A Sudden Realisation

[houseboy]

When mooching about in the house yesterday morning I found myself thinking about the Liverpool game in the afternoon and thinking I must remember to keep an eye on that one. This lead me to thinking about the bigger picture generally. The fact that I actually gave a toss about Liverpool's result (and for that matter Tottenham's the day before) made me realise just how far we have come as a club. Yeah we all know it's been an amazing journey and what we are doing is brilliant but it was only when I started thinking about the fact that we are actually caring about these kind of results that it made me think it terms of just how far we really have come. We are jostling for position in the league with Liverpool, Spurs and Arsenal and if we can beat Spurs in our next game we would put them 4 points behind us.
Will it last? Who knows? But right now and for the immediate future we are battling with the big guns for a European place of some kind and that sudden realisation yesterday made me feel, in footballing terms at least, one of the proudest men alive.
Long may it continue.

[RalphCoatesComb]

In footballing terms at least, one of the proudest men alive.

Welcome to PROUDSVILLE

[Paul Waine]

When mooching about in the house yesterday morning I found myself thinking about the Liverpool game in the afternoon and thinking I must remember to keep an eye on that one. This lead me to thinking about the bigger picture generally. The fact that I actually gave a toss about Liverpool's result (and for that matter Tottenham's the day before) made me realise just how far we have come as a club. Yeah we all know it's been an amazing journey and what we are doing is brilliant but it was only when I started thinking about the fact that we are actually caring about these kind of results that it made me think it terms of just how far we really have come. We are jostling for position in the league with Liverpool, Spurs and Arsenal and if we can beat Spurs in our next game we would put them 4 points behind us.
Will it last? Who knows? But right now and for the immediate future we are battling with the big guns for a European place of some kind and that sudden realisation yesterday made me feel, in footballing terms at least, one of the proudest men alive.
Long may it continue.

And, Arsenal v L'pool on Friday evening, before we play on Saturday. What result do we want in that game?

Yes, we are truly part of "the top six or seven" - to quote Eddie Howe from today's Times.

I guess it makes us all not just the "proudest men (and women) alive" but also "prouder than the proudest men and women who live in the very proud city of Proudsville."

UTC

[jurek]

I think our next 6/7 games will define whether we can
still continue to feature in the top six.
Spurs, Man Utd (twice), Liverpool, Huddersfield, Palace & Newcastle
will prove very difficult but if we can manage a couple of wins
from those and possibly a few draws too then we should still be in 6th or 7th.
Any more then we should up there and still be on the coat tails of the big six.

It could still all go wrong.
Hopefully not and we can continue our resilience in defense
and grab a few goals as well.
Although we've picked up 7 points from the last three and not conceded
I'm not that confident we will be able to carry on in the same manner.

An injection of one or two decent new players in January would help
especially if we can get someone in who can replace Brady.
However not sure that will happen or that someone, whoever that might be.
will be available

[Caernarfon_Claret]

I think our next 6/7 games will define whether we can
still continue to feature in the top six.
Spurs, Man Utd (twice), Liverpool, Huddersfield, Palace & Newcastle
will prove very difficult but if we can manage a couple of wins
from those and possibly a few draws too then we should still be in 6th or 7th.
Any more then we should up there and still be on the coat tails of the big six.

It could still all go wrong.
Hopefully not and we can continue our resilience in defense
and grab a few goals as well.
Although we've picked up 7 points from the last three and not conceded
I'm not that confident we will be able to carry on in the same manner.

An injection of one or two decent new players in January would help
especially if we can get someone in who can replace Brady.
However not sure that will happen or that someone, whoever that might be.
will be available

With City (H) being the game after Newcastle we'll only have Arsenal (A) & Chelsea (H) to play out of the big 6.

I know we'll still have to play Leicester (H), Watford (A - but they have a poor home record) & Everton (H), but there should be some relatively easy games as well.

[Sidney1st]

When you get to work, start the usual Monday am chat about the footy and realise you're disappointed to be in 6th...

[RingoMcCartney]

Burnley F C, realistically need 40 points to, pretty much, guarantee another, financially fabulous, year in the Premier League.

Sean Dyche and his team have already given us 32 reasons to be cheerful.

[Wile E Coyote]

It is incredible, have to pinch yourself sometimes.
The pundits revel in particular stories, one theme presently is how Liverpool are crap at the back, blah blah.
Then they won again convincingly !
The route the journalists and commentators took next was to say, well, all well and good, but if they cannot afford to spend 50 million, then they'll never be good enough to compete with city or united.
For us to be up there with the likes of spurs and arsenal at this stage of a season shows how great an achievement it is.
I would settle for survival, never expected great things, so this so far is an added bonus.
No idea where we'll be in a year or two. I will enjoy it whilst it lasts, personally I believe it will be short lived unfortunately.
The facts are though, we are up there on merit, and its quite remarkable.

[houseboy]

I think we can beat Spurs next game. Our record at home to them even in the PL era isn't too shabby. My main worry as to our 'next defeat' really has to be United. Our problem there is that they are a better prospect than when we got a point there last season and that was gained on the back of a truly superhuman effort by Tom Heaton. Whilst not meaning any disrespect to Pope (who has been truly brilliant so far to the point of us asking will Heaton get back in) the likelihood of another goalkeeping performance like that being repeated is very slim, whoever was in goal, I think even Heaton could play another 15 years and not put in another display like that, it was truly awesome. So the lads in general will have to step up from the way they played last year.
However on the up side we ARE a much better side than last year and we have played the best this season and not been found wanting (0-3 at City was no disgrace and the usual robbery by the Gooners was an utter shambles of a refereeing error). If we can field a more or less full strength side and keep it tight then who knows, another point there would be fantastic.