“Be careful what you wish for Brighton fans” - How the football world owes us an apology

[Skaville]

10th biggest spenders in Europe and we are hanging on by the skin of our teeth, easy to post this shite when we are now probably safe, Potter ain't the messiah.

Webster decent but can be a liability at the back, Maupay decent purchase from Brentford to be fair has done well, Trossard erratic performer hasn't always made the starting line up, Mooy another bargain basement buy at £5M.

I'm amazed how we are the 10th biggest spenders in Europe, it's a scattergun approach by Potter same as his team selection..

My god you talk shite. Hanging on by the skin of our teeth? That was last year. Sub standard players like Knockaert and Locadia shipped out. Murray rightfully replaced. A pathway for young players and signings that have actually had impact.

We’ve stuffed Spurs, done the double over Arsenal, run Liverpool close at Anfield and got points from Leicester, Chelsea and Wolves. I’m really not sure what miserable ******** like you expect.

 

[The Wookiee]

Bristol City need a manager tonight. They have lots of attacking options but their defence has always been a weak point under Lee Johnson.

They're potentially a biggish club: large city, good set-up, backed by a family with lots of money (but only if spent in the right way), and could easily sustain a Premier League club if either Rovers or City (or both) ever got there. I'd have thought Hughton might fit the bill for them. Steadying influence, record of getting promoted to the PL, and they're a big enough club that he'd consider it a decent challenge, surely?

Liam Rosenior as his number 2

 

[Skaville]

I don't know. That is the point, none of us do.



No he doesn't. He took a gamble based on the information he had at hand at the time, that doesn't include absolute factual knowledge of what happens if he doesn't make the change.


All we can say is that the change doesn't appear to have cost us our place in the premier league this year.

Oh shut up! “Hasn’t cost us our place in the Premier League this year”. Where were we heading under Hughton? Three wins in 23 games! If it was such a mistake to let Hughton go how come he isn’t employed a year on?

 

[Quinney]

Be careful what you wish for? I can't say I wished for the dire shite we dished up at times this season.

Great timing by the OP after thumping the mighty Norwich today, how smug and arrogant we have become being the 10th biggest spenders in Europe buying mostly crap!

Lamptey on the other hand has been the bargain of the decade.

Be careful what you wish for? Mid table mediocrity would be a start..

I’d rather settle for “the dire shite” dished up this season than the awful displays (especially away) we put up with last season. Houghton did a great job, and will go down as a legend but it was the right time to move on.


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[Skaville]

I’d rather settle for “the dire shite” dished up this season than the awful displays (especially away) we put up with last season. Houghton did a great job, and will go down as a legend but it was the right time to move on.


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Can anything this season compare with the utter ineptitude of Bournemouth or Cardiff at home? Fulham away? I think not

 

[Weststander]

10th biggest spenders in Europe and we are hanging on by the skin of our teeth, easy to post this shite when we are now probably safe, Potter ain't the messiah.

Webster decent but can be a liability at the back, Maupay decent purchase from Brentford to be fair has done well, Trossard erratic performer hasn't always made the starting line up, Mooy another bargain basement buy at £5M.

I'm amazed how we are the 10th biggest spenders in Europe, it's a scattergun approach by Potter same as his team selection..

The “10th biggest net spenders in Europe“ covers all the blunders in the transfer windows before Potter joined us, as an inexperienced to top flight football, club, tried to build a PL squad as quickly as possible.

This without selling crown jewels to sell, such as Wan Bissaka or VVD, to bring the net spend figure down.

In terms of current squad cost, according to CIES Football Observatory, we have the 16th most expensive squad in the PL, so despite those recent past transfer blunders, on the pitch Potter’s doing fine. The recruitment record once Ashworth and Potter combined, looks more than decent, we no longer keep resorting to starting games with our promotion stalwarts.

 

[drew]

I don't agree.

Firstly, the team isn't safe yet. Let's not jump the gun.

Secondly, there were many Albion fans of the same opinion. Chris did do an incredible amount for the club and I would not have had a problem with him starting the next season with a re-vamped team.

They may be proved wrong in the long term, but I never felt antipathy to what is merely opinion then or now. It is just their view- and there was reasonable cause for them to think that way.

I can't see why someone needs to apologise for simply having a benign opinion. If that is the case then I would spend most of my life in a sorry state where football is concerned.

We are safe. Have you seen what those below us have to do just to reach our total and the teams they have to play? Three teams have to overtake us.

We are effectively 4 games clear of the relegation zone with 5 to play (9 pts plus goal difference) assuming Liverpool do the deed on Villa tomorrow.

As for CH, legend for what he did achieve but he was bereft of ideas. Away games for those two seasons were a chore and in particular the second half of last season. Wolves was an embarrassment. He had to go and it took a brave and ambitious chairman to do it. I've enjoyed the football that we've tried to play.

 

[The Clamp]

Only mathematically. You are either an actuary or superstitious or both to post that.

Or, actually, let's put this to the test. Name me the two teams that will overtake us and how much you're prepared to back that up with on a REMF bet? I'll match you.

It was simply a statement of fact, however unlikely. And I believe it’s three teams?

Making a bet with you is an idea. Although, not one I’ll be pursuing.

 

[Acker79]

Oh shut up! “Hasn’t cost us our place in the Premier League this year”. Where were we heading under Hughton? Three wins in 23 games! If it was such a mistake to let Hughton go how come he isn’t employed a year on?

