[Albion] Does anyone want to go down to The Championship?

[n1 gull]

Man utd (win)
Fulham (2-2)
Wolves (win)
West Ham (win)
Everton (win)
Arsenal (draw)
Palace (win)

All enjoyable.

I always enjoy going to the Amex to watch football. I take my 13 year old son and we spend a fantastic day together in the North Stand. I do question the quality of the football but that's ok. I agree with you all the above were enjoyable. I would question the quality of football especially against Wolves who should've won, Fulham 2 down and we got a penalty and West Ham were truly awful but I agree all were enjoyable

 

[nwgull]

Did we every get clarification on what 'PL Ready' was? Is this it?

Premier League ready was a phrase used once by Paul Barber in an interview with the Argus relating to the installation of the electronic advertising boards back in season 2013/14. It was to do with having as many of the off-field facilities at the Amex as possible up to PL standards to minimise work that would be required if we were to get promoted. It was naff all to do with the playing side of things, despite people using it as a stick to hit Barber with for the subsequent 4 seasons whenever results weren't going our way.

 

[crodonilson]

Relegation would be an absolute disaster, the EPL is where it's at, end of.

Plus we're not going down:

 

[nwgull]

To answer the original question: No, I don't want us to be relegated. It don't however think it'd be a disaster, as I get the impression that the management have conducted our transfers with contingency due to the realism that we're not immune from being one of the 3 teams that can be relegated every season. I'd certainly prefer to focus on the positive side of things in that we could look forward to dominant displays at home again. Even with the departure of 2-3 of our best players, the squad would most likely be stronger than the one that won promotion with 3 games to spare, and the ones we did sell would be for 10s of millions.

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

Relegation would be an absolute disaster, the EPL is where it's at, end of.

Plus we're not going down:

[emoji106]

This, of course.

 

[BrickTamland]

Journey was better than the destination, that’s for sure. Selfishly though it’s easier to find streams/international coverage in the PL

 

[Eeyore]

There’s an underlying fallacy in thinking that going down will result in flowing winning football. There is no guarantee that that will happen. Want an awayday with the Albion? Where do you fancy....Liverpool or Luton, Middlesbrough or Man City/ United? What I can understand is that people prefer a winning team, and when Albion win in this league, how good does that feel? I’m pretty sure it’s been said that supporting the big six....many trophy hunters....must be dull. Turn up, watch the international superstars roll over another three legged horse, go home. Repeat.

I’ve seen many relegations with the Albion and survived.

I’ve never relished any of them.

I don't agree on the away day thing. An away day is just that. Some of my favourite ones were back in the old Third Division. Port Vale ranks among the best. Great pub crawl.

 

[Mackenzie]

Stay up for ever would be my preference.

 

[Beach Hut]

Stay up for ever would be my preference.

Be careful what you wish, didn't Bolton want that once

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

The answer for me is that the top 6 quickly bugger off to their Euro League. Yes they would take a bunch of TV money (more than 50% I imagine) but there will still be enough splosshing around to create a good, competitive PL1 and PL2 (because the differentiation between the two would be negligible). The threat of relegation/prize of promotion wouldn't have such a massive financial impact, wages would align with revenue, clubs could manage their finances much better and the product would be a whole lot more satisfying.

I agree with this. Part of the problem is that the top 6 are not competing in the premier league, they're competing in the champions league, and they're building squads big enough and good enough to try and win that league. It distorts everything and concentrates the best players in the league at those six clubs. One wonders if transfers like lukaku to united, mahrez / walker to city, drinkwater or moses to Chelsea,and many others, would really happen if the champions league didn't exist. Players wouldn't feel the pull to move and clubs wouldn't need to build such huge squads. The sooner a fully fledged euro league happens the better imo

 

[Mackenzie]

Be careful what you wish, didn't Bolton want that once

Ah yes, but I’d want us to do it by finishing 17th or above.

 

[Tooting Gull]

I don't agree on the away day thing. An away day is just that. Some of my favourite ones were back in the old Third Division. Port Vale ranks among the best. Great pub crawl.

Agree. It's obviously been fantastic going to some new grounds - which happen to also now be the top grounds/clubs in the country. But some of my favourite awaydays were and remain at the likes of Orient/Plymouth/Exeter/Scunthorpe/Lincoln/Scarborough/Kidderminster etc

 

[zefarelly]

Just like a Scooter rally. I am a confirmed masochist!

Journey was better than the destination, that’s for sure.

 

[Flagship]

Its better to mix it with the best. Beating Utd and Arsenal at home were great occassions. We will get better as time goes on. Leicester did it so i dont see why we can't. We are going in the right direction.

 

[chaileyjem]

It is pretty dull football. How many cracking games have there been at the Amex this season?

I’d say the Palace game is up there with my list of greatest Albion games ...ever

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

Curious really. Looks like us and cardiff are main contenders for the dreaded drop. Just wondering if some people, although tough to take relgegation, dont mind dipping back into the championship for a bit??


