The real problem is the Championship playoffs

[Robbie]

What are the stats on the third team staying up?  25%? 
The third team is never ready for the PL.
The window is too short to buy well.

Scrap the circus.

[Robbie]

Amazed there is not more discussion of this issue

[gang]

Always thought you play 46 games and come 3rd you should be promoted. Playoffs are just a moneymaker and I believe should be scrapped.

[abfg]

The playoffs serve a big purpose. If you scrap them, Only top 2 in the championship, then maybe 3-6/7 have anything muh to play for as the end of the season comes around. Extending the possibility of promotion to 6th place keeps most teams down to mid table something to play for. Too mny dead rubbers between safe teams otherwise...

[Penfold]

The play offs were introduced at the beginning of the 1986/87 season in order that more teams had something to play for near the end of the season and attendances might hold up. Attendances used to drop for later season matches with nothing riding on them.

Football was in a rough state at the time. Attendances in 1985/86 for the top two divisions had hit their lowest level since the ill fated 1914/15 season.

They've always been unfair, but can't ever see them being scrapped.

[rebel]

We are pretty good in the Play Offs in recent times. 

[clarkey]

I enjoy the play offs, we have won two recently. That was great. Staying up or not is no big deal. I like us being in the Champs frankly. Under Slav we played great footie and it was fun to watch, I actually did not really want us to come up three years ago, we were not  ready. This year the tension has been excellent but the matches themselves have been so attritional. And without TC we just do not have a creative player on the pitch.Lookman in short bursts but he is mainly brainless.

The only change I would make is possibly including the third  from bottom in the Prem in the play off final so you get a "playing for your life" set up. Be fun.

[SP]

We are pretty good in the Play Offs in recent times. 

I recall some rather less successful playoff games back in the day.

[Plodder]

In a normal season, the team winning the play-offs doesn't have enough time to put together a Premier League squad, and fashion it into a team.  This time, it was even worse given we had only a month between our play off final win and our first match.  I am in favour of the play-offs, although I would prefer it to involve a mix of the top Championship sides and the lower end of the Premier League (as it did in the original "test matches" in the late 19th century).

[ALG01]

the play offs are not the problem. the lack of forwards are the problem.
the team plays well enough in two thirds of the pitch but lack of movement at the front, no back up for an out of form/injured mitro was criminal and no creative midfielders other than injured TC killed us. None of it addressed in January when we still had a chance.

The play offs made it a little more problematic but the management by the DoF sealed our fate. the first game against arsenal showed we lacked any cutting edge, we never troubled them or anyone else's defence this season.

[WindyCity]

What are the stats on the third team staying up?  25%? 
The third team is never ready for the PL.
The window is too short to buy well.
Scrap the circus.

Sorry, can't agree with this.  FFC were only two points off second place last season.  Do you mean to tell me that had FFC finished in second and gotten auto promotion that this team, that we have seen this season, would have had any different a result?  Even if FFC had won the Champ last season, I see a team this season that gets relegated.  Maybe that 25% figure you state is accurate, IDK, but it might only apply to a team that was well off the top two places.  FFC being only 2 points off second place to me is not such a big differential.  This FFC team gets dropped regardless how they got promoted, even if it had been auto.  A couple of extra games played shouldn't make all that much difference.  Besides, this ownership has never moved fast to buy well anyway.

[Jules]

Always thought you play 46 games and come 3rd you should be promoted. Playoffs are just a moneymaker and I believe should be scrapped.

I agree coming 3rd should be good enough instead of having to play the play offs, but with that logic Brentford would have gone up instead of us last season

[Tabby]

What are the stats on the third team staying up?  25%? 
The third team is never ready for the PL.
The window is too short to buy well.

Scrap the circus.

If we look in the last decade, Swansea, Crystal Palace, West Ham and Villa stayed up. So that is a 40% success rate.

[bog]

Before they came in mid table sides used to amble to an aimless end, now managers keep their season going by talking of a run to make a late qualification. Players used to go through the motions dreaming of a beach. At the start of a season every team knows what goes on. I like them.   

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[Jules]

Before they came in mid table sides used to amble to an aimless end, now managers keep their season going by talking of a run to make a late qualification. Players used to go through the motions dreaming of a beach. At the start of a season every team knows what goes on. I like them.   

092.gif

Can be good for a mid table club aiming to finish 6th, but totally unfair on a team that finishes 3rd over a 46 game season who may finish with 20 more points and then have to go through the play offs on equal footing

[SouthIslandWhite]

Come on, really?  I am not having any of this. The playoffs are fun and so tense; it's a huge part of what keeps it all so interesting. Love the playoffs!

Now did we manage our off season well? Certainly not. But our problems go way beyond finishing 3rd in the Championship. 

