Tough month ahead

Just had a look at the fixtures and think we'll have a very good idea whether we'll be automatic promotion contenders come the new year. Pompey, Sunderland, Charlton and Luton all coming up. What we expecting?

 

A bit of inconsistency I would imagine.

 

Top 2 by Christmas

 

Yes reckon so. Win half of those games mentioned and I'd be happy though. Particularly if we also picked up points at Wycombe and Blackpool.

 

I agree.

 

it will be a hard month but keep the faith c.o.y.r.

 

Admire the optimism. I just think it may be too big of an ask. I still think we've been a joy to watch this season and would be happy with reaching the play offs. Particularly considering we have a relatively young coaching team with no experience of english football. I also think we have particularly strong competition this season. Be interesting to see where our points so far would put us in previous years.

 

We are one of the best 2 teams in this league with a budget that dwarfs everyone except Sunderland. Anything else other than top 2 is failure imo.

 

Not that simple in my opinion. Have to take into account the fact that we have a new management team implementing a new style of play with a very young squad. I'd hope for top two but would be more than happy getting promoted via play offs.

 

I base it on that were not playing particularly well at present and still on a run of 3 league wins and a draw.

We've to get going again yet for me because I think we're some way short of what we were earlier in the season.

Agree it's tough at the top though, with several other clubs all in contention, but still fancy us to be up there come January.

 

Anything less than top2 would be a failure for me.

 

We'll be like Rolf Harris in 1969, in top spot for Christmas...actually, bad analogy is that.

I know, we'll be like The Flying Pickets in 19...no, perhaps not on here!!!

F*** it!!!

Pub!!!

 

Not true pompey average 17k a week have a millionaire owner a really good squad and a manager who has got automatic promotion from this league before bigger budget than ours.
Sunderland are still reviving parachute payments and for me have the best squad in the league should be a 3 horse race for me.

 

Our owners could buy Portsmouth and turn it into a car park if they wanted. Our squad probably cost near enough to 10 million quid to assemble. Most weeks we have Moncur and thiam on the bench that’s nearly 2 million quid there I suspect Pompey’s whole team didn’t cost much more. Sunderland and ourselves have a budget that dwarfs the rest. Yes Portsmouth have both a good manager and Momentum if we don’t finish above them we will have failed. Anything other than automatic promotion given our advantages is a failure.

 

Our owners are richer but you can only spend what you earn so with them getting 17k gates I'd imagine their budget is bigger than ours I could be wrong though Sunderland dwarfs everyones.
On a whole I think We have done well to 've 3rd stendel has had Bradshaw sold he has had injurys to fryers,pinnilos,dougall,isgrove,hedges,Potts,keiffer moore and Woodrow at one point he had both fryers and pinnilos injured and also had moore and Woodrow injured leaving only victor and brown as striker options. Also had Davies away with Wales 3 times. I remember last time we were relegated we had top 3 budget and finished 13th with some of the worst football I've ever watched at oakwell in 20 years, football isn't played on paper. Not saying I'd take top 6 now but for me top 6 is acceptable.

 

I think (imho) our real test will be january when the offers come in for our better players (pinnock being first).
We will be there or there abouts at the end of the season....just need some consistancy.

 

But would you really be that disappointed if we got promoted via the play offs? Would you be heading out of Wembley thinking the season was a failure? Genuine questions, not having a go.

 

Some of our best performances have been against teams at the top of the league (Peterborough) and our worst against teams at the bottom (Plymouth). So where the opposing team is in the league doesn't concern me much. If the opposing team want to play football rather than boot us off the park, we'll do OK, and I suspect most of those at the top will. I am not denying we have some obvious weaknesses in certain positions but I still fancy us for a play-off place at least, which I would have taken at the beginning of the season.

 

Would I be disappointed probably not. Would we have underachieved. Definitely.

 

Interesting perspective. If i felt the season was a failure, I would almost be certainly disappointed. Maybe it's all semantics, but i see our aim as achieving promotion. How we do that doesn't really matter.