The race for the title

[arunspurs]

If they are so shit and we are so amazing, how come we are only 3 points ahead of them? I understand fans being quietly confident, but all this talk of "should beat them" and "expect to win" is asking to be slapped down. We were "expected" to put Utd in their place recently and "should have turned them over comfortably" etc according to many on here, but we ended up putting in a limp performance and bar one glaring miss from Wanyama did sod all.

I know we are in far better form now and I'm confident that if we play well we can beat them, but there is way too much overconfidence in this thread.

As for Gabriel Jesus being their only X-Factor, you do realise they still have in most peoples opinions the best CF in the league (and one of the best in the world) who has also scored more goals against us than any other team? Yes, I know we are a different animal these days, but people are dismissing City far too easily.

You are missing the point by a mile. City team start of season is so different to what it is now.
Gundogan is out for the season, Fernandinho has had 3 Redcards missing 10 games. At one point they had a 10 point lead over us. It is now -3 , a 13 point swing in last 12 or 13 games , which is a net point swing for us....That's how bad they have been. We also have double their GD. So to say gap is only 3 points is missing the context entirely.

Yaya has come back into fold but it hasn't improved them. While it's not his fault, City currently don't have a CM to set the tempo, which is key to Pep.

And their goalie has worst saves to goals shot ratio in league. All these adds up.

I am not being cocky just saying if we stick to our game plan we should win this game

 

[Mark_147]

Yaya is still more than capable of pulling out a world class performance. If he decides to turn up he xould be unplayable, even for Dembele and Wanyama. A bit like Pogba a few weeks back who absolutely bossed those two.

Aguero, De Bruyne, Silva and Sterling are also incredibly dangerous as well and could easily score a hatful, our defensive record notwithstanding. Their defence is obviously shit and I back us to score, but they could easily score more than us with the talent in their forward players.

We could easily score more than them with their defensive record. It's not all about attack you need to have a well balanced team, and city don't.

 

[dagraham]

You are missing the point by a mile. City team start of season is so different to what it is now.
Gundogan is out of form, Fernandinho has had 3 Redcards missing 10 games. At one point they had a 10 point lead over us. It is now -3 , a 13 point swing in last 12 or 13 games , which is a net point swing for us....That's how bad they have been. We also have double their GD. So to say we are only 3 points is missing the context entirely.

Yaya has come back into fold but it hasn't improved them. While it's not his fault, City currently don't have a CM to set the tempo, which is key to Pep.

And their goalie has worst saves to goals shot ratio in league. All these adds up.

I am not being cocky just saying if we stick to our game plan we should win this game

All fair points. I just think that City are being dismissed a bit too easily.

 

[beats1]

Im aware this means nothing but according to the alternative league table, we are currently on track to reach 90 points as crazy as that sounds(of course that assumes you go unbeaten for the rest of the season)

Of course this is only if you rank teams on how well they did in the first half of the season(i.e. instead of Leicester being considered one of the top teams, they are a team fighting relegation)

This is how many points teams have dropped to reach their target of 90

As for the ranking of each team, this is how they ranked them

 

[Rout-Ledge]

I had a patient suffering from cancer in his late 20s only a couple of years older than me. He is a wrestling coach for a local high school. Before he was the coach there, this wrestling team had never won anything. Ever. Last year they won their regionals and finished second in the state for their division. Now they are a perennial power in wrestling. He has completely changed the mentality of their wrestling program. That quote was one of his wrestlers most memorable quotes they heard their coach say that season. That saying will stay in my head forever.

Every great team needs a little swagger, a little confidence. We have owned City the last three fixtures (8-2 in the scorelines) after they laid down absolute ass whoopings on us the fixtures before. It is time, as @Shadydan has said, that the fans' mentalities changed a little bit. We shouldn't be happy with a draw. We should be rightfully disappointed if we draw City. We are a great team, they are not (as evidenced by 4-0 to Everton), and they are the exact same team we have beaten 3 times in a row. Let's go at them.

I think there's a distinction to be made between being happy with a draw as a supporter, and aiming for a draw as a player.

There's no way Poch should be saying anything other than 'win this game', but this is a team with world class players at their home ground. If a good game ends 2-2 with both sides playing well, I'll be satisfied.

 

[nicdic]

Im aware this means nothing but according to the alternative league table, we are currently on track to reach 90 points as crazy as that sounds(of course that assumes you go unbeaten for the rest of the season)

Of course this is only if you rank teams on how well they did in the first half of the season(i.e. instead of Leicester being considered one of the top teams, they are a team fighting relegation)

This is how many points teams have dropped to reach their target of 90

As for the ranking of each team, this is how they ranked them

I'm not sure I understand it but it has us winning the league?!

 

[beats1]

I'm not sure I understand it but it has us winning the league?!

Basically, the chart shows whether teams are on track to get 90 points, which is more often than not enough to win the league.

The table shows how many points you need to get from the other PL teams, like Chelsea for example, we have to get one point at the bridge and 3 at home.

So since in that table we are 0, that means we are on course to get 90 points providing we beat the relegation teams away, draw with the rest away matches and win all our home matches.

Also shows that Chelsea have had a lot of the easier away matches out of the way, like: Palace, Sunderland, Hull, Middlesborough and Swansea

 

[Basil Brush]

If we beat City, we may have a chance at winning the league.

Not sure if this is on topic....

 

[arunspurs]

We missed the chance to put United away. Hope we don't make the same mistake. Win on Saturday will most likely ensure City finish below us.

