Would you take 17th place right now ?

[gazza ladra]

Wigan brought in di Santo and Cleverly, and held onto N'Zogbia (for the time being).  I like Martinez, but hate Wigan so I have mixed feelings the window. He's brought in some talent that can play proper football. Still wish we'd nabbed Victor Moses.

 

I think they'll survive.

 

Edit:    Not really the right thread.

[summerof69]

Yes, it's our first season back, i would take 17th for the next 2 seasons. Though if Carroll is fit often enough and Barfa turns out to be the player we hope and nothing changes the spirit, then we could do better.

[MKSC]

I'll be boring, Yes I'll take it, but I hope and believe we are better than that. Have been saying all summer I think we could finish as high as 9th, mainly because the standard of opposition is not that great. Outside the top 7 or 8 this is a very average league. Right now I'll be happy with staying up and not seeing any more fuck ups from the men upstairs being reported in the press.

[Anderson]

Survival is my only expectation this season. Saying that I'd probably be a bit unsatisfied with 17th as it would mean we'd had on the whole a shit season and we'd be looking shaky going into the next.

[Hanshithispantz]

Of course I would. You'd be an idiot not to.

 

We are a newly-promoted team, our sole objective is to stay up.

No it's not, and it's silly to suggest so to be honest. Just because you have just been promoted doesn't mean you have to accept a poor finish, especialy a club like Newcastle. (Big differance between us and Blackpool/West Brom).

 

 

[QBG]

Still yes but I think we'll do a fair bit better.

[Hanshithispantz]

Guaranteed survival? Ermmmm, yes please.

 

Not to say we shouldn't be hoping for higher/better mind. As Dave's said, the bottom 12 teams in the league range from ordinary to dogshit. No reason why we can't have a good season and finish something daft like 11th. I'd take 17th and survival - just for this first season though.

 

 

How can anyone turn their noses up at it? Because we beat Villa 6-0? Does anyone remember Hull in their first season back. We won't continue this run and whilst we are good enough for closer to the top ten, we should appreciate our limitations - I'd snatch 17th with both hands right now tbh.

Because finishing 17th means an appauling season, players leaving, fans on the boards back, us getting stick every week in the press, everyone in newcastle depressed every weekend... you get the drift.

 

Finishing 17th may be survival, but it's also a year of compete torture supporting the club, we're better than a 17th place finish and I expect us to comfortably stay up. We have a fairly decent squad and will be hard to beat at home.

[JH]

I knew this would happen - people thinking we're good again after a few decent results.

 

We're not the Newcastle of old - we're a newly promoted side. The good run will probably come to an end and with injuries etc. on top, we'll enter the struggle at the end of the season. Of course we can aim for better, but I don't expect us to finish higher than 15th - anything else is a bonus.

 

Survival is what we need and so 17th is perfect for me.

[Neil]

I knew this would happen - people thinking we're good again after a few decent results.

 

We're not the Newcastle of old - we're a newly promoted side. The good run will probably come to an end and with injuries etc. on top, we'll enter the struggle at the end of the season. Of course we can aim for better, but I don't expect us to finish higher than 15th - anything else is a bonus.

 

Survival is what we need and so 17th is perfect for me.

 

It will come to an end but the confidence of these first few games (assuming a win against Blackpool) must be huge. I think you have a decent shout of finishing comfortably above the relegation zone.

[JH]

I knew this would happen - people thinking we're good again after a few decent results.

 

We're not the Newcastle of old - we're a newly promoted side. The good run will probably come to an end and with injuries etc. on top, we'll enter the struggle at the end of the season. Of course we can aim for better, but I don't expect us to finish higher than 15th - anything else is a bonus.

 

Survival is what we need and so 17th is perfect for me.

 

It will come to an end but the confidence of these first few games (assuming a win against Blackpool) must be huge. I think you have a decent shout of finishing comfortably above the relegation zone.

 

So do I. But if someone offered me 17th, I'd take it now. You never know what's going to happen.

[Mick]

It will come to an end but the confidence of these first few games (assuming a win against Blackpool) must be huge. I think you have a decent shout of finishing comfortably above the relegation zone.

 

I agree and would still take 17th as it would be progress, anything else will be a bonus.

[Hanshithispantz]

By the way i'm not saying we're good, would just rather take the gamble of us having a respectable 15-12th finish over a garenteed year of complete torture.

 

Seriously what would finishing 17th have actualy achieved at all? How would we have built/improved?

