Sorry about the bias and bilge, but some might see it as objectivity.
You seem to miss the point because of your automatic leap to defend anything which is said against Pool. I never suggested the team are not good enough to finish in the top 4, but simply not yet outstanding enough for it to be automatic. It would not be the biggest shock in football if the side gained no points from there next 3 games, all away, at Chelsea, Wigan and Charlton.......unlikely maye, but quite possible. If this happens I will not be the only one asking questions in here about getting a top 4 place.
Man U are still a force. Bolton, Spurs and even steady Blackburn are all capable of a run to take advantage of any slip up despite those games in hand which we all know can become a burden rather than an advantage if fatigue and injuries start to play a part late in the season.
Any suggestion to the side that their clbutt will take them through is negative because Pools decent league form is too recent for this to be so, unlike the sides of the past when it would be simply a statement of fact.
The biggest danger for any side is the belief that they are a better team than they really are. Tired players need little excuse to not put it all in. They need to be reminded that graft will see them though. Without it, quality, real of supposed, may not be enough when the games stack up as they will in the next 2 or 3 months.
You ask by what measure I suggest Pool are not good enough to finish comfortably in the top 4? They should, and probably will, as long as they forget any idea of "comfortably". If you need examples the league is full of them. Everton looked comfortable for months last year before just hanging on.
Arsenal, one of the finest teams we have seen in the Prem, won it in 04 and finished 2nd last time, were odds on for a top 4 in the early part of this season.
LC
