Race for the Top 4 - 2018/19

[hellava_tough]

Think Moura and lamela have had to perform so well as none of the others have done so yet which is a plus point, not sure a CM and a FB gets us to challenge city but nonetheless that's another conversation.

You're probably right, but I think those positions on the pitch take us to another level.

Trouble is City seem to be so far ahead of everyone (well, they will be come May) that you have to wonder if we should be realistically aiming for 2nd place. But then again, that's kind of defeatist

 

[dontcallme]

You're probably right, but I think those positions on the pitch take us to another level.

Trouble is City seem to be so far ahead of everyone (well, they will be come May) that you have to wonder if we should be realistically aiming for 2nd place. But then again, that's kind of defeatist

How do you aim for 2nd rather than 1st?

 

[shelfboy68]

You're probably right, but I think those positions on the pitch take us to another level.

Trouble is City seem to be so far ahead of everyone (well, they will be come May) that you have to wonder if we should be realistically aiming for 2nd place. But then again, that's kind of defeatist

Definitely those positions would help but have to wait until next summer to see if those areas get addressed, I don't think it's defeatist to say we can't finish 1st it's more a realistic appraisal of our status and ambition.

 

[hellava_tough]

How do you aim for 2nd rather than 1st?

Well you aim to win every game at it comes.

But when you're looking at the league table, you don't get too deflated that City are 15+ points ahead of you in 1st place, whilst 2nd place is 2 or 3 points away.

This is also a 'transition' period for us, with all the disruption brought about by the stadium move.

 

[Chris Flynn]

Don't forget, teams notoriously start badly in a new stadium, always happens.

I think the opposite, i think getting back home will mean we ride on a crest of a wave, i think we will be unplayable when we get in

 

[hellava_tough]

Don't forget, teams notoriously start badly in a new stadium, always happens.

I haven't checked, but I would imagine that most teams go from their old stadium straight into their new stadium (e.g. when Arsenal moved from Highbury to the Emirates).

The new environment in that situation would certainly cause disruption to the match-day preparation, etc.

We're different though; we've been nomads for a long time now, playing our 'home' games in a stadium notorious for it's lack of atmosphere. And then playing away games as normal. We haven't had a decent 'home' venue since May 2017.

Unless there's something seriously wrong with the stadium design, there's not really any reason for our performances to suddenly drop when we start at NWHL.

Plus I'm sure the fans will be a lot happier (and noisier) when we return to Tottenham for match days!!

 

[hellava_tough]

I think the opposite, i think getting back home will mean we ride on a crest of a wave, i think we will be unplayable when we get in

I hope so, but that might be over-stating it!!

I also hope that the acoustics in the new stadium will give us a huge advantage. We spent nearly a billion quid on the thing, so you'd hope that they factored it in.

It's also a way to level the playing-field with our rivals; we can't spend as much as them in the transfer market, but we can invest in infrastructure that gives us a real edge for our home games and a large share of the 57pts a season pot, which they bring.

 

[dontcallme]

Well you aim to win every game at it comes.

But when you're looking at the league table, you don't get too deflated that City are 15+ points ahead of you in 1st place, whilst 2nd place is 2 or 3 points away.

This is also a 'transition' period for us, with all the disruption brought about by the stadium move.

Fair point.

 

[Lighty64]

Very fortunate ? We’ve played 2 of last season top 6. That’s more than United City or Liverpool have and same as Chelsea Arsenal. And played 5 of 8 away.

so Liverpool playing us and Chelsea doesn't count as 2 of last seasons top 6?

 

[piedpiper]

You're probably right, but I think those positions on the pitch take us to another level.

Trouble is City seem to be so far ahead of everyone (well, they will be come May) that you have to wonder if we should be realistically aiming for 2nd place. But then again, that's kind of defeatist

I don't think they will so far ahead this season. It will be much closer than last season. Dippers, Chelsea and (had we strengthened) can run them much closer. Its very early in the season and they have a well balanced squad but i dont believe City will win by a massive margin if they indeed win the title this season.

 

[Drink!Drink!]

