I agree with this. The league form is below par but I suppose I would like overwhelming evidence if we are to sack a manager.
I also think we have made improvements this season, even though that doesn't look very easy to see at the moment. IF we win our game in hand we are within touching distance of 8th. We could still finish 7th. Our attacking play this season has improved, and the performances of Barkley, Lukaku have really come on. This season we haven't been poor, we have just been hugely naive. That is some progress on last season when we were very poor. This is reflected in our improvements in the cup competitions.
We have thrown away 7 points from positions where we were winning by two goals going into the last 20 minutes of a match. This is both a startling lack of game management, stupidity, bad defending,some poor refereeing and tactical ineptitude. Martinez doesn't escape criticism but what it also shows is with a little more game knowledge (or some game knowledge) winning those 7 points would have us on 45 points. Within 7 of Arsenal with a game in hand. If you add in the two points against Norwich where we battered them and you begin to get an understanding of how we have balked up this season not as much through poor performances but by lacking game knowledge.
I don't think this was what was missing last season. We were dull, slow and uncreative for large parts. Those things have been rectified. If we end up finishing 10th for me Martinez deserves another season. He needs to show he can match some exceptional performances with winning football. This is the big blot on his resume. At times his sides can produce scintillating stuff but as yet he has never been able to make a side into a winning machine. Consistency within games is going to be critical. What he does in the transfer market is going to be critical. For me he gets another season (if we continue as we are) and gets another chance to show he can produce a team that is consistent.
I don't think we are a long way off. Or at least, we look further away from being a top team than we are. I've plucked a handful of matches that had we have done something basic like holding out we'd be in the top 6. We were miles away from the top 6 last season. I also think in most games we have been a little unlucky.
Yesterday we play with 10 men for most of the game and end up losing a game we'd win. West Brom they score with their only shot on target. Swansea Howard throws a howler. Stoke we are too hung ho and are on the end of a bad penalty decision. Leicester we lose to two penalties. Each game we've lost (apart from Manchester United) we've had one thing or another go against us. I agree though, love the course of a season it's not bad luck, but naive management.
The challenge next season is to eradicate luck and to "wise up". We are close under Martinez. In all honesty from our remaining fixtures in the league I can still see us winning 8. We are that close from being a very good team. We've got the worst possible draw in the cup, facing any of the other sides I'd have fancied us against. Lets hope we can get through it. Luck looks back to his best now anyway.
