[Albion] Bloom: "Top 10... is a very realistic aim for next season"

[Johnny RoastBeef]

In 7 out of the past 10 seasons 50 points was enough to finish 10th or higher.

20/21 10th was 59 points
19/20 54
18/19 52
17/18 44
16/17 45
15/16 50
14/15 48
13/14 49
12/13 46
11/12 47

This season we got 41 but should have earned 50 points, but for bad luck and poor refereeing.

We're not far off.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

I know this particular genie is now out of the bottle so there will be no stopping it but I don’t think people should be getting carried away. I have worked in an industry for most of my career where I have been set challenging targets which I have often met, but not always. I wasn’t sacked if they weren’t achieved. Rather it’s all about having a plan for improvement and mostly meeting the targets. It is way too absolutist to jump from ‘top 10 is a realistic aim’ to ‘we must achieve top 10 or heads will roll.’

 

[southstandandy]

I'd just be happy to get our wins up to double figures next season. Slow and steady progress and one more win will do for me.

 

[Fiskmås]

I really don't think we're that far off. This season really was a season of two halves. Playing around with the table on Transfermarkt and only looking at the last 19 rounds shows a 13th place, and only one win away from 9th. Only team conceding fewer goals than us was Chelsea.

If that momentum can be kept it might be an interesting season coming up indeed. And keep in mind that the second half of the season was when players like Lamptey and March were missing (can't remember exactly which round March picked up his injury).

I for one don't think Bloom will splash 35+ million on a potential 15+ goal scorer this summer. But getting to the place where we have three players getting 10 each is not at all impossible, if the cross bar just starts co-operating, that is.

 

[Acker79]

The “long term aim” has a date in the plan after all. I’m shocked.


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Until come December and we're just outstide the relegation zone again, worried about the games in hand 18th place has, then the semantics will come 'it was an aim, not an expectation. You're all being unreasonable to conflate them, no one is entitled to top 10 finish just cause they want it. There are 19 other teams that want top 10, too, y'know. They can't all make it'

 

[Swansman]

Until come December and we're just outstide the relegation zone again, worried about the games in hand 18th place has, then the semantics will come 'it was an aim, not an expectation. You're all being unreasonable to conflate them, no one is entitled to top 10 finish just cause they want it. There are 19 other teams that want top 10, too, y'know. They can't all make it'

All of which is true

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

Until come December and we're just outstide the relegation zone again, worried about the games in hand 18th place has, then the semantics will come 'it was an aim, not an expectation. You're all being unreasonable to conflate them, no one is entitled to top 10 finish just cause they want it. There are 19 other teams that want top 10, too, y'know. They can't all make it'

Perhaps we should all agree now that he did use the word ‘aim’ and not the word ‘expectation’ ?

 

[Springal]

Hopefully then TB is going to back GP with a top ten budget ?

Do Leicester have a top 5 budget?

 

[maltaseagull]

The problem with relying on this mythical 15 goal a season striker ( I see that's been devalued from the 20 goal a season striker we all wanted a season or so ago) is that if he gets a serious injury, we are back to square one.

Whilst I agree with everyone that we need a clinical finisher, we should also find a way to get more goals from the rest of the team.

Webster, White, March, Lallana, Bissouma, AliJ, Allie Mac, Veltman all chipping in would make a huge difference.

They all had several chances last season but very few were taken.

Add to that Trossard and Maupay increasing their totals and our 25 points dropped from winning positions would have been a lot less.

 

[Acker79]

All of which is true

Perhaps we should all agree now that he did use the word ‘aim’ and not the word ‘expectation’ ?

Isn't the point more about whether it constitute a failure? If top ten is some non-specific future aim, to not be top ten this year is part of the plan and we can't be upset we haven't achieved it. If top ten is the stated aim for this season and we don't make it, then we have failed in a specific aim.

Of course that then leads to further discussion over what the repurcussions, if any, should be for that "failure". But fans who point to Bloom's comments about aiming for top 10 will be within their rights to consider not being top 10 a disappointment, and not being overly entitled arrogant so-and-sos who don't understand how football works.

 

[Springal]

The problem with relying on this mythical 15 goal a season striker ( I see that's been devalued from the 20 goal a season striker we all wanted a season or so ago) is that if he gets a serious injury, we are back to square one.

Whilst I agree with everyone that we need a clinical finisher, we should also find a way to get more goals from the rest of the team.

Webster, White, March, Lallana, Bissouma, AliJ, Allie Mac, Veltman all chipping in would make a huge difference.

They all had several chances last season but very few were taken.

Add to that Trossard and Maupay increasing their totals and our 25 points dropped from winning positions would have been a lot less.

