| Based on the squad we have now... 09:33 - Apr 14 with 7609 views | muccletonjoe |
We Finnish top of championship next season
How many players can we afford to lose before we start going down league places ? |  | | |  |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:06 - Apr 14 with 1341 views | SomethingBlue |
As long as McKenna stays we will be highly competitive – as we remain now. But at this point I'd say it is very, very difficult to state with confidence what our team looks like next season. And it's very important to remember that our promotion side was infused with those generational little bits of magic – relationships & connections between players, Chaplin/Burns for example – that are very hard to replicate from scratch. I'd strongly back McKenna to get us going but really hope we can get the bulk of the squad in place early. [Post edited 14 Apr 11:06]
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:12 - Apr 14 with 1301 views | MattinLondon |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 10:39 - Apr 14 by IPSWICHFANITFC |
Think you're spot on. I am sure Luton fans were having similar thoughts to us at this stage last season too and now find themselves staring at League 1 (with a season defining game on Friday away at Derby!).
I agree with other comments that the Championship doesn't appear to be as strong this season, but I think we will have a bit of work to do in the summer to get the squad into a position where it's fighting for promotion. |
In comparison to the PL, the championship is appalling. We have parachute payments, top class championship players and a manager who knows that division.
Anything less than automatic promotion should be seen as failure. |  | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:19 - Apr 14 with 1276 views | hype313 |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:12 - Apr 14 by MattinLondon |
In comparison to the PL, the championship is appalling. We have parachute payments, top class championship players and a manager who knows that division.
Anything less than automatic promotion should be seen as failure. |
We'll be one of the favorites and rightly so, but we all know it can be an awful division to get out of, which is why we spent an eternity in it.
Parachute payments distort it far more these days, we essentially have a cheat code going into it, but, as others have said, what you have on paper doesn't always equal points.
If McKenna stays then I think we will be fine, he will have the bit between his teeth, knowing if we do go up, we'll be in a far stronger position to make a fist of staying up. |  |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:25 - Apr 14 with 1267 views | Nthsuffolkblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:01 - Apr 14 by IPSWICHFANITFC |
That's a good point on the average Luton fan, but they did retain the majority of their squad. I'm sure they were probably fearful of losing someone like Doughty as well but they retained him.
They lost Barkley and Townsend like you said, they also lost Lokonga who was there on loan. Obviously Ogbene came here and I think one of their CB's went to a French side, but aside from those 5, they've kept the squad together and you expect that on paper, it was definitely a squad more capable of finishing higher than where they're currently heading. |
I am sure they did expect to be higher.
The point is that they got around £24M for those 5 players departing and they hadn't improved the squad that much from the previous Championship one. We are likely to net more than that total on 1 player leaving and quite possibly to do so 2 or 3 times. They spent £17M and the bulk of that went on Mark McGuinness. If we spend the bulk of our income on 1 player, I am sure it will be a striker who will likely be far more impactful.
We really are comparing chalk and cheese when comparing with Luton despite them finishing in the same place last season as we are this. |  |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:28 - Apr 14 with 1259 views | davblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:02 - Apr 14 by baxterbasics |
It does feel a bit like a reset for McKenna and 'his' team next season doesn't it? Feels to me like the first McKenna era is ending even if he does stay on as expected, and the core of that team that went from L1 to the PL is going to be down to bare bones and new blood will come in. We are almost starting again albeit from a higher base.
In this light I would still expect us to be strong top 6 contenders but agree with sentiments we can't take top 2 for granted. Hoping KM still has the magic touch at this level. |
yeah last summer very much felt like the team breaking up and needing a reset. That group had been together for 3/4 years and that always feels like a time to refresh a group.
If we don't get top 6 i would be pretty unhappy. Missing out on the top 2 is a lot easier to do than not. All it takes is a slow start and you are pretty much cooked. Look at Leeds, i would argue they went down with a stronger squad than ours and missed out on auto's with 92 points or whatever it was. |  | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:37 - Apr 14 with 1244 views | IPSWICHFANITFC |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:12 - Apr 14 by MattinLondon |
In comparison to the PL, the championship is appalling. We have parachute payments, top class championship players and a manager who knows that division.
