Why We'll Stay Up

[Rodley]

I feel confident we will stay up with who we have running the club and how we go about things. Will it be easy? Of course not, but I have the utmost faith in Wilder and Co. Everyone else who doesn't think we will are just jealous of how we do the right things or already nervous and/or unsure about their own current prospects.
I say to hell with them and let us see what happens.

UTFB

It’s a challenge and the current ownership dispute needs to be resolved in this upcoming final day in the courtroom in the next few weeks. We’ll need some additions pal, the key is doing that without losing the special team spirit and character which Wilder cultivates. Our recruitment team is used to pulling a few proverbial rabbits out of hats.

 

[super_pig]

it’s all a bit clough esque for some of us of a certain generation

 

[Pixelated_Sushi]

Every time I hear or read a sneering elitist fan from another club say 'you'll go straight back down', I'm reassured this will be a large factor in why we'll stay up.

For all the praise we've received from the more perceptive football followers, I believe the majority still just don't get 'it'. They have no idea what's going on at our club because it bears no resemblance to the sterile and personality-free football culture that dominates the modern English upper tier. Ours isn't just a football team, it's a football movement!

I note the Norwich fan on the end of season awards thread critical of the boozy behaviour by our players yesterday. He watches the John Egan clip in horrified indignation, concerned by the non-inclusiveness of it all (WTF). I watch it and see something that simply cannot be bought or easily replicated. Again, it's the antidote to that same personality-free and sterile football culture. It's authentic, genuine and human - I think they call it team spirit?

I think we'll be the favourites to go down, no matter who comes up in the playoffs. Our team is full of players with unsexy surnames like Stevens and Sharp, not enough Vrancics and Stiepermanns for those in the know. I'll be delighted if we are the favourites, it will feed the preconceptions of the 'straight back down' mob further still.

Bournemouth faced the same preconceptions when they were promoted, and that's the team I think we should look closest to for inspiration. Much of their squad were with them through the lower leagues and have more than held their own at the highest level - so why can't ours? When you consider they signed Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser, Steve Cook and Josh King for a combined total of under £4m as well, its proof we don't need to shell out £20m for a Premier League quality player.

So I say - bring on the 'you'll go straight back down' claims. Those fans are making a rod for their own manager's backs. When we're inexplicably 2-0 up on their own patch, they'll be screaming for sackings and new signings because how else could this set of no-hopers be winning if not for their own manager and players being shite?

We all know our manager and team are special, but they really don't understand that yet. It's why we'll stay up.

What a fucking post. Spot on mate

 

[PokerBlade]

I'm under no illusions about our chances against the top Premier League teams. We can expect to take more than a few losses from the top six.

Thing is, Brighton are in with a realistic chance of staying up with 9 wins and 8 draws even if they don't take any points from their last two games. And I'm not saying that if Brighton come to the Lane next year it'll be an easy game, far from it. All I'm saying is with a few decent players is it realistic to put enough points together against the likes of Brighton, Burnley, Palace, or Watford to stay up? Because I guarantee everyone around them were saying how they had no chance either when they got out of the Championship.

I don't know if we'll stay up or not. The odds will be against us yet again. Still, we've earned a shot at it and the one thing our chances aren't is nil. Staying in the Prem wouldn't be a greater miracle than getting there was.

 

[BladeFisher]

It's early days of course, but I think we will too. We won't be bottling it, like we did under Warnock, put it that way.

The key thing to staying up is - taking your chances in front of goal. I am not sure we have enough quality at the moment and Billy can't go on forever but I'm hopeful CW/AK will sort it out.

 

[metalblade]

I can't wait to see what the Premier League make of our style of play, I have certainly not seen anything like it and I don't think they will have. Yeah we will see more defeats but we will shock a few teams too. It will be very interested to see what Wilder and Knill can do with a fair bit of cash to spend and better technical players to work with. That being said I think a few of the better players are already in our ranks they (the players) just don't know it yet.

