No, I’m not mixing it up.You still seem to be mixing up winning th CL final and losing it as the same thing
3rd is better than 4th regardless of what you prefer
But if we finished 4th, but won the CL, FA Cup and League Cup next season, I’d say that was better than finishing 3rd. So it’s not better, regardless.
However, if you want to look at our league position in isolation, it is better. MUCH better.