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Chief Sardonicus Hyperlip
- Feb 13, 2004
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I'm not sure that I agree with that. Perhaps I can give you a different perspective.
That was a decent result against one of the likely top three. You can look at it as two points dropped, but even after it we are still well within touching distance of the top four.
Even if we lose the Chelsea game (and I'm not sure that we will), we will still be in touch of the fourth place.
None of our rivals is convincing ATM.
We will be just over half way in the season, but will have played Chelsea, Citeh and the Goons away (probably THE three hardest games, for us at least, in the season). We will also have played United, Liverpool and Chelsea at the Lane. So, we will have, in just under half a season, less games against the five clubs technically above us than in the first half. Of the games left, we have Liverpool and United away, and Liverpool appear to have regressed while we are improving so a trip to Anfield may not be quite as intimidating as it may have done just after their visit to the Lane, and while OT is not an easy place to go and United are improving, we are improving ourselves and have a good recent record there so all hope is not lost. As for home games, we have the Goons and Citeh. The Goons have hardly been an all-conquering, dominant side this season, especially away, and it is the NLD - surely we will have a good chance in that one. And that leaves Citeh, and even if we concede them favourite status we will at last have home advantage and, therefore, a chance.
As mentioned in above, we are improving. Defensive stability looks to be paying off. The players are fitter - and this is giving us an advantage at the end of matches. In recent matches, our attacking play has looked far more fluid, we have some exciting young attacking players who are improving and relationships, as at the back, look to be developing. The players look to be buying into, and adjusting for, Pochettino's system.
Where we really need to improve is in central midfield, the one area of the pitch more than any other. As I said in the last match-thread, I really do love having home produced players in midfield, and I believe they both have great futures in the game. But neither together nor paired with any other of our central midfielders, are Bentaleb/Mason dominant enough ATM. But they will improve and hopefully we will sell some of the deadwood and get a player in there that will with more experience and the drive to take games like the scruff of the neck (ahem, Schneiderlin was sent off today), with our younglings to learn from and develop alongside.
Honestly don't see for top 4 anywhere near as clear-cut as you. And see today's result as a good, and hard-fought point on the way to it. We are a fitter, better integrated, more confidence team with individually improving players and with improving partnerships/relationships at various areas of the pitch. We will still be in a decent position just outside the top 4 even if we lose to Chelsea and with the majority of our harder matches out of the way, and the ones left being ones were we look more capable of getting a result. And Poch will presumably be more than aware of the need to bulk up the midfield as he really pushed for Schneidlerin in the summer. Not saying we will do it, and we certainly aren't a shoe-in, but I wouldn't give up on it just yet, either. That said, a good finish to the season and a cup win would do it for me - Europa, for me, or CC and Europa double
COYS