 

[BelperBlade]

it’s all a bit clough esque for some of us of a certain generation

This is something I've been wondering. If we do take no prisoners and treat the premier League like we did our first season in the championship is there a chance that never mind avoiding relegation we could be looking at a pretty decent finish?

 

[JohnDenver]

A few teams have shown it’s possible to stay up, largely on the back of adrenaline and fight. If you achieve that, it deserves great credit, but finding a way to kick on from there is just as hard.

Bournemouth may have Russian money, but their achievement in progressing has been remarkable. Same with Burnley, albeit in a very different style.

This time I think our manager gives us a better shot than Warnock did. He understands the need for talent, yet doesn’t lose anything in spirit and work rate. The tricky part is finding genuine Premier League talent on our budget. Interesting times.

 

[KiwiBlabe]

Every time I hear or read a sneering elitist fan from another club say 'you'll go straight back down', I'm reassured this will be a large factor in why we'll stay up.

For all the praise we've received from the more perceptive football followers, I believe the majority still just don't get 'it'. They have no idea what's going on at our club because it bears no resemblance to the sterile and personality-free football culture that dominates the modern English upper tier. Ours isn't just a football team, it's a football movement!

I note the Norwich fan on the end of season awards thread critical of the boozy behaviour by our players yesterday. He watches the John Egan clip in horrified indignation, concerned by the non-inclusiveness of it all (WTF). I watch it and see something that simply cannot be bought or easily replicated. Again, it's the antidote to that same personality-free and sterile football culture. It's authentic, genuine and human - I think they call it team spirit?

I think we'll be the favourites to go down, no matter who comes up in the playoffs. Our team is full of players with unsexy surnames like Stevens and Sharp, not enough Vrancics and Stiepermanns for those in the know. I'll be delighted if we are the favourites, it will feed the preconceptions of the 'straight back down' mob further still.

Bournemouth faced the same preconceptions when they were promoted, and that's the team I think we should look closest to for inspiration. Much of their squad were with them through the lower leagues and have more than held their own at the highest level - so why can't ours? When you consider they signed Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser, Steve Cook and Josh King for a combined total of under £4m as well, its proof we don't need to shell out £20m for a Premier League quality player.

So I say - bring on the 'you'll go straight back down' claims. Those fans are making a rod for their own manager's backs. When we're inexplicably 2-0 up on their own patch, they'll be screaming for sackings and new signings because how else could this set of no-hopers be winning if not for their own manager and players being shite?

We all know our manager and team are special, but they really don't understand that yet. It's why we'll stay up.

By far the best post I have read on here, beautiful mate.

 

[Kozzy_is_my_Dad]

Thank thread was well and truly needed and very eloquently put, well said OP.

 

[Constantly Optimistic...]

I just don’t want us to get too euphoric about finally reaching the PL. I always remember DB saying PL players are a different breed. It is going to be tough, Believe it, but even with my forum name I am nervous. We are tearing up the book with Wilder’s style of play and squad togetherness. I did not expect to be where we are at the start of this season. But this company of staff and players continue to outperform all conventional views, including mine. I know Rugby analogies are frowned upon on in this forum, but to me what is happening is very similar to Clive Woodward’s England revolution. It was about team spirit and togetherness than tactics and star players. Wilder is the frontman for all the psychology that goes on behind the scenes. But there is no doubt that it is him and Knill that set the process and lead it. We are still going places. Where we will end up God only knows. I am nervously excited and will enjoy the full ride. We are total new territory, Bring it on and let’s enjoy these good times to the full. The team certainly are and why not!!

 

[Berlin Blade]

People always seem to put the emphasis on the cost of a player rather than actually being fit for purpose. We don’t need to ‘spend shit loads of money’, we just need to bring in a few good players. There’s a difference. Middlesborough’s Wage bill is twice as big as Ajax’s for example. Wilder won’t be blinded by all the money flying around, he will focus on identifying quality. We paid 1.2 million for Norwood. These players exist.

