by JC_81 » Tue Jan 03, 2006 6:04 pm
Good post mate, interesting to see the difference points-wise from last season, 41 v 30 at the half-season mark is quite a lot actually when you think about it. And 2 defeats this season compared with 7 last? No comparison really.
It will be interesting to see how the second half of the season pans out in terms of points in the league. Forget the other teams, we aren't going to realisically finish above Chelsea. Even if we took another 41 points from the second half of the season that would be a good return - 82 points would see us comfortably in the top 3 I think.
A lot depends on the signings we make in January, if we make the right ones it could really make the difference. If we don't bring in a couple, especially a CB, we're setting ourselves up for a fall. Our strength in depth isn't great at the moment, we have about 14-15 quality players and after that we're struggling - that's not enough, especially if we get another good run in Europe going.
I've said it before, but we're looking good for a top 3 finish, 2nd would be even better, 1st is beyond us for this season. As for the Champions League, who would bet against Benitez when it comes to Europe? I certainly wouldn't, but maybe 2 years in a row would be pushing it a bit, you never know.