Wouldn't, infact we would be in the exact same posision as we are now, perhaps even worse as our high of been promoted would be replaced by a serious rein of depression due to the shambolic season that we would have clearly had to have finished 17th.

[chicago_shearer]

Abso-fucking-lutely. 

 

Is this squad capable of finishing 11th or 14th?  God knows....probably.  But does it matter?  Unless you are a total meth addict who thinks this team should be aiming for European qualification, then there is no difference between lower midtable and safety.  If you were offered 17th and guaranteed safety, why in hell would you turn it down when your ambition is a few insignificant places up the table?

[Shak]

Some close stuff.

 

I'd take it, yeah.

[Guest Pedro_de_geordieo]

Nope, I think top half is a realistic position

[merlin]

If Carroll picks up a long term injury - yes, definitely.

If he stays fit and keeps playing well we can do a bit better, maybe 14th.Higher if another striker comes in in Jan.

 

[stlouismag]

The question is would I take it right now, and there are simply too many variables (injuries - which will happen, it's only a matter of who and how bad, Ben Arfa turning out to be a truly disruptive twat who destroys our chemistry, the January transfer window, etc.) that could go very poorly for us to not take 17th in a heartbeat at this point.

 

 

[Montey]

I say No, but for this reason.

 

If we're 17th at the end of the season then it means we stay in the PL, great, but it also means that we were involved in a dramatic fight to avoid relegation again, meaning we haven't really progressed beyond where we were two years prior.

 

As a consequence whilst I would be happy we were not relegated, I'd also be sad that we haven't really developed and will likely be facing the same fight again the next season.  I'd be much happier with 13th because that would mean the squad had developed and improved.

[mrmojorisin75]

Abso-fucking-lutely. 

 

Is this squad capable of finishing 11th or 14th?  God knows....probably.  But does it matter?  Unless you are a total meth addict who thinks this team should be aiming for European qualification, then there is no difference between lower midtable and safety.  If you were offered 17th and guaranteed safety, why in hell would you turn it down when your ambition is a few insignificant places up the table?

 

it's a fair point that like

[Kaizero]

No, I'd gamble on us being good enough for a better position, which I believe we now are capable of when comparing us with the other bottom half/lower mid-table teams. Also think it would do damage to our hopes of building and getting better and better in the future (which I hope our aspirations are) as good players would potentially start seeing us as a team constantly fighting relegation rather than a team with  unfullfilled potential. Obviously getting relegated would be worse, hands down, but I feel confident enough that we'll not be going down that I'd turn down 17th now if offered.

[ohmelads]

Abso-f***ing-lutely. 

 

Is this squad capable of finishing 11th or 14th?  God knows....probably.  But does it matter?  Unless you are a total meth addict who thinks this team should be aiming for European qualification, then there is no difference between lower midtable and safety.  If you were offered 17th and guaranteed safety, why in hell would you turn it down when your ambition is a few insignificant places up the table?

 

Well scraping survival would indicate we're not a stable Premier League team yet and could be in for another scrap the following season. Would send the same message out to current and prospective players. Contrast that with a midtable finish which would put out a totally different message and would be something solid to build upon as upposed to scraping above the likes of Blackpool.

 

I think the aim should be mid-table stability. Anything more a bonus. Anything less, we'll fight it out with the other teams down there. I think it sets the wrong mindset targetting mere survival - for Blackpool fair enough but for ourselves I think we must aim higher.

[Filflop1]

I would settle for it but after seeing the shower of s**** in this league this year there is no reason why we cannot finish higher

[mrmojorisin75]

I would settle for it but after seeing the shower of s**** in this league this year there is no reason why we cannot finish higher

i agree, there's some utter shit and very average sides around this season

 

we have a seemingly rejuvenated Barton, firing Carroll and now Ben Arfa / Tiote to add something extra and lift us above the dross i'd hope

 

injuries/suspensions will be the key as everyone keeps saying

[AyeDubbleYoo]

Obviously I would take it if I could guarantee survival, but we can and should be looking higher with the players we've got now.

 

I think Hughton will be wise enough to avoid any talk of targets or satisfactory finishes. He's been a master so far of every-game-as-it-comes, getting the team up for each week and taking victory and defeat in their stride.

 

As I said before, main thing for the fans is just not to be shitting it for the last couple of months!

[relámpago blanco]

I would take it but I think we should be aiming for mid table, probably lower midtable but when you compare our squads to others I don't think there is any reason why we couldnt finish 10th.