Realistic Expectations

[ez]

We need more than one player. £60m won’t be enough. Not sure they will trust the manager or sporting director either with a significant amount of money if Sanson is anything to go by. Early days, yes but the start hasn’t been great. Not sure what he brings to the team

This. There's a lot more to do in the summer than I originally thought. Jack's absence has highlighted that.

[ChicagoLion]

We are at least 4 players away from a good enough startingX1 to challenge the top 6.
Then you need cover at full back midfield and attack.

[dcdavecollett]

Leicester also sold Drinkwater and still did well, didn't they? (coughs)

[Drummond]

We need more than one player. £60m won’t be enough. Not sure they will trust the manager or sporting director either with a significant amount of money if Sanson is anything to go by. Early days, yes but the start hasn’t been great. Not sure what he brings to the team

How many games are you judging Sanson on?

[WarszaVillan]

I thought Sanson was playing well in the second half and getting some joy down the left. I was surprised he was taken off.

[ChicagoLion]

No better than Ramsey.

[SaddVillan]

Looking at our progress over the last few seasons.
We got promoted via the playoffs (scraoed through?) and had to buy virtually a whole new team, many of whom had never played in the Prem, and Smith was completely unproven at that level.

Unsurprisingly, we struggled at first, but Smith used the Covid break to work out where the essential fixes were needed. Form improved and we achieved our goal   - staying up.

Then we come to this season: there's 3 components to a team
Defence
Midfield
Attack

With the addition of Cash and Martinez, the emergence of Konsa and Targett showing why we bought him, we're  more secure at the back. Defeats became draws and draws turned into 3pts. 8/10

Midfield
Barkley - an expensive irrelevance
Sanson - bought for next season
McGinn - playing too deep?
Luiz/Marvelous - erratic
Jack is Jack - our talismam and only really creative player.
We haven't established who our best trio are, in terms of personnel orroles.
6/10

Attack
It's Ollie on his own, with occasional help from Bert. Trez and El Ghazi aren't up to it, Davis never will be and we're waiting for Wesley.
3/10.

So by my reckoning, one third of the team has been fixed.

Up to our Covid break we were doing ok. Scoring goals, tight defence and Barkley's loan looked like a smart move.

Since then, we appear to have lost form, shape and resilience. Injuries to Jack and Barkley look to have knocked us creatively.

With Jack coming back from injury and the international break upon us, can Smith get his thinking cap on again and put a run together. We've 33 points to play for. 16 would take us to 57 - a sentimentality  magical number for fans of a certain age.

The backroom team has been rebuilt. Some of our kids are showing great promise. If we can recruit as well this summer to upgrade the midfield and attack and Ramsey develops and  Sanson improves through spending more time learning how we play,  then I think we've a lot to look forward too.

Rome wasn't built in a day.
UTV.

[Mister E]

Looking at our progress over the last few seasons.
...
Rome wasn't built in a day.
UTV.

Lots of good points here, and I'd add:
- the midfield's effectiveness is, as you point out, a function of how the team sets up and how the players are used within it.
-  you could have also given a score to the coaching and tactics: 8 out of 10 till the CV lay-off; 4/10 since, I guess.

[West Derby Villan]

Looking at our progress over the last few seasons.
We got promoted via the playoffs (scraoed through?) and had to buy virtually a whole new team, many of whom had never played in the Prem, and Smith was completely unproven at that level.

Unsurprisingly, we struggled at first, but Smith used the Covid break to work out where the essential fixes were needed. Form improved and we achieved our goal   - staying up.

Then we come to this season: there's 3 components to a team
Defence
Midfield
Attack

With the addition of Cash and Martinez, the emergence of Konsa and Targett showing why we bought him, we're  more secure at the back. Defeats became draws and draws turned into 3pts. 8/10

Midfield
Barkley - an expensive irrelevance
Sanson - bought for next season
McGinn - playing too deep?
Luiz/Marvelous - erratic
Jack is Jack - our talismam and only really creative player.
We haven't established who our best trio are, in terms of personnel orroles.
6/10

Attack
It's Ollie on his own, with occasional help from Bert. Trez and El Ghazi aren't up to it, Davis never will be and we're waiting for Wesley.
3/10.

So by my reckoning, one third of the team has been fixed.

