Hang on though

That they got 42 pts was down to Trevor Brooking: he almost kept them up, but they were dead in the water under Roeder. Where I think GR was unfortunate was that Redknapp had basically pissed away West Ham's money on ridiculous wages: that's why they went for such a cheap option when 'Arry got the 'ump and walked out, and from that point, they were always likely to struggle. Ditto at Newcastle: there, fans and players viewed him as no more than a stop gap, and the squad he had to work with was ridiculously thin.

Thinking about it, Roeder's run of 7th place finishes always represented an average team overachieving, rather than anything more fundamental and long-term. That's why I'd be a bit worried if we come 7th too: there are still huge holes in the squad, we have no money, and it wouldn't take a lot for the 1-0 wins we've been grinding out to become narrow defeats. That's testimony to the wonders he's worked so far, really - but I'm not convinced the club as a whole is out of the woods, especially given the financial shortfall ND warned us about early in the season.

Posted By: thebigfeller, Feb 25, 13:41:34