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Post by homer32 on Mar 5, 2015 10:39:16 GMT
If we finish 8th & FA Cup winners & runners up have already qualified does that mean we are in? I really hope we don't have to play in it next season .
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Post by stokiedan17 on Mar 5, 2015 10:42:41 GMT
Why??? Realistically the Europa league is our champions league. We can't just settle for 8th place and safety. And neither will the players. There would be no ambition in the club and you would quickly see our players leaving
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Post by FullerMagic on Mar 5, 2015 10:46:45 GMT
7th apparently,so it looks out of reach. Although, as Hughesy says, you never know.... linkChelsea's Capital One Cup triumph has opened up another Europa League spot to a high Premier League placing. Should Arsenal, Liverpool or Manchester United win the FA Cup, then Europa League qualification could go down to as far as seventh spot
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Post by salopstick on Mar 5, 2015 10:48:50 GMT
It's a horrible competition in its current format
Meaningless group games CL also rans getting a second chance League games moved to Sunday's.
Yes we have to aspire to be in it but being in it brings its own problems.
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Post by tracksuittony on Mar 5, 2015 10:52:54 GMT
Could quite easily be closer to Southampton and Tottenham after this weekend than Swansea and West Ham. Sneaking 7th would be the best thing I've seen supporting Stoke, arguably bigger than the Cup Final, so I for one hope we do it!
Big games coming up.
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Post by homer32 on Mar 5, 2015 10:59:35 GMT
If Liverpool, Arsenal & Man Utd between them win & finish runners up in the FA Cup then it goes down to 8th?
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Post by onlyonesirstan on Mar 5, 2015 11:01:02 GMT
Could quite easily be closer to Southampton and Tottenham after this weekend than Swansea and West Ham. Sneaking 7th would be the best thing I've seen supporting Stoke, arguably bigger than the Cup Final, so I for one hope we do it! Big games coming up. Whats going on this weekend? we haven't got a game
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Post by cheekymatt71 on Mar 5, 2015 11:01:37 GMT
I think the group stage is over-inflated and nobody likes the Champions League dropouts joining so it really makes it bad.
BUT we do have more strength in depth now than when we were last in it. With the likes of Adam/Odemwingie/Wilson/Cameron/Arnautovic waiting in the wings we could have a solid 2nd string to choose for some long distance away games and keep everyone fresh. Hughes is able to rotate a lot more than Pulis was comfortable doing.
Plus the fact under Hughes we can realistically beat anyone outside the top 20 teams in Europe (who will be in the Champions League), then given a bit of luck on the way we can go with serious ambitions of reaching semi-final or final.
If it fucks up our league position next year by a couple of places from 8th to 10th who really gives a dam? We arent going to break the Top 6 any time soon
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Post by foster on Mar 5, 2015 11:06:03 GMT
Worst case scenario we play a B team in the Europa League and prioritise the Prem. I can't believe people are saying they wouldn't want us playing in Europe. It's gives the club good exposure and helps to attract new players. The winners also get a Champions League place
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 11:06:49 GMT
NO IT DOES NOT. It goes to 7th. This has been covered a dozen times recently. The only way it would have gone to 8th is if either dippers or spuds had won this years comp. Berth 1...Team in 5th. Berth 2..Fa Cup Winners. Berth 3 League cup winners. However if FA Cup winners have qualified then runners up take berth 3, and lge cup winners are elevated to 2nd berth. But because Lge cup winners are Chelsea, berth 3 goes to team in 6th, or 7th depending on cup winners/runners up already qualified. So effectively as others have posted, our only chance is for an FA Cup Final between Liverpool and Either Manure and Arse. In the event of FA Cup & Lge cup both been won by teams outside of the top 5, then Berth 2 goes to the higher placed club, thus avoiding pre quallies.
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Post by FullerMagic on Mar 5, 2015 11:07:42 GMT
If Liverpool, Arsenal & Man Utd between them win & finish runners up in the FA Cup then it goes down to 8th? They've changed the rules on that apparently and this isthe first year when losing FA finalists can't go into the Europa
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Post by marwood on Mar 5, 2015 11:08:19 GMT
Definitely should aim for it, 7th place team gets lots more money than 8th team, Mr Coates will be pushing for every place.
