Counter factual...

[Darren]

If, on 13th May 2007, Webber's shot had been a foot the other way and we had drawn 2-2 with Wigan, where do people think the club be now?

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

A depressing thought, Dazzler!

Knowing the Blades, avoiding relegation from the Championship!

 

[Rodders]

Probably a regular Championship play-off contender by now, having had 2-3 seasons in the Prem with a highest finish of 14th.

 

[Selly]

Just for the masochistic, 4:57 onwards...

 

[Darren]

Just for the masochistic, 4:57 onwards...

Never seen that before. To be fair he did look offside.

What is it with our luck? When when it hits the post, like a good forward Webber was following in and if it had come off the post at any other angle, it would have come to his feet for an easy tap in. Oh no, not with United. It richochets in such a way he has no chance of getting it....

 

[Bath Blade]

Just for the masochistic, 4:57 onwards...

I haven't watched any of the match since that day, and I don't intend starting now.

 

[Bath Blade]

If, on 13th May 2007, Webber's shot had been a foot the other way and we had drawn 2-2 with Wigan, where do people think the club be now?

I suspect Warnock would still have been sacked at the end of the season and replaced with Robson regardless. This would have meant Robson being given even more money to buy even worse players on even longer contracts. Thus sending us virtually bankrupt, relegation, administration and in Portsmouth's position now. Thankfully Webber missed.

 

[Selly]

Never seen that before. To be fair he did look offside.

What is it with our luck? When when it hits the post, like a good forward Webber was following in and if it had come off the post at any other angle, it would have come to his feet for an easy tap in. Oh no, not with United. It richochets in such a way he has no chance of getting it....

Yup, it wouldn`t have had to be a foot the other way. Given the angle it ricochets out at, an inch or two might have been enough. And an inch or 2 in the other direction it probably come back to his feet*...


*for him to shank wide

 

[Darren]

Yup, it wouldn`t have had to be a foot the other way. Given the angle it ricochets out at, an inch or two might have been enough. And an inch or 2 in the other direction it probably come back to his feet*...


*for him to shank wide

So the FG's do it perfectly so that (a) it bloody nearly goes in but (b) it doesn't go in and (c) Webber can't get the rebound.

Great.

 

[super_pig]

we'd probably be playing Bayern in the CL final now

 

[Eskimo]

I celebrated that non-goal for about 5 minutes before I realised it hadn't gone in..........

 

[Sothall_Blade]

If, on 13th May 2007, Webber's shot had been a foot the other way and we had drawn 2-2 with Wigan, where do people think the club be now?

Warnock would have been rewarded with the new contract he deserved.
McCabe would have increased the wage bill to the same level as Robson was allowed in The Championship.
Warnock would then have been able to sign proven Premiership quality players.
Jagielka and other key players would have been happy to sign new extended contracts.
Signings like Kilgallon, Fathi and Shelton would have started to contribute more in their second season.
Hulse would have come back from injury to score vital goals in the second half of that season.
Premiership survival would have been secured with a few games to spare. West Ham relegated!

Then youngsters like Naughton and Walker would have been gradually drafted into the first team squad.
A few more Premiership quality players added as the funds continued to flow in.
The brand new Kop with added facilities and legroom opens in August 2009.
We are no longer pre-season favourites for relegation. Mid-table mediocrity is assured and embraced.
We start to play our strongest team in the cup competitions again. Finals and trophies become a possibility...

Fast forward to May 2013. New manager Stuart McCall leads his team out at Wembley.
Director of Football and Blades legend Neil Warnock looks on proudly from the Royal Box...
Kevin McCabe tells the press it's all down to the values of consistency and loyalty that he's always adhered to...

 

[Northyorksblade]

If, on 13th May 2007, Webber's shot had been a foot the other way and we had drawn 2-2 with Wigan, where do people think the club be now?

You kill yourself with the pain thinking like that

 

[Balham]

If, on 13th May 2007, Webber's shot had been a foot the other way and we had drawn 2-2 with Wigan, where do people think the club be now?

I would assume that Warnock's contract would have been extended leaving us, in a parallel universe, fulfilling the Stoke City role in the Premiership: scuffling 1-0 wins using tactics based around strength over technique and set pieces while slipping lower and lower in the final tables.

