| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC 17:41 - Dec 15 with 1572 views | thebooks |
Gary O’Neill’s sacking got me thinking how identikit most middling PL teams are.
Basically: a collection of very good, very expensive, interchangeable players. Is there essentially any difference between Brentford, Bournemouth, Brighton and Wolves beyond the quality of their coaching? Any of them can beat each other.
And when it goes wrong it’s pretty horrible. It seems that Wolves fans really don’t like their club. And to be honest, what’s there to like about a more or less random assortment of underperforming top level players?
Then you have us. Burgess, Clarke, Davis, Morsy, Chaplin and Burns have played in our League One campaign. Taylor, Burns, Al Hamadi and Chaplin have played in League Two and below.
Delap and Hutchinson are promising youngsters with next to zero top level experience, yet here they are, starting match-in match-out, tearing up defences.
Wouldn’t it be great if Kalvin Phillips ended up resurrecting his career at Town?
I guess we could end up like Wolves if we stayed up and had a few seasons in the PL. But as it stands, is there any better team to support and get behind? |  | | |  |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 17:48 - Dec 15 with 1518 views | JakeITFC |
Yes, and part of the sadness that the success we are after (staying up and consolidating for a bit) will see us become part of that homogenous mix of teams.
You’d like to think we can buck the trend and keep some soul and atmosphere, but ultimately there must be some very bored fans at Premier League clubs these days. |  | | |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 23:28 - Dec 15 with 1182 views | jaseitfc2015 |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 17:48 - Dec 15 by JakeITFC |
Yes, and part of the sadness that the success we are after (staying up and consolidating for a bit) will see us become part of that homogenous mix of teams.
You’d like to think we can buck the trend and keep some soul and atmosphere, but ultimately there must be some very bored fans at Premier League clubs these days. |
Indeed - I spent I was looking at Palaces league finishes over last 10 years it’s all 10th-16th , must be boring … what more can clubs like that do though really ? I suppose the odd European campaign or cup run ? |  | | |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 23:46 - Dec 15 with 1126 views | jasondozzell |
Late stage capitalism innit. Everyone is a consumer consuming products. Don't like one? Get another.
Football has gone same way.
The truth is winning that way, through mercenary contracts and short term ism and journeyman coaches is hollow ultimately.
That's why what we've got is so special at the moment. It's real and been grown and there's principles and values.
People on Arsenal TV ranting about how Arteta is a fraud and the team is useless because they've drawn to Everton for clicks when they are 6 points off the top of the table.
In the old days you could get relegated and you might keep the manager! Might be the right decision too! |  | | |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 23:58 - Dec 15 with 1088 views | jasondozzell |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 23:46 - Dec 15 by jasondozzell |
Late stage capitalism innit. Everyone is a consumer consuming products. Don't like one? Get another.
Football has gone same way.
The truth is winning that way, through mercenary contracts and short term ism and journeyman coaches is hollow ultimately.
That's why what we've got is so special at the moment. It's real and been grown and there's principles and values.
People on Arsenal TV ranting about how Arteta is a fraud and the team is useless because they've drawn to Everton for clicks when they are 6 points off the top of the table.
In the old days you could get relegated and you might keep the manager! Might be the right decision too! |
In short, feels a bit inevitable that eventually we will be swallowed by the inevitable lightshows, and pitch side 'experiences', ticket price hikes, players dead behind the eyes collecting dosh for short time and promoting their brand rather than the club's, sanitised corporate stuff, etc.
Almost makes you nostalgic for when it was just 13000 of us watching Aaron Drinan gamely chase long balls with nothing but a Bovril to Keep you going. Almost but not quite...
This period really could be the most special before we get to that so got to enjoy every part of it whilst we can! | | | |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 00:35 - Dec 16 with 1034 views | Sharkey |
I doubt the fans of these clubs see their players as interchangeable.
Take Brighton's central midfielders, for example.
Matt O'Riley played a full season in League 1 (MK Dons) as recently as 2021-2022.
Jack Hinshelwood is from Sussex and has come through the academy.
Jakub Moder - Polish, been with Brighton for four years.
Yasin Ayari - 21 years old, a rival with Cajuste for a place in the national team, on loan in the Championship for most of last season.
James Milner. Is James Milner.
They weren't THAT expensive, and I'm sure to Brighton fans they're not at all 'interchangeable'. |  | | |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 00:50 - Dec 16 with 1013 views | Oldsmoker |
| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 23:58 - Dec 15 by jasondozzell |
In short, feels a bit inevitable that eventually we will be swallowed by the inevitable lightshows, and pitch side 'experiences', ticket price hikes, players dead behind the eyes collecting dosh for short time and promoting their brand rather than the club's, sanitised corporate stuff, etc.
Almost makes you nostalgic for when it was just 13000 of us watching Aaron Drinan gamely chase long balls with nothing but a Bovril to Keep you going. Almost but not quite...
This period really could be the most special before we get to that so got to enjoy every part of it whilst we can! |
Corporate will have their say (and win).
That new stand where we can have families who pay a reduced price or handicapped people getting a good seat at a fair price. Dream on.
Corporate say "Sure we'll include low-price social housing" and then they renegotiate and then there is no low-price housing for anyone.
Too much corporate seating kills the atmosphere.
Portman Road does not need the Wembley half-time empty corporate seating staring at you on world-wide television that is a feature of EVERY England home match. |  |
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| We’re not Wolverhampton Wanderers, we’re Ipswich FC on 02:59 - Dec 16 with 925 views | IPS_wich |
I'm going to get shot down for this - but I think that's a really condescending post.
I look at the likes of Brentford and Brighton especially and have nothing but admiration for them. I aspire for Ipswich to achieve what they have achieved and see nothing about Ipswich that makes us any more special or supportable than either. They are certainly not identikit.
I love our club and our journey to date, it is a really great football story and one we should be hugely proud of - but I hate to say it - if we genuinely want to emulate their success and become a middling premier league side then we will have to move on from the majority of our league 1 and championship players, because as great as we are doing, the majority of them are not at the level of a middling premier league side - case in point, Baleba, a kid who is younger than both Delap and Hutchinson tore us a new one when we played Brighton earlier this year.
Sure - Southampton, Wolves, Leicester and West Ham are not clubs I remotely aspire to be - but the likes of the three Bs (Brighton, Brentford and Bournemouth) are on journeys every bit as wonderful as ours is. | | | |
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