Premiership Race for 6th Spot: Man City, Newcastle, Everton, West Ham, Blackburn, Aston Villa and Bolton in the running
Hypothetically, were Chelsea, Man United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Spurs to be relegated after a match fixing scandal who would win the next Premiership title? I suppose it’s unlikely to happen, but who will finish 6th this season and win the last UEFA cup spot is still an intriguing question, with many possible outcomes.
It may be contested that Spurs should be included in the countries elite but year on year Daniel Levy stumps up the cash for major investment, and even before the sale of Carrick they had invested heavily in Berbatov and Zokoro. Their failure at the final hurdle last season will spur (pardon the pun) them on this season. An improving, youthful Arsenal team and a well strengthened Liverpool team will push Chelsea harder this season. With Man United it’s more intriguing. A better midfield should propel them forwards but a few key injuries could result in another faltering campaign. So barring any unforeseen situation the top 5 of last season look set to stay that way.
So of the rest who will be favourites to achieve the coveted 6th spot?
The candidates are Aston Villa, Blackburn, West Ham, Newcastle United, Manchester City, Everton and Bolton Wanderers.
Aston Villa
Much depends on whether they can get in Martin O’Neill. He has an excellent reputation of getting the best out of his teams. With him on board, even without any signings, I see a vast improvement on the uninspiring O’Leary. If a new consortium or Ellis don’t get their man then more woes for the Villa are just around the corner.
Prediction: 9th (with O’Neill) 17th (without O’Neill).
Mark Hughes has so far done fantastically well in his first role at club management. After the departure of Sourness he’s turned the clubs fortunes around, providing steeliness that makes them difficult to beat. The loss of Bellamy in the summer will be tough on them but Hughes has spent his budget well, acquiring Jason Roberts and Benni McCarthy. A distracting EUFA cup campaign will make it hard for them to sustain another assault on the 6th spot they achieved last season.
Prediction 10th
Bolton Wanderers
Big Sam’s star seems to be on the wane after missing out on the England job. Having done really well for Bolton in recent years it seems to me he’s taken them as far as he can, and now would be a good time for a fresh start for both club and manager. With a several players released by Bolton this summer Big Sam has yet to provide his usual inspired signings. If nothing much changes then expect Bolton to fall off the pace.
Prediction 12th
Everton
Andy Johnson’s signing is an inspired piece of business and I disagree with anyone who says this player isn’t worth the £8million paid for him. I rate this player as one of the best finishers in the country, and goals win you games. James Beattie will also be a better player partnered with Johnson. Not quite convinced yet with Everton’s defence but with the likes of Cahill and Arteta in midfield there is plenty of quality in this team.
Prediction 6th.
. Man City
My own team was threatening a European place for two thirds of last season only to fall away badly at the end. Unlucky with injuries Stuart Pearce had not much available in reserve. This summer, however, he has bulked out the squad with some quality additions. The captures from Serie A of Osomane Dabo and Bernardo Carradi are the ones to look out for. With a clutch of quality youngsters getting better each year I predict a good season for my club.
Prediction 8th
Newcastle
With no Michael Owen or Alan Shearer Newcastle will struggle unless they can bolster their strike force before the window closes. The quality signing of Duff would be great for any team but Newcastle are already strong in this position with N’Zogbia. To me it seems that 2 real quality centre half’s need to be brought in (and I don’t mean Sol Campbell) if this club is ever going to realise it’s ambitions. And finally my instinct tells me that Glen Roeder is not a good manager; Despite Newcastle’s up turn in fortunes when he took over last season I think this was more due the relief of the appalling Sourness leaving, and the cloud that was lifted.
Prediction 11th
West Ham United
The big surprise package of last year was West Ham United. Hungry and confident they have quality all over the pitch and I can envisage another good season for them this year. Again the EUFA cup may be an adverse distraction from the Premiership as they may not have the strength in squad numbers. The one player crucial to their success this season will be Dean Ashton. I had my doubts about him before he joined West Ham but I have to say how impressed I was with him when he helped West Ham knock my team out of the FA Cup, respect. If he stays fit all season then West Ham will do very well.
Prediction 7th
Editor’s Note: Bernard’s made his picks for the race to 6th spot in the next Premiership season – time to tell us your picks.
