The Guardian's Assessment - From nowhere to the Premier League

[Arthur]

Got to love Guardian comments, this comment shows the naievity of some football fans:

Theherobarry
45m ago
1 2

"It's a fairytale. Didn't quite go bust and didn't actually get relegated, and with only the help of a millionaire benefactor and a stadium sponsored by a major credit card, these plucky underdogs fought their way past the collective might of Preston, Bristol City and Burton Albion to the very very top! Go underdogs from that charming town full of hipsters that people from London really like."

Struggling to see what is actually incorrect in that post??

We didn't quite go bust, we didn't quite get relegated out of the football league. We do have a millionaire benefactor and the ground is sponsored by a credit card company. Brighton is full of hipsters and people from London do like the place. Ahhhh we didn't beat Preston last season...is that it?

 

[Weststander]

If Gross and Ingersoll had cost £8 million each, and Stephens had been allowed to go and replaced with a player of equal ability but costing £12 million, I suspect a lot of people would be happier.

The club need to make some signings, with central midfield and up front a priority, but according to all the managers who are interviewed, as well as those who work in the game such as PB, it's not easy at present. Why not give those people a modicum of credit as they might know what they are talking about?

The voice of reason. Like you, I've always been a big fan of Dale Stephens.

Two questions to hear our opinion, please - are our right back options good enough to nullify most PL left back/left winger threats? Do you think we should get a quality RB in as one of our priorities.

Personally I see it as a big weakness, which opposition coaches will target.

 

[El Presidente]

The voice of reason. Like you, I've always been a big fan of Dale Stephens.

Two questions to get your opinion - are our right back options good enough to nullify most PL left back/left winger threats? Do you think we should get a quality RB in as one of our priorities.

Personally I see it as a big weakness, which opposition coaches will target.

Bruno technically is the best RB I've ever seen at the Albion, but there is a question mark over his pace (away to Preston last season comes to mind), so agree with you that a full back would be useful. Between Bruno and Rosenior we do have two fairly solid defenders though.

In terms of order of players in, I would go:

CM (to nullify City)
CF (we will only play one up front against City, ideally have in before Leicester)
RB

I'm also slightly twitchy about who to play alongside Dunk as CH. Duffy and Uwe between them make an excellent player, but both have drawbacks.

 

[Carrot Cruncher]

There are posters on here making out that the other 19 teams in the PL are world beaters. I'm sorry but the overall quality of the division is not getting better. The leading clubs are getting stronger, the gap is widening and they are finding it even easier to roll over lesser sides on a regular basis. Just because transfer fees have rocketted doesn't mean quality goes up in equal measure.

The PL attracts a lot of average players from around the world, all paid vast salaries and still reliant on the few really world class players dotted around, who carry their teams. These are the standout players and we all know who they are. We don't have any of these and we know we can't afford them. They belong in the top 6-7 clubs, the elite, maintaining their position.

The rest of the division, on any given day, is beatable. If our workrate is right, we will more than match a number of these teams. We know we have an inner strength, a core strength, running through the squad and teams will not out battle us. At times, higher quality skill may prevail. We can't do anything about that. But if we keep a level of consistency ( not all PL teams do ) we have a good chance of picking up enough points. All this doom and gloom before we have even kicked a ball is depressing and totally unnecessary. It was the same last summer, with posters on here predicting mid-table mediocrity. Oh...there is Norwich and Villa and Newcastle and Wednesday and Derby and so on...they will all be stronger...we haven't strengthened...our position flattered us... etc etc.

Well, we came back stronger than before and went up comfortably and the doom-mongers went quiet. Lets just wait and see how the early games pan out. We might all be pleasantly surprised.

The bit in bold is exactly right and a point I keep making. At the end of our near miss season, Tom Cairney may have cost around £5m. now it's probably going to take nearer £20m to sign him. Is he 4 times the player. No.

 

[Carrot Cruncher]

Struggling to see what is actually incorrect in that post??

We didn't quite go bust, we didn't quite get relegated out of the football league. We do have a millionaire benefactor and the ground is sponsored by a credit card company. Brighton is full of hipsters and people from London do like the place. Ahhhh we didn't beat Preston last season...is that it?

Whilst factually accurate, it does miss out a 15 year chunk where the majority of the battle happened.

That said, it's a moot point, as the day I get het up about a newspaper comments section is the day I take myself to the Dignitas clinic...

 

[BBassic]

A valid point though. Would Murray have got 23 goals if he had been in the premier league last season?

The answer is No.

Is it? The answer is: we don't know.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

these plucky underdogs fought their way past the collective might of Preston, Bristol City and Burton Albion to the very very top!

Struggling to see what is actually incorrect in that post??

We didn't quite go bust, we didn't quite get relegated out of the football league. We do have a millionaire benefactor and the ground is sponsored by a credit card company. Brighton is full of hipsters and people from London do like the place. Ahhhh we didn't beat Preston last season...is that it?

Whilst factually accurate, it does miss out a 15 year chunk where the majority of the battle happened.

It does, and (as Arthur well knows) it disingenuously seeks to belittle our achievement of finishing top two last season, in the face of plenty of decent, and better-resourced opposition. Yes we 'battled past Preston, Bristol City and Burton Albion'. We also swept aside Derby, Fulham, Reading, Norwich, Leeds, Aston Villa...

 

[crabface]

Is it? The answer is: we don't know.

Aguero didnt even get 23 last season so there is fat change Murray would.

 

[BBassic]

Aguero didnt even get 23 last season so there is fat change Murray would.

That's the beauty of the unknown, we will never know.

