Talk about Europe etc

[Matt]

I am getting sick and tired of the manager and the players talk about finishing 7th, 6th or 5th and mention the big chance of playing in Europe again next season. When they after that put in an awful performance as they did in the first half. I can't see us finish in the top half without Zamora on the pitch, a Sidwell alongside Murphy and one h'll of another attitude! The Blackpool game is now a crucial one and a loss there we're in a situation we all thought we had left behind.

[TonyGilroy]

Sidwell wasn't fit and Zamora not considered fit enough to start.

Not sure why Hughes should somehow be to blame.

[Matt]

Sidwell wasn't fit and Zamora not considered fit enough to start.

Not sure why Hughes should somehow be to blame.

Not blameing Hughes for the players that are injured. Just saying that without Sidwell and Zamora we won't finish top10 that everyone is expecting.

[BalDrick]

If you set the bar to an easily achievable height, people won't quite make it, whereas if you set the bar higher, people will make it to the level you're really after - think this is the reasoning behind what are on the face of it overly ambitious statements. A bit like when you play golf with someone who's a bit crap, you'll descend to roughly his level, whereas if you play someone better than you, you'll raise your game.

[Burt]

Reality check.

We are closer to a relegation fight than we are to challenging for a European position.

[AlFayedsChequebook]

As long as we play alright, then I do not mind what we aim for

Unfortunately, we played like turd at the start of the match yesterday. The good news is that Hughes looked as irritated as me at the end of the game yesterday, I am sure he reminded them exactly what is expected of them.

[Me-ate-Live, innit??]

Our current position in the table is only marginally our 'fault'. the 'top' four/five team are not behaving like 'top' teams, none of them seem to want to win it. The four /five teams at the bottom just will not go quietly. 
Who would have thought Spam would draw with Spurts, The Baggies would draw with The Gooners
or that Wolves would win. 

The next three games will sort the men from the boys
It's just a funny old season

[Mr Fulham]

Reality check.

We are closer to a relegation fight than we are to challenging for a European position.

Exactly. And I'm not sure that players and staff realized that.

[Scrumpy]

I am sure that the Manager and Staff know that we're in danger of getting sucked into a relegation battle, but they will be doing everything possible to keep that away from the players. There is nothing worse than nerves and lack of confidence to make a good or average team look really poor. I think this is good management to keep the players looking upwards.

Does anyone genuinely think that a player decides to try a little less, because they don't think they're in a relegation fight?

[Tom]

Reality check.

We are closer to a relegation fight than we are to challenging for a European position.

Have to agree with you Burt! Worry about the Prem first.

[MJG]

Does anyone genuinely think that a player decides to try a little less, because they don't think they're in a relegation fight?

I don't think they 'decide' to try less but most people on here will have watched and played in any sport, games that meant nothing.
That's what it was like 1st half yesterday, 2teams with not a lot to plany for(apparently).
In a game(that means nothing)the  desire is not always there to Chase that ball or put your body on the line to stop a player, its natural.

My worry for blackpool is that they know they need to win, where as we should win. And that goes for players and fans, too many on here and other forums say we are too good to go down. Sorry but we are not.
If you look at all the teams in premiership history who have won less than two games away in a season, something like 70% of them have been relegated.
I'm not saying this just because of yesterday because I never have us down to win at everton,this season is so far I believe the worst pts total against the top six clubs we have ever had and we still have to play utd/pool and the arse.

Forget Europe let's just try and win in another place in England apart from fulham.

[TonyGilroy]

Hughes comments after the match were spot on. He knows what was wrong and that's half the battle.

I thought it was very Hodgsonesque. Be organised, keep position, let the opposition come and trust that organisation to be good enough to prevent us conceding. We can always hope to score on the break or from set pieces so going one down is OK until about 80 minutes. Two down and we go for it.

To be fair to Hodgson though that was the away game plan only. Home games were to be won.

Whatever the team selection we will attack Blackpool from the start IMO and Hughes long term plans will involve a different approach away from home but that might involve some new personnel.

[Peabody]

Does anyone genuinely think that a player decides to try a little less, because they don't think they're in a relegation fight?

I don't think they 'decide' to try less but most people on here will have watched and played in any sport, games that meant nothing.
That's what it was like 1st half yesterday, 2teams with not a lot to plany for(apparently).
In a game(that means nothing)the  desire is not always there to Chase that ball or put your body on the line to stop a player, its natural.

My worry for blackpool is that they know they need to win, where as we should win. And that goes for players and fans, too many on here and other forums say we are too good to go down. Sorry but we are not.
If you look at all the teams in premiership history who have won less than two games away in a season, something like 70% of them have been relegated.
I'm not saying this just because of yesterday because I never have us down to win at everton,this season is so far I believe the worst pts total against the top six clubs we have ever had and we still have to play utd/pool and the arse.

Forget Europe let's just try and win in another place in England apart from fulham.
.

Sorry to disagree but I cannot recall any poster on here using the term "we are just too good to go down" or are you suggesting that anyone with a positive view is saying exactly that?

[MJG]

More of a generic saying rather than attributed to any one poster, and it has nothing to do with anyone with a positive or negative view.