Topics: English Premier League, Manchester City, Newcastle United
Football News 24/7
I dont think you have any idea what your talking about.Newcastle to finish 11th are you out of your fing mind?You don’t think Glen is a good manager and i think you suck. So far glens record is better than yours. your 0-1.Tossa
July 30th, 2006 @ 19:50You’re predicting that Spurs will finish 6 places higher than Newcastle? They’ve just sold their most important player and Newcastle are soon to sign two strikers, as well as a couple of players for other positions. And as for Glenn Roeder, he has done a magnificent job at Newcastle and I am confident he will continue to do so.
My prediction is that Newcastle will finish 5th, then it’s a toss-up between Tottenham, Everton and West Ham for 6th.
July 30th, 2006 @ 19:55Hey
wat do you know bout newcastle ?? huh ?? Roeder by every means is a very good manager .. dont you ever underrate newcastle .. u know nuts about epl …
July 30th, 2006 @ 20:28I’m puzzled. Why would Newcastle need two new centre halves but not the other teams in your list? Apart from the fact that our best centre half Steven Taylor is now back after missing most of last season through injury only one of your daft list conceded less than Newcastle last season and Spurs who have had one decent season (remember Ipswich did the same a couple of seasons ago and got relegated the next season!) managed to concede 4 less than Newcastle. Your article is so amateurish and poorly researched it’s embarassing!
July 30th, 2006 @ 20:40hmm, I agree, Newcastle won’t finish 12th but I do believe that Carrick can be replaced at Tottenham – and also that those players wouldn’t fit at United, which is why they had to stump up the cash that they did. Still, Spurs have what it takes for 5th place – and Newcastle? Dunno, 6th,7th?
July 30th, 2006 @ 20:46nobody ever seems to think blackburn will do well. maybe its because it’s a very small town of 100,000 people and people don’t like to see the ‘so called big clubs’ being beaten so often by the rovers.
aston villa wouldn’t finsh higher even if they alex fergusson, mourinho and lippi all rolled into 1.
as for city…i guess the city fans will just carry on dreaming. why let the facts get in the way of a truly biased story! you were true relegation candidates on the form you showed throughout the 2nd half of the season. lucky you got off to a decent start!
5th – spurs
July 30th, 2006 @ 20:586th – newcastle
7th – blackburn
8th- everton
9th – west ham
10th – bolton
11th – villa
Don’t think you made the Newcaslt fans happy, the ones i know are expecting to finish 4th !!!
Anyway good commebts about Villa, and imagine if we did sign players and had a takeover, with O’neill, and 25m+ int he war chest
watch this space…
July 30th, 2006 @ 20:59Rubbish article
July 30th, 2006 @ 21:08If you think the Newcastle team needs investment (which it does), how can you predict Aston Villa to get 9th (even with O’Neil) even if they have an rubbish squad which has no new players in for 2 years and have lost their best player last seaosn (Milner). Aston Villa and Everton don’t have a chance to reach the top 6 this season, bit lookout for Middlesboro and Blakcburn who could turn more heads this season.
July 30th, 2006 @ 21:12I can not believe your prediction for Newcastle United is 11th place. Newcastle are going to finish 4th and if not that then 5th.
July 30th, 2006 @ 21:39everton won’t finish sixth , more like fourt or fifth , spurs were gonna beat the life out of you yids
July 30th, 2006 @ 21:45if newcastle finish 5th i will travel up the m62/a1m, stand on the top of the tyne bridge naked as the day i was born and sing the blaydon races in norwegian.
July 30th, 2006 @ 21:49Tottenham have got strength througout the team. Compare the centre halfs King & Dawson against Bramble & Boumsong/Moore. Compare the strikers Berbatov, Keane & Defoe against Ameobie and Luque. My prediction is based on where the clubs are at now. If you were to bring in some quality strikers then maybe you’ll be challanging yet. As for Roeder I thought he played a big part in West Ham Utd last relegation, and if he was that good a manager why was then managing your reserves? Anyway that’s my gut instinct right now, I hope your team and manager can prove me wrong!
July 30th, 2006 @ 22:24Newcastle 11th???