Anything less than automatic promotion should be seen as failure. |
I think top 6 will be minimum requirement, with bouncing back up the expectation. If we lost a play off final, I wouldn't call the whole season a failure.
For the first time in two seasons, there will be pressure again on McKenna to deliver. The Championship season (though internally there might have been higher expectations than we think) and this season were really all about going out there and showing what we are about, but next season, the fans will be expecting promotion and I imagine the owners will want to be back in the PL. |  |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:40 - Apr 14 with 1229 views | gainsboroughblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 10:17 - Apr 14 by Wacko |
There's Norway McKenna will let us take anything for granted. It would be Swede if we won the league though |
Where do you think we will finnish? |  |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:46 - Apr 14 with 1218 views | IPSWICHFANITFC |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:25 - Apr 14 by Nthsuffolkblue |
I am sure they did expect to be higher.
The point is that they got around £24M for those 5 players departing and they hadn't improved the squad that much from the previous Championship one. We are likely to net more than that total on 1 player leaving and quite possibly to do so 2 or 3 times. They spent £17M and the bulk of that went on Mark McGuinness. If we spend the bulk of our income on 1 player, I am sure it will be a striker who will likely be far more impactful.
We really are comparing chalk and cheese when comparing with Luton despite them finishing in the same place last season as we are this. |
Luton scored 52 goals last season and whilst I appreciate we still have 6 games to play, we need to score another 19 to equal that. They retained the two strikers who got double figures for them last season but they haven't fired at all this season.
As long as we are clever with our recruitment, then we will be fine. We are in the best position to attract the players we want to the club than any other previous window in my opinion. As long as we make it count, we will be fine, but we have a problem in midfield to address before we can think about bouncing straight back. | |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:47 - Apr 14 with 1208 views | MattinLondon |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:19 - Apr 14 by hype313 |
We'll be one of the favorites and rightly so, but we all know it can be an awful division to get out of, which is why we spent an eternity in it.
Parachute payments distort it far more these days, we essentially have a cheat code going into it, but, as others have said, what you have on paper doesn't always equal points.
If McKenna stays then I think we will be fine, he will have the bit between his teeth, knowing if we do go up, we'll be in a far stronger position to make a fist of staying up. |
We spent a long time in the championship due to administration and Marcus Evans.
KM is a bright manager who will know that automatic promotion will be the expectation of the owners. | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 12:27 - Apr 14 with 1164 views | ReusersTown |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 10:39 - Apr 14 by IPSWICHFANITFC |
Think you're spot on. I am sure Luton fans were having similar thoughts to us at this stage last season too and now find themselves staring at League 1 (with a season defining game on Friday away at Derby!).
I agree with other comments that the Championship doesn't appear to be as strong this season, but I think we will have a bit of work to do in the summer to get the squad into a position where it's fighting for promotion. |
Any comparisons between Luton and us was and still is lazy in the extreme. Mostly by thick pundits. | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 12:35 - Apr 14 with 1165 views | Ftnfwest |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:06 - Apr 14 by SomethingBlue |
As long as McKenna stays we will be highly competitive – as we remain now. But at this point I'd say it is very, very difficult to state with confidence what our team looks like next season. And it's very important to remember that our promotion side was infused with those generational little bits of magic – relationships & connections between players, Chaplin/Burns for example – that are very hard to replicate from scratch. I'd strongly back McKenna to get us going but really hope we can get the bulk of the squad in place early. [Post edited 14 Apr 11:06]
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i know you can't lay down ideal time periods but assuming as you say the management is unchanged wouldn't mind a couple of years in the champ before going back to also sort out the 2 longer term issues left by ME era which is the academy and overseas scouting. The former is on the way, the latter hopefully is as well but seems to be what's at the heart of the success in the prem for teams below the traditional 'top 6' pus villa/newcastle etc. Still, as we know, who knows what the future might hold? |  | | |
| “He’s no’ Finnish, he’s only 28!” (n/t) on 12:37 - Apr 14 with 1145 views | Bloots |
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| "He's been a really positive influence on my life, I think he's a great man" - TWTD User (May 2025) |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 12:42 - Apr 14 with 1143 views | The_Flashing_Smile |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 10:18 - Apr 14 by davblue |
we should be near the top of the table, i have no doubts about that talent wise but this incarnation of McKenna 2.0 still has it all to prove.
