Pretty fucking obvious that we're valued at an incredible fee due to the "infrastructure" etc and that this would put off major buyers.
Lolol ok - if you actually think we can come close to a CL or league with our current wage structure you are delulu.
Uh, Newcastle have gone from relegation candidates to a better team than us within a matter of a few years LMAO. Their spending has pushed them above us despite a huge gap existing to make up. Villa the same - relegation level team, spending has put them above us as a club. Everton and United are an example of clubs spending decent money terribly but high spending + high investment in wages on the right players elevates teams. Fulham? Their spending is decent at best and has made them a mid-table prem team.
Yeah, we were there before these teams got their new, ambitious owners and then they've kicked us back in to the dirt.
Liverpool spend more on wages, they invest more in elite managers, they are willing to spend huge on individuals who change the game, we are not similar. This club under ENIC is going nowhere. We just finished 17th. Prior to that 5th was celebrated as awesome, and will be again this season because 5th is our ceiling now, we are nowhere close to even the 4th best team in Chelsea who are now signing Xavi Simons just so Palmer can get some rest. The ENIC cultists are absolutely delusional about our place in the prem now.
I'm not delusional about our place in the Prem right now, in fact I was disgusted by it, and would consider last season an absolute disaster if we hadn't gotten back into the CL.
So we got in through the back door in the end. We're still in, and that means we are both back in the mix for good, hungry players looking to explode, and have another shot at a deep run amongst the world's best. That means something to me, as a fan, and it's where I want to be.
For the league, I'm glad we've changed coaches and for the first time since Poch I feel genuinely excited about what he might achieve with the resources assembled by the ownership. I could be wrong and he could be sacked by Xmas, but I fancy Frank is exactly the profile of manager we need to put us back in contention for Top 4, maybe even the title. You might scoff, but it wasn't so long ago that this was a reality for us.
The landscape has changed, a couple of rich badges have traded places in and out of the Top 4, but our mission this season is the same as always: punch above our weight and hope for preparation to meet opportunity. I'm feeling good about the new project.
At least for now.