For goodness sake have a day off. With GR in charge and Michael Owen missing ALL SEASON, yes you heard it hear 1st plus they just blew £5m on the biggest crock in terms of injuries in the Premiership. The Barcodes will be lucky to stay up. If they thought Graeme Souness was bad I’m gonna be laughing my head off watching them soil their underwear when Glenn’s probationary period is over which is now. They are truly fvcked.
July 30th, 2006 @ 22:29Can I just say Roeder was NOT managing our reserves. He was bought in as our Youth Team manager hoping to bring young talent through the club and still recover from his illness a year ago. He is a top manager and knows exactly what he is doing. Spurs have spent big and I hope they (like us!) can substain themsleves with limited sucsess. I see Newcastle climbing up the table (11th? are you mad?!) and maybe reaching 5th, if not, they will be close to 6th or 7th. No way will we finish below 11th. We now have a capable manager and our support alone will push the lads above 10th over the course of the season, MINIMUM!
July 30th, 2006 @ 23:38I think it’s a little premature to assume the top 5 will be the same as last season. Last season was the first time in years that Spurs finished in a European spot – and they were hardly miles ahead of the chasing pack – with only 2 points ahead of Blackburn and 7 ahead of a Newcastle side which endured a terrible first half of the season under Souness before Roeder turned things round.
July 31st, 2006 @ 00:05Plus King is injured for the kick off and the team may take time to settle with Carrick and Mido gone.
And Villa being considered for top 6! Don’t make me laugh. Would fancy Boro to have more chance.
Hey Bernard, instead of passing judgement on Roeder’s ability as a manager from a position of ignorance why don’t you listen to the players who’ve actually played under him?! Joe Cole and Michael Carrick speak very highly of him! Why not listen to the people who know instead of just coming out with stuff?
July 31st, 2006 @ 00:19It seems that there’s a great misconception amongst non-Newcastle fans that we have a bad defence. Granted, Boumsong is a waste of space and Bramble has his lapses, but the statistics speak for themselves. We conceded 4 goals in 7 matches towards the end of the season and only conceded 4 more than Blackburn and Spurs who’ve had their defences praised.
Furthermore prior to playing PSV (who beat AC Milan in the champs league) have not conceded 3 goals in a match since March. This is a hyperbole based solely on the comedy antics of Boumsong and what are becoming rare lapses from Bramble. Once Boumsong’s out of the team and Steven Taylor’s back in with Moore who had an outstanding end to the season we’ll be shipshape. Nobody seems to consider the fact that we only have one leftback and that Babayaro is the biggest liability in the team with his poor positioning.
I realise that through the stigmatic views put across by the media that we may have a shoddy defence but if the rumours are true and we sign Bridge then I feel that there will be no problems whatsoever in our back four, particularly with ex centre-half Roeder working on the defence (Bramble came on leaps and bounds towards the end of last season and played well in the games where we kept clean sheets BECAUSE of Roeder’s coaching not despite it).
Ameobi is scoring well in pre-season. Luque is scoring, which is more than he did last season and will hope to put a horrific injury behind him and adapt to the english game. He wont be the long-term strike partner for Owen but he is class and provided Glenn can get the best out of him then he will get goals.
Spurs do have a better squad than Newcastle but we have a far better squad than the likes of Man City. I feel that only Everton have the potential to match us for 6th provided Beattie and Johnson stay fit.
The current squad will finish 8th. It’s like we have 2 new strikers since Luque and Shola’ve been scoring, but they won’t get the 20goals a season you need to break into the top 6. With a new striker and leftback we will finish 6th. With a second new striker we might even achieve the dizzy heights of 5th…but thats a bit of St James’ Park optimism there for you
Roeder knows what is needed for the manager of Newcastle United. He’s worked on the defence in training and reaped the rewards towards the end of last season. He man-managed Luque to the extent where he’s driven him to work hard for a change (though I doubt it’ll last). Let’s hope he can work more Duff-esque magic on a new striker.
Lets not forget that the man has come back from a life-threatening brain tumour. As for his poor record at previous clubs – Bobby Robson was sacked after 1 month at Fulham. He then went on to manage Ipswich for 14 years and win the european cup, firmly establishing the club at the right end of the league.