 

[deka-]

Win on Saturday will most likely ensure City finish below us.

With a 6 points advantage by mid-january? I think we all know better..

 

[UpTownSpur]

Basically, the chart shows whether teams are on track to get 90 points, which is more often than not enough to win the league.

The table shows how many points you need to get from the other PL teams, like Chelsea for example, we have to get one point at the bridge and 3 at home.

So since in that table we are 0, that means we are on course to get 90 points providing we beat the relegation teams away, draw with the rest away matches and win all our home matches.

Also shows that Chelsea have had a lot of the easier away matches out of the way, like: Palace, Sunderland, Hull, Middlesborough and Swansea

The Alternative Premier League table is a Rawk thing that a poster on there does. The theory is that 90 points should win the league and you can get that by winning all your home games, getting a point away at the top 13 of last season's table and beating the bottom 7 away. The version you posted is a slightly amended one that replaced the table with this season's table after 18 games instead of using last season's one, to factor in the differing form of teams like Leicester.

So it basically shows, factoring in who all the games that everyone has played, that we're the only ones on par to reach 90 points. Winning at City would put us on course for 92 points.

 

[arunspurs]

With a 6 points advantage by mid-january? I think we all know better..

I said "most likely"...City have been giving away 1 net point to likes of Chelsea & Spurs for last 13 games. So, if we beat City on Saturday, most likely outcome is we will finish ahead of them at end of season

 

[onlyonekeano]

However bad their defence is, any team with KDB, Silva and Aguero in it can blow anyone away on it's day. As much as we love our own in-form trio of Dele, Eriksen and Kane, I don't think anyone in the league can compete with that type of firepower.

 

[Shea]

I said "most likely"...City have been giving away 1 net point to likes of Chelsea & Spurs for last 13 games. So, if we beat City on Saturday, most likely outcome is we will finish ahead of them at end of season

It's far too early for mind the gap statements like that

Win on Saturday and they could still catch us in 2 games, a win gives us a nice advantage and some breathing space but they can't be dismissed as challengers to us in the league because we opened up a 6 point gap in January

 

[arunspurs]

It's far too early for mind the gap statements like that

Win on Saturday and they could still catch us in 2 games, a win gives us a nice advantage and some breathing space but they can't be dismissed as challengers to us in the league because we opened up a 6 point gap in January

Cool it fella. I did not say anywhere close to Mind the gap kind of statements. Most likely is simply most likely.
The term 'probability' means 'certainity' for you, I guess.

 

[Shea]

Cool it fella. I did not say anywhere close to Mind the gap kind of statements. Most likely is simply most likely.
The term 'probability' means 'certainity' for you, I guess.

This is football, not a mathematical formula so your statement about the points City have been averaging thus far is irrelevant
due to their firepower affording them the possibility of going on an extended winning run just like Chelsea have already this season (you could have applied the same logic you are using now to say we will most like finish above Man City to write off Chelsea's chances of wining the league after Arsenal battered them for example)

Your statement reads like a mind the gap one to me as you started it by saying we missed the chance to put Man Utd to bed (as it end them as a challenger, also ridiculous) which gave context to your Man City statement and you proceeded to suggest that beating City and opening a 6 point gap would mean we most likely finish above them

I'm not even saying you are suggesting it as a certainty - I am saying that with it being JANUARY still and the gap we can open being one that could be closed in 2 games it's crazy to even suggest it's most likely at this stage. It would give us a little breathing room, nothing more and to suggest anything else is mind the gap talk in my opinion

 

[arunspurs]

This is football, not a mathematical formula so your statement about the points City have been averaging thus far is irrelevant
due to their firepower affording them the possibility of going on an extended winning run just like Chelsea have already this season (you could have applied the same logic you are using now to say we will most like finish above Man City to write off Chelsea's chances of wining the league after Arsenal battered them for example)

Your statement reads like a mind the gap one to me as you started it by saying we missed the chance to put Man Utd to bed (as it end them as a challenger, also ridiculous) which gave context to your Man City statement and you proceeded to suggest that beating City and opening a 6 point gap would mean we most likely finish above them

I'm not even saying you are suggesting it as a certainty - I am saying that with it being JANUARY still and the gap we can open being one that could be closed in 2 games it's crazy to even suggest it's most likely at this stage. It would give us a little breathing room, nothing more and to suggest anything else is mind the gap talk in my opinion

All this rambling for my one liner which I have already clarified?

 

[Shea]

All this rambling for my one liner which I have already clarified?

What did you clarify? your clarification was still a stupid statement as it's only January

 

[Roynie]

All this rambling for my one liner which I have already clarified?

Some people have waaayyyyyyy too much time on their hands!

 

[arunspurs]

The Alternative Premier League table is a Rawk thing that a poster on there does. The theory is that 90 points should win the league and you can get that by winning all your home games, getting a point away at the top 13 of last season's table and beating the bottom 7 away. The version you posted is a slightly amended one that replaced the table with this season's table after 18 games instead of using last season's one, to factor in the differing form of teams like Leicester.

So it basically shows, factoring in who all the games that everyone has played, that we're the only ones on par to reach 90 points. Winning at City would put us on course for 92 points.

Its a hilarious RAWK thread...Every season, their Alternate PL table thread will start bright & sparkling. By Christmas, delusions reaches its peak. After Feb,reality starts to set in. By the end of season, no one even visits it except the thread owner.

Next season, the cylce starts again...