Jesus Gul]

1 Citeh
2 Arsenal
3 United
4 Chels
5 BHAFC
6 Newcastle
7 Brentford
8 Spuds
9 Fulham
10 Wolves

you've not been charged for this wild speculation

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

1 Citeh
2 Arsenal
3 United
4 Chels
5 BHAFC
6 Newcastle
7 Brentford
8 Spuds
9 Fulham
10 Wolves

you've not been charged for this wild speculation

Chelsea rapidly running out of games to reach escape velocity from mid-table mediocrity