Second to last game of the season vs Swansea away could be huge, the difference between Europa or not
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 11:27:49 GMT
I'd rather not go Europa next year. Would rather it the year after.
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Post by davejohnno1 on Mar 5, 2015 11:47:57 GMT
If we can get 7th, I'd take Europa League in a heartbeat. I want us to play at the highest level possible and finishing 7th would be like winning the league for us and the Europa League is the only European competition we can realistically expect to compete in.
The Europa League does take it's toll on your league form but in all honesty, I would take a poor season in the league (relatively speaking) for a good run and shot at the Europa League.
I loved the trips a few years ago and would love to take my little lad on some in the future. If that is next season, all the better.
It is most likely a touch out of reach for us but it is possible and I know we won't be scared of having a damn good go at reaching for those heights.
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Post by boskampsflaps on Mar 5, 2015 11:49:14 GMT
Would love to be in it, you never know with a bit of luck but as it stands it looks out of reach.
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 11:50:45 GMT
Would love to be in it, you never know with a bit of luck but as it stands it looks out of reach. It's a death sentence. Keep away till the year after next.
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Post by Maccca100 on Mar 5, 2015 11:50:45 GMT
I'd rather not go Europa next year. Would rather it the year after. You got prior engagements you cant cancel? Be sure to tell the club what dates suit you.
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Post by foster on Mar 5, 2015 11:54:10 GMT
Would love to be in it, you never know with a bit of luck but as it stands it looks out of reach. I agree, but what I don't get is why people don't want us in it? It may impact our season but isn't European qualification what we're aiming for? We're not going to get in the Champions League anytime soon and if we want to progress as a club then the next step from top half is to qualify for this competition. Otherwise are we simply aiming for 8-10 every season, but no higher.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 11:54:55 GMT
All irrelevant if Dippers lose at the weekend, or in the semi, as then the runners up, or indeed the winners, should winners of arse and man u lose the semi, will get the berth. And it will be... Berth 1...Team in 5th. Bert 2...Team in 6th, Berth 3..FA Cup winners/losers. And the reason why berth 3 will be FA Cup spot is because a Berth 2 team can not be higher in the league than a berth 3 team..They are the rules.
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 12:00:05 GMT
I'd rather not go Europa next year. Would rather it the year after. You got prior engagements you cant cancel? Be sure to tell the club what dates suit you. What a fucking weapon you are. I've already said why. It's a death sentence. We haven't got the squad depth to handle another competition right now. Imagine if we were in Europa this season, we would be probably in Everton's position. We're putting kids on the bench because we just haven't got the squad depth to handle an injury crisis. Throw in an extra competition and more games and we'll probably have to sign me up to play centre half!! Use your head mate. The year after next, Hughes will have almost certainly cleared out the deadwood and players he doesn't rate, and will have signed players he sees as Stoke going forward. At which point, we may have the squad depth to handle another competition. I loved the Europa last time mate, but our league form showed why you must be careful taking another competition.
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Post by estrangedsonoffaye on Mar 5, 2015 12:01:30 GMT
If you win it, you get in the Champions League.
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 12:03:02 GMT
If you win it, you get in the Champions League. Now that would be mega
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Post by foster on Mar 5, 2015 12:03:18 GMT
You got prior engagements you cant cancel? Be sure to tell the club what dates suit you. What a fucking weapon you are.
I've already said why. It's a death sentence. We haven't got the squad depth to handle another competition right now. Imagine if we were in Europa this season, we would be probably in Everton's position. We're putting kids on the bench because we just haven't got the squad depth to handle an injury crisis. Throw in an extra competition and more games and we'll probably have to sign me up to play centre half!! Use your head mate.The year after next, Hughes will have almost certainly cleared out the deadwood and players he doesn't rate, and will have signed players he sees as Stoke going forward. At which point, we may have the squad depth to handle another competition. I loved the Europa last time mate, but our league form showed why you must be careful taking another competition. Is this one of those love/hate relationships?