- 8 more games a season
- away days full of loyal fans not day trippers
- seeing attacking football each week
- winning games
- scoring and celebrating away goals
- going to some good grounds with good atmospheres?
- knowing literally anyone can beat anyone and usually big upsets every week


Granted the PL with all its riches and tv coverage is amazing and excellent for our saviour TB and all the money hes kindly used on our club though!!

No, I don't want to. Sue we've had 4 of 5 disappointing performances since Christmas, but jeesus, I've witnessed many many more in our tour of the lower reaches of the English league. Walsall away under slade, Hull under micky, Macclesfield under Horton, I cringe at them all. So we have a some similar games in the Prem and everyone wants to pop down to the division below? Have some balls people!

Only in the Prem can we get to an FA cup semi final. Only in the Prem can we do back to back home wins over man utd. Only in the Prem so we have a shot at qualifying for Europe. Only in the Prem can we keep players like dunky. Only in the Prem can we watch every single Brighton game on TV somewhere. Only in the Prem can we watch our youth setup become one of the best in the world. Only in the Prem are we guaranteed the Amex selling out every game. Only in the Prem, it seems, can we do the double over Palace.

I don't want to go back to the also rans, to be a Reading just floating from season to season in the middle of the championship, remembering their time at the top table but not having been there long enough to make it count for anything.

 

[arfer guinness]

What is worrying is the fact that 12 of our 33 points have come against a crap Crystal Palace and the worst side in Premier League history. Chris has a lot of work to do to ensure we take more points of other sides next season or we will be back in the Championship.

 

[Brovion]

No, I don't want to. Sue we've had 4 of 5 disappointing performances since Christmas, but jeesus, I've witnessed many many more in our tour of the lower reaches of the English league. Walsall away under slade, Hull under micky, Macclesfield under Horton, I cringe at them all. So we have a some similar games in the Prem and everyone wants to pop down to the division below? Have some balls people!

Only in the Prem can we get to an FA cup semi final. Only in the Prem can we do back to back home wins over man utd. Only in the Prem so we have a shot at qualifying for Europe. Only in the Prem can we keep players like dunky. Only in the Prem can we watch every single Brighton game on TV somewhere. Only in the Prem can we watch our youth setup become one of the best in the world. Only in the Prem are we guaranteed the Amex selling out every game. Only in the Prem, it seems, can we do the double over Palace.

I don't want to go back to the also rans, to be a Reading just floating from season to season in the middle of the championship, remembering their time at the top table but not having been there long enough to make it count for anything.

Good post. We have played boring, shit football in the lower leagues as well. Often in half-empty stadiums. And when lower league football is boring it is REALLY boring.

Ah but that won't happen will it? After all we'll be much richer what with the parachute payments and we'll have an attacking side under a vibrant charismatic manager. Nearly all the games will be brilliant and we'll all really enjoy it far more than trying to nick a result against the likes of Arsenal. Then when we do get back to the PL (which we will, in style) we'll really sock it to the big boys.

 

[worthingseagull123]

No guarantees we'd come straight back up again.

The heart of the side (Dunk, Duffy, Ryan, etc.) would be gone along with others.

If the likes of Bournemouth, Watford and Wolves can establish themselves as mid-table Premier League sides, so can we.

Wolves are a vastly bigger and richer club

 

[monty uk]

This PL squad has reached the FA Cup semi-Final, and whatever one may think of the FA Cup these days, that is not only an achievement, but an exciting prospect – just look at the emotion it has generated on NSC. And there’s a chance and hope.

Never in the course of the last 50 years or so that I have been watching, and probably not in any other period of the 118 years of the club’s existence, have we been so successful – ok, you could argue that 81/82/83 approached it. I would disagree. Bloody hell we have had held our own in successive seasons in the ‘best league in the world’ and are set to carry on and progress – which we didn’t in the 80s.

We have exciting games, big names, outstanding and unexpected wins. The prospect, even in the future, of European football given a following wind and a large slice of luck – maybe.

We have always (at least for the last 50 years) played badly against lesser teams, and well against good ones – to some extent that is why watching the Albion is so hard, but we love it.

We should stay up. We have the resources and commitment to turn us into a mid-level PL club, not one that continually bounces up and down like a ball-kicking yo-yo.

The Derby cup game highlighted the difference between accurate, fast-paced, PL football and that from teams from lower divisions. Football between Championship sides, and lower, is not great to watch as an artform. I, for one, don’t want to return to those leagues in the future.

Conversely at the highest levels LaLiga in particular the atmosphere is lacking – perhaps less so in the UK, although corporate interests affect it. It’s not all about the football.

We have a club that is currently successful, capable of playing well, certainly capable of improving and largely entertaining, an enthusiastic and vocal fanbase, great stadium. Giving us a fantastic experience at a high level.

OK, if we drop there will still be strong level of support. But we’ll want more and a return to the good ‘ol days of the present.

I hope we hang on in there.