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McCarthy: Top Six Again the Target Wednesday, 29th Jun 2016 06:00
Blues boss Mick McCarthy says the play-offs will once again be Town’s realistic target during 2016/17. The squad returned to Playford Road on Monday for the start of pre-season training.
“As always I think we’ve got to finish as best we can,” he said. “We slipped last year, in finishing seventh.
"We’d always made an improvement [year on year], so we’re going to try and make an improvement on our position from last season.”
He added: “But at the end of it we finished exactly the same [as the previous year when Town were sixth] because we’re still in this league.
“We finished in the play-offs the year before but we were still in this league. We had the excitement of the play-offs and the disappointment of the play-offs. Sadly we didn’t get there this year.
“First or second is pretty unlikely with the amount of money that will be swilling around in the league, what people have to spend and money available to some of the teams. I think if we can finish in the top six we’ll be doing well. That’s what we’ll be going for.”
How will he and his staff go about achieving that? “Starting here [in pre-season], making sure they’ve all come back fit, which they have.
“Getting them prepared, being as well-organised as we always are, being as hard-working as we always are. Having a really good team spirit and enduring 46 games in the Championship, which isn’t easy.”
He says the division will again be tough with Newcastle and Aston Villa having been relegated from the Premier League, along with the Blues’ greatest rivals Norwich City.
“That’s going to be interesting, it always makes it that way,” he said. “We play them early again. Aston Villa have come down, Newcastle have come down, they’ve all come down with a chunk of money.
“Derby spent a lot of money last year and missed out. Brighton are a very good side. There are some good teams in the league, there are some teams who are going to spend money and we’ll be the ones that are trying to upset the apple cart as always, and I’m sure we’ll manage to do it.”
Newcastle are managed by Rafa Benitez and Villa by Roberto Di Matteo, both bosses who have won the Champions League, however, McCarthy says success at higher levels is no guarantee that managers are able to be successful in the Championship.
“You might find that if I manage a Champions League team I might do all right,” he said. “They might find it a bit of a shock unless they get a bit of advice. You can watch it all you like.
"I was told a story about a foreign manager, I’m not going to say who it was, who was in the Premier League and was watching a Championship game and went, ‘What is this?’ and turned it off.
“And then he ended up in the Championship and suddenly found out what it was. It’s a tough old league and if you think you’re just going to come in and get through it, you’re not.
“Just because you’ve got money, because you’ve got a big squad, because you’ve got a team, it doesn’t always work like that.”
Is he confident his squad, which will again be assembled on a shoestring compared with many of the teams they will face, will be capable of competing?
“Yes, we will again because we’ve got good players, we’ve got really good pros, who care about the place, care about the club and we’ve a good team spirit,” he added.
“We’ll be organised, we’ll be a team. That’s been emphasised so much in the European Championships this year.
“And we’ll try and find a sprinkling of magic dust. We’ve got Bish coming back, we’ve got Andre Dozzell coming into the squad, he’ll be in the first-team squad, both of whom bring real creativity. Let’s hope Didzy stays fit, Murph stays fit and if they do we’ve got a good side.”
Photo: Action Images
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Seems a realistic assessment, given our resources. Hopefully McGoldrick, Hyam, Bishop stay fit for the majority of the new season plus the continuing rise of Dozzell will be the difference this season and place us at least that all important one place higher in the league. Looking forward to 6th August and hopefully a few more signings before...
Not sure that I expected anything else really since Marcus must be down to his last £800 million after the share prices fall following the EU referendum, coupled with possible impending legal action from UEFA he must be saving his money. Our only hope, in my view, is we over achieved 2013/14 and due to some bad luck with injuries etc we underachieved 2014/15. Who's to say with more good luck we can't overachieve in 2016/15 and get into the top 2. I haven't changed my mind on McCarthys style - I hate it - but I refuse to start the season feeling negative. That will happen soon enough, given how early we have to play that lot from up the road with their horrible yellow shirts and millions in parachute payments.
Lets be honest here, we were lucky to finish 7th - this alone shows you how many average teams there were last season if we finished just outside the play-offs. We were very inconsistent in periods. Mick should be aiming for automatic promotion particularly after what Leicester achieved in the Premiership and not 'bigging up' other teams before the season has already started!
Think we need a good couple of wingers signed or loaned and honestly I do think with no injuries we will do ok. Top 6 will be a big ask but let's see, sign a couple of good players and who knows. With Bishop & Dozzell in midfield does excite me when given the chance. Hope we sign Harriott and maybe McGeady loan from Everton? Wages could be high though!! Dallas from Leeds maybe? There are players out there Mick!!
Deja vu. Only this time the crowds will dip more quickly. Sounds like we may get a journeyman freebie and a young premiership winger. Never mind, we've got Dougie, Hyam, Coke, Skuse - loads of goals.
Between Town and England it's getting hard to be a football optimist these days. I'm pretty sure we read the same comments at the beginning of last year. Of course your aim is top six. That's a ridiculous statement. A manager isn't going to say "my goal is relegation". Every manager there has that goal. But you know the issue? Talk is cheap. It's what you do on the pitch that matters. Not what you say to journalists. The two things that should be doing the talking are Evans' checque book and the players performance. They will get us to the premiere league, not a bunch of soundbites.
We have the same weak preseason games that don't challenge us. A lackluster cup run of our second team to give the first team a rest, who incidentally lose the next game back anyway. I'm tired of excuses, I'm tired of stagnant tactics and I'm tired of our transfers being limited to mostly freebies. Table scraps will not get us promotion.
I hope I'm proven wrong this time next year. But with the teams coming down and the teams at the top end of the table last year, this league is getting harder and harder every year to get out of. I don't think it's ever been as difficult as it is now.
Prove me wrong, Town. 15 years in this league is the very definition of stagnant.
Don't like this titled column of aiming for top 6, when top spot is aim for a so called professional club.. if we will be content with 6th I'm totally unimpressed.. This column should be removed, or we need a coach change already
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