Did I say it was a mistake to let him go? No. All I've said is that we don't know what would have happened if he stayed, so jumping up and down going 'ha told you so!' makes people look like an insecure child.

 

[vagabond]

My god you talk shite. Hanging on by the skin of our teeth? That was last year. Sub standard players like Knockaert and Locadia shipped out. Murray rightfully replaced. A pathway for young players and signings that have actually had impact.

We’ve stuffed Spurs, done the double over Arsenal, run Liverpool close at Anfield and got points from Leicester, Chelsea and Wolves. I’m really not sure what miserable ******** like you expect.

Precisely this, in fact, aside from the Manchester teams, it feels we’ve been in most games this season. We probably left a lot more points on the table, drawing when we were the better team, unable to take our chances.

If we can get a quality extra forward and improve our cutting edge I think we’ll be some team next year.

 

[vagabond]

I e loved this season and never lost faith in Potter but will never forget Chris Hughton achievements and the fact that he is a thoroughly decent man and the world needs them at the moment particularly.

Well said.. I think regardless of other opinions, I’d like to think all Albion fans everywhere would agree with your thoughts on Hughton. He will always be a legend.

 

[Skaville]

Did I say it was a mistake to let him go? No. All I've said is that we don't know what would have happened if he stayed, so jumping up and down going 'ha told you so!' makes people look like an insecure child.

So you’re in agreement that it was the right decision, but simply doing so in a more adult fashion?

 

[Sheebo]

It was a risk but probably one we had to take after the back end of last season. I will never disrespect Hughton, who is one of our greatest ever managers for sure. Not one of those ‘pundits’ understood the reasons. Not one actually got the point. I doubt they watched many of our games either. Just shows you can make a career out of staying the obvious whilst guessing as a ‘pundit’...

 

[Acker79]

do we think that this quality of player would have signed for hughts?

It's entirely possible because 'this quality of player' is such a vague term. As GT points out, hughton had a higher profile. But there is also the fact that sometimes a manager/coach/club see something in a player no one else does and pick up an unexpected gem. Sometimes a player signs with a struggling team because it's his only way in to show he can hang, put himself in the shop window and other such cliches. So maybe we would have struggled to sign an establish name or talent, but which established name or talent did we sign last summer anyway? (I ask that as someone who has very little awareness of other teams players, especially those outside our league).

Maybe they wouldn't be signing for him, maybe they'd be signing for the payday, for the possible future opportunity, etc. but it's possible by design or accident we would have signed the a player or two that would turned the team into a side challenging for the top 7/8 spots.

It's also possible we only manage to sign duds, the poor run continues, we're down before the end of November.

Buy look how dire things were before the lockdown - no wins in 2020, dropping down the table - without the break who knows if that would have continued and those points v Arsenal and Leicester, the boost in confidence those results gave us would have moved us to apparent safety. Sometimes a bit of time off leads to a change in fortunes.

 

[Skaville]

It was a risk but probably one we had to take after the back end of last season. I will never disrespect Hughton, who is one of our greatest ever managers for sure. Not one of those ‘pundits’ understood the reasons. Not one actually got the point. I doubt they watched many of our games either. Just shows you can make a career out of staying the obvious whilst guessing as a ‘pundit’...

As I said earlier, Ian Wright was the one that got it. He saw it, he understood. You’re right about the rest though. Reference to his discussion of the sacking of Hughton https://nortr3nixy.nimpr.uk/showthread.php?372897-Ian-Wright-slams-Hughton-s-tactics

 

[Acker79]

So you’re in agreement that it was the right decision, but simply doing so in a more adult fashion?

I think the decision probably hasn't bit us in the backside like some predicted. I say probably both because I suspect we wouldn't be challenging for Europe if we kept Hughton, and because we're not mathematically safe and I don't want to tempt the footballing gods who seem to so often love conspiring against us. But we'll never truly know whether it was 'right' or not.

 

[Skaville]

I think the decision probably hasn't bit us in the backside like some predicted. I say probably both because I suspect we wouldn't be challenging for Europe if we kept Hughton, and because we're not mathematically safe and I don't want to tempt the footballing gods who seem to so often love conspiring against us. But we'll never truly know whether it was 'right' or not.

Oh my god. “Playing devils advocate” or merely wedged tightly on the fence??

 

[Frankie]

Last season I didn't enjoy watching us play , the football was bland and very much one dimensional we survived .

This season in the main has been a pleasure to watch with some breathtaking counter attacking football , we will survive .

I hope next season will be even better .

That's about it really

 

[atfc village]

Bristol City need a manager tonight. They have lots of attacking options but their defence has always been a weak point under Lee Johnson.

They're potentially a biggish club: large city, good set-up, backed by a family with lots of money (but only if spent in the right way), and could easily sustain a Premier League club if either Rovers or City (or both) ever got there. I'd have thought Hughton might fit the bill for them. Steadying influence, record of getting promoted to the PL, and they're a big enough club that he'd consider it a decent challenge, surely?

The 82ers horrible club with a delusion of granduer ,the further they sink the better . The more they suffer the better ,a massive club that live off a spell from 76 to 80 . That's not massive it's shocking .

 

[beorhthelm]

think it is/was too easily forgotten we stayed up by the skin off our teeth, and because others were poorer. Bloom could see we were going backwards, so change had to be made.