I noticed Wilder made reference to our style of play and that when we came up, most teams in the championship didn’t really have an identity and are ‘scared of winning’. I think the premier league is much the same. There are 8 or 9 world class sides who are so good, the bottom half all set up to nullify the top 9’s threat and surrender the ‘control of the ball’. This will suit us down to the ground and we’ll take points off a lot of those sides I think.

There only has to be three worse sides than us for us to stay up. Think about how much boardroom turmoil there is at the bottom of the premier league. Bad recruitment, managers on a hiding to nothing.. I think we’ll do it.

On a final note, Wilder only turns up to win leagues.

 

[CrookesBlade]

Was thinking about this yesterday...we will be favourites to finish rock bottom next season regardless of who gets promoted and how many points they finish behind us. People are queuing up on social media and internet forums to tell us how we'll be straight down (usually followed by a cuntish cry/laugh emoji) as though we should be embarrassed for having the nerve to get promoted in the first place.

This kind of ignorance is laughable and we will enjoy proving plenty wrong.

We need to invest properly in the side though, I can't think of one signing other than Rob Hulse the last time we were there that improved the squad. Looking back signings like Sommiel, Li Tie and Leigertwood were a bad joke. Waited til we were relegated to start spending and gave it all to Bryan Robson. Don't have to spend it all like Fulham but now we have some munneh make sure Wilder isn't working with one hand tied behind his back.

 

[Grappler]

When he was interviewed at BDTBL on Sunday morning, CW said something about adding a few players and being sensible about it, I don't think we will see wholesale changes.

The team spirit and "togetherness" (for want of a better word) that this great group of lads have, can't be overstated.

 

[Caveblade]

Every time I hear or read a sneering elitist fan from another club say 'you'll go straight back down', I'm reassured this will be a large factor in why we'll stay up.

For all the praise we've received from the more perceptive football followers, I believe the majority still just don't get 'it'. They have no idea what's going on at our club because it bears no resemblance to the sterile and personality-free football culture that dominates the modern English upper tier. Ours isn't just a football team, it's a football movement!

I note the Norwich fan on the end of season awards thread critical of the boozy behaviour by our players yesterday. He watches the John Egan clip in horrified indignation, concerned by the non-inclusiveness of it all (WTF). I watch it and see something that simply cannot be bought or easily replicated. Again, it's the antidote to that same personality-free and sterile football culture. It's authentic, genuine and human - I think they call it team spirit?

I think we'll be the favourites to go down, no matter who comes up in the playoffs. Our team is full of players with unsexy surnames like Stevens and Sharp, not enough Vrancics and Stiepermanns for those in the know. I'll be delighted if we are the favourites, it will feed the preconceptions of the 'straight back down' mob further still.

Bournemouth faced the same preconceptions when they were promoted, and that's the team I think we should look closest to for inspiration. Much of their squad were with them through the lower leagues and have more than held their own at the highest level - so why can't ours? When you consider they signed Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser, Steve Cook and Josh King for a combined total of under £4m as well, its proof we don't need to shell out £20m for a Premier League quality player.

So I say - bring on the 'you'll go straight back down' claims. Those fans are making a rod for their own manager's backs. When we're inexplicably 2-0 up on their own patch, they'll be screaming for sackings and new signings because how else could this set of no-hopers be winning if not for their own manager and players being shite?

We all know our manager and team are special, but they really don't understand that yet. It's why we'll stay up.

Fantastic post, I am already fed up of the plastic premier League fans who patronise me with comments like little club and one season.

We have a Liverpool fan at work born and lives near Milton Keynes and a Spurs fan born in Brighton lives in Hampshire. Worst of the lot a fucking yank who supports "Citeh"

They all call us Sheffield and what they all have in common is they don't go to games, they really know fuck all about football and they are all Plastic Glory Hunters.

They all refute the last comment and have some really spurious reason for thier allegiance!

They mock me when I tell them that we will stay up because we have the best manager in England and shock horror, some excellent players.

Can't wait for next season for my colleagues to get an education and to start to see Tuftyball in action.

