Right then, the parade's done, the new kits been unveiled... let's start to look ahead....

[theboybilly]

we might have to settle for the Europa League for the following season.

YaYa isn't coming here to play on Thursdays

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Not sure it will be any different will it? What makes you say it will be stronger?

Sunderland are absolutely woeful

Boro don't attack

Hull started the season as a shambles

Brighton/Newcastle/Another will be better than those 3

Plus Swansea and Palace have proper managers now.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Sunderland are absolutely woeful

Boro don't attack

Hull started the season as a shambles

Brighton/Newcastle/Another will be better than those 3

Plus Swansea and Palace have proper managers now.

You wouldn't have known all this at the start, the season unfolded. Next season will unfold too. You might be right, but I don't think you can say it's going to be any harder / easier just yet.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

I'd love to think we'll stay up, with the togetherness and so on, but its going to be very hard. I'm trying to think of three teams that on this season's record are going to be worse than us, and its tricky. The play-off winners one would hope will go down, although Wednesday might fancy themselves to spend a lot, Reading too. Then what? Palace just seem too resilient under Allardyce, ditto Bournemouth under Howe, Burnley under Dyche. Newcastle, Saints, West Brom, West Ham, Leicester will be fine. So we've got Swansea, who seem to be finding a new lease of life under Clement but a lot depends on their recruitment, and then Watford and Stoke who perhaps are both due a downturn.

That's only a scant look, and any of those secure clubs could just do a panic sacking of Hughes or Dyche and consign them to their fate, or Leicester could see a big sell-off of their stars this summer, nevertheless, not too many teams out there that are obvious cases to struggle. It will really be down to us playing as well as we can with confidence, and utlimately, Knockaert.

Form is a fickle mistress. The suggestion that Dyche's Burnley or Howe's Bournemouth are somehow rock solid is fanciful.

Either could easily finish bottom next season, as could any of 6 or 7 clubs (ourselves obviously amongst them).

 

[Stat Brother]

Form is a fickle mistress. The suggestion that Dyche's Burnley or Howe's Bournemouth are somehow rock solid is fanciful.

Either could easily finish bottom next season, as could any of 6 or 7 clubs (ourselves obviously amongst them).

I think that's the problem, the fact that so many teams would appear to be at a 'just above relegation' level.
All of those teams will begin next season from a position of comparative strength, when compared to The Albion, and the play off winner.

Sunderland are absolutely woeful

Boro don't attack

Hull started the season as a shambles

Brighton/Newcastle/Another will be better than those 3

Plus Swansea and Palace have proper managers now.

Yep.

You wouldn't have known all this at the start, the season unfolded. Next season will unfold too. You might be right, but I don't think you can say it's going to be any harder / easier just yet.

Very true, although the deadest of deadwood has been cleared out.
It didn't take too much hindsight to predict the relegated teams.
Being charitable I guess 'Boro could have gone either way, at the start of the season, but that didn't last long.



I've never really given much thought to the advantage of being promoted early, but I've kind of realised it's actually pretty massive.
Around Europe there's been so much football played, and still on going, since Wigan.
Having Albion scouts at multiple meaningful games, certain of next seasons status, has got to be a huge benefit.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

You wouldn't have known all this at the start, the season unfolded. Next season will unfold too. You might be right, but I don't think you can say it's going to be any harder / easier just yet.

I think most people looked at the Sunderland/hull squad and thought relegation, the same for Hull after the start.

I can't see a cannon fodder team next season.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

I think that's the problem, the fact that so many teams would appear to be at a 'just above relegation' level.
All of those teams will begin next season from a position of comparative strength, when compared to The Albion, and the play off winner.

Yep.


Very true, although the deadest of deadwood has been cleared out.
It didn't take too much hindsight to predict the relegated teams.
Being charitable I guess 'Boro could have gone either way, at the start of the season, but that didn't last long.



