I'm not really arsed whether we finish top 4 or not. The CL does nothing for me and going through the huge re-building of the team, it might be more beneficial to go into the Europa League and bleed in some talented youngsters. United, Spurs and Liverpool have all benefitted from that and it allowed Chelsea to re-build their side a few years back. Also, the Europa is a winnable competition whereas the way we play we are still far away from winning the CL. In regards to the calibre of player the CL will help us attract, there's not a chance a year out the CL will impact things. Not when Pep is the gaffer and the wages on offer.
These sort of performances don't surprise me anymore. Too many players are simply not up to scratch and haven't been for a while. However, what is disappointing is the mentality of this side. We have the mentality of a lesser side playing the big boys away from home. How many times have people seen the likes of Burnley or Stoke go to Old Trafford, miss a sitter and then their head drops and they concede? That is exactly where we are at but only we do it when we are winning.
Spurs, Chelsea and Arsenal, to name a few, are games when we have had a lead, missed very good chances and allowed our heads to drop. That 7 points dropped in the big games this season from being in a winning position and whilst I have 100% faith in Pep, it does raise questions about his game management.