I hope my [ridiculously comprehensive] comments can be seen as objective and from a man who watches the team week-in-week-out rather than the ramlings of the passion-fueled over-optimism so many Newcastle fans show – you only have to see only Newcastle supporters have commented on this article…we can’t all be wrong
July 31st, 2006 @ 00:29Im not sure who will end up 5th or sixth one thing that makes me laugh though is spurs have one decent season and all of sidden its glory glory tottenham hostpur, The fact is the premier league is becoming more predictable year on year, who will end up in the top 5 or 6 probably the teams that have done this most over the last 6 or 7 years same as the top 4. Who would that be ? and what about spending who has spent the most in the past 6 or 7 years probably the same ones how would that rate teams. My guess is you will probably get the same results from both ways of looking at it. As for individual players you will always get money wasted but the fact remains if its wasted is there more the following year, in clubs like newcastle and everton prob yes and less so in the likes of blackburn and west ham. as for Glen roeder at Newcastle , remarkable or crap probably somewhere in between. so Newcastle ended up 7th at the end of the season, where have they usually ended up over the last 7 years ? You can blame souness or rave about roeder but the fact is most teams end up where they usually end up at the end of a long season, those with the bigger squads can cope better with injuries , suspensions etc, how will spurs cope with a missing centre half for the first half of the season.
July 31st, 2006 @ 00:31From a betting point of view I dont think ill be making any yet with a month of the transfer window still to go. The likes of Newcastle always big spenders know they have to replace shearer and owen, what about dyer will he be fit ? as for their defence i remember this being quite tight in their run in last year, moore, carr may not be world beaters but that has prob been newcasstles problem, steady defenders is all they need. As for spurs lets see how they cope without carrick and prob defoe. I think more teams will be aware of west ham and although they wont struggle i think it will be harder for them. i think 5,6 will prob go to 2 from Newcastle, everton and spurs. I think Bernie is a bit off
all the best
Nice to hear some unbiased, adult replies then! Roeder is unproven and no strikers have yet hit St James’. Over a whole season you need a strong squad and good management. None of the teams in the equation have this yet but I think if Villa can get O’Neill and some good players in they will sneak it. Pompey are also outside bets for 6th.
July 30th, 2006 @ 20:31I’ve got to agree that roeder looks like a flash in the pan. If you take a look at the england, er I mean west ham side he took down a few years ago and where the players have gone on to, you can’t help but think that he’s not clough in the making. However, i do think that people are ignoring ameobi at their peril: over the last year or so he’s grown up a bit, he looks stronger and much more confident. If the manager gives him a run he’ll cause a few headaches for defences and ripple a few nets.
July 31st, 2006 @ 00:52The villa aren’t in consideration, O’Niel or not, they’ll spend the first half of the season struggling to get above midtable, no signings to an already weak squad isn’t going to get them anywhere, and new money isn’t going to come soon enough for thie summer window, it’s just the way the chairman ellis works…
Don’t underestimate Blackburn Rovers. Bellamy helped but not that much! top six again for the Lancashire lads… don’t make me laugh by mentioning Villa and Man City for a top six finish though!!!
July 31st, 2006 @ 01:12You guys are an angry bunch, aren’t you?
Here’s my pick for 1-12
1 to 3: Chelsea, United, Liverpool (in any order)
4: Arsenal
5 and 6: Newcastle and Tottenham
7: Everton
8: West Ham
9: Middlesbrough
10 to 13: Bolton, Blackburn, Aston Villa, Man City (in any order).
Of course, this is entirely speculative, so arguing about who is the better manager is pointless. Roeder is pretty good though.