I've never really given much thought to the advantage of being promoted early, but I've kind of realised it's actually pretty massive.
Around Europe there's been so much football played, and still on going, since Wigan.
Having Albion scouts at multiple meaningful games, certain of next seasons status, has got to be a huge benefit.

It's massive.

I would imagine talks for some PL targets have already happened

 

[Murray 17]

Only three of twenty teams go down. Even discounting the seven who are *certain* to stay up, that still means only three of thirteen are going down. You'd expect every team to be odds on to stay up, surely?

No, because bookies try to attract money for unlikely events by increasing the odds.

So, being one of 3 or 4 sides that currently look weaker, I would have thought that several clubs would be at least evens.

 

[Icy Gull]

Sunderland are absolutely woeful

Boro don't attack

Hull started the season as a shambles

Brighton/Newcastle/Another will be better than those 3

Plus Swansea and Palace have proper managers now.

I just pray we don't turn into a team that tries to sit on leads in the Premier League, I want it to be fun, even if we end up coming back down again. We need to follow Bournemouth's example and try and score more than we concede.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

I just pray we don't turn into a team that tries to sit on leads in the Premier League, I want it to be fun, even if we end up coming back down again. We need to follow Bournemouth's example and try and score more than we concede.

It's not a shock the 3 teams going down have scored the fewest goals.

 

[Knocky's Nose]

If we play aggressive, attacking, exciting, dynamic football. If every player gives it their all for their own pride, and for the sake of the team. If the crowd stay behind them all the way. If we all stick together through bad and good. If we tick ALL off those boxes, and at the end of the season, we go down again.. I won't complain. I can't complain.

That said, if every player does all of those things, and we do all of those things - we'll still be in the PL for the 2018/19 season, I'm sure....

 

[AmexRuislip]

I like it very much
It says 'Brighton & Hove Albion have arrived'
With a loud shout of 'We are Premier League'

 

[Joshski]

How many once all the deadwood, like Skalak, Norwood, Hemed, Baldock, Murphy etc, have been offloaded?

Wouldn't class any of those players as dead wood I'm sure they'll all be in the 25 man squad, only two I could see is selling are Norwood and Skalak if we had decent offers.

 

[BLOCK F]

Looking back, I thought we were doomed for an immediate return to Division 2 during our first season in the old Division 1 all those years ago...............until we signed a certain Peter Suddaby who made his debut on 17th November 1979 away to Notts Forest and we won 1-0. Never looked back after that.
Sign him up, just in case!

 

[Peter Grummit]

Looking back, I thought we were doomed for an immediate return to Division 2 during our first season in the old Division 1 all those years ago...............until we signed a certain Peter Suddaby who made his debut on 17th November 1979 away to Notts Forest and we won 1-0. Never looked back after that.
Sign him up, just in case!

The key was not so much a solid Suddaby, as being able to put the best player I've ever seen in an Albion shirt into midfield to help control things. Lawro.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[GT49er]

Looking back, I thought we were doomed for an immediate return to Division 2 during our first season in the old Division 1 all those years ago...............until we signed a certain Peter Suddaby who made his debut on 17th November 1979 away to Notts Forest and we won 1-0. Never looked back after that.
Sign him up, just in case!

An old warhorse from Blackpool reserves teamed up with a 17 year old Gary Stevens in CM! Those were the days!

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

I think most people looked at the Sunderland/hull squad and thought relegation, the same for Hull after the start.

I can't see a cannon fodder team next season.

I worry that if you cannot see a cannon fodder team, its probably us

 

[Bring back Bryan wade!!]

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I like it very much
It says 'Brighton & Hove Albion have arrived'
With a loud shout of 'We are Premier League'

Loving this.

 

[OzMike]

12th.

 

[Bold Seagull]

I think most people looked at the Sunderland/hull squad and thought relegation, the same for Hull after the start.

I can't see a cannon fodder team next season.

Massarri leaves Watford. Who knows what will happen, who'll be stable, cannon fodder between now and August...