If Onlys

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What if Kevin MacDonald didn't have that absurdly low release clause in his contract? Went to Wolves for peanuts, after Weir had spent pre-season building the entire side around his presence. I still reckon that we wouldn't have become the shambles we ended up being if KMac wasn't sold.
 
GeorgeDonis1889 said:
Ghost goal at Villa. Probably cost us Europe.
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Or just covid in general.

I'd have fancied us to get points or wins away at Villa, Old Trafford, St James' park at the time. We were still in good form, albeit keeping things tight and taking our chances.

When we came back post covid we weren't playing at the same level. And of course O'Connell picked up the career ending injury (Although we didn't know it then)

I also think in front of a big crowd I would have fancied us vs Arsenal in the quarter finals too.
 
Pollingtonblade said:
Discussion in the shout box about them "if only" big moments that could have altered our history

Webbers sitter v Wigan
Everton players handball in same game
Guilty verdict for Ched etc....
Click to expand...

I know we dwell on this stuff too much but I did ask, I think Grok or ChatGPT the other month and we do rank quite high up as very unlucky among other football clubs (not including clubs that went into admin or totally out of business). Once you factor in all the big moments, on and off field controversy's it comes to quite a lot.

That isn't to say other clubs have not had their own share of shit luck but I am not sure many have as long a list of incidents as ours.
 
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what if Coutts didn't get injured in 2017 and we went on to get promoted that season. Who would we have signed to prepare us for the Premier league? Brooks would probably have stayed, the players like Fleck, Stevens and Sharp would have had an extra year before hitting their decline... how would we have performed in the top flight had we gone up that season? would we have come back down or be an established PL side by now
 
CPB said:
Or just covid in general.

I'd have fancied us to get points or wins away at Villa, Old Trafford, St James' park at the time. We were still in good form, albeit keeping things tight and taking our chances.

When we came back post covid we weren't playing at the same level. And of course O'Connell picked up the career ending injury (Although we didn't know it then)

I also think in front of a big crowd I would have fancied us vs Arsenal in the quarter finals too.
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Ye forgot the cup quarter final. I'd have massively fancied us in that. Robbed of Europe and the FA cup I reckon 😩
 
aBladeInTheNorthernSky said:
what if Coutts didn't get injured in 2017 and we went on to get promoted that season. Who would we have signed to prepare us for the Premier league? Brooks would probably have stayed, the players like Fleck, Stevens and Sharp would have had an extra year before hitting their decline... how would we have performed in the top flight had we gone up that season? would we have come back down or be an established PL side by now
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I am not sure we get promoted even if he doesn't get injured.
 
Shadota said:
What if Kevin MacDonald didn't have that absurdly low release clause in his contract? Went to Wolves for peanuts, after Weir had spent pre-season building the entire side around his presence. I still reckon that we wouldn't have become the shambles we ended up being if KMac wasn't sold.
Click to expand...

I can only guess Weir didn't get told about the clause because that was inevitable.
 

S17 Blade 1889 said:
What if we had signed Maradona, would he have made us great and built a dynasty or would we have ruined him 😅?
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Almost certainly the latter or, at the very least, grafting in second tier English football would have grounded him and steered him from the path of moral turpitude.

England win the 1986 World Cup quarter final, on penalties, and go on to defeat Germany in the final. Bobby Robson repeats the feat in 1990 meaning that he becomes an obvious candidate to fill Ron Atkinson's shoes at massive Yorkshire club, Sheffield Wednesday, who go on to dominate English football for the next two decades.
 
If only Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos were massive Blades fans.

Actually, don't think that would sit at all well with the large socialist contingent of our fans who enjoy the struggle of the proletariat (Blades) against the bourgeoisie (anyone else who doesn't think like them and strives to be better). Success is something to be reached for by hard graft and toil but never achieved. To achieve it wouldn't be Bladey like and would be selling out to the corporate machine, signalling the death knell of the fans, the club and the little Sheffield identity.

Or summat....
 
I'd add Jack O'Connell not getting his knee injury to the list. That completely unbalanced the PL side, a status exacerbated by Wilder's myopia when it came to the big problem with the 2020 team (Norwood getting shut down).

Others:
What if we'd done the maths properly in 1994 and not committed harakiri going for an unnecessary winner at Stamford Bridge?
 
Balham said:
I'd add Jack O'Connell not getting his knee injury to the list. That completely unbalanced the PL side, a status exacerbated by Wilder's myopia when it came to the big problem with the 2020 team (Norwood getting shut down).

Others:
What if we'd done the maths properly in 1994 and not committed harakiri going for an unnecessary winner at Stamford Bridge?
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I don't hold much weight behind injuries being big what if's. I think many of our major recent injuries were ones where a good manager should adapt and overcome.

Wilder once again seemed blind to these issues in both cases with JOC and Souttar, yet had the funds available to properly fix the problem (unlike Warnock with Rob Hulse). Wilder chose not to do so on both occasions and that's just shit management from a manager who should really know better.
 
Bladesman said:
I don't hold much weight behind injuries being big what if's. I think many of our major recent injuries were ones where a good manager should adapt and overcome.

Wilder once again seemed blind to these issues in both cases yet had the funds available to properly fix the problem (unlike Warnock with Rob Hulse). Wilder chose not to do so on both occasions and that's just shit management from a manager who should really know better.
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I toyed with the idea of writing it as "what if Wilder had recruited properly in the summer of 2020?" but that seemed too far-fetched.
 
Shadota said:
What if Kevin MacDonald didn't have that absurdly low release clause in his contract? Went to Wolves for peanuts, after Weir had spent pre-season building the entire side around his presence. I still reckon that we wouldn't have become the shambles we ended up being if KMac wasn't sold.
Click to expand...

There was so much pressure on us persuading McDonald to sign over Summer.
Don’t think he ever had any intention to sign…..however both the club and players agent did a temporary work around.

Agree to sign with an incredibly low release clause.
Seems his agent did the dirty on us and instantly let the Wolves manager know about the secret clause…so he only ended up playing the 1st game that season.
I was there…the night match against Notts County when we won and looked quite impressive.
McDonald was the king pin, almost playing the quarter back role, everyone passed the ball to him and he pulled the strings with his slick passing.
 

Pollingtonblade said:
Discussion in the shout box about them "if only" big moments that could have altered our history

Webbers sitter v Wigan
Everton players handball in same game
Click to expand...

Remember it well…..when Danny Webber was put clean through with only the goalie to beat towards the end of the match.

Thought he might have rounded the keeper but he dinked it over him
And then it was like slow motion as the ball slowly rolled towards the goal….would it go in?

The ball hit the post then rolled across the line.
Then there was this sprint…..neck and neck between their defender and our attacker who wanted to tap it into an empty net.

Again it was like slow motion….the ball was rolling across the goal line….surely we’d score
But their defender managed to get his toe to the ball first and scoop it off the line and away from goal.
It was at that moment……everyone around me realised that it didn’t matter what we did……it was fate we were going down.

Even remember walking away from the Lane in a kind of shock that we ended up being pipped by West Ham when they were dead and buried.
Then the heavens opened and there was this massive downpour of rain, as it was hot no one wore a coat and everyone got totally soaked.
 
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