Best route to the champions league?

[USABlue]

One you can have just one off day and be out of the comptition

yes but at least it's in our own hands in the EL. You could have a great season in the league but still miss out like we did in Martinez' first season

 

[LABlue2]

yes but at least it's in our own hands in the EL. You could have a great season in the league but still miss out like we did in Martinez' first season

How's the league not in your own hands? There's 38 games, we missed out because we lost (drew really) too many

 

[USABlue]

How's the league not in your own hands? There's 38 games, we missed out because we lost (drew really) too many

unlikely to win all the games in the league so still have to somewhat watch other teams results, Arsenal set a new record this year for most points without getting CL even though they reached 75 points. Just think EL is the way to go..That being said hopefully we don't have to compromise too much and just have a squad capable of sustaining both.

 

[a bell maul]

Man U showed the way. They had no way of being good enough for top 4 (hell, they were camped in 6th most all season). Jose recognised that early and concentrated on trophies. He got 2!!...and CL. After Chelsea they had the most successful season of all English clubs


We are no way good enough to get top 4. Follow the road map Jose provided

 

[USABlue]

Man U showed the way. They had no way of being good enough for top 4 (hell, they were camped in 6th most all season). Jose recognised that early and concentrated on trophies. He got 2!!...and CL. After Chelsea they had the most successful season of all English clubs


We are no way good enough to get top 4. Follow the road map Jose provided

everyone talks about how bad he's done their but he's got them in the CL plus 2 trophies as you said. It may not be pretty but he just wins

 

[a bell maul]

everyone talks about how bad he's done their but he's got them in the CL plus 2 trophies as you said. It may not be pretty but he just wins

yep...we have been barren (trophy-wise) for a generation. He goes to a crap Man U team (6th on 69 points) and wins half of the available trophies in his first year.
I still laugh when I recall some lids on here thought he might choose to manage Everton lol lol lol

 

[Blake]

League by a mile. There's been two English winners of the Europa League in 15 years, the odds of winning it are extremely slim with Champions League clubs now dropping into it and the knock on effect in the league hits prize money for league placements and overall momentum for a club.

From a financial point of view EL would cover a bigger drop in league money than you think. 2015/16 Spurs got to the last 16 ie through the groups & the 1st knock out round (same level we reached in 2014/15). They earned €21m from UEFA (not including additional match day & sponsorship revenue). Liverpool earned €37.8m from reaching the final. Utd will likely break €40m for winning it this season.

The new BT TV deal makes EL money reasonable now a days. Winning it covers the difference in TV money between 20th & 7th in the PL.

Not that I advocate prioritising EL over PL, and your momentum point is probably more valid, but I'd take EL seriously.

I'd agree CL via 4th is more likely than via EL (approx 12/1 vs 25/1 with bookies), but both would be long shots. Getting to CL via a European trophy has got to be the better way to the CL though, surely?

 

[Groucho]

We should win the league, because then we'll have CL and will also have won the league.

 

[flibbyflob]

Next season I would say our best route to a Champions League spot will be winning Europa. I can't see us doing it with Thursday/Sunday all season via a top 4 place.

 

[Market trader]

Europa. Even a good but unsuccessful run in that trophy would improve our European coefficient, which would help our ranking for future competitions.

 

[jonnyg]

Huge gamble though isn't it, if we were to fully concentrate on the EL and our league placing suffers to the extent that we don't qualify next season, we'll be left with a bigger squad of players with no Europe to convince better players to join and help us with our league position. 2015/16 all over again. I wouldn't even put faith in this current squad of bottlers to beat a team like Ajax.

 

[Ivo]

We're going to struggle to break the top six, never mind the top four next season.

Our best chance would have been to catch the RS, but them snatching 4th and champions league means they can attract players and have the budget.

Five of the top six are in the champions league. The other team, arsenal, have tons of money if they need it. They've been reluctant to spend it recently but it's there if they want it.

Unless we do massive and smart business during the summer I can only see the six who finished above us pulling away further. It's a shame but I don't see it any other way.

For us to qualify for the champions league next season we'd have to follow United's plan and win the europa. Guaranteed there will be be top teams dropping out from the champions league, and arsenal as well. Going to be very difficult for a good while I think.

 

[EFCPaul]

I want to win that Europa League so badly, I'd accept a mediocre league campaign for just one season if it meant the boss European away days and then lifting that famous trophy at the end of it all. Ideally you'd want both but it's so hard to do, especially with how demanding the Premier League is. I'm convinced that with 2 or 3 decent signings though we'd be well capable of beating any of the best sides in it, even the CL drop outs. Heck, 2 years ago we looked one of the best sides in the competition with the likes of McGeady and Naismith starting. One idiot decision from Martinez to persist with Alcaraz in a tricky away leg cost us the chance of going on to likely win it.

We badly need a trophy as a club, even it's just the League cup. It's a monkey we desperately need to get off our back and who knows, ending the drought could be the catalyst for a new golden era.

 

[dannyboy]

Honestly, both are highly unlikely. Our squad just isn't good enough.

We're comfortably better than the other teams in the league but the gap to the top six will always be difficult to bridge. Maybe one or two of them might have a poor season but it's difficult to see enough space opening up for us to get into the top four.

Unless we get some serious financial power in the transfer market (and I really doubt we will) we won't get near the top. The problem has been highlighted when we're starting games with Lewin and Valencia on the wings. We're miles away from building a team that can get us to where we want to be.

 

[OneTrueLegend]

For me winning the league would be the best route to the Champions League, because you win a trophy and are in the champions league. The next best route is winning the Europa League, because again, we would have won a trophy and be in the champions league. The third best route is to finish between 2nd and 4th and get in that way.

I know football is just about "being in the champions league" for some people and I understand it is great for revenue and the biggest club competition in the world. But I want to see Everton win trophies.

I would much rather have the season Man Utd have just had, winning two trophies, than qualify for the champions league for the next 20 years, but never win any trophies.