Can we consign the myth of pre-season to the dustbin now?

Nyhus · August 20, 2018

This thread is a tiny bit premature.

Lob · August 20, 2018

It is nice to win some pre-season games because we always want to see our team win no matter who or when they play but its not necessary and not what pre-season is for. Its about preparing for the season ahead i.e getting players fit, trying out new stuff such as formations, tactics and when you have just appointed a new Management team, pre-season allows them to get to know everyone and properly assess each and every player and position and decide who is needed and who might be considered surplus to requirements. Pretty much exactly what happened this pre-season.

Number_25 · August 20, 2018

2 games into the season.

Christ, I really do hate every single one of you.

Richarlinson · August 20, 2018

Pre-season games may only be training sessions but ideally I'd like to see them working towards getting our strongest starting 11 playing the way the manager wants them to play. This summer's pre-season didn't give us the opportunity to do that partly because of the world cup and partly because the 4 deadline day signings will potentially be in our strongest team.

A poor pre-season has to be a concern because if we're playing the likes of Blackburn as a training session then surely Blackburn are playing Everton as a training session yet they still managed to put in a better performance and win.

Next summer we'll have a manager already in post, there's no world cup and we'll have the potential to get signings in early so pre-season will hopefully be a bit more positive.