What do you think we have a better chance of achieving?

[Shea]

I think people under estimate how difficult it is to win the Europa league because of the period before we were regulars in it when Sevilla were winning it and Celtic and Fulham both reached the final

Now the CL drop outs enter and teams in general from leagues like Spain are stronger than they once were (the non CL level teams I mean)

We've not come close to winning it and we frequently have been in or around the top four - I'm not trying to downplay how difficult it is to breach the top four but I'm surprised how so many people think the Europa league is easier

It's at least as difficult in my opinion - depending on which CL teams drop into it after the group stages

 

[crokey]

I think people under estimate how difficult it is to win the Europa league because of the period before we were regulars in it when Sevilla were winning it and Celtic and Fulham both reached the final

Now the CL drop outs enter and teams in general from leagues like Spain are stronger than they once were (the non CL level teams I mean)

We've not come close to winning it and we frequently have been in or around the top four - I'm not trying to downplay how difficult it is to breach the top four but I'm surprised how so many people think the Europa league is easier

It's at least as difficult in my opinion - depending on which CL teams drop into it after the group stages

And the fact that there is no second chances

 

[chinaman]

Clearly Manure is not yet clicking, and if we can keep on improving at this alarming rate, we should be able to create a big enough gap before they find their feet. If we can in the meantime bring in a couple more good players, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that we could challenge 4th place, while being a threat in the knock-out competitions if the draws are aligned with us.

 

[southgatespur40]

I'll tell you after our game against Liverpool next week.

 

[riggi]

Europa

 

[Blaugrana]

We're 18/1 to win the europa league, 3/1 to finish in the top 4. Anyone saying the europa league is literally wrong.

 

[Khilari]

If we cant compete with the 17th-24th best teams in CL then why should we ever be in it?

Yes, good point. I'd thought of that but still think that if we were to, like Liverpool have break into the ECL we'd be able to strengthen our squad with a better calibre of player (Van der Vaart, Balotelli etc)

But I find the concept of rewarding failure with another go at another trophy wrong.

 

[Khilari]

The Europa League is what it is. I'm not a fan but continually deriding it for its obvious failings is a little pointless and also bloody repetitive. We aim to go as far as we can in both league and cups. If our performances continue to improve it will be a great watch!

Fair point. Just makes winning it that much harder. Which is frustrating because without the CL drop down, we are a good bet to win it

 

[ItsBoris]

If we wanted to win the EL last season we would have had to beat Benfica, AZ, Juventus (who were focused on the league and not taking it seriously), and Sevilla.

To me that would have been easier than finishing in the top 4 last season. This season may be different, idk, but I just think there is too much quality among our rival teams in the league this season to have a very good chance of finishing top 4. Plus it's about time that we won a trophy.

 

[ecce_tottenham]

Evening out a bit now...

 

[Riandor]

I think we have more chance of finishing 4th than winning the Europa.
Winning any cup competition is tough, just because there is the luck element. One bad decision by player or ref can be fatal. As a result I think the league would be a safer bet.

That said, now that the Europa = CL position, I would prefer to win that now than qualify through the league.

Though I will add that I deem league position a truer reflection of where we are as a club.

 

[Lilbaz]

The top 4 of the prem should be good enough to get to the last 8 of the CL this season (depending on the draws). The winners of the Europa will not be good enough. Therefore winning the Europa could be seen as being easier. Either will be extremely difficult though. Would prefer EL. We need a trophy.

 

[robbiedee]

Some silverware and still qualifying for CL for me.

Plus if there is a chance that us winning the EL and potentially stopping 4th place from qualifying (if this is the case) then we could see Arsenal or Liverpool missing out which would be a beautiful thing!

 

[jezz]

Some decent football and players bedded in.
Yes top 4 or Europa would be nice.
But if doesn't happen but the top line is , I would be happy.

 

[Mouse!]

At this stage, we are one of the strongest teams in the Europa League.

The biggest teams don't necessarily play their strongest teams in the competition as they aim to keep players fit for their more prestigious League competitions.

The 8 CL dropouts (some of which will be stronger than us, some weaker) join the race at the last 32 stage. From this stage we must win 4 two-legged ties to get to the final. If we win our group, we will be seeded and avoid the CL teams in the round of 32.

That means we will play at most, 4 CL dropouts. Some of these CL dropouts may have finished 3rd or 4th in their own Leagues the previous year, some may have finished 1st. There is also the possibility that we avoid them altogether.

We must however, play at least 4 teams with better squads than us in the PL, twice. It is also much harder to cheat superior quality over a period of a 38 game season than it is over a few two-legged cup ties.

Of course it's all about the luck of the draw, but if we take the Europa League seriously, we have a great chance of winning it.

 

[jimbo]

Some silverware and still qualifying for CL for me.

Plus if there is a chance that us winning the EL and potentially stopping 4th place from qualifying (if this is the case) then we could see Arsenal or Liverpool missing out which would be a beautiful thing!

If we finish outside the top 4 and win the Europa League then 5 English teams would qualify for the following season's Champions League, or rather 3 would qualify directly and 2 would have to play in the qualification rounds. In this scenario I expect we would enter at about the same stage as Celtic did this year with the 4th placed league team entering the final qualifying round as usual.