Poyet warns Albion face a tough challenge

9:00am Tuesday 19th June 2012 in Albion By Andy Naylor

Gus Poyet is looking for further progress next season Gus Poyet is looking for further progress next season

Albion boss Gus Poyet has warned of the multiple challenges facing his team in the Championship again next season.

But he still wants to improve on last year's play-off push and tenth-placed finish.

Albion kick-off their league campaign on August 18 with a long journey to Steve Bruce’s Hull City.

The first game at The Amex is three days later against Cardiff, who reached the play-offs last season.

The relentless tests are encapsulated by a tough week in late October, when a visit from Middlesbrough is followed by a midweek trip to Leicester and another away game at Blackpool.

Poyet said: “The biggest problem with the league is too many teams playing for the same thing (promotion). If you ask who will win the Premier League it’s not very difficult, between four teams.

“How many can win the league in the Championship? It’s unbelievable, ten or 12 different teams, which is unique.

“The three teams coming down (Blackburn, Bolton and Wolves) have got a good chance.

“Of the three coming up you have the history of Sheffield Wednesday and Charlton and Huddersfield have been one of the biggest spenders in League One for the last three years. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are pushing, so that is five or six clubs straight away.

“Then you talk about the ones that didn’t go up and the ones expected to do better – Blackpool, Cardiff, Birmingham, Leeds, Leicester, Ipswich, Middlesbrough, Hull – it becomes crazy.

“There is no other league like it. We need just to try to compete with that and we will do our best.

“We need to improve on last year. If we finish ninth we’ll have done that but it would be better to finish closer to the top six.

“The idea is to get better. I’m realistic but at the same time I’m positive, because last year we came very close.”

Full fixture list for the 2012-13 season in The Argus today

Comments(19)

HOVEPARKPRESIDENT. says...
9:50am Tue 19 Jun 12

Tough but achievable. Couple of new signings, quality goalkeeper, midfield powerhouse, and proven premiership striker and play off position, possibly even automatic promotion, is within our grasp.

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Rhodes Seagull says...
9:57am Tue 19 Jun 12

HOVEPARKPRESIDENT. wrote:
Tough but achievable. Couple of new signings, quality goalkeeper, midfield powerhouse, and proven premiership striker and play off position, possibly even automatic promotion, is within our grasp.
Tough but achievable!!!! Would the real HPR please step forward.
I agree with you!!!

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SMF20 says...
10:08am Tue 19 Jun 12

Fear not my friends. The transfer rumours site is linking us with Seedorf this morning, when you see him playing alongside Vicente with Owen and Heskey upfront, Kuszczak in goal and Baros sat on the bench, we will stroll the division. You cant write this stuff.....

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Grendel says...
10:15am Tue 19 Jun 12

Isn't this why we need to strengthen the squad by ..er..signing some new players?

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Tony the tiger eastbourne says...
10:23am Tue 19 Jun 12

HOVEPARKRESIDENT for the first time a decent reply without your normal negative views

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college says...
10:33am Tue 19 Jun 12

Tony the tiger eastbourne wrote:
HOVEPARKRESIDENT for the first time a decent reply without your normal negative views
read it again son - notably between the K AND THE R. the men in white coats have taken the real HPR for an extended holiday (hopefully)

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4everaseagull says...
10:44am Tue 19 Jun 12

SMF20 wrote:
Fear not my friends. The transfer rumours site is linking us with Seedorf this morning, when you see him playing alongside Vicente with Owen and Heskey upfront, Kuszczak in goal and Baros sat on the bench, we will stroll the division. You cant write this stuff.....
These transfer rumours sites are exactly that rumours. The one I have just viewed mentions Seedorf as being in discussions with us re a player coach role. That I could see as a shrewd move but it is nothing more than a rumour. As for Owen isnt he off to Stoke? Kuszczak would be great but again rumour is he is talking to Ipswich. Rumour site states Steve Harper is coming in goal. That may have more credability if he is happy to move his family south. As I have said on a previous post we are being impatient but must trust Gus and I think we are in for a surprise or two in the next 2-3 weeks.

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4everaseagull says...
10:47am Tue 19 Jun 12

Talking of trusting Gus. I think he is being quite shrewd with getting the players back for pre-season a week early as with Vicente being under contract until 30th June and therefore still employed by the club surely that means he will have to be at training next Monday. Gives Gus all week to talk with him. I will stick my neck on the line and say he will be back to light up the Amex this coming season.

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SMF20 says...
11:17am Tue 19 Jun 12

4everaseagull wrote:
SMF20 wrote: Fear not my friends. The transfer rumours site is linking us with Seedorf this morning, when you see him playing alongside Vicente with Owen and Heskey upfront, Kuszczak in goal and Baros sat on the bench, we will stroll the division. You cant write this stuff.....
These transfer rumours sites are exactly that rumours. The one I have just viewed mentions Seedorf as being in discussions with us re a player coach role. That I could see as a shrewd move but it is nothing more than a rumour. As for Owen isnt he off to Stoke? Kuszczak would be great but again rumour is he is talking to Ipswich. Rumour site states Steve Harper is coming in goal. That may have more credability if he is happy to move his family south. As I have said on a previous post we are being impatient but must trust Gus and I think we are in for a surprise or two in the next 2-3 weeks.
The post was completely tongue in cheek...

