the FA cup or 4th place??

[tolmie's hairdoo]

There is nothing realistic about being the rags, that's the whole problem.

We're betting on black and if it comes up red, the option of taking fourth, becomes a major ask with the arse falling out of our season, due to emotional nature of such a Wembley loss.

I still believe that is what happened to us last season.

The determinining of our final league position will perhaps have more credence after both Sunderland and Liverpool?

We were more than competitive at OT, it's hardly 'unrealistic' to say that we can beat them at Wembley. Of course we can.

I can see how elimination at that stage might have an effect on the rest of season, but I reckon you're overstating the case a bit. There might be a bit of a hangover, but the players aren't retarded - they'll know there's still plenty to play for.

It might be tempting to imagine a bleak and desolate training ground, where heartbroken players weep as they round cones for months on end, but the reality is that they'll get over it fairly quickly.

But they didn't last year, and that wasn't even a day out at Wembley.

There will be little window of recovery, both physically, and more importantly, mentally, between a semi defeat and the end of the season.

Mancini is the first to stress 'mentality', so it would be fair to suggest a hangover is entirely fair.

 

[Big Dave Watson]

An FA Cup semi-final defeat didn't send Spurs into a downturn last season.

 

[solley attwell]

F.A cup for me

Firstly if we lose to rags at Wembley those cunts still have their banner , we still have the monkey and the press would have a field day saying we always bottle it on the big day against them.

Secondly if we make champs league and we don't make it past group stages we will be labelled failures by the spuds loving media putting more pressure on us to succeed

 

[andros]

If we don't get 4th spot then the odds are that Spuds will. That would give them 2 seasons of CL football on the spin, significantly raising their European profile and of course improving their finances. We might find it harder to compete with them after that. It has to be 4th then with a semi final win.

 

[ST Coleridge]

But they didn't last year, and that wasn't even a day out at Wembley.

There will be little window of recovery, both physically, and more importantly, mentally, between a semi defeat and the end of the season.

Mancini is the first to stress 'mentality', so it would be fair to suggest a hangover is entirely fair.

I'm sorry, that's nonsense.

After the rags semi, we beat Portsmouth 2-0 in the next game. After we went out of the FA Cup last season, we immediately went to Chelsea and won 4-2.

I think there's a danger of overstating this (or any single) fixture. It's all very well being dramatic ('it's make or break, the season's hanging by a thread!'), but the reality is less worrying if more mundane.

 

[MATCITY]

4th is a must fa cup is a bonus

 

[exiledblue1]

If I really had to choose, then it has to be 4th spot.

Champions league footie would enable us too attract the really top class players we still need to challange on all fronts...and might mean Tevez stays!!

I know there is the real desire to get that banner down, personally I dont give two fooks about it...and even if we won the cup there would be a new banner saying...xx years and no league title!!...it really do's not bother me one iota!!

 

[Lancet Fluke]

If I had to choose it would be 4th for me. If you offered me 4th and runners up in the cup now, I'd be pretty happy. We'd have a CL qualifier to look forward to and beating united at Wembley to look back on.

 

[Brendan110_0]

4th is a place in a competition which gets more money - don't we have enough dosh?

FA Cup FINAL is up for grabs ffs!!!!!!

 

[VOOMER]

4th, why are people so obessed with a banner that might have to be auctioned on ebay to pay the gas bill?