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Post by foster on Mar 5, 2015 12:06:33 GMT
You got prior engagements you cant cancel? Be sure to tell the club what dates suit you. What a fucking weapon you are. I've already said why. It's a death sentence. We haven't got the squad depth to handle another competition right now. Imagine if we were in Europa this season, we would be probably in Everton's position. We're putting kids on the bench because we just haven't got the squad depth to handle an injury crisis. Throw in an extra competition and more games and we'll probably have to sign me up to play centre half!! Use your head mate. The year after next, Hughes will have almost certainly cleared out the deadwood and players he doesn't rate, and will have signed players he sees as Stoke going forward. At which point, we may have the squad depth to handle another competition. I loved the Europa last time mate, but our league form showed why you must be careful taking another competition. To be fair, this season has been exceptional in terms of injuries and we're going to get rid of some deadwood this summer. I also expect Hughes to be given cash to spend so if in all unlikeliness we do manage to finish 7th, I expect that we would add the right number of players to ensure a good depth in the squad. Indeed, with the players we have out now it shows that we have decent depth.
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 12:08:23 GMT
What a fucking weapon you are. I've already said why. It's a death sentence. We haven't got the squad depth to handle another competition right now. Imagine if we were in Europa this season, we would be probably in Everton's position. We're putting kids on the bench because we just haven't got the squad depth to handle an injury crisis. Throw in an extra competition and more games and we'll probably have to sign me up to play centre half!! Use your head mate. The year after next, Hughes will have almost certainly cleared out the deadwood and players he doesn't rate, and will have signed players he sees as Stoke going forward. At which point, we may have the squad depth to handle another competition. I loved the Europa last time mate, but our league form showed why you must be careful taking another competition. To be fair, this season has been exceptional in terms of injuries and we're going to get rid of some deadwood this summer. I also expect Hughes to be given cash to spend so if in all unlikeliness we do manage to finish 7th, I expect that we would add the right number of players to ensure a good depth in the squad. Indeed, with the players we have out now it shows that we have decent depth. No it doesn't. It shows that certain players can step up when we need them to but realistically, our squad depth was exposed against Citeh, Arsenal, etc.
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Post by Jug Bank Stokie on Mar 5, 2015 12:13:57 GMT
After the away games in Europe, the majority of league games were away.
We were wank under Pulis away from home anyway so you could argue that it didn't really make much difference at all.
We'd just need to strengthen the team in the summer so we have enough depth to compete on 2 fronts. Give me Europa League and 16th place over 10th any day.
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Post by foster on Mar 5, 2015 12:14:14 GMT
To be fair, this season has been exceptional in terms of injuries and we're going to get rid of some deadwood this summer. I also expect Hughes to be given cash to spend so if in all unlikeliness we do manage to finish 7th, I expect that we would add the right number of players to ensure a good depth in the squad. Indeed, with the players we have out now it shows that we have decent depth. No it doesn't. It shows that certain players can step up when we need them to but realistically, our squad depth was exposed against Citeh, Arsenal, etc. If you had to choose between 10th or 5th place now, which would you choose?
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 12:14:51 GMT
No it doesn't. It shows that certain players can step up when we need them to but realistically, our squad depth was exposed against Citeh, Arsenal, etc. If you had to choose between 10th or 5th place now, which would you choose? What a stupid question.
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Post by foster on Mar 5, 2015 12:15:35 GMT
If you had to choose between 10th or 5th place now, which would you choose? What a stupid question. So which is it?
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Post by metalhead on Mar 5, 2015 12:17:33 GMT
5th obviously. I'm not saying I don't want Stoke to finish as high as possible, of course I do. I'm just saying I wish we didn't have to do the Europa next season. The season after, for sure, Hughes will have improved our squad depth, got rid of shithouses like Maurice Edu and Wilson Palcios, and we'll have a team of 25 where Mark is willing to call on all of them. Right now, that isn't the case and I worry it would negatively impact our league form.
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