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4everaseagull says...
11:25am Tue 19 Jun 12

SMF20 wrote:
4everaseagull wrote:
SMF20 wrote: Fear not my friends. The transfer rumours site is linking us with Seedorf this morning, when you see him playing alongside Vicente with Owen and Heskey upfront, Kuszczak in goal and Baros sat on the bench, we will stroll the division. You cant write this stuff.....
These transfer rumours sites are exactly that rumours. The one I have just viewed mentions Seedorf as being in discussions with us re a player coach role. That I could see as a shrewd move but it is nothing more than a rumour. As for Owen isnt he off to Stoke? Kuszczak would be great but again rumour is he is talking to Ipswich. Rumour site states Steve Harper is coming in goal. That may have more credability if he is happy to move his family south. As I have said on a previous post we are being impatient but must trust Gus and I think we are in for a surprise or two in the next 2-3 weeks.
The post was completely tongue in cheek...
No really!! You nearly had me fooled.

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Grendel says...
11:57am Tue 19 Jun 12

Harper would be wrong. He's not a bad Goalkeeper,but we need someone with a few more miles left on the clock.

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HOVEPARKRESIDENT says...
11:58am Tue 19 Jun 12

Disappointing that Poyet thinks finishing 9th next season would be acceptable. If he's trying to build on a so called fantastic first season at the Amex along with all the hype about new signings coming in and retaining some "quality" team members from last season, surely all this to gain one position over a whole season is not acceptable. Surely he should be aiming higher and thinking a little more positive.

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Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit says...
12:20pm Tue 19 Jun 12

HOVEPARKRESIDENT wrote:
Disappointing that Poyet thinks finishing 9th next season would be acceptable. If he's trying to build on a so called fantastic first season at the Amex along with all the hype about new signings coming in and retaining some "quality" team members from last season, surely all this to gain one position over a whole season is not acceptable. Surely he should be aiming higher and thinking a little more positive.
Well I think he IS aiming higher (the same as Roy Hodgson is aiming to win the Euros), but at the same time he's trying to manage expectations. On that front I don't like the term 'not acceptable'. Yes we all want to do better than we did last year, but we've no God-given right to expect it. I'm not having a go, you're entitled to your opinion, but your view is that of the more impatient 'modern fan' who always demands that each season must be better than the last. I want us to get promoted, but I'll be happy with a repeat of last year.

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Tony the tiger eastbourne says...
12:26pm Tue 19 Jun 12

Just slighty disappointed at the moment that there seem no movement in the transfer window. I'm sure things are happening in the background

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Tony the tiger eastbourne says...
12:26pm Tue 19 Jun 12

Just slighty disappointed at the moment that there seem no movement in the transfer window. I'm sure things are happening in the background

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namgo49 says...
12:58pm Tue 19 Jun 12

Hopefully Tony Bloom's interview in which he indicates a similar, slightly higher budget for this season is smoke and mirrors as, if this is actually the case, we shall achieve no better than last year at best.

Steve Harper in goal is no comfort. Too old and not good enough. His positioning for Nolan's goal in the West Ham game was unforgiveable.

We need quality and that comes at a price, unfortunately.

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linzowen says...
1:25pm Tue 19 Jun 12

What would amaze me ? Hmm well, a comment from the club saying there will not be any summer signings at present and we are going to sell Greer, Bridcutt, Noone amongst others. That's not going to happen is it ? unless of course the offer is to good and impossible to turn down. Patience is a virtue, we just need to keep calm and relax, enjoy the euros and see what the club bring us once it is all settled. As an analogy, this time of the year for the average footie fan is just like christmas is for young kids. How the excitement builds, desperate to see what we've been given, yes sometimes it can be a dissappointment but mostly its smiles all round. Yes, as Jimmy Stewart says the expectations have to be managed very carefully and when everything has been agreed with any new signings or the retention of The God that is Vicente an announcement shall be made. Rumours are mainly the work of idle hands, if i saw something for sale i really wanted and it was a one off then i'm not going to advertise the fact am i ? Somebody else may get in there first. In the meantime, COME ON ENGLAND ! Love Albion more !

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bruce beckett says...
3:13pm Tue 19 Jun 12

HOVEPARKPRESIDENT. I like it! Good to see someone has a mischievous sense of humour.

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dave from bexill says...
3:36pm Tue 19 Jun 12

Sensible comments from Gus I feel. I think I mentioned on a previous thread that in my view, there will probably be as many as fifteen teams with realistic hopes of making the top six this coming season. Gus thinks ten to twelve and although I bow to his superior knowledge, he actually mentions as many as fourteen teams who will expect
to compete for the top six places. Who knows how many, but for sure, it's going to be a very, very tight and exciting league again.

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