But the club can't and won't win the CL either top four is the club's maximum level of achievement
And the truth for this squad, with no additions to the team which I still think has held us back (in the round) is that top 4 is about right.
The only way the team surpasses that level or expectation is to have a Leicester type worldie season and 7 losses and counting is not that.
Yesterday was the most painful loss of the season for me. A real sickener because there was no excuse whatsoever to perform so poorly.
You can lose games but not like that.
And having thought about it I do put much of the blame on the manager.
Why play Foyth as opposed to Sanchez? Why rush Kane back although he played okay? Why indeed change anything after the Dortmund match? Why leave Rose on the pitch when he was playing sh!t? So many poor decisions.
Ultimately Pochettino makes the decisions and fine but yesterday still hurts.
The hope gets you and when evaporated leaves a frustrated carcass. That was me for 2/3 hours and even now and with perspective returned I am still hugely disappointed.
But top 4 and hopefully a quarter-final place in the CL is okay, not that I think either is nailed on after yesterday.
We parade the manager as great. He is fantastic but Guardiola or Klopp would have used the same squad better yesterday. That is a problem and why, if Solsjkaer leads United to victory over Liverpool later today that he will get a 30 month contract.
Pochettino still has that last bit to become a top manager in my opinion.