A rather sensible approach to our position by a journalist

[Spike]

by John Nicholson at football365.com:

 

Expectation is everything in life. I call it the Ex Factor.

 

If you go on a date expecting a goodnight kiss but actually receive a hand job, you're chuffed to bits. But go on a date expecting it to end with some horizontal dancing and get a hand job, you're disappointed. That's the Ex Factor right there.

 

This is why it's best to expect nothing out of life; you can then never be disappointed or frustrated. Our Buddhist friends tell us that it is attachment that brings pain in this material world, which is a bit of bad news for a football fan.

 

While you may not feel like donning the orange robes and chanting Om, the whole issue of expectation does need to be addressed.

 

It's such a mercurial thing. Where does it come from? Who generates it?

 

As was pointed out last night, Spurs are said to be having a very good season and Harry Redknapp is endlessly hailed for it, and yet Rafa Benitez, just one point behind Spurs, is managing a club 'in crisis' and gets it in the neck from all quarters. How can this be? It's all down to expectation.

 

Liverpool finished second last year so many expected a similar good season and thus seem lower than where they should be, whilst Spurs are pretty much at the top of what was considered to be achievable. But let's turn that on its head.

 

Spurs have a massive squad of good players - probably bigger and better than Liverpool's. They've spent huge amounts of cash and yet they're still only a point ahead of Liverpool. So hang on, why are Spurs not 'in crisis'? If Liverpool is as poor as their critics say they are, this must makes Spurs just as bad? It must only be because no-one expects them to do better than fourth. Odd that isn't it. Maybe