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I expect us to be continually overlooked by the media as they wank off all the new signings and managers until midway through the season when they finally see us as contenders. Once we pick up some steam hanging around the top 4 come February we will probably struggle and end at the more usual 5th place behind the ever-spending Chelseas, Citys and Uniteds of this world.
I have high hopes that this finally is the year of the mighty spurs. To many new coaches, new players and new game plans in the other teams while Tottenham can keep the core, young players have evolved a year, last year's new recruits are healthy and used to Poch's game plan and the depth of the roster have been filled with high quality back ups for the important positions.
^^
Wimmer, Wanyama and Janssen are the only proven quality back ups. The rest are either mediocre or inexperienced academy graduates with loads of potentials.
Wimmer, Wanyama and Janssen are the only proven quality back ups. The rest are either mediocre or inexperienced academy graduates with loads of potentials.
League title, win the CL, FA cup and league cup. Only joking, I don't think it's worth bothering with the league cup.
Only takes one to have a breakthrough season and we have 4 amazing options from the bench depending on the situation, things have been a lot worse than this
Top 4 finish.
Get out of the CL group stages.
Anything else, realistically, is a bonus. No one competes well on every front, so don't expect to do well in the league, FA cup, EFL cup and the CL. It isn't going to happen. Fans and Manager will need to realise this and prioritise one or the other (Like Poch did with the Europa last season).
(Just to clarify I expect us to finish in the top 4, not to finish 4th, before someone says "He predicts we'll win the league then claims we'll finish 4th")
Get out of the CL group stages.
Anything else, realistically, is a bonus. No one competes well on every front, so don't expect to do well in the league, FA cup, EFL cup and the CL. It isn't going to happen. Fans and Manager will need to realise this and prioritise one or the other (Like Poch did with the Europa last season).
(Just to clarify I expect us to finish in the top 4, not to finish 4th, before someone says "He predicts we'll win the league then claims we'll finish 4th")
This from the Grauniad, points 4 and 8 seem to be a bit confused.... Probably written by some goon supporting cunt.
Ten things to look out for this weekend | Football | The Guardian
Premier League: 10 things to look out for this weekend
4) Unready Everton could be there for the taking
Everton, having lost five and won two of their final 10 league games as last season drifted to the most limp of conclusions, can be expected to improve significantly under Ronald Koeman. This, however, might not be the day they prove it. Ashley Williams is unfit, Yannick Bolasie and Lamine Koné have not yet joined, and Romelu Lukaku and Seamus Coleman, two members of last season’s squad whose position in the starting XI would seem assured – outbound transfers notwithstanding – are doubtful. “We are not at the level we need to be, in terms of the players and their physical state,” says Koeman. “The squad will be 100% in two or three weeks. It’s a big project. It won’t be complete after two months, we need more time.” Tottenham know all about starting seasons disappointingly slowly, having kicked off last season with a defeat and three draws – one of them against Everton. They ended the season similarly, with two defeats and two draws – in the 30 games in between they were the best team in the country, a full nine points ahead of Woolwich and above Leicester by an emphatic goal differential of 17. Their efforts to hit the ground running this time could be assisted by Everton’s apparent unreadiness to do so. SB
8) Can Spurs avoid another underwhelming start?
Tottenham were excellent last season, at their best, probably the best team in England. But there was still something irrepressibly Spursy about their best league season in a generation ending with a title lost to Leicester and a capitulation against a relegated side that meant they finished behind Woolwich for the 21st time in 21 years. Now, through the summer, they’ve watched Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United install a variety of elite managers and players, such that they now face a serious battle to preserve their status as Champions League competitors, let alone championship contenders. But success needn’t be beyond them; it is not easy to pinpoint any weaknesses in their first-choice line-up, and they retain the same movement and intensity whoever Mauricio Pochettino selects. But this is not to say they have no weakness. Unlike their likely rivals, they have neither elite players nor an elite manager, so this is their challenge: to produce them organically. The likes of Toby Alderweireld, Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Moussa Dembélé and Erik Lamela must improve themselves from the merely very good, and Mauricio Pochettino, similarly unproven, must extract it from them. And his team has been dealt a tricky start at Everton, whose players will be buzzing to assert their worth before Ronald Koeman’s inevitable splurge. Last season’s dodgy start cost Tottenham the title – the same again will cost them a lot more.
