Originally Posted by
AucklandRover
But, Champs, if the PL is all that matters, where we are now is just the same as being beaten in the play-off final. We would still be in the Championship (where - as you know - I think we belong).
You say we are "miles away" from any chance of challenging. Really? We have picked up one point from 18, and we are still only ten points from a play-off place.
Six weeks ago, you were telling us we were negative for not believing that we were on a run that would take us to the top-six. Now, everything is a disaster, and Mowbray is hopeless.
Despair and I predicted 14th place. That still seems to me a realistic target.
The current players are running out of steam, and we clearly need an input of new blood, just as Mowbray has been saying this week. Who's to say what impact that will have next season? I don't know, but I never claim to, because I have been watching football for so long that I accept predictions are little more than guesswork.
In my eyes, Derby were hot favourites for promotion. Now they are struggling a bit, but they might still come good. That's the point: teams' fortunes often change dramatically for no obvious reason. Look at Burnley. They couldn't buy a win until the New Year. Then they had an excellent run. Suddenly? A bit pear-shaped again.
We won't necessarily lose our next few matches because we've done so badly recently. Obviously, confidence is low, which is always a negative factor, but all it takes, sometimes, is a stroke of luck - an own goal, a deflection, etc.
Looking back at Saturday, how did Mowbray's corner not go in? The ball seemed to defy the laws of physics. If it had, who knows?
That's my point, really. Blaming a manager every time something goes wrong is just cheap, convenient and lazy.
I can't believe you've turned on Mowbray so quickly. There is always so much more involved than the input of one man. As I said, is Ranieri a "bad" manager now? What about Hodgson? Most Rovers fans don't think much of him, but what would happen if you asked Palace fans at the moment? Alex Neil is another with a yo-yo career. In fact, the majority are the same!
By the way, which of the miracle-workers do you have in mind as a replacement?
I am stoical by nature, but I am also realistic. By the standards you are imposing, there are only three successful Championship teams a year. I think that's nonsense. I am quite happy to survive this season. Then I will observe, with interest, who Mowbray brings in, and how he begins to utilise the best of our Under-23s.
To be honest, I wouldn't watch football at all if losing and/or disappointment made me as angry as it appears to make some people. If that's the way you react, you are on a hiding to nothing as a football supporter...unless you follow Man. City!