Up to our Covid break we were doing ok. Scoring goals, tight defence and Barkley's loan looked like a smart move.

Since then, we appear to have lost form, shape and resilience. Injuries to Jack and Barkley look to have knocked us creatively.

With Jack coming back from injury and the international break upon us, can Smith get his thinking cap on again and put a run together. We've 33 points to play for. 16 would take us to 57 - a sentimentality  magical number for fans of a certain age.

The backroom team has been rebuilt. Some of our kids are showing great promise. If we can recruit as well this summer to upgrade the midfield and attack and Ramsey develops and  Sanson improves through spending more time learning how we play,  then I think we've a lot to look forward too.

Rome wasn't built in a day.
UTV.

Excellent synopsis SD

[AV82EC]

Looking at our progress over the last few seasons.
We got promoted via the playoffs (scraoed through?) and had to buy virtually a whole new team, many of whom had never played in the Prem, and Smith was completely unproven at that level.

Unsurprisingly, we struggled at first, but Smith used the Covid break to work out where the essential fixes were needed. Form improved and we achieved our goal   - staying up.

Then we come to this season: there's 3 components to a team
Defence
Midfield
Attack

With the addition of Cash and Martinez, the emergence of Konsa and Targett showing why we bought him, we're  more secure at the back. Defeats became draws and draws turned into 3pts. 8/10

Midfield
Barkley - an expensive irrelevance
Sanson - bought for next season
McGinn - playing too deep?
Luiz/Marvelous - erratic
Jack is Jack - our talismam and only really creative player.
We haven't established who our best trio are, in terms of personnel orroles.
6/10

Attack
It's Ollie on his own, with occasional help from Bert. Trez and El Ghazi aren't up to it, Davis never will be and we're waiting for Wesley.
3/10.

So by my reckoning, one third of the team has been fixed.

Up to our Covid break we were doing ok. Scoring goals, tight defence and Barkley's loan looked like a smart move.

Since then, we appear to have lost form, shape and resilience. Injuries to Jack and Barkley look to have knocked us creatively.

With Jack coming back from injury and the international break upon us, can Smith get his thinking cap on again and put a run together. We've 33 points to play for. 16 would take us to 57 - a sentimentality  magical number for fans of a certain age.

The backroom team has been rebuilt. Some of our kids are showing great promise. If we can recruit as well this summer to upgrade the midfield and attack and Ramsey develops and  Sanson improves through spending more time learning how we play,  then I think we've a lot to look forward too.

Rome wasn't built in a day.
UTV.

fully concur.

[Clampy]

Excellent Saddvillan, well summed up.

[Risso]

Mostly agree with that Saddvillan, but I still think we'll regret not making this season count next year. Sometimes you have to accept the gifts that fate offers, and I can't see the likes of Spurs and Liverpool having as mediocre seasons again. I can't help but wonder again what difference another decent striker would have made. It would have allowed us to play Ollie slightly wider in the place of the misfiring Traore, Trez or AEG, or at least give him a break from time to time.

[wittonwarrior]

I never ever expected us to have had such a good first 2/3rds of a season but the bar has been raised and its all fizzing out.  Like  it or not Grealish is more than just the main man he is the man.   Centre forward or no centre forward I don't think it would  have made much difference without Grealish  in the line up. 

The most important thing in the drop off has obviously been the disruption due to Covid.  Funny how last season Covid kept our premiership status.   Just want the season to finish now and we can start to regroup and  build. 

Final league position between 12-14 not too overjoyed but will take  it .

[john e]

Although we only came up just under two seasons ago we are not like other teams that have done that i.e. Norwich West Brom Fulham Sheffield United etc
They don’t spent 250 million

We are Chelsea we are Man City now
Just one of our owners is the second richest man in the whole of Africa he is richer than Abramovich
And his playing partner is also a billionaire

Our expectations Will have to change in line with this new World order
Some of you guys haven’t got to grips with this yet but little bits of improvement here and gains in the overall stats there will not be enough to keep the new owners happy
They won’t be interested in Rome wasn’t built in a day stuff

The money and investment means we have to be heading for A top six position ASAP anything else will be failure

That’s the way I see it anyway unless I am misreading the whole Shooting match

[Richard E]

I didn’t become a football supporter to have realistic expectations about my team.