There's more to it than players on paper, much, much more and we aren't traditionally a club that just bounces back, i can't remember us doing it in the 30 odd years i've been following us. Every time we've gone down we have stayed down for a period of time. |
Not sure what we've done over the previous 30 years has any relevance. We didn't come down with the best Champ players, the amount of money we have now, and with the gap between the divisions being so big. |  |
| Trust the process. Trust Phil. |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 12:52 - Apr 14 with 1131 views | davblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 12:42 - Apr 14 by The_Flashing_Smile |
Not sure what we've done over the previous 30 years has any relevance. We didn't come down with the best Champ players, the amount of money we have now, and with the gap between the divisions being so big. |
It’s not in our DNA to be a club that bounces back.
So you don’t think the team we last went down with should have been in the mix for autos talent wise? | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:11 - Apr 14 with 1086 views | NthQldITFC |
The key factor isn't the mechanics of specific players and the skills we lose if they go, it's the ethos of the club. It's the core component of what got us promoted last season and what will get us promoted again if we carry the same passion, team spirit and commitment we have shown for the last three or four years under this management.
Couple that ethos with an enhanced squad (compared to last time we were down) and we give ourselves a very good chance of bouncing straight back up. Feel all 'butt-hurt' and pissy about things not going our way this season and we could flop. But this management (and the squad itself) will never allow that to happen, it only happens amongst limited but irritatingly vocal and repetitive sections of fans. And trolls of course. |  |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:14 - Apr 14 with 1079 views | The_Flashing_Smile |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 12:52 - Apr 14 by davblue |
It’s not in our DNA to be a club that bounces back.
So you don’t think the team we last went down with should have been in the mix for autos talent wise? |
Perhaps, but like I say, it was a much different time. The money you get for coming down was a fraction of what it is now. The gap between the divisions was also nowhere near as big as it is now.
"It’s not in our DNA to be a club that bounces back" is just words. There's nothing concrete in it. | |
| Trust the process. Trust Phil. |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:25 - Apr 14 with 1063 views | davblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:14 - Apr 14 by The_Flashing_Smile |
Perhaps, but like I say, it was a much different time. The money you get for coming down was a fraction of what it is now. The gap between the divisions was also nowhere near as big as it is now.
"It’s not in our DNA to be a club that bounces back" is just words. There's nothing concrete in it. |
It's history, evidence, facts so you like to say!
Albeit there are some differences in money and a talent gap. | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:34 - Apr 14 with 1032 views | The_Flashing_Smile |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:25 - Apr 14 by davblue |
It's history, evidence, facts so you like to say!
Albeit there are some differences in money and a talent gap. |
History is history, it has nothing to do with the now. We're far better run now, for starters. The place where the club physically is, and the name, are the same, but that's it.
History isn't evidence or facts that we won't bounce back this time.
There's a HUGE difference in money and talent gap. | |
| Trust the process. Trust Phil. |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:53 - Apr 14 with 988 views | NthQldITFC |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:25 - Apr 14 by davblue |
It's history, evidence, facts so you like to say!
Albeit there are some differences in money and a talent gap. |
What happened twenty years ago in football is utterly irrelevant to what happens now - the environment is massively different in so many ways and none of the personalities are still involved in any meaningful way. | |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 14:10 - Apr 14 with 966 views | Illinoisblue |
Odd to be so confident when by August we could have - or still need - half a new squad. A big problem will be increase in expectation versus a decrease in momentum and feelgood spirit . |  |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 14:10 - Apr 14 with 960 views | blueoxford |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 11:02 - Apr 14 by baxterbasics |
It does feel a bit like a reset for McKenna and 'his' team next season doesn't it? Feels to me like the first McKenna era is ending even if he does stay on as expected, and the core of that team that went from L1 to the PL is going to be down to bare bones and new blood will come in. We are almost starting again albeit from a higher base.