Up the Blades

 

[CopenhagenBlade]

I think that we should use Newcastle United as a good measurement of what we can achieve....Championship players with a World class manager. Add in our ‘unique ‘ style and we will be good for lower mid table

 

[N20 Blade]

I think that we should use Newcastle United as a good measurement of what we can achieve....Championship players with a World class manager. Add in our ‘unique ‘ style and we will be good for lower mid table

Much as CW walks on water, comparing him to Benitez, is a bit of a stretch...

 

[BarcaBlade]

On a final note, Wilder only turns up to win leagues.

Get a grip of yourself. We're unlikely to even break into the top 4 until the 20/21 season.

 

[Large Mendonca]

We just need to take all the bollocks that know-nowt hacks are spouting about our survival chances, and pin the quotes on the dressing room wall. Job done.

 

[Sheffsteel]

The weird conundrum for me is that Wilder generally has lower league players that are logically less technical
BUT if those non technical players consistently produce high quality technical football
Then at what point do you have to concede that we do have high quality technical players.

Wilder has turned us from one of the worse sides I’ve seen in the 42 years I’ve been going to the Lane
to the most consistently entertaining team and he’s achieved this in 3 years.

That amazing transition within the club makes him the best manager I’ve seen at our club, it’s almost like a miracle.

 

[N20 Blade]

It wasn’t enough. He was out of his depth. He always has been. He doesn’t cope at the highest level, him.

View attachment 52849

At the very least, we won't die wondering, if we stick to our principles and the Wilder mantra 'be us' then I'm happy. In retrospect the PL season under Warnock was anti-climatic and boring, I enjoyed the Bassett seasons so much more.

 

[CopenhagenBlade]

Much as CW walks on water, comparing him to Benitez, is a bit of a stretch...

Ha ha maybe but I’m fascinated to see how far Wilder goes. I think that it’s unbelievable how little he gets mentioned in connection with available managerial positions. What he has achieved and how he has achieved it is amazing

 

[Ricky]

We'll be the best of the promoted teams.

There's no doubt at all that we'll stay up.

Wilder is extremely ambitious, and he'll keep adapting and evolving to make sure we achieve his goals.

Our squad has genuine unity and togetherness, and it will stay that way.

We have an approach that balances traditional and modern methods and we won't be out of place at all.

The ignorant snobby elitist faggots will write us off which will provide ample motivation for our squad.

The underdog status and mentality will suit us down to the ground.

 

[N20 Blade]

Ha ha maybe but I’m fascinated to see how far Wilder goes. I think that it’s unbelievable how little he gets mentioned in connection with available managerial positions. What he has achieved and how he has achieved it is amazing

Me too, I've just been talking about the way we play with someone at work and whilst they seemed fascinated, there was also a hint of scepticism. I suggested he google a few of our goals this season but failing that watch us next. The PL has become so stale, in part due to the likes of Benitez, that our fresh approach could prove very popular and Wilder could become interesting outside S2!

 

[ucandomagic]

Know what - I think the Egan video has made a real difference to our prospects next season.

There is a band of players who won’t get near Top 6, but who want to play in the Prem and really enjoy being footballers, and not prima donna millionaires.

When you know you can make more cash than you ever needed, and you see that you can do that with a load of mates just like you, with a boss just like you, why not - you just have to have the balls to stand up to your agent. Those are the ones that we want and the ones that will want us.

With Wilder we are unique - that is our Magic

 

[JJ Sefton]

Every time I hear or read a sneering elitist fan from another club say 'you'll go straight back down'...

...I say 'So what?' We went straight back down in 2006/2007, it doesn't mean I wish we hadn't been promoted in the first place. Does anyone, looking back on that season, think 'I wish we'd never bothered'?

 

[Niceguyeddie]

If we set out just to stay up we probably won't.
If I hear any Warnockesque drivel like "We're just happy to be here" and "17th place is what we're aiming for because we're far too fucking useless to get any higher than that" the euphoria will soon wear off.

So this is you when you're euphoric?