If McCabe had any sense he would have seen that the West Brom model is the one to follow. Not the Blackpool/Barnsley/Bradford/Burnley/Crystal Palace*/Hull*/Leeds/Watford* one-day-in-the-sun approach we actually took.

*A change in regime seems to have worked for these sides

 

[Bladesman]

I suspect Warnock would still have been sacked at the end of the season and replaced with Robson regardless. This would have meant Robson being given even more money to buy even worse players on even longer contracts. Thus sending us virtually bankrupt, relegation, administration and in Portsmouth's position now. Thankfully Webber missed.

That is a pretty good optimistic spin on our relegation.

Had McCabe got Robson earmarked to take charge long before we knew whether we were up or down?

 

[UnitedBlade]

Never seen that before. To be fair he did look offside.

.

To be fair the linesman was bang in line. If you freeze it when it's headed on I think his feet are level as he leans forward.

Oh for the "rub of the green" more frequently than we do get it

 

[Darren]

I would assume that Warnock's contract would have been extended leaving us, in a parallel universe, fulfilling the Stoke City role in the Premiership: scuffling 1-0 wins using tactics based around strength over technique and set pieces while slipping lower and lower in the final tables.

.. and at least 5 consecutive seasons in the PL. How I would have hated that...

 

[davidpinder]

If, on 13th May 2007, Webber's shot had been a foot the other way and we had drawn 2-2 with Wigan, where do people think the club be now?

Did you ever read that article that someone wrote?? I think we'd still be there and we'd be a bit like Fulham mid table always safe and try for top ten each year. It will all have depended on who became manager. NW said he and McCabe discussed him going upstairs if we stopped up. Think of the managers that have taken over mid-table prem clubs and done ok. Pardew, Hodgson, Jol plus many more.

 

[MidgetBlade]

Just for the masochistic, 4:57 onwards...

Gone all depressed now

 

[Pinchy]

I prefer to ask why 'legend' Jagielka played basketball in his own penalty area for no apparent reason. I mean 'ask' quite literally because he has never explained it, still less apologised. Never mind, though eh? Everton were waiting.

I also prefer to ask why Warnock, who should have been sacked immediately after the promotion season, spent his January transfer money on complete bobbins when a couple of genuine Premiership players, not worldbeaters mind, but proper tried and tested top league players (especially in midfield where we were routinely outclassed - la plus ça change....) would have ensured our 10 point cushion was converted into comfortable survival. That's the moment McCabe lost his way as well. If ever there was a time to invest handsomely, that was it. We bought nonentities.

It was our fault - not Tevez; not West Ham. They didn't make us lose at home to Newcastle, ship three vital goals in a shameful non-performance at Villa, or fail to manage even a draw at home, backed by 30,000, to save our skins.

As we continue to learn, you see, passion is not enough. Sorry Morgs, don't call us; we'll call you.

 

[Sothall_Blade]

Would you ask Jagielka to his face if he deliberately handballed it and cheated his teammates and friends out of the Premiership?
I doubt it. Much easier to make the accusation behind his back.

Do you honestly believe Warnock wouldn't have signed "genuine Premiership players" if he could have tempted them with the Championship wages we were offering? Stephen Warnock was the type of player he wanted, Ahmed Fathi was the type of player he had to take a gamble on.

 

[pommpey]

I agree with Pinchy there, but I will never forgive West Ham, Manchester 'our strongest fucking team' United and Carlos 'guess where he's going next' Tevez.

Biggest fucking footballing swindle since ... ooooh ... when was the list time we were buttfucked by cheats and relegated, eh?

pommpey

 

[Pinchy]

Would you ask Jagielka to his face if he deliberately handballed it and cheated his teammates and friends out of the Premiership?
I doubt it. Much easier to make the accusation behind his back.

Do you honestly believe Warnock wouldn't have signed "genuine Premiership players" if he could have tempted them with the Championship wages we were offering? Stephen Warnock was the type of player he wanted, Ahmed Fathi was the type of player he had to take a gamble on.

