Mantis Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 We're closer to the bottom than we are to 9th place. I think its premature to say we're not in a relegation battle. Last season we averaged 1.07 points a game. So far we currently average 1.09 points a game. Have we improved lots or is it more to do with more teams performing worse this year? It's not premature at all. We're 6 points clear of the relegation zone with a better goal difference than most of the clubs below us, including all of the bottom 5 clubs. That is not a relegation battle. Average points per game means little really as it's about your position and points in relation to other teams. It would be premature to say we WON'T be in a relegation battle, but I never said that in the first place. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillaCas Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 We're closer to the bottom than we are to 9th place. I think its premature to say we're not in a relegation battle. Last season we averaged 1.07 points a game. So far we currently average 1.09 points a game. Have we improved lots or is it more to do with more teams performing worse this year? No.....it would be premature to say we won't be in a relegation battle but it's not premature to say that we are not in one now The "are we better, or are other teams worse?" debate is pointless - league position is all that matters and we are doing much better this season 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted January 22, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted January 22, 2014 1.09 > 1.07 The league is more open this year, the reason there is a huge gap between 9th and 10th, is because the league is split into 2 parts, with the first 9 winning a lot more than the rest. In recent years there's been max 5 teams running away at the top, and really only 2 or 3 winning nearly every game against the rest. This year though there's more on that kind of form so there's less points knocking around the bottom. In that environment we are still getting more points than we managed last year. Whilst it's fair to say we haven't "improved lots" we are still performing better. We have vastly improved our football in the last couple of games and if we have a similar upturn in form as last season then that 1.09 average for the season will be closer to 1.5. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_John_10 Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 The "are we better, or are other teams worse?" debate is pointless - league position is all that matters and we are doing much better this season Don't think its pointless. We're basically averaging the same amount of points as we did last season. That would suggest our increase in league position is more down to how other teams have done rather than a big improvement in us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_John_10 Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 1.09 > 1.07 The league is more open this year, the reason there is a huge gap between 9th and 10th, is because the league is split into 2 parts, with the first 9 winning a lot more than the rest. In recent years there's been max 5 teams running away at the top, and really only 2 or 3 winning nearly every game against the rest. This year though there's more on that kind of form so there's less points knocking around the bottom. In that environment we are still getting more points than we managed last year. Whilst it's fair to say we haven't "improved lots" we are still performing better. We have vastly improved our football in the last couple of games and if we have a similar upturn in form as last season then that 1.09 average for the season will be closer to 1.5. Yep, if we see a finish to this season like last season then the comparison can't be made. My point is that currently we're on course to finish with roughly the same amount of points as last season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 We're closer to the bottom than we are to 9th place. I think its premature to say we're not in a relegation battle. Last season we averaged 1.07 points a game. So far we currently average 1.09 points a game. Have we improved lots or is it more to do with more teams performing worse this year? But, last year we had a terrible christmas were the current average was far lower than 1.07. You should compare what the average was in the same time frame, and you will find that the average is significantly higher this year. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dont_do_it_doug. Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 The "are we better, or are other teams worse?" debate is pointless - league position is all that matters and we are doing much better this season Don't think its pointless. We're basically averaging the same amount of points as we did last season. That would suggest our increase in league position is more down to how other teams have done rather than a big improvement in us. That's nowhere near "fact" though is it. You can only perform to what is in front of you, correct. We are performing markedly better this season in comparison to the rest of the league when compared to 12 months ago. Maybe the quality of the teams has improved, hence despite only a minor ppg improvement we are higher in the league because the teams below are all capable of beating up on each other. We so happen to be better than them as things stand. Your argument is weak. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted January 22, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted January 22, 2014 On Jan 21 2012, we were 17th having played 23 games for a total of 20 points. So 0.87 points a game. