Will we win the Premier League

[Dave]

Premier League Winners

Aston Villa

Having failed to win any of their first five Premier League games of the season, Unai Emery’s side have now won eight of their last nine to saunter through the mass of mid-table mediocrity, into the Champions League places and now to the very fringes of the title race.

Sure, they’re being helped along by the fact that, with the exception of Arsenal, everyone is a bit rubbish in some way or another this year. But that situation has been there for other teams to exploit, and they simply haven’t.

Spurs, Liverpool, Man United, Newcastle and now even perhaps Chelsea have become consumed by that mid-table fug and seem utterly incapable of doing anything like Villa have done to ease themselves clear of it.

The goals have started to flow now for a team who started the season looking like they might never actually score another goal ever again, and even after the three they conceded in a wild win at Brighton on Wednesday night it is still only Arsenal and Crystal Palace who boast a better defensive record than the Villans.

Coming back from 2-0 down to win shows the belief Villa now possess, and sets up a huge game on Saturday lunchtime.

There’s never really a particularly a good time to play Arsenal, but we would strongly contend that this might just be the least bad. Villa’s own form is stunning, especially at Villa Park, while Arsenal’s injury problems mounted further in victory over Brentford, they’ve stumbled on the last couple of away days, and Mikel Arteta is already talking darkly about the sheer unfairness of the Gunners being the first team in football history to be asked to play two games of football per week.

If Villa can rumble on and win that one as well then suddenly, without telling anyone, they’ll have moved within three points of the Premier League leaders approaching the halfway stage of the season.

[cdbearsfan]

Found that article and it's in a section called "Premier League Winners and Losers", based on midweek results. They also list Leeds as one of the "winners" and, presumably, don't expect them to be challenging for the title.

[brontebilly]

Given how tight the table is, mid 60s might be enough to guarantee CL football. 10 more PL wins should do it. Can focus after March on winning trophies then.

[Dave]

Found that article and it's in a section called "Premier League Winners and Losers", based on midweek results. They also list Leeds as one of the "winners" and, presumably, don't expect them to be challenging for the title.

I know where it's from, I've linked to the piece in the post. It was really just for the last line, which I thought made here as sensible a thread as any other to put it.

Sorry that it's caused you distress

[cdbearsfan]

It didn't. What a strange post.

[Mellin]

I havem't put a football bet on in years, but have just gone to stick £100 on @ 150. Get to January 3 points behind Arsenal, sign some more marquee loans. It ain't hapoening, but it ain't 150.

Disappointed to find the best price is now 80 and the conversation was yesterday.

[Hillbilly]

If by some miracle we ‘win’ the league, I suspect there will be an even more miraculous points deduction to hand it to Arsenal, Man City or whoever.

Paranoid? Moi?

[Percy McCarthy]

Premier League Winners

Aston Villa



Sure, they’re being helped along by the fact that, with the exception of Arsenal, everyone is a bit rubbish

My theory is that having about 17 of the richest clubs in the world in the same league, playing a game where they all have to pick the same number of players from the same sized squad, all of them being able to employ the best coaches and invest massively in academies, scouting, nutrition and fitness, is making that league more competitive.

[Rigadon]

Indeed Percy. This ‘it’s a shit league this year’ is utter rubbish.  It’s as strong as it’s ever been. 

[Smirker]

We don't want too many Leicester Citys.

[Monty]

I agree, it's a very very good league this year, which means anyone can make anyone else look rubbish on their day. You can tell it's good by the continued underperformance of the two half-arsed Uber Clubs in Manchester and north London.

[RichardBatchelor]

Today’s result was one of a short series that could, if we beat Brighton, give us the right to “have our say” in who wins the league.

If we were to then beat Arsenal twice, and pick up some points against Chelsea and United, we could consider ourselves as among the challengers.

But the odds of that are very long. I’d be pretty happy with “having our say” this year.
[/quot


“Pick up some points against United.”

One reason it would be difficult for us to win the league even with Mbappe and Salah up front is because we only really have a 36 game season.

[paul_e]

My theory is that having about 17 of the richest clubs in the world in the same league, playing a game where they all have to pick the same number of players from the same sized squad, all of them being able to employ the best coaches and invest massively in academies, scouting, nutrition and fitness, is making that league more competitive.

I agree completely, the idea that the league is weaker somehow is just buying in to the idea that if Man Utd, Liverpool and Tottenham aren't in the top 6 then something is wrong with them rather it being that other teams have improved.

[Sexual Ealing]

I think this means he thinks we're in the title race.

@J_Tanswell
Emery: "I've been asked about the title race. You know how I think. Keep humble. Words of a title race are empty until April or May - we are starting December. These are headline I dislike.Many people who put us there now were thinking in August we were a finished team."#AVFC

[wince]

 No we won’t as we will certainly have a sticky patch. Aim is CL football.