Dalek2003

I'd vote for (a), but think it will be (e).

Good post. We are 2 years of building the team in a financially sustainable manner. I don't think that getting into the Premiership earlier than ready has changed our timeplan. Rather, the Premier money will be an unexpected bonus. No, relegation will be anything but a disaster because we have a long term plan. We are going for the WBA 'YOYO' model.

Not really worried or surprised. As I said way back in June, we are probably half planning to go down and did so back in May.

Consider this: The speculation about our transfer targets were just a fob. The management always intended to do their best this year with the current squad with just a few additions. The plan is to save as much as the Premiership money as possible and take a chance on staying up. Have you considered that relegation with a healthy bank balance is acceptable this year so that we can build again in the NPC

Re-writing history on this forum ? You do surprise me.

Yes, you could be right. However, if what you are saying is correct then we run a tighter ship than many other clubs, but you could be right, the next few days will be proof I guess.

Yes, said we have a new sponsor. 'Lastminute.com'

I love Generals last comment on his post. Do we have permission to panic if no signings are made ? Bedwetters and doom mongers at the ready !

We are talking about last season which was their first season back after promotion, in which thy had a comfortable mid table finish after a good start.

I have said before that we will probably finish in the bottom three (actually siad 19th). Having said that we are all assuming that Wigan are going to be fellow relegation strugglers. Perhaps they are a top 10 team.

According to Toadhall Ramirez has already agreed terms so we can relax.

Norwich bought very well and astutely without breaking the bank. They also bought early in the summer so the manager could knit the team together and create a great team spirit.

Not at all but I suspect that what I have been saying is the way he is thinking. The WBA model is probably an attractive idea to any chairman that wants to run a club in a long term and sustainable way. IMO if we stay up this season, then great, but it is not worth jeopardising the club finances for. We can build again the next year and grow stronger gradually. We all need to be patient and stick with NA.

Someone mentioned the fact that we are not prepared to be financially wreckless, which I think is correct. So we sell the club spirit and its plans for the future. Fine, but without a big backer splashing the cash we look provincial.

You make a fair point. However, why would it be a disaster if we went down with a stack load of money. It would be a lot worse if we wasted the money on over inflated wages and transfer fees and still went down. I think the policy is to be prudent and see if the spirit of the team will see us through. IMO it is worth a shot and it has been obvious to see that this is the plan.

Unbelievable. We have lost 2 games at the start of the Premier League. Two years ago we were in league 1. What is the worst that can happen ? We get relegated to the NPC with a bucket load of cash. What we should not do is blow our money on journey men and has beens. We can use our parachute money to rebuild next year taking our inspiration from WBA. We are obviously following their YOYO policy as I have said and not a bad idea as well.

What we don't need is the bed wetters to start their hysterical posts ! We only lost by 2 goals against a Premier side that is used to taking points off relegation rivals. They did a good job on one of the League's new boys. We may get relegated, we may not. We have had time to prepare for the new season we have made a few signings and I think the squad that we have now is more or less it. If we go down it is not the end of the world as we get the Premier parachute and can rebuild next year. FWIW, I see no point in breaking the bank or depleting our financial resources. Enjoy the Premier League, take each game one at a time and who cares about the table.

We may as well go all out attack

Saints chasing shadows. We are being out classed.

We are a bit pedestrian. Wigan very comfortable.

That is a very accurate summary, totally agree.

Would be interesting to see the attendance figures.

They are. We need to get our noses in front and then our confidence will help us to dominate the game. Does anyone think the atmosphere is a bit flat ?

Bit of a slow game. Saints look a bit tentative. Need to be patient then find a bit of pace.

Where is the evidence of our ambition in the transfer market ? We are agreed there are weaknesses but at the moment appear to show no urgency to deal with them. Lets discuss this again at the end of the transfer window and with a few results under our belt. BTW, stay cool and try not to resort to personal insults, it tends to undermine your credibility.