Ten things to look out for this weekend | Football | The Guardian
Premier League: 10 things to look out for this weekend
4) Unready Everton could be there for the taking
Everton, having lost five and won two of their final 10 league games as last season drifted to the most limp of conclusions, can be expected to improve significantly under Ronald Koeman. This, however, might not be the day they prove it. Ashley Williams is unfit, Yannick Bolasie and Lamine Koné have not yet joined, and Romelu Lukaku and Seamus Coleman, two members of last season’s squad whose position in the starting XI would seem assured – outbound transfers notwithstanding – are doubtful. “We are not at the level we need to be, in terms of the players and their physical state,” says Koeman. “The squad will be 100% in two or three weeks. It’s a big project. It won’t be complete after two months, we need more time.” Tottenham know all about starting seasons disappointingly slowly, having kicked off last season with a defeat and three draws – one of them against Everton. They ended the season similarly, with two defeats and two draws – in the 30 games in between they were the best team in the country, a full nine points ahead of Woolwich and above Leicester by an emphatic goal differential of 17. Their efforts to hit the ground running this time could be assisted by Everton’s apparent unreadiness to do so. SB
8) Can Spurs avoid another underwhelming start?
Tottenham were excellent last season, at their best, probably the best team in England. But there was still something irrepressibly Spursy about their best league season in a generation ending with a title lost to Leicester and a capitulation against a relegated side that meant they finished behind Woolwich for the 21st time in 21 years. Now, through the summer, they’ve watched Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United install a variety of elite managers and players, such that they now face a serious battle to preserve their status as Champions League competitors, let alone championship contenders. But success needn’t be beyond them; it is not easy to pinpoint any weaknesses in their first-choice line-up, and they retain the same movement and intensity whoever Mauricio Pochettino selects. But this is not to say they have no weakness. Unlike their likely rivals, they have neither elite players nor an elite manager, so this is their challenge: to produce them organically. The likes of Toby Alderweireld, Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Moussa Dembélé and Erik Lamela must improve themselves from the merely very good, and Mauricio Pochettino, similarly unproven, must extract it from them. And his team has been dealt a tricky start at Everton, whose players will be buzzing to assert their worth before Ronald Koeman’s inevitable splurge. Last season’s dodgy start cost Tottenham the title – the same again will cost them a lot more.
- League top 4
- CL qualifying beyond group stage
- Domestic cups: One final
- Play high intensity, exciting football and leave space for local players to breakthrough.
Even if we only achieve the first and the last, I would be happy.
The league will be hard this year, the hardest I can even remember. Even if we are at our best in EPL years
- UTD have JM and pissed away money on signings
- City have PG and ditto
- Woolwich are still very dangerous and no worse off than last season finishing 2nd
- Liverpool have a decent manager and a better squad and no european distractions
- Chelsea ditto + have spent equally much
- Leicester is a wildcard and I can see them being highly effecient winning points of "lesser" sides again
- West Ham have a very small squad but a decent manager and a few very good individual players
The only things that stop me from thinking we can win the league are the squad not being strong enough, and our/Poch's habit of finishing seasons badly. If we get knocked out of the CL early, and we somehow tweak the fitness regime in order to give us enough juice left for the final push, I honestly think we can do it. Two big ifs though.
I think another top four finish and a good run in the CL would be a successful outcome. I'm not as hopeful as others for decent domestic cup runs as I don't think we will prioritise them at all. It will be the teams with the better squads and mid-table sides (as we saw with Palace) who will do well in them.
I think another top four finish and a good run in the CL would be a successful outcome. I'm not as hopeful as others for decent domestic cup runs as I don't think we will prioritise them at all. It will be the teams with the better squads and mid-table sides (as we saw with Palace) who will do well in them.
I'd be disappointed with 6th tbh. We have a better squad than Chelski & Liverpool.
Top four.
Top 4, don't see us challenging for the title though. Yeah, some other teams have improved, but I expect Leicester to drop quite a bit from where they were last year and while Chelsea and Liverpool don't have to play in Europe, they still need to play significantly better than what they showed last year. I'm not actually that impressed with their transfer dealings. Mane is a good signing for Liverpool, but apart from him? They still have Mignolet in goal, Klavan I have my doubts about and they are playing Milner at LB... Chelsea made two good signings in Kante and Batshuayi, but their defence is questionable imo. Cahill, Terry, Ivanovic... getting old, how long can they keep up. And David Luiz is a joke. I'm not impressed with Woolwich either, but then again they always seem to get top-four.
We'll probably get out of the group stage of the CL at least, likely to exit in the quarter finals or something. I don't expect much from us in the domestic cups.
We'll probably get out of the group stage of the CL at least, likely to exit in the quarter finals or something. I don't expect much from us in the domestic cups.
I expect us to finish 6th due to the CL and the fact that Chelski is going to kill it this year, Conte is the best coach in England (maybe on par with Poch) and has a lot of attacking options. Liverpool are going to be spectacular in a lot of ways (both in defeat as in victory) but Klopp wont win them the title. I do however feel Mignolet is a lot better than people seem to think (i'm biases) and that a lot of their goals are due to their sub standard defending.
City are going to win in, Man U are going to bore us to second and the Gooners always seem to be in the top 4. Leaves us, Leicester, Everton, Gooners to battle it our for places 4-6
City are going to win in, Man U are going to bore us to second and the Gooners always seem to be in the top 4. Leaves us, Leicester, Everton, Gooners to battle it our for places 4-6