[Albion] Season Expectations

[Gwylan]

I think it will be a season of consolidation as Fab and some new players get used to the PL. We could finish near the bottom but I think there will be enough clubs (the promoted three, Fulham, Everton, Forest and Brentford) who should finish below us. My guess is 12th or 13th

 

[Invicta]

Are Minteh and Wieffer “untried” ?

Wieffer no but Mibteh has limited first team career games and none in England.

 

[Weststander]

Wieffer no but Mibteh has limited first team career games and none in England.

We’ve only gone and signed Mibteh as well. There’s no stopping the club this summer .

 

[GT49er]

When we first got in EPL (first 4 seasons at least) a traditional season was attempting to finish one above relegation !!

Transitional ...................... TRANSITIONAL .......... ffs!

 

[maltaseagull]

Pleased if top ten but would love to see us in Europe again.
Can we do it?

 

[southstandandy]

Similar to last season

 

[HalfaSeatOn]

After a boring second half of last season, excited by the managerial and team changes and not having a clue if we’ll be top 6, bottom 6 or somewhere in the middle.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

Who knows. Not me. There are shades of Hyypia with one successful season and arriving without his right hand man. We’ve lost big players off and on the pitch. The division looks stronger. A poor start could leave us looking over our shoulders.

And yet, incoming players look exciting. We’ve important players coming back from injury. The club itself is in characteristic robust shape. We’ve a playing style that we’re building on. We possibly have a playing identity and it appears ambitious players comfortable with that style of play come to the club.

League position? High as possible obviously but let’s see more of our progressive, possession based, attacking style of football at the Amex and for me it will be a great season.

 

[Uh_huh_him]

as long as we smash Palace, I 'm not too bothered.

A little concerned that Fab may not be the messiah.
looking forward to seeing what it's all about later on today.

 

[um bongo molongo]

We have a top 8 front line, a mid table defence and we’ve sold all our midfielders so who knows. Probably upper part of the bottom half but could be higher or lower than that! I don’t think we’ll be top 8 unless we make a couple of big signings (who aren’t wingers)

 

[Flounce]

My original 5th to 6th has gone to 11th to 14th now we are shipping out two of my favourite players. The current lack of PL experienced midfield players, one potential incoming not arriving until January, no apparent incoming RB and a concern about a new rookie manager who has never managed at this level whilst losing/binning so many PL experienced players before the season starts, has lowered my expectations.

 

[Johnny RoastBeef]

Lots of talk of player inexperience, but experience is irrelevant. It's quality that counts.

For periods last season Jack Hinshelwood was our best player. As were Cole Palmer and Kobbie Mainoo for their clubs.

I'm calling it now, Yankuba Minteh will be our player of the season.

 

[Napper]

If Pedro goes then I think we'll be bottom half looking over shoulders as things stand.

Alot say the midfield is ok now but thats based on Wieffer being special and we've seen plenty of dud players from dutch league. If he isnt up to it then we will deffo struggle. Baleba was very hit and miss last year but has good potential.

The wingers although unproven do look decent , especially Minteh and excited to see where Hinshlewood will be played.

I was confident a few weeks back with the early business but its turned abit since then. Gross is HUGE loss

1 or 2 statement ish signing's and would be more confident.

Have big concerns at the back and CM combined with an unknown in charge.

It also already looks like we are going to have another season of injuries if this summer is a clue to that,

Today, I'd rip hand off for 13th and above , It could get sticky for us I think

We'll hopefully see Wiefer today and should be a better gauge of things against better opposition

 

[Silverhatch]

Lots of talk of player inexperience, but experience is irrelevant. It's quality that counts.

For periods last season Jack Hinshelwood was our best player. As were Cole Palmer and Kobbie Mainoo for their clubs.

I'm calling it now, Yankuba Minteh will be our player of the season.

But don’t vote for him

 

[Skaville]

I’m pretty pessimistic at this point. We would have finished 17th if you just took the second half of last season and I feel the division will be much stronger than last season.

I’m not convinced at all by the defence. An ageing Dunk, an inconsistent Igor will make up two of our top three centre halves and the full backs are injury prone and average defensively. I feel we should have strengthened in this department. Concerned also that Steele seems to be getting game time. Surely it’s time to back Rushworth.