July 31st, 2006 @ 01:26West Ham will easly finish 6th if not higher with the likes of dean ashton, harewood, ferdinand, reo and yossi. as 4 glen roeder he can piss off. firstly he gets us relegated and now hes trying 2 sign all of r players and make us crap again, hes crap. it was because of shearer newcastle changed their fortunes last year
July 31st, 2006 @ 02:21Next season:
Chelsea will buy the title again
Liverpool signin bellamy will be good
Arsenal (the foreigners)
United will underachieve
Tottenham
West Ham
Man City
Newcastle, Roeder will ruin them
20th Villa
Time for thoughts of a Geordie pessimist here. I remember only too well the Richard Dinnis fiasco in the 1970s when Newcastle were relegated the season after Dinnis had taken over from Gordon Lee and finished fifth, and the feelings of high optimism that ensued. We lost nine of our first ten league games of the new season and never recovered. I don’t think the Toon will slip that far this season, but the similarities are disturbing (for Lee read Souness, for Dinnis read Roeder, for the lack of a goalscorer read the lack of TWO goalscorers), and I don’t see much hope of real progress. 11th place is a reasonable guess IMHO. It might be much worse.
July 31st, 2006 @ 03:49Bloody Geordies. They,ve won bugger all with all the money they have spent, lost a 12 point lead to united and have more crocks than the kitchens down at the local indian restaurant. Yet they still believe that they’ll finish 4th. don’t make me laugh. More like 4th from bottom. and yes I know Villa aren’t gonna finish 6th, but at least i’m not deluded. Get a grip Toon boys!!!
July 31st, 2006 @ 09:28Those of you who are of the belief that Roeder is a good manager need only look back at the Hammers season of 2003-04 when he was in charge of a team oozing with talent (some say the best squad to ever be relegated) and look what he did with them! Roeder inherited a side last year who, quite simply, couldn’t have been performing much worse at the time, so what occurred at the Toon after he arrived was hardly as a result of Roeder, but moreso the players rescuing what was an abominable season to date. And good luck to his health as well. Lets hope he doesn’t incur another life threatening injury when the pressure starts to get to him.
July 31st, 2006 @ 11:11Not for nothing was Road-to-Nowhere booted out of Upton Park………………….
Better look out for Reading and Watford!
July 31st, 2006 @ 11:45I think one way to look at it is how many of the players in these teams would be taken by the big 5 if they could. You then have an idea of the quality in the team. Then look at the proven motivational and growing tactical ability of the manager and then next look at team spirit. Then look to see which of these teams has not sold any key player, but has added players who are potential first team players. Look at which team is the youngest and most energetic, with 3 academy players ready to break through. The team who gained 18 points after being behind in those games. But I am not going to stick my neck out and say West Ham because what will determine 6th spot will be who stays injury free, and that depends on luck and the backroom staff. Should be a fun season. Our aim is to be above Spurs and as high as possible. I would be happy with another top 10 and good cup runs. 6th ?!? The one thing for sure is that over the course of a season the team that gets it deserves it.
July 31st, 2006 @ 13:12very bitter the west ham boys arent they, always makes me laugh. for all the problems swe had with souness and previously the dutchman and dalglish, there families never had to worry about receiving bags of personal abuse, unlike roeder and his family.
west ham the truly family club…… i think not
as for pardew werent all you loyal hammers trying to drive him out as well before he brought me up, dont make me laugh about your comments before he brought you up.
these forums would be much better bernie if they stuck to football and you gor rid of all the personal insult nonsense wnat do others think ??
all the best, funny how none of the players west ham included have a bad word to say about roeder, but what would they know, west ham will be found out this year and yes you are selling club, and theres still a month to go,
July 31st, 2006 @ 14:02we wont sell .. ferdinand.. lampard.. carrick.. cole…. harewood.. ashton.. get in the real world and accept your true position , the world of football sees you nothing more than a mid table club, nothing worong with that just live with it.
I can’t BELIEVE you’ve only predicted Everton to finish 6th ???……Have you not seen our squad not to mention the TEN new players we expect to bring in before August 19th. Its the Premiership title or nothing for us pal.
…………well if all your other respondees can be deluded fools then why not me ???
Good article fella.
July 31st, 2006 @ 14:12Hey, can we not just all talk about crisps and get along?
Geordies, don’t they make you laugh!!!
July 31st, 2006 @ 14:23Why do people predict finishing postions and spout crap, with obviously little understanding….
GENTLEMEN! this is football and the reason we watch, follow and live footie is because it is so unpredictable…
No one gave Rovers even half a chance of finishing sixth until well into the 2nd half of the season and then we were being touted for fourth!
What about Wigan – who could predict that?
