Vive_La_Villa Posted August 4, 2018 Share Posted August 4, 2018 I’ve just had a look at the Stoke Squad. If the squad stays as is then on paper they should walk this league. They got a manager that knows the league too. I think they will do a Wolves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted August 4, 2018 Share Posted August 4, 2018 (edited) 27 minutes ago, Vive_La_Villa said: I’ve just had a look at the Stoke Squad. If the squad stays as is then on paper they should walk this league. They got a manager that knows the league too. I think they will do a Wolves. No way is that squad as good as wolves. But they should win the league. the only thing is rowett is super negative and they will hav3 all the pressure we did last year. The expectation there is going to be as bad us us fir the last couple years and that can seriously hinder you in this league Edited August 4, 2018 by Demitri_C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vive_La_Villa Posted August 4, 2018 Share Posted August 4, 2018 3 minutes ago, Demitri_C said: No way is that squad as good as wolves. But they should win the league. the only thing is rowett is super negative and they will hav3 all the pressure we did last year. The expectation there is going to be as bad us us fir the last couple years and that can seriously hinder you in this league I think it’s as good as Wolves. The only difference is Wolves players were bought in to play in the Championship so knew what they had signed up for. A lot of these Stoke players signed for an ambitious Premier League team. They may not be so keen to play in this league and this could affect performances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 10 hours ago, Vive_La_Villa said: I think it’s as good as Wolves. The only difference is Wolves players were bought in to play in the Championship so knew what they had signed up for. A lot of these Stoke players signed for an ambitious Premier League team. They may not be so keen to play in this league and this could affect performances. i disagree the wolves team of last year is a far better side than this stoke side. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcow Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 (edited) 14 hours ago, weedman said: The problem is, we're not. We've lost our captain and he's replaced by Tommy Elphick, we've lost our main source of goals last season in both Snodgrass and Grabban and we've lost our #1 goalkeeper for the last 18 months. We've not been able to bring any replacements in yet either (apart from the young keeper that I know nothing about so can't compare to SJ at the moment). We need players ASAP if we're going to have a chance and imo we'll struggle at the start. We needed the takeover a month earlier really Edit : just to add I think the league will be way tighter this year and no one will run away with it so we can get away with a poor start if we get our recruitment right in the next few weeks You know I think about this the opposite way around. Last night I re-watched the Wolves game to get myself up for the new season (I have watched that match an unhealthy number of times) The thing that struck me last night is that the team I was watching completely dismantled the best team in the league, and that the majority of that team are still here. Then I thought about who is missing: Johnstone - I know some people think different but I really don't think he was that great, and anyway, so long as you have an average keeper in this league you are OK. Look who Wolves had in goal as they won the league. I think we will do just fine regardless of who is between the sticks. Gabban - Well we have arguably actually improved here bringing in Kodjia who could well score more goals and certainly provides a good deal more unpredictability to keep defenders on their toes and perhaps their eyes off other players. Snodders - OK this is our first problem however I think he was pretty poor at the start of last season (see my various criticisms in his thread) and also towards the end. Green has huge potential I think and even if it turns out he can't match the high points Snodders turned out, he may prove more reliable throughout the season. Terry - Big miss, really big miss. So my conclusion is the team which destroyed Wolves (and also beat Cardiff around the same time) is broadly still there. There are probably 2 issues which need sorting but we know we are looking to bring in 3 or 4 players anyway (maybe one will be Snodders so total cancellation of one issue) So basically I certainly don't want to bet against us! Edited August 5, 2018 by sidcow 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcow Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 11 hours ago, Vive_La_Villa said: I’ve just had a look at the Stoke Squad. If the squad stays as is then on paper they should walk this league. They got a manager that knows the league too. I think they will do a Wolves. Their players will be overrated because they were Premier league last year. They got relegated because they are crap. Teams who are relegated rarely go straight back up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 Encouraging for us so far you'd think from what we've seen, but we haven't kicked a ball yet and after the first few weeks last year you'd have said Fulham were no threat... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vive_La_Villa Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 8 minutes ago, romavillan said: Encouraging for us so far you'd think from what we've seen, but we haven't kicked a ball yet and after the first few weeks last year you'd have said Fulham were no threat... You’d have said we were no threat as well. Whilst it’s good to hit the ground running i’d say you have to give it around 10 games to see who will be in the mix. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 1 hour ago, Vive_La_Villa said: You’d have said we were no threat as well. Whilst it’s good to hit the ground running i’d say you have to give it around 10 games to see who will be in the mix. https://fussball.wettpoint.com/en/archives/tables/gamedays-2017/championship-england-10-2017-18.html That makes interesting reading that table! Sheffield United and Leeds disappeared without trace. Preston, Ipswich, Bristol City were all up there. I'd still rather we were at it from the start but Wolves' position there shows you don't have to win the first 10 to win the league... