JonH comes home wrote:

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JonH comes home wrote:

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Paullow B wrote:

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JonH comes home wrote:

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Newcastle as well - and the thing there is getting 3rd spot is so important - 4th is not good, it means you have to go again in July and messes up your season, they want to get 3rd and leave 4th to United or Liverpool.

And Sheffield Wed - my work colleague is a Wednesday fan and was over the moon last night. Amazing

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Na, other than circa £2.8m and another nice looking podium finish, there's very little difference between finishing 3rd or 4th as the CL qualifier has been scrapped for years.

Newcastle have finished 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd in the Premier League era and Man Utd are the only team we haven't finished above (in the PL era) so it would be nice to finally do so in my lifetime, but that's pretty minuscule stuff, and after Liverpool won 7 in a row, looking lime they'll make it 9, and before yesterday, our CL hopes looking a little dicey, I'd still be absolutely delighted if we slipped to 4th at the end of the season.

 

One more win required, but hopefully Villa can get a shock result at Anfield tomorrow to speed it up further.

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 ha, is that right? I had no idea, shows how much I have been following things - good though!

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 I guess Newcastle's bigger issue in the CL will be they will have a very poor coefficient which will probably put them in the 3rd or 4th group of seeds, and a tough draw as a consequence - although maybe some attractive looking opponents on the other side of the coin? 

Or have they scrapped the seeding co-efficients as well?!  

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We'll almost certainly be in pot 4 if we get there, but at this stage of our journey, my ideal scenario would be to have 2 giants in the group, and a winnable 3rd pot side like a Salzburg or Shakhtar (from this year), test yourself against the best, and if you come up short in those, should probably still finish 3rd and then a crack at the Europa, where you'd likely be one of the faves, and the final being in Dublin would be an extra carrot to do as well as you can.

Regarding the tennis, my interest has been picking up with Badosa starting to do a bit better again, but still not really there with the British scene at the moment, although I have been checking this forum and the results more in recent weeks, so who knows, but no plans for Ilkley this year, despite it being a lovely setting.

 

-- Edited by Paullow B on Friday 19th of May 2023 09:30:26 AM

Paullow B wrote:

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Man City champions, Forest safe.

Newcastle and Man Utd need one more point from their final two games for top 4.

2 of Everton, Leeds, and Leicester will join Southampton in the Championship, with one staying up. Looking grim for Leicester, but a massive match for Leeds tomorrow at West Ham.

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 And West Ham then have Everton as well - big responsibility particularly if the players are focused on European glory!

Paullow B wrote:

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JonH comes home wrote:

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Paullow B wrote:

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Man City champions, Forest safe.

Newcastle and Man Utd need one more point from their final two games for top 4.

2 of Everton, Leeds, and Leicester will join Southampton in the Championship, with one staying up. Looking grim for Leicester, but a massive match for Leeds tomorrow at West Ham.

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 And West Ham then have Everton as well - big responsibility particularly if the players are focused on European glory!

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You've got your rivals mixed up Jon, it's Leicester vs West Ham on the final, Everton vs Bournemouth, and obviously you vs Spurs, all 3 strugglers at home. I think if you beat West Ham tomorrow you'll likely go on to stay up, but if not, probably Everton. You really have to go for the win.

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 Youre right of course - I was doing it from memory and hadnt checked! with Bournemouth playing Everton and West Ham playing leicester and us, its a right old Harry Redknapp little world out there ! 

Bob in Spain wrote:

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Well Leeds. Time to step up to the plate. Today is a must win. It is in our hands.

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 Nope - going down.

To be fair Brighton are a very good side, went as an Arsenal fan (for a day) last week and you whooped them. Banking on a 6-0 loss to City and then Villa dishing out a 5-0 thrashing next Sunday. Europa league or bust! The European farmers league is not an attractive option it may be Europe but Sunday, Thursday football is too bigger price today. Bizarrely a trip to Ostrava or somewhere more obscure has its attractions.

Only once been on an away trip to Europe .. in the similarly mighty Intertoto.. lost 2-0 to Zurich.. bizarrely the fans started setting alight their own seats .. Yrs later found out that they had hired their stadium out for a Jehovahs Witness conference and we were actually at Grasshoppers stadium.

Oakland2002 wrote:

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To be fair Brighton are a very good side, went as an Arsenal fan (for a day) last week and you whooped them. Banking on a 6-0 loss to City and then Villa dishing out a 5-0 thrashing next Sunday. Europa league or bust! The European farmers league is not an attractive option it may be Europe but Sunday, Thursday football is too bigger price today. Bizarrely a trip to Ostrava or somewhere more obscure has its attractions.

Only once been on an away trip to Europe .. in the similarly mighty Intertoto.. lost 2-0 to Zurich.. bizarrely the fans started setting alight their own seats .. Yrs later found out that they had hired their stadium out for a Jehovahs Witness conference and we were actually at Grasshoppers stadium.

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Quite surprised by that attitude to be honest. Like Villa, Newcastle haven't been in any form of European football for years, so after finishing 11th last season I'd have snapped your hands off for 7th place this season in August (as long as the cups were won by the better sides and that secured a return to European football, even if the 3rd competition), be the 'best of the rest' so to speak, trips overseas, more matches on TV, more chance for other fans to get to home matches, and just a general boost to the clubs profile etc. and making it feel more relevant.

It may impact your league form a little next season but I don't think the likes of Newcastle, Everton, Villa can turn their noses up at continental football and I'm sure Emery would prefer to be involved in it than not, because it is a chance at another trophy and if you were to win in, then Europa the following year, and with the established 6, and then Newcastle, Brighton, yourselves all getting better and pushing on, it's so hard to guarantee any form of Europe these days.

I guess if you've witnessed your side win the European Cup then that might impact attitudes, but I'd defo prefer 7th than 8th or 9th, and having the odd glance on Villa Talk, most on there seem up for the Conference.

Amazing turnaround since Emery came in, and to be above Spurs at this stage, considering the points gap when Gerrard left, is absolutely insane.

-- Edited by Paullow B on Sunday 21st of May 2023 06:19:36 PM