What can you say about Pascal Gross? Any side will miss a player who is so pivotal in terms of leadership, flexibility and chance creation. The midfield looks entirely different, full of inexperience both in terms of age and Premier League. It needs to gel fast.

We still have injuries to key players further up the pitch. A lot relies on new young talent and others recapturing form and staying fit.

The managerial appointment is brave. I hope it works. I hope I’m wrong, but have a feeling this will be our worst season for some time.

 

[Eric Youngs Contact Lens]

Pre-season so far hasn't changed my opinion.. anything possible. Still very concerned that we don't have a Left full-back nailed on and the Baleba experiment (then Hinshelwood) on Saturday might hint at the fact that we need a stop-gap until either Pervis and/or Solly fit. It was a concern before the end of last season and has not been sorted (yet!) . Saturday's experiemnet may not be about that longer term picture, and just a way of getting minutes in for some players or just trying something to see how it goes, but hoping our left back is solved with a recognised full-back who has been on holiday post-euros!!!

 

[Johnny RoastBeef]

Pre-season so far hasn't changed my opinion.. anything possible. Still very concerned that we don't have a Left full-back nailed on and the Baleba experiment (then Hinshelwood) on Saturday might hint at the fact that we need a stop-gap until either Pervis and/or Solly fit. It was a concern before the end of last season and has not been sorted (yet!) . Saturday's experiemnet may not be about that longer term picture, and just a way of getting minutes in for some players or just trying something to see how it goes, but hoping our left back is solved with a recognised full-back who has been on holiday post-euros!!!

LB? We've got Pervis, Barco and Igor.

 

[dwayne]

LB? We've got Pervis, Barco and Igor.

Indeed.... 2 of our best players there !!

 

[Han Solo]

I’m pretty pessimistic at this point. We would have finished 17th if you just took the second half of last season and I feel the division will be much stronger than last season.

I’m not convinced at all by the defence. An ageing Dunk, an inconsistent Igor will make up two of our top three centre halves and the full backs are injury prone and average defensively. I feel we should have strengthened in this department. Concerned also that Steele seems to be getting game time. Surely it’s time to back Rushworth.

What can you say about Pascal Gross? Any side will miss a player who is so pivotal in terms of leadership, flexibility and chance creation. The midfield looks entirely different, full of inexperience both in terms of age and Premier League. It needs to gel fast.

We still have injuries to key players further up the pitch. A lot relies on new young talent and others recapturing form and staying fit.

The managerial appointment is brave. I hope it works. I hope I’m wrong, but have a feeling this will be our worst season for some time.

Always possible to be pessimistic if you twist and turn things in that direction.

Defence is bad because Dunk is old. Midfield bad because of inexperience, because Gross, who was old, left.

Thats one way of twisting things to feed your worries.

Same can be done in the direction of optimism of course. "Lewis Dunk keeps our defence experienced" and "Pascal Gross leaving and a lot of inspired youth coming is a good rejuvenation of the midfield!"

All a matter of perspective.

Think the discussion is very similar to the one before 21/22: we had finished 16th with a young and inexperienced team in 20/21, people said "relegation battle all over again, lots of teams have improved, we not so much".

I remember trying to FORCE the idea through many of the THICKEST of skulls that our young squad would find most of its improvement from inside rather than from fancy transfers. However, people don't seem to understand that the same player could improve from one season to another.

We're again at the stage where we had the youngest team in the league last season. We're again at the stage where people think that we're standing still while "the rest of the division is moving forward".

But with our young squad, we're most likely going to take more steps forward than any club with "prime age" players that just strengthened their squad with 2-3 players.

I'm not going to hang upside down in some tree wanking over our chances of glory, but the commonly expressed opinion that everyone else but us are getting better is seriously flawed if you look at the normal development curve for young players.

 

[Flounce]

I am not going to hang upside down in some tree wanking over our chances of glory, but the commonly expressed opinion that everyone else but us are getting better is seriously flawed if you look at the normal development curve for young players.

Are you a monkey?