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 I know you cant really look into anything before the table takes shape, but it cant hinder anything winning your first few games! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romavillan Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 16 minutes ago, Nigel said: I know you cant really look into anything before the table takes shape, but it cant hinder anything winning your first few games! If we get into the position where we have to be in better than title winning form for a couple of months just to catch up again Bruce should be shown the door. We can't be trying to do it from so far behind again, it'd kill any good new owner vibes right out the gate. I'm not saying we need to win the first 10, but we need to be within reach of second to be well placed. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 We need a finisher or we wont have a chance of Top 6 in my view. Hourihane will chip in same amount of goals but not sure if Adomah can do the same. Last year our strike force contributed 22 goals over the season which wasnt good enough and arguably cost us 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weedman Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 4 hours ago, sidcow said: You know I think about this the opposite way around. Last night I re-watched the Wolves game to get myself up for the new season (I have watched that match an unhealthy number of times) The thing that struck me last night is that the team I was watching completely dismantled the best team in the league, and that the majority of that team are still here. Then I thought about who is missing: Johnstone - I know some people think different but I really don't think he was that great, and anyway, so long as you have an average keeper in this league you are OK. Look who Wolves had in goal as they won the league. I think we will do just fine regardless of who is between the sticks. Gabban - Well we have arguably actually improved here bringing in Kodjia who could well score more goals and certainly provides a good deal more unpredictability to keep defenders on their toes and perhaps their eyes off other players. Snodders - OK this is our first problem however I think he was pretty poor at the start of last season (see my various criticisms in his thread) and also towards the end. Green has huge potential I think and even if it turns out he can't match the high points Snodders turned out, he may prove more reliable throughout the season. Terry - Big miss, really big miss. So my conclusion is the team which destroyed Wolves (and also beat Cardiff around the same time) is broadly still there. There are probably 2 issues which need sorting but we know we are looking to bring in 3 or 4 players anyway (maybe one will be Snodders so total cancellation of one issue) So basically I certainly don't want to bet against us! That's fair, I guess the biggest questions which we won't know the answer to until some way into the season are, firstly, will Kodjia be back to the player he was before injury (if so, Grabban problem sorted, if not, it's still a problem!) and is Green ready to replace Snodgrass in terms of goals and assists, he's got huge potential and is capable but doing it as a one off every now and then and doing it consistently is probably the difference between a 28/30yr old at their peak and a 18/20 year old prospect. Obviously CB is a huge priority as we can't go a season with only 2 (3 if you count Jedinak, which I think we will be this year - I also think he'll do fairly well contrary to popular opinion), as injuries are bound to happen. I'm still confident we can do well as long as the right players are brought in but the squad as it stands isn't good enough to get playoffs in my opinion (first team maybe, but our lack of depth is a concern) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vive_La_Villa Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 2 minutes ago, Zatman said: We need a finisher or we wont have a chance of Top 6 in my view. Hourihane will chip in same amount of goals but not sure if Adomah can do the same. Last year our strike force contributed 22 goals over the season which wasnt good enough and arguably cost us I agree we need a finisher but doesn’t last season prove not having one does not mean no top 6? Kodija needs to get back amongst the goals 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 2 minutes ago, Vive_La_Villa said: I agree we need a finisher but doesn’t last season prove not having one does not mean no top 6? Kodija needs to get back amongst the goals We have also lost 19 goals with Onomah, Snodgrass and Grabban leaving, as said I highly doubt Adomah will get 16 goals again That needs more that 1 striker to step up . Hogan I think is injured again as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted August 5, 2018 VT Supporter Share Posted August 5, 2018 The moment we bring in any loans the kids in that department need to be shipped out on loan. Zero point in them hanging around waiting for league cup fixtures. Option to bring em back in Jan when we see where they are. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 Anyone know why there is only two games on tues night?? Very weird Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 I think joe Allen is going to be the best midfielder by a country mile at this level. I am surprised no one has come in for him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roonst83 Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 2 hours ago, Vive_La_Villa said: I agree we need a finisher but doesn’t last season prove not having one does not mean no top 6? Kodija needs to get back amongst the goals We definitely need Kodjia back amongst the goals but my worry with that is that he’s more obsessed with adding to his own tally than helping the team. Whilst he can get goals out of nothing, his often selfish mindset can cost the team in situations and that could, I feel, damage team spirit and morale which was so imperative to our success last season. That said, if he bangs in 30 goals and takes us up I’ll shut my mouth and simply applaud him. But I’ve previously found him a source of frustration countless times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshVilla Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 Kodija has been shite since his injury. I'd expect him to get 15 - 20 goals in this division but i'll be surprised if he hits double figures based on how he's been recently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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