If “bernard” is a City Fan then I have to say that the buys in the closed period have not been as good as either the Hammers, Rovers or the Toffees, as for the Geordies – no Shearer, no owen – but as tehy showed last season (mainly without Al and Mikey) they can finish strongly – so don;t write them of either…
Any one of the teams outside the “top” four can finish either fifth or sixth and as Everton proved last season… anyone can break into the top four!
So please limit your comments to what you would be happy with your team achieving – for me Rovers having a good FA and UEFA run (Semi’s) and finishing 6th or above will be okay!
July 31st, 2006 @ 15:10bolton will finish miles higher than you so called experts think if we can bring in woodgate saviola sorin and others none ov these others lyk west ham spurs toon everton blackburn will be able to beat us. (well most ov them never do beat us)so 12th my a*se. come on u whites
July 31st, 2006 @ 15:12walkin dwn the manny way
A bit of a media-driven article here Bernard; you really should look at the facts rather than the hype. Saying that Newcastle will struggle without Owen and Shearer – just look how many they have scored between them since January.
Similarly, the Spurs squad has had quite a reshape this summer – despite them having the shortest season in top-flight history (40 games and no more wasn’t it?). With a new midfield and a new front line, it’s going to take all of MJ’s talents to ensure the squad gels. They also have to cope without Ledley King for a few months as he’s injured (again), Dawson is a promising player but is not in Bramble’s class, let alone Terry/Woodgate/Ferdinand’s. Similarly, Robinson is a decent shot stopper, but his World Cup performance highlighted most of his shortcomings. Whilst Newcastle may not have the best full backs, they’ve certainly got a decent central trio and one of the better keepers in the league. I’m perplexed as to why you believe they need TWO new centre-halfs?! None of Ridgewell, Dunne, Todd, Gabbidon or Lescott would walk into the Newcastle first team, yet you make no mention of their respective clubs defensive shortcomings. Media-led again?
How you’ve managed to include Villa in your squad is something of a mystery, have you seen their squad over the last few seasons? It’s poor at best, it’s relegation material at worst, although I don’t think they’re quite up to Sunderland’s record-breaking standards just yet.
Everton should be up there challenging with the additions they’ve made, especially if they can keep their midfield fit for most of the season (Davies and van der Meyde particularly).
Liverpool will run Chelsea close for the league, especially as they’ve signed the best player in the league (excluding Henry). If he can stay fit, then I’d expect them to be worthy winners, despite Mourinho’s best disruptions.
July 31st, 2006 @ 17:28Pffft, the Geordies have as much chance of 4th as I do of having pinky-fun with Shakira !
July 31st, 2006 @ 18:29Newcastle you’re having a laugh aren’t you. You can’t win games playing with no strikers and no defence.
Hey but they get big crowds and sing wacky songs and that’s whats important when it comes to kicksoccerball nowadays.
July 31st, 2006 @ 18:33haha them fat geordi meffs having a laugh when you gonner get in the real world.
July 31st, 2006 @ 21:20Oh dear. The hornets nest of incalculably knee-jerk Newcastle neanderthals has been gently prodded and all the dreamers come out for a whine. Sleeping giant. False position. Etcetera.
July 31st, 2006 @ 21:35Sorry guys, the facts are simple. Newcastle have always got them in in their droves – masochists? – and deserve credit for always trying to play the right way. They are one of those sides that most neutrals have a lot of time for. However, they are bobbins. Their third best player (Dyer) need only engage in light tackling and he’s gone for months. Their second best player (Parker) is surrounded largely by mediocrity or understandably jittery youth. Boumsong is the worst centre-half I have ever laughed at in the premiership, absolutely appalling, and no doubt gives the exceptional star of the side, Given, torrid nightmares. Taylor’s a decent player and Duff is a fabulous signing. Is it enough? Not even nearly.
