Just thinking about who we are competing directly with in the Premier league this season and beyon. Can't really pick a standout team who id say we're in direct competition with and the reason I feel that, is that once again, we don't know where we fit into the current league. Finishing 9th then 17th has left us kinda feeling like an a bit of an unknown quantity. We finished 9th riding on our coat tails from the previous season with a fit and firing side guided by astute manager, it was bliss. Other clubs have done that also, Wolves, Sheff Utd, Brentford, Brighton, Reading all finshed well after there promotion season, they call it 2nd season syndrome for a reason. We finished 17th as a result of dreadful management and poor recruitment, not something that will be the case too often so was likely a one off and can't too much be used to forecast our targets next season.
Size of the club: As a club, we're a massive club and are competing with the likes of Everton, Villa, West Ham and Newcastle in that aspect. We have the fanbase, facilities and history to match the likes of those. In my honest opinion, we trump all of those clubs on history, fanbase and most important of all, potential.
Based on modern times: 16 years outside of the Premier league means that we're lightyears behind the elite of English football. We are in our 3rd season and still playing catch up to the big 6, which as a club, is where we should be and capable of being one day. But for now, there are teams further up the line than us. Palace, Wolves, Leicester, Villa, Southampton and Brighton have all been outside the Premier league at some point after we dropped out, we shouldn't be too far behind them now that we are back and in our 3rd season. Brentford are a championship side at best and we should absolutely be finishing above them, Fulham and Bournemouth. Leicester and Southampton were in L1 with us and Brighton have had spells out of the top flight.
Overall: Id say Villa are the closest rival we have. They got promoted just 1 season before we did, have a young manager with a decent player pull like us, well supported like us, similar stadium to ours also. They finished 7 points ahead of us last season and we finished 4 ahead of them in our return season. For me, they are a bit of a mirror club to us.
So who is our closest league rival in your opinions? There aren't really any wrong answers, but im intriqued to see where you place us in the Premier league pecking order.
League rivals?
posted on 11/6/22
comment by Shaun M - Everywhere you go, always take Raphinha with you! (U9955)
posted 10 hours, 28 minutes ago
comment by LufcGermany (U6066)
posted 1 hour, 39 minutes ago
I'd say that if Brentford are a Championship club that'd be where they are!..
You say we match Newcastle, I think their spending power will put them well in front off us, or I'm seeing life wrong!..
And league rivals?..
A rival is who you play on the day, the whole league is our rival and we have to compete with them all!..
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It will put them ahead of us, but as of now they aint much better than us. Think we have better players than them imo. No reason we can't finish above them as it stands.
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Over the last 20 games of the season they won 17 more points than you did and only City and Liverpool had better form. Whilst I'm not saying they'll replicate that next season, with the right additions they'll most certainly finish comfortably the top half I'd have thought, and I think you're a way off that yet in all honesty, and I'm yet to be convinced by your new manager.
posted on 11/6/22
comment by merrysupersteve (monitoring the situation) (U1132)
posted 11 hours, 14 minutes ago
I'm a Man United fan, not taking the pee when I say what I think your aims should be...
I think you should be looking at the three teams that come up and Brentford as the targets for this season. Maybe Wolves too. Could be better but just as things stand that's where I think you stand. Newcastle are only going one way and they'll be challenging us next season. Villa are spending big and are already decent, so they'll be tough for Leeds to challenge right now. Southampton are very gettable too.
I think that's as far as you can expect. But there could always be a Leicester or Everton who struggle and you may well finish above either of them. Impossible to predict accurately right now
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I think you have pretty much nailed it. If Brentford lose Eriksen, they will be facing a major challenge to stay up. Likewise, if we lose KP/Raph/Mes, we will be in deep $hit, unless we replace them with Premier league quality. Our biggest problem is that we conceded 79 goals, more than two goals a game. Rasmussen on his own is not going to sort that mess out.
Southampton seem to develop some superb players, but they do not re-invest as well as they could, and lack ambition to become, say, a Leicester or a Wolves. They look like a team that knows how to do enough to get by, and then take the foot off the pedal.
I suspect that Fulham and Bournemouth are going to be quite resilient this time around. Both experienced relegation quite recently and both have strengtened where they needed to. Forest look like they could be losing two of their key players, Garner and Maitland-Niles.
In short, I think we need to bring in at least two proven Premier League players at the top of their game, preferably before KP and Raph make their moves.
posted on 11/6/22
I think the problem is that we’ll never be allowed to spend enough to catch up due to FFP. Top teams make more so they can spend more. We can ‘only’ spend £100m a year which will only allow us to tread water. That’s not enough to get anywhere near the top 6. In 10 years we might be able to sustain a top half positioning.
Apart from a Leicester one-off I suspect there’s little evidence of any promoted team having cemented themselves in the top half within 5-7 years
posted on 11/6/22
Shaun, correct me if I'm wrong, but were Newcastle not behind us when they were bought out?..
If they hadn't been taken over I'd think Burnley might still be with us, but hey, Newcastle ended 10pts in front off us, their new bods spent a little and did enough to prepare them for the next level, surely you don't expect the said to be richest club in the world to stand still do you?..
They're well ahead off us and we're going to see it!..
posted on 11/6/22
In regards to Newcastle, id rather have Kristensen then Trippier, Id rather have Bamford than Wood, id rather have KP then Shelvey, Harrison than Fraser/Almiron/Murphy and the list could go on. The only players they have that are better than what we have are Guimares, ASM and Wilson imo.
Until they sign another 3 or 4 players, that side aint getting anywhere near the top 6, id have them down for top 12 currently.
posted on 11/6/22
"Until they sign another 3 or 4 players, that side aint getting anywhere near the top 6, id have them down for top 12 currently."
And where would you have Leeds?..
Better when you say that when the window shuts, because the buying has just started!..
posted on 11/6/22
Just to show where the two clubs stand (Leeds and Newcxastle). Newcastle have yet to do very much but it's early days, they are said to have offered between 50 and 55m Euros for a central defender (Botman) which dwarfs both our record signing and the amount he was valued at. They are able to force deals through by paying way over the odds for players and are therefore in a whole different market to us.
This is very ominous and cannot be healthy for football.
posted on 11/6/22
ManC won nothing before their now owners took them on!..
Newcastle are now sailing the same boat!..
posted on 11/6/22
Think there's plenty of teams that we can relatively compete with this season. You're looking at Southampton, Wolves, Brentford, Brighton, Palace, all of whom finished above us but are all attainable to surpass, if we have better luck with injuries and land our recruitment.
Think the standard of the PL will be higher this year, as Fulham and Bournemouth are better than each of the three who went down. That means that any side who stands still in that bottom half will put themselves at risk.
posted on 13/6/22
The top 6 is the ‘big’ 6, beyond that it’s fine margins…West Ham and Leicester are the next 2, but are they really that far ahead of the following pack…no!