Agreed. I know there is an element of if you have a 15 a goal season striker you obviously finish higher up, but looking at the last few years I am not sure we are fishing in the same pond as where the 15+ a year goal strikers are (some exceptions I know...)

I keep saying it but Maupay scoring 12 or so - a few more from Webster, and midfield chipping in easily starts to propel us up the table. But we do need a bit more quality in attacking areas I think.

I also keep saying it, but Maupay had a reasonable first season and started off pretty well this, but what ever happened with the 'bust up' seemed to be pretty much finish his season as mentally he never looked the same after. That is up to the manager to sort

 

[Swansman]

Isn't the point more about whether it constitute a failure? If top ten is some non-specific future aim, to not be top ten this year is part of the plan and we can't be upset we haven't achieved it. If top ten is the stated aim for this season and we don't make it, then we have failed in a specific aim.

Of course that then leads to further discussion over what the repurcussions, if any, should be for that "failure". But fans who point to Bloom's comments about aiming for top 10 will be within their rights to consider not being top 10 a disappointment, and not being overly entitled arrogant so-and-sos who don't understand how football works.

Some people have been disappointed for two seasons that the team isnt "pushing the top 10" so if these fans are now "within their rights", it surely means it wasnt within their rights previously?

 

[Papa Lazarou]

Some people have been disappointed for two seasons that the team isnt "pushing the top 10" so if these fans are now "within their rights", it surely means it wasnt within their rights previously?

Feels like those same disappointed people are the ones spinning the line that Tony is putting pressure on GP by this and that if we don't make top 10 next season, the manager will be at risk.

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

In 7 out of the past 10 seasons 50 points was enough to finish 10th or higher.

20/21 10th was 59 points
19/20 54
18/19 52
17/18 44
16/17 45
15/16 50
14/15 48
13/14 49
12/13 46
11/12 47

This season we got 41 but should have earned 50 points, but for bad luck and poor refereeing.

We're not far off.

Bad luck and poor refereeing are universal though, it happens to all clubs, we weren't the only recipients. I'd also like to know who is going to score all these extra goals to suddenly rocket us up to tenth in the table, (or higher).

 

[Icy Gull]

I fear that someone is going to be disappointed then. I genuinely can't see a top 10 level of improvement next season unless the mythical 15 goal striker arrives from somewhere.

If the quality of football remains the same I can take another relegation battle and would not be too disappointed but I got the impression from that interview, although it wasn’t said, that another relegation battle would not be acceptable to the man paying the bill

TB is not a fool and if us plebs can see what’s required to send us up to tenth then he might just have an inkling, don’t you think? He has never set a target anywhere near this high for an upcoming season, so trust in him to give GP the tools.

I imagine that he is reasonably confident of getting the goal scoring players in and having cover for the players it seems will be sold.

Maybe we should be getting excited rather than being morose and worrying?

 

[Stat Brother]

Hahahaha

To think this time yesterday a Top Boy Acolyte was telling us Mr Bloom would stick with GPott even if we were relegated next season.



I for one won't be holding this over the 'delusional few' when the claws come out in the Autumn, we have no idea what will be required for Top 10 and I still believe next season will see a lot of points shared around a lot of teams.

That is of course assuming we're not bottom 4 on 12 points.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

We’d better be hanging onto Whitessouma then!

 

[Johnny RoastBeef]

Bad luck and poor refereeing are universal though, it happens to all clubs, we weren't the only recipients. I'd also like to know who is going to score all these extra goals to suddenly rocket us up to tenth in the table, (or higher).

The change needed to get the extra 9 points might already have been made.

Since Sanchez took over from Ryan we've conceed fewer goals and returned more points.

Over the course of a full season that may be enough.

 

[schmunk]

Top 10 is probably another 19 points more than we got last season. That is a lot. A hell of a lot.
.

It is, but consider that THE LEEDS UNITED came 9th last season, 18 points above us, with the same number of losses as us = 15.

The difference being that they had 18 wins and 5 draws against our 9 wins and 14 draws - potentially only 9 extra goals across the whole season, which would also have put our GD above Everton (but not Leeds).


Edit: If you look at our form for the 2nd half of the season, or last 10 matches, or whatever, we were fairly consistently placing about 12th, so it's not that much of a push on from there to get top 10.

 

[Stat Brother]

The change needed to get the extra 9 points might already have been made.

Since Sanchez took over from Ryan we've conceed fewer goals and returned more points.

Over the course of a full season that may be enough.

I don't think that statement gets made on a 'might', centred around last season's performances.

GPott's going to get backed, big time, and he is clearly under pressure to deliver.
Fairly sure he will, but then again I thought that last season too.