[Twig]

Come on, really?  I am not having any of this. The playoffs are fun and so tense; it's a huge part of what keeps it all so interesting. Love the playoffs!

Now did we manage our off season well? Certainly not. But our problems go way beyond finishing 3rd in the Championship. 

Agree

[gang]

Always thought you play 46 games and come 3rd you should be promoted. Playoffs are just a moneymaker and I believe should be scrapped.

I agree coming 3rd should be good enough instead of having to play the play offs, but with that logic Brentford would have gone up instead of us last season

That's right, look how well we've done.

[70sPimlico]

the play offs are not the problem. the lack of forwards are the problem.
the team plays well enough in two thirds of the pitch but lack of movement at the front, no back up for an out of form/injured mitro was criminal and no creative midfielders other than injured TC killed us. None of it addressed in January when we still had a chance.

The play offs made it a little more problematic but the management by the DoF sealed our fate. the first game against arsenal showed we lacked any cutting edge, we never troubled them or anyone else's defence this season.

Mate. Honestly, give it a break.

We won at Liverpool and Everton, for the first time...ever. This terrible squad was able to do what a Fulham team have never done ever before....and we scored twice!!

The only problem for us was, not every team set up to attack us and allow us space to attack them. When they did...everton, pool and Leicester we looked great and our squad looked a quick attacking force.

Unfortunately, some teams didnt allow us space and time and didnt push up on our defence and then we were in trouble. Then when they all saw that our coach was so rigid in his tactics, they all started doing it and all of a sudden we didnt look such an attacking force and although we could have a default system with a squad that counter attacked brilliantly, we werent so good against a Palace, Burnley, Leeds etc

What gave us a squad that wins at Leicester, Liverpool and Everton? Was it a Scott Parker masterclass and every other defeat is down to Tony Khan?

I understand that he is brash/into wrestling/american/pakistani/based overseas ..or a mix of all of them but I find it difficult to accept that our team did something brilliantly that we have never done in 150 years and yet we set up so rigidly and predictably that we just got sussed and that if Tony Khan wasn't around everything would have been ok. I don't accept it.

Our tactics, when it mattered were just too conservative and predictable.

It saddens me to say that I think most other managers in the league would have kept us up.

[ALG01]

the play offs are not the problem. the lack of forwards are the problem.
the team plays well enough in two thirds of the pitch but lack of movement at the front, no back up for an out of form/injured mitro was criminal and no creative midfielders other than injured TC killed us. None of it addressed in January when we still had a chance.

The play offs made it a little more problematic but the management by the DoF sealed our fate. the first game against arsenal showed we lacked any cutting edge, we never troubled them or anyone else's defence this season.

Mate. Honestly, give it a break.

We won at Liverpool and Everton, for the first time...ever. This terrible squad was able to do what a Fulham team have never done ever before....and we scored twice!!

The only problem for us was, not every team set up to attack us and allow us space to attack them. When they did...everton, pool and Leicester we looked great and our squad looked a quick attacking force.

Unfortunately, some teams didnt allow us space and time and didnt push up on our defence and then we were in trouble. Then when they all saw that our coach was so rigid in his tactics, they all started doing it and all of a sudden we didnt look such an attacking force and although we could have a default system with a squad that counter attacked brilliantly, we werent so good against a Palace, Burnley, Leeds etc

What gave us a squad that wins at Leicester, Liverpool and Everton? Was it a Scott Parker masterclass and every other defeat is down to Tony Khan?

I understand that he is brash/into wrestling/american/pakistani/based overseas ..or a mix of all of them but I find it difficult to accept that our team did something brilliantly that we have never done in 150 years and yet we set up so rigidly and predictably that we just got sussed and that if Tony Khan wasn't around everything would have been ok. I don't accept it.

Our tactics, when it mattered were just too conservative and predictable.

It saddens me to say that I think most other managers in the league would have kept us up.

give what a break?
I know you are part of a select group that seem to say black when I say white that is tiresome
so let us examine the evidence.
We have one goascorer and he was injured/out of form for ages and no back up
we scored 24 goals in 32 games
we played pretty well because the manager made it so but we have no cutting edge and if I could have forgiven him meaning the hopeless DoF,  it would have been if he had taken action at the start of january and brought in a couple of desparately needed forwards.

We won at liverpool and everton away, that was brilliant and afforded false hope.
we play well enough because of scott not in spite of im but what options do we have going forward. after the team was hit by covid the lack of depth in the squad was dramatically exposed.

When the DoF learns one lesson and starts to improve I will desist. however we all know, or should, the only reason he remains in situ is his dad owns the club. In any other team he would never have got the job, and with his track record be long gone in the event he did manage to be so employed.

60 years a season ticket holder, after going to so many pointless matches away from home on freeaing cold nights is dreadful places... I cannot bear to see his level of mismanagement. at least when we had no resource there was an excuse, now there is none.