5 games to go - as good as it gets or can it be maintained?

[Amw79]

Ok mate, have it your way if it makes you feel better. But the thread is about whether this is the high point of this season and whether it can be maintained or whether it slips back to 7th.

Feels better to be worried about slipping back to 7th though, no?

The other day I was trying to place what feels different this year, and it's the feeling of constantly looking up, rather than down. Last 2 seasons we've been looking at whether the teams behind us can catch us. This year it's been about who we can catch - mentality change.

 

[MrGrumpy]

This thread could be totally different come 10 pm Monday if both win.

Only real advantage we have is we have 5 games left in 6 weeks. Arsenal have 9 games in 6 weeks and Utd have between 9 and 11 games in 6 weeks. So they could tire or get injured or red cards.

 

[Legend Barry Horne]

Ok mate, have it your way if it makes you feel better. But the thread is about whether this is the high point of this season and whether it can be maintained or whether it slips back to 7th.

Davek - I thought it had been established at least a year ago that your brain doesn't work properly - is coming on here so much a good use of your time? Thought about doing further study (maths? Good for training logic) - or seeing a therapist?

 

[squonk]

It was only a matter of time before this became yet another anti-Koeman rant.

So predictable.

 

[Ron Burgundy]

It was only a matter of time before this became yet another anti-Koeman rant.

So predictable.

Worst poster on this forum by a country mile, that fella.

 

[maccavennie]

so the title says as good as it gets or can it be maintained so I'm assuming as good as it gets means 5th and can it be maintained means 5th yes?

if so then yes it can be maintained and yes it may be as good as it gets.

 

[degsy]

Only one that matters is the next one. So let's get 3 points at the soulless athletics dome next week.

6th should be the overall goal atm but one game at a time.

This.

 

[gorgeousgeorgeEFC]

We haven't even finished in the top half since 2014, so I'd be made up with a top 7 finish.

5th spot is unattainable.

 

[KevMirallas]

Hey look, another thread ragging out the manager and half the players. It's almost like somebody is deliberately trying to wind people up.

 

[Canuck Darryl]

Everybody above us has games in hand, so it's not in our control tbh. All we can do is try to win out, and hope that the top six screw up.

 

[Bluebonic]

As good as it gets? This season yes, definitely, we will end up in 7th, possibly sixth if Arsene has truly lost the dressing room. However, 7th would not be a disappointment to me, it would bring us back to European football, and begin the next stage of Koeman's tenure. We have some extremely gifted kids, who will only get game time if we have sufficient games to blood them. In addition we will have some good players joining us in the summer.

If some of those good players coming in include some pacy central defenders and a quality keeper, we will progress some more and cement ourselves as a top six side. It is then about breaking the bottler mentality and starting to occassionally turn over the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea etc. Then we can move into a top 4 and begin to challenge for silverware.

I see no quick fixes, regardless of who the manager was there are a lot of players who are coming toward the end of their tenure here, there replacement will take time.

With regards the hoofball element, I have seen plenty of that this season, but I have also seen some fantastic, incisive pass and move football. This team's playing style is far from perfect, but i believe it could be successful particularly if we were able to entice the likes of Santi Cazorla to try his luck with us? With an upgraded keeper and central defence, that could be the step change some of us are impatient for.

Either way, i am yet again excited (rather than desperately hopeful or fearful) about a forthcoming transfer window, and that can be dirctly attributed to the new regime. I think that in itself is a reason to be positive

 

[bluestevon]

so the title says as good as it gets or can it be maintained so I'm assuming as good as it gets means 5th and can it be maintained means 5th yes?

if so then yes it can be maintained and yes it may be as good as it gets.

Basically that isn't it mate, the Derby realistically put to bed the chance of top 4 unless something really bizarre happens, think the teams and order of the top 7 right now is how it'll finish, especially if the rs win today then United lose then they're gonna jib the league off, as for arsenal - they're done and fully expect it'll be shown when they manage to lose points in 5-6 more this year.

Part of me sees the rs next four games being away at west brom home to big fat sams palace then away at Watford though and then home against saints and wonders if they could have another January like set of results coming...

 

[bluestevon]

@davek , not gonna get into any talk on the manager mate, cos frankly it's got very boring etc.

But this season there is an obvious split shown in the table between the top seven and the rest of the league, and we are part of that breakaway group, key now is to build upon that for the rest of this season and go into the summer and strengthening the first team and the squad.

Whilst it would have been boss to have spend silly money on transfers, it's actually impressive and hopeful that we managed to stick with this group without spending a great deal.

The process of culling the worst of the dead wood is well under way, and a lot more will be out the door in the summer, we add 3-4 players who improves us as much as gueye and schneiderlin did OR as much as lukaku did when we got him, then top four and maybe a whole lot more is possible.

 

[davek]

You are literally the only person who would think in this way because of your agenda. Koeman has done a fantastic job this season with pretty limited resources and starting from a very low base because of El Fraudo. Any uptick in our form following Bolasie's injury is purely coincidental. The emergence of Davies, the development of Barkley and the purchase of Schneiderlin are the main reasons for the improvement together with improved fitness and confidence. No reason to think we wouldn't have done even better if Bolasie was fit, no objective reason that is.

We'll be top 6th or 7th mate. We're there or thereabouts where this club is always supposed to be in the past decade right now.

That's the whole point of this thread: to gauge whether we can hold on to the brighter end of the typical Everton finish spectrum or drift out again to 7th.

 

[davek]

Maybe he was trolling your boy Martinez?

Eh?

Doesn't make sense.