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillaCas Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 (edited) The "are we better, or are other teams worse?" debate is pointless - league position is all that matters and we are doing much better this season Don't think its pointless. We're basically averaging the same amount of points as we did last season. That would suggest our increase in league position is more down to how other teams have done rather than a big improvement in us. But the nature of the league is different - sometimes you have to run faster just to stand still. What is encourging for me is that in what is clearly a tougher division this year, especially at the bottom we are doing better. It's a strange one because when you think about a team like say Hull, you probably think - "they're having a decent season" but because you concentrate so much on the Villa you don't realise that that is what other teams are thinking about us. This time last year we were every pundits choice to go down - this year e are not even on their radar 10th-12th place finish will be a good progression for me this season Edited January 22, 2014 by VillaCas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dont_do_it_doug. Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 Edit - I also vividly recall you arguing the opposite in favour of O'Neill BJ10. How about some consistency? Look, we've not been great this season, not by a long chalk. But to deny improvement is ridiculous IMO. Whether it is enough , as per Morpheus's opinion, is debateable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillaCas Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 On Jan 21 2012, we were 17th having played 23 games for a total of 20 points. So 0.87 points a game. Top stats Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dont_do_it_doug. Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 On Jan 21 2012, we were 17th having played 23 games for a total of 20 points. So 0.87 points a game. End debate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted January 22, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted January 22, 2014 Sorry, just realised last year we'd played a game more, after 22 games last year we had 19 points, 0.86 points a game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillaCas Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 Sorry, just realised last year we'd played a game more, after 22 games last year we had 19 points, 0.86 points a game. Even more conclusive! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted January 22, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted January 22, 2014 Thinking about the upturn last season, then that was a big improvement to finish the season averaging 1.07 points a game, from having played 22/23 and being around the 0.86/7 mark. The same again would see us averaging 1.29 points a game for the season, so finishing on 49 points. That was good enough to get Albion 8th last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted January 22, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted January 22, 2014 The number of teams below us does matter, even though we're not that far, pointswise, away from the bottom. For us to relegated we have to do worse from here to the end of the season than 8 teams below us. That's a lot. In the same way as Man United are 14 points off the title. If there was nobody between Arsenal and them, then you'd say maybe they have a slight chance. But for them to win, they have to catch Arsenal AND do (significantly) better than the other 5 teams above Man United in the league. The same applies to us. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 On Jan 21 2012, we were 17th having played 23 games for a total of 20 points. So 0.87 points a game. So last season we were shockingly poor for the first 23 games, this season we have just been very poor. Can't really see that there is any reason for much celebration at all about this season's improvement. Quiet relief perhaps, yes, but to use phrases like "markedly better" is just OTT. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted January 22, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted January 22, 2014 (edited) On Jan 21 2012, we were 17th having played 23 games for a total of 20 points. So 0.87 points a game. So last season we were shockingly poor for the first 23 games, this season we have just been very poor. Can't really see that there is any reason for much celebration at all about this season's improvement. Quiet relief perhaps, yes, but to use phrases like "markedly better" is just OTT. Is 10th in the league "very poor"? Some performances may have been poor (and they were), but top half is exactly what the majority of us were expecting/hoping for before the season started. We're exactly on track to finish there. How is that "very poor"? It's not spectacular, but it's reasonable improvement. And that's what we all strive for, is it not? Edited January 22, 2014 by Stevo985 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mantis Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 We've been mediocre/slightly below mediocre this seaosn, not "very poor". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillaCas Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 On Jan 21 2012, we were 17th having played 23 games for a total of 20 points. So 0.87 points a game. So last season we were shockingly poor for the first 23 games, this season we have just been very poor. Can't really see that there is any reason for much celebration at all about this season's improvement. Quiet relief perhaps, yes, but to use phrases like "markedly better" is just OTT. Is 10th in the league "very poor"? Some performances may have been poor (and they were), but top half is exactly what the majority of us were expecting/hoping for before the season started. We're exactly on track to finish there. How is that "very poor"? It's not spectacular, but it's reasonable improvement. And that's what we all strive for, is it not? No it's not Given the meagre resources available it's f'in remarkable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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