 

[Arthur]

It does, and (as Arthur well knows) it disingenuously seeks to belittle our achievement of finishing top two last season, in the face of plenty of decent, and better-resourced opposition. Yes we 'battled past Preston, Bristol City and Burton Albion'. We also swept aside Derby, Fulham, Reading, Norwich, Leeds, Aston Villa...

Of course. I'm sure the poster of said jibe (Palace no doubt) is delighted a few have taken his bait.

As [MENTION=687]Carrot Cruncher[/MENTION] pointed out in his second point it's really not worth the airtime.

 

[Eddiespearritt]

https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...rney-from-nowhere-to-the-premier-league-video

Slightly off topic - but the Guardian also released this video of our story - it's pretty good but unfathomable that it manages to fail to mention Tony Bloom at any point. Odd.

 

[Spicy]

Excellent video. 1,500-1 to win the Premiership - may be worth a punt!

 

[Mo Gosfield]

Aguero didnt even get 23 last season so there is fat change Murray would.

Lets be honest, very few players get past 20 goals. There is a dearth of top strikers in the PL. They mostly play elsewhere, for better teams.
We need goals from all round the team. Watford and Burnley survived with 40 and 39 goals respectively last season. Stoke and Saints got 41 and WBA got 43. So we know we have to get 40+. We need 20 goals min from all our strikers combined. We need 15 min from Knocky, Gross, March, Murphy, Skalac, KLL and the rest of the midfield. We need 5 min from defence.
Bournemouth are adopting the policy of outscoring the opposition, wherever possible. They were 7th highest scores ( even higher than Man Utd ) but only 4 teams conceded more. We haven't got the firepower to do that so we need to be as tight as possible at the back.
It is two divisions within one. The top 7 all with fat plus GD's. The bottom 13 all with minus GD's.

 

[The_Viper]

If Gross and Ingersoll had cost £8 million each, and Stephens had been allowed to go and replaced with a player of equal ability but costing £12 million, I suspect a lot of people would be happier.

If that is the case, those people are stupider than the bedwetters and the club kiss arses. A very special group of thickos.

 

[Weststander]

Bruno technically is the best RB I've ever seen at the Albion, but there is a question mark over his pace (away to Preston last season comes to mind), so agree with you that a full back would be useful. Between Bruno and Rosenior we do have two fairly solid defenders though.

In terms of order of players in, I would go:

CM (to nullify City)
CF (we will only play one up front against City, ideally have in before Leicester)
RB

I'm also slightly twitchy about who to play alongside Dunk as CH. Duffy and Uwe between them make an excellent player, but both have drawbacks.

I agree with you about Bruno. He's one of the greatest Albion footballers (ability, technique, application, Vicente-like ball retention, passing and vision), with such longevity. I would love to be wrong, but I think at 37 in that position, he will be found out. I can only think of world class Maldini who stayed at that level by that age.

 

[Weststander]

Lets be honest, very few players get past 20 goals. There is a dearth of top strikers in the PL. They mostly play elsewhere, for better teams.
We need goals from all round the team. Watford and Burnley survived with 40 and 39 goals respectively last season. Stoke and Saints got 41 and WBA got 43. So we know we have to get 40+. We need 20 goals min from all our strikers combined. We need 15 min from Knocky, Gross, March, Murphy, Skalac, KLL and the rest of the midfield. We need 5 min from defence.
Bournemouth are adopting the policy of outscoring the opposition, wherever possible. They were 7th highest scores ( even higher than Man Utd ) but only 4 teams conceded more. We haven't got the firepower to do that so we need to be as tight as possible at the back.
It is two divisions within one. The top 7 all with fat plus GD's. The bottom 13 all with minus GD's.

Good post. I differ with the ending about the strategy of a rock solid defence if we're low scorers, only because it sends teams down - Boro. Your other comments hit the nail on the head in that we need 40 plus goals, or even better the Bournemouth model. But we would need some new offensive players to do that.

 

[Billy the Fish]

Why? Over 60% of promoted teams stay up. Why should going down be a probability?

I'm pretty sure there's a direct correlation between wage bill and league position in every division. That alone makes us and Huddersfield hot favourites to go down.

Looking at the other teams and the strength of their squads we're part of a group of about 5 who will almost certainly be in the mix for relegation - Brighton, Huddersfield, Swansea, Watford and Stoke. There's no obvious basket case at the moment, although with Southampton and Palace changing managers again they could go either way. Honourable mentions for West Brom and Burnley who haven't strengthened much, Newcastle who are unlikely to be much better but even compared to those three we are much weaker on paper.

I'm not saying we're doomed already or any of that rubbish and I'm personally happy with how the club is going about it's business, but whatever happens it's going to be close and we're going to be in the relegation mix at the end of the season. Anyone who thinks we're not needs to revise their expectations. I'm not having a moan, it's just the reality.

 

[Brightonfan1983]

https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...rney-from-nowhere-to-the-premier-league-video

Slightly off topic - but the Guardian also released this video of our story - it's pretty good but unfathomable that it manages to fail to mention Tony Bloom at any point. Odd.

Beat me to it. By three hours. A good watch!

 

[Deleted member 2719]

Fantastic 10 mins of our many years of hurt.

Well done to in telling the story so well, Attila, Paul, Liz and Dick.

It's inspired me to get out the we want Falmer Cds out again i must have 5!

I think all people being employed by the club including directors, should sit down and watch this to understand the passion of our original fan base.

 

[trueblue]

Am I the only one who doesn't think we're going to go straight back down?

It was so tight last season. Six points between 18th and 17th. Then incredibly six points between 17th and 8th.

It'll be tough but I reckon we'll do it.

I think it'll be touch and go. But, as things stand, I see no reason why Newcastle and Huddersfield are considered better bets than a team which has been a cut above most in the Championship for the best part of two seasons.