Roeder capitulates the moment a pressurised situation arises, getting into petty arguments with bemused journos. What are his credentials? He’s never done a decent job. Whay are Newc fans so convinced he will, all of a sudden, materialise into an accomplished manager capable of stopping the rot? He looks and acts like a middle-manager thrust into an uncomfortable role. I fear a sodden brow and a nervy twitch for Glenn on most editions of MOTD, the sack by January, and a brief resurgence into about 11th or 12th.
agree upto a point. the premiership will see an almighty relegation battle this year. newcastle, city, charlton, boro, sheff utd, wigan, watford, portsmouth and villa will all be down there fighting for their lives this year just you watch.
as for the toffees, well id like to think a top ten finish could be achieved
July 31st, 2006 @ 18:54I love it me. Toon army going past us as we go up and they go down next year. Santa, it’s all I want for christmas, and it could happen. Glenn Roeder is a joke, but nobody wants the job no more, it’s the impossible job. Loads of daft fans praying for the glory days…when were they, like? Hahahaaa!
July 31st, 2006 @ 23:34Newcastle is abig team badly organised. They need better instruction from the coach but also the owners. Perhaps they are needing a big chance all the way through. They have good players like Duff and Ameobi and Solano but a lot of inferior players. The fans have a lot of emotion but they do not have a team that can make you happy right now. Why was O’Neill not taken as a coach?
July 31st, 2006 @ 23:44O’Neill was not taken as our manager because he’s not got a particularly good record. Roeder wasn’t the first choice on most fan’s lips, yet in his few months in charge he’s turned around the team quite well – but then it wasn’t hard after Souness’ sabotage attempts!
The first team is pretty strong (on paper) compared to the other 15 teams in the division, so it’s not unrealistic for the fans of a team who finished 4th, 3rd and 5th just 2 years ago to expect a European push.
August 1st, 2006 @ 02:12Haha Some of the fans on this are idiots. Newcastle won’t finish 4th and if they do i would be surprised. Glen Roeder could be a terrible manager yet. Stuart Pearce when he first came to City was amazin then thenext season they nearly got relegated theres always a setteling in period for new managers am not sayin he definatley will be bad but he won’t definatley still be good either. And whoever Claims that Bolton Villa Man City Blackburn or Middlesborough are better than Everton need to start watching football. One last thing the Comment about Newcastles defence saying that why has he only talked about Newcastles CB’s Everton and Spurs have quality defenders. Arsenal tried to get Yobo Weir and Stubbs probz past it but still Experienced and Lescott iz Solid and can head the ball brilliantly as all the Wolves fans would tell you i dnt know where Everton will finish but am pretty Certain it won’t be lower than a Uefa Cup Place.
August 1st, 2006 @ 16:58I fink all us Evertonians can be expecting some good football this season at good old goodison, hopefully anichebe comes through and kanes them goals in.
August 7th, 2006 @ 05:19All you WHITES (bolton fans) need 2 get real, u myt av ad 1 or 2 gud seasons, but u will always be a lower club than the mighty Everton and i fink the least us Evertonians can expect this season is 8th anything lower wud b a major disapointment, with joleon lukin solid in the minutes hes played so far that sets us up solid with the passion of fans 2 bouy on the boys 2 hopefully a 6th or above finish!
i don’t believe that liverpool can finish top 4, chelsea will top the league again coz man utd and arsenal lost their key midfield men (arsenal- viera, pires; man utd- keane, beckham) and ruud v nistelrooy n ashley cole. but they r still strong squads compared to the rest. liverpool not on the same skill level as the top 3, only bcoz gerrard is pushing them forward (but he looks off-form lately, just look them trashed by weaker european teams in friendlies, so rafa’s men overated. tottenham didnt finish convincing 5th last season, they look like flash-in-the-pan like everton and blackburn last time. martin jol’s men are still inexperienced to finish top 6, will be overtaken by likes of bolton, blackburn and west ham. the london boys only looked impressive bcoz arsenal was in transitional period after losing paddy viera n spurs were cloing them on points (in fact both london teams were so far of the top 3 last season). newcastle will make a comeback to top 3 under glenn roeder. their new gaffer is a committed geordie and has finally found his team to manage (just like ferguson before he came to man utd, or wenger after he left grampus 8 in japan to manage arsenal). my predicted top 6:
August 9th, 2006 @ 19:551. chelsea
2. man utd
3. newcastle utd
4. arsenal
5. liverpool
6. bolton
sorry spurs fans, you could finish mid-table if u r lucky. villa could finish 7 or 8 under o’neill.