Is This The Least Enjoyable Season Ever?

The bottom three won't change, all we have to play for is 19th or 18th.

 

Here’s how I see it. No team has stayed up with fewer than 34 points, so if we take that as a starting point we need at least 19 points from the 16 remaining matches. Then we have to be realistic and assume we’ll get nothing from Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Man Utd and Chelsea (4 of which are away). So that’s now 19 points from 11 matches. Not impossible but just over 1.7ppg against an average of 0.68ppg to date. To put that in context, over a whole season 1.7ppg is 65 points, which is borderline CL places. So we’ve got to put in the form of a top side to even have a shout. And that’s assuming the survival mark is historically low. It’s very possible it could be higher.

In short - we’ve left it too late, have too much ground to make up and while unexplainable things sometimes happen in football that defy the stattos, nothing about how we’ve been playing, the players we have available or the new manager makes me think we’ll end up doing it.

 

Don't look now, but we have the oldest squad in the league, and a fair smattering of mercenaries. We've had to bin 2 of them off already at considerable cost. We also have a keeper more interested in his social media career and given we buy 90% of our players from one agent, I don't think there is much research into if players are good eggs or not.

 

Yea but if we BELIEVE

 

I agree with it being unlikely we get enough points, but your rhetoric here doesn't work - 1.7 ppg is "borderline CL places" and "the form of a top side" when calculated across all games, including those they play against the traditional top 6. If you took out those games then the ppg of a "borderline CL place" team would likely be higher than 1.7 and thus not as easily comparable to the amount of ppg we'll need from those 11 games which aren't vs the traditional top 6 clubs.

 

Negative Nelly.

 

It's ok we aren't in the positive thread.

 

What is clear is that we are all p!ssed off. That is absolutely normal when your team is struggling. We also have a spectrum of views on this forum about our prospects that run from despair to optimistic belief that we are finishing in lower mid table.

The reality is that our views and emotions jump around from result to result and from manager to manager. I do not think we will stay up, but it is not impossible. I have been so angry with our players and owners at times this season, that I have seriously questioned what I am doing, as a middle aged man, putting myself in a position to be so gutted over the results of football matches or the performance of players that I am not related to nor have I met. There is no logic to such behaviour.

I have not been able to travel to the Vic for two years because of Covid. My last two attempts were scuppered by late cancellations. I intend to travel over before the end of the season, at least once. I enjoy trips to the Vic with my kids (now adults) regardless of what division we are in. If truth be known, the visits when we were in the championship felt more enjoyable and we had a better chance of a positive result and a good atmosphere.

Competing with the rich clubs in the Prem League is not much fun, but it is where we want to be. Or is it?

 

All fair points and it's very unlikely. I wouldn't put Arsenal at home or maybe even United away in the completely unwinnable category though.

 

The other difference between 19/20 and this season is that in 19/20 we started rooted at the bottom, ended up about 9 points adrift but then gradually worked our way upwards.

This season we started the season the highest we’ve been and have gradually been sucked lower until we inevitably hit bottom in the next couple of games. That’s far more depressing really.

 

HB1 has a childish craving for attention. Every few seasons he adopts an extreme position and then embarks on a crusade to get the attention he requires. I can see some people being wound up. I used to but it’s much easier if you just ignore him. He’s irrelevant and harmless.

 

A bit disingenuous statistically speaking; it's still 19 from 16 at present, so approx 1.2 ppg. I agree that's still probably beyond us anyway.

 

HB1 has been busy antagonising people all day as he craves attention. I am trying to save people time by telling them to ignore his antics. My first post on a thread that has been absurd back and forth all day.

But as usual you wade in with you own agenda. I’m afraid you consistently show yourself to be a poor moderator in my opinion.

 

I get Man City, Liverpool etc., but we’ve got a decent enough record against United, and their spine is so poor that so many rubbish sides with low blocks are scraping wins against them. So not impossible.

Also, had a look at the points comparison between 04/05 (34 points survival year).

After 22 games in 04/05, the bottom 5 sides had 13, 15, 16, 18, 22.

This year (22 unless specified): 14 (20 games), 15, 17 (23 games), 18, 19 (21 games).

Not too dissimilar, but also doesn’t suggest we will need substantially less than 34 points.

 

And if people read between the lines of what Hodgson has said in almost all his media obligations since joining us, I think this is his opinion as well. He’ll give it a go of course but that’s about it.

 

I’m sure @Jumbolina post was just ‘tongue-in-cheek’ banter.

Although it is interesting that it was his post you chose to respond to - and not one of the many suggesting that certain individuals must have miserable lives just because of their opinion on a football club. Or is that just ‘banter’ too?

 

I think a season is bad if we expected better at the start of it. We all knew this season was going to be a relegation battle (which are never enjoyable) and here we are as predicted, so no, this isn't the least enjoyable season ever. There were a few in the 90s that could claim the crown and several more pre-GT.

 

If calling a person deliberately antagonising others “childish” and “harmless” are now deemed insults then I’ll be sure to knock on your door at some of the things I get called. Personally I don’t really care what people throw at me, but the one sided moderation of this forum is a complete joke.

 

there is some top trolling going on in this thread
it never ceases to amaze me how easily some people are wound up

getting agitated by a bunch of millionaires who could not give a **** about you the club or anything other than their paychecks is particularly bird brained

take a breath people

 

There is no proof HB1 is a millionaire.

 

The good news is we will be back in an entertaining and competitive league next season. The Premier League us a dreadful place to be for most clubs, Watford included. It inevitably brings misery and financial disaster in the end.

Call me old fashioned but I like my football to be entertaining which right now it just isn't.

 

If we were to get some billionaire owner then we would step even further away from the 'family feel' than we have already.

 

For the record: the longest losing run in 71/72 was 9 games (plus one in the FA Cup) and the longest run without a win was 19 games (20 including that Cup loss). We ended up being relegated by 15 points. (2 points for a win in those days).

 

I used to take joy in football outside of my club and that’s becoming harder to do now, I guess you guys are similar so that certainly doesn’t help when your own club isn’t having a good time.

When Leicester were at their worst 15 years ago I’d still look forward to watching MOTD or the CL and taking enjoyment from that would take some of the pressure off justifying being a fan of a **** club that loses most weeks. Does that make sense?

Now I watch Leicester in a bubble and if we do badly, like we have this season, then there’s very little joy to be had in watching football full stop.

Man City, Newcastle, The lack of ESL fallout, Qatar, media obsession with only a few clubs, severely unlikeable players, the greed, the rapists, the cat kickers….

It’s hard to be positive about anything to do with football if the club you’re emotionally attached too isn’t making you happy.

 

Same, I always used to watch MOTD as a matter of course, now I only watch it we’ve won on a Saturday, which is basically never. I have absolutely no interest in the CL, I do often watch other PL games, but I never actually watch them as such, they’re on in the background and I’m on my phone or milling around.

Last night I had Norwich Palace on, which was probably the worst game of the night but it was the game that was most relevant to Watford, so it held more interest/enjoyment than the other games involving teams I don’t care about or have no interest in. I really am only interest in Watford games and take no real enjoyment from any other football anymore, but like you say if your team is doing badly then that makes it altogether less enjoyable.

 

Absolutely. Used to wait with baited breath to see highlights of Littlewoods Cup second round first leg on midweek sport special. Used to watch news in case they showed the odd goal in sports section when match of the day didn’t run. Mark Venus. Ali Mauchlen. Rubbish pitches. Magical times!

 

I could have written this exact post.