I would ask him to his face:
a) why he handled the ball;
b) why he has never had the courtesy to explain before.

Warnock could have bought a bit of quality with the money wasted on Fathi, Nade, Kazim-Richards, Claude Davis, Stead and, best of all £2m on fast running non-footballer Luton Shelton. He did not bring a single truly Premier player in that season.

Warnock is uncomfortable with top-quality players. He prefers muck and nettles and get stuck in. He can't manage at the top level. His failure at three different clubs to avoid immediate relegation is conclusive evidence.

 

[JohnDenver]

I would ask him to his face:
a) why he handled the ball;
b) why he has never had the courtesy to explain before.

Should Liverpool fans demamd to know why Suarez gave a pen away at the weekend?

Shit happens.

 

[Sothall_Blade]

I would ask him to his face:
a) why he handled the ball;
b) why he has never had the courtesy to explain before.

Warnock could have bought a bit of quality with the money wasted on Fathi, Nade, Kazim-Richards, Claude Davis, Stead and, best of all £2m on fast running non-footballer Luton Shelton. He did not bring a single truly Premier player in that season.

Warnock is uncomfortable with top-quality players. He prefers muck and nettles and get stuck in. He can't manage at the top level. His failure at three different clubs to avoid immediate relegation is conclusive evidence.

I'll ask again seeing as you chose to ignore it.
How do you attract "Top quality Premier players" to a club who are favourites for relegation and paying Championship wages?

CKR was a waste of money was he? £100K on a 3rd Division player who went on to play International and Champions League Football after we sold him for a massive profit. Hulse, Stead, Kenny, Geary, Morgan, Armstrong, Gillespie. All did reasonably well in the Premiership to say they were Championship or lower players when we signed them for a relative pittance. Some gambles worked, some didn't but they were all gambles because he didn't have his pick of the Premier League's finest.

Failing to keep Notts County and Sheffield United up against all the odds only proves he worked a miracle getting them/us up there in the first place. He didn't take QPR down. That honour belongs jointly to Mr Hughes and Mr Redknapp.

 

[Blackheath Blade]

Did you ever read that article that someone wrote?? I think we'd still be there and we'd be a bit like Fulham mid table always safe and try for top ten each year. It will all have depended on who became manager. NW said he and McCabe discussed him going upstairs if we stopped up. Think of the managers that have taken over mid-table prem clubs and done ok. Pardew, Hodgson, Jol plus many more.

Ironic really because in my opinion, Fulham were the worst team to visit The Lane that season. We absolutely battered them that night and look at where each club is now. Madness.

 

[PeterNdlovu081]

Imagine if David Hopkin's effort had come back off the post and we had gone up the other end and scored.

We could have been in the Premier League for a decade and a half.

 

[Revolution]

How do you attract "Top quality Premier players" to a club who are favourites for relegation and paying Championship wages?

We did not need to do that, though it would have helped. What we needed to do was get in someone a bit better than what we signed.

Stead worked out fine. Kudos to Warnock.

Kilgallon played 6 times, as he was injured when signed, and was poor
Shelton played well once, in a defeat, and was garbage otherwise
Fathi played parts of 3 games and did not look good
Seck never played and no one knows why he was signed.

Are you telling me that we couldn't have attracted one midfielder, forward or winger who (a) would have added more than that lot - at least the one more sodding goal we needed- and (b) would have played for less than top whack? I simply do not accept that.

 

[Selly]

Did you ever read that article that someone wrote?? I think we'd still be there and we'd be a bit like Fulham mid table always safe and try for top ten each year. It will all have depended on who became manager. NW said he and McCabe discussed him going upstairs if we stopped up. Think of the managers that have taken over mid-table prem clubs and done ok. Pardew, Hodgson, Jol plus many more.

And in that scenario, I can guarantee there would still be fans moaning about the lack of investment, the fact that we are happy with mid table mediocraty, the fact that we are flatlining...

 

[davidpinder]

Ironic really because in my opinion, Fulham were the worst team to visit The Lane that season. We absolutely battered them that night and look at where each club is now. Madness.

yep i remember it well we won that easy, it was a night match and they didn't seem bothered.