In this light I would still expect us to be strong top 6 contenders but agree with sentiments we can't take top 2 for granted. Hoping KM still has the magic touch at this level. |
Morsy will either not be with us next season or if he is, he won’t be the playing influence he was in the First Division and last year in the Championship. Whoever replaces him is absolutely key to our chances of success | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 15:28 - Apr 14 with 902 views | Smoresy |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 09:45 - Apr 14 by davblue |
I don't like these posts it's all very arrogant the Championship deserves more respect than that and we are Ipswich Town, not Newcastle coming down.
We are going to have to work our arses off again to even make the play offs. We are in a totally different position to when we came up.
1. We have better players
2. Its yet to be proven we are a better team
3. Connections aren't as good as the team that went up
4. Who do we lose, manager, players?
5. We don't have winning momentum
6. We might start slowly, hangover readjustment period needed |
It could be a special Championship season if present form continues: all parachute clubs exiting the division. Sheff U will likely be the one that needs to navigate the play-offs. I wouldn't bet against them but perhaps it's asking too much; I don't think this has ever happened before.
If it does, making the playoffs must be our minimum expectation. It surely is internally anyway, but even moreso in that circumstance. We'd be one of three teams with double the budget of our competitors, if not triple.
Perhaps Sunderland, with potential player sales, may be able to climb north of 50% of our budget, or Wrexham if they want to be reckless in one season (unlike Birmingham, Wrexham are in a healthy FFP surplus), or Norwich at a push, again with player sales. The list that could get even vaguely competitive to our financial position is set to become very short indeed, for a brief time at least.
That doesn't stop one or two clubs posting exceptional campaigns, like we did last year, but three or more doing so would be wild. We'd need to badly underperform to finish 7th or below, realistically, even if Sheff U don't go up. We only need to glance at the gap between Leicester, Leeds x2, Southampton, Burnley, Sheff U, and 7th place, to appreciate the healthy margin of error for relegated PL sides that seriously invest in the playing squad.
Luton of course took the opposite path and invested elsewhere. They spent the least of any promoted club in the past decade, with a wage bill only £5m higher than Norwich in their 2nd parachute season. And they did that from a starting position of 80 points in the Championship (not a club we should look to for gauging expectations). | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 15:33 - Apr 14 with 874 views | PioneerBlue |
We will likely be losing a significant number from the squad. Next season will require further rebuild but KMck and MA have form in putting together competitive squads. If we are not top 6 next years that is a massive failure, we know the champ is nothing if not attritional. Top 2 will be a heavy lift from a relegation team but will depend on who goes and whether decent players are available and includes us rebuilding the midfield engine, covering for loss of Burns and potentially Ogbene needing lots of game to get going, and replacing a striker in one summer, that is a big risk. | |
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| Based on the squad we have now... on 15:35 - Apr 14 with 860 views | davblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:53 - Apr 14 by NthQldITFC |
What happened twenty years ago in football is utterly irrelevant to what happens now - the environment is massively different in so many ways and none of the personalities are still involved in any meaningful way. |
When spurs are called 'spursy' it's irrelevant? because as a club they have been like that for 30-40 years?
whether it's 20 years ago, 30 years ago or even 7 years ago, when we've gone down, we haven't gone up straight away. Im not saying we won't this time, but we don't have a track record of bouncing straight back up albeit the times we have gone down are isolated over a longer period of time.
I think we have a good chance, but it's not a given. | | | |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 15:38 - Apr 14 with 856 views | davblue |
| Based on the squad we have now... on 13:34 - Apr 14 by The_Flashing_Smile |
History is history, it has nothing to do with the now. We're far better run now, for starters. The place where the club physically is, and the name, are the same, but that's it.
History isn't evidence or facts that we won't bounce back this time.
There's a HUGE difference in money and talent gap. |
neither is there any factual evidence we will go up straight away in the top 2!
I agree with your points, wholly but McKenna is the key to all of this. | | | |
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