A minor worry that Arsenal might become this year’s Leicester

 

[Lighty64]

I think the opposite, i think getting back home will mean we ride on a crest of a wave, i think we will be unplayable when we get in

a lot will depend on the atmosphere, we need to keep it rocking even in shaky times. if we had a bad couple of games and it becomes anxious it won't help lift the players

 

[philip]

Arsenal are worrying me. They look real contenders for top 4. In lacazette and Aubameyang they have two top class strikers, and Welbeck is probably better than Llorente.

That Watford game really hurt us

 

[Ron Burgundy]

Arsenal are a threat. Fact. Anyone that says otherwise is ignoring the evidence

Forget the Watford game. What worries me is how bloody bad we are.

We’ve been seriously average for the entire season IMO. That we have 18 points is more reflective of the opposition than us.

We need to get sorted quickly or we won’t get top 4 IMO.

We need players back ASAP, and we need Eriksen to decide he wants to play for us. Does anyone actually see him signing a new contract?

He’s arguably our best player and he’s done very little so far this season, and you have to say his mind set could be a big part of that

 

[Primativ]

We've lost every good side we've faced. Debatable to say whether United are a good side this season.

Every proper test against a side, Watford, Liverpool, Inter and Barcelona we have lost.

You can spin the united result anyway you wish to, but for me, it was a freak game where we were pathetic in the first half, and then very clinical in the second.

Generally, I am not convinced by us at all and would have us currently 4th/5th best team in the league, behind City, Liverpool, Chelsea and between Arsenal and us it is up in the air.

 

[teok]

We've lost every good side we've faced. Debatable to say whether United are a good side this season.

Every proper test against a side, Watford, Liverpool, Inter and Barcelona we have lost.

You can spin the united result anyway you wish to, but for me, it was a freak game where we were pathetic in the first half, and then very clinical in the second.

Generally, I am not convinced by us at all and would have us currently 4th/5th best team in the league, behind City, Liverpool, Chelsea and between Arsenal and us it is up in the air.

We looked really tired yesterday which is worrying.

 

[piedpiper]

We looked really tired yesterday which is worrying.

Heard the commentator say Unai Emery gave them the day off on Friday. It surely boosted them today.

 

[worcestersauce]

A minor worry that Arsenal might become this year’s Leicester

s long as it's last year's Leicester that's fine, I think they go above us now bot if they can score five away while we struggle to get more than one at home they probably deserve it.

 

[Ghost Hardware]

Arsenal are worrying me. They look real contenders for top 4. In lacazette and Aubameyang they have two top class strikers, and Welbeck is probably better than Llorente.

That Watford game really hurt us

So many people laughed off Emery when Arsenal appointed him just because of his lacklustre period at PSG. The fact is he is a very good manager and was excellent at Sevilla. He was a very clever appointment and exactly the kind of manager they needed. Also in Torreira they essentially bought the type of midfielder we have been crying out for, for very little. They are thin on the ground defensively but they will do very well this season IMO. 9 wins in a row is nothing to laugh at and they are winning in style, unlike us.

 

[Chimbo!]

Arsenal are a threat. Fact. Anyone that says otherwise is ignoring the evidence

Forget the Watford game. What worries me is how bloody bad we are.

We’ve been seriously average for the entire season IMO. That we have 18 points is more reflective of the opposition than us.

We need to get sorted quickly or we won’t get top 4 IMO.

We need players back ASAP, and we need Eriksen to decide he wants to play for us. Does anyone actually see him signing a new contract?

He’s arguably our best player and he’s done very little so far this season, and you have to say his mind set could be a big part of that

I agree that our play is worryingly poor. But it's hard to really know where our team stands. We have not played well in ANY game this season and yet we have our joint best points tally at this stage of the season. It's bizarre. Our competitors are steamrolling the opposition yet we are staying in distance with them for now. What does that mean? Will they be able to maintain their points accumulation when their form dips? Is our poor form likely to catch up with us?

My point is, right now it's impossible to judge. I think we should stay positive that we haven't got going and are still getting the points. We also have a bad injury situation at the moment.

My only gripe is why Lamela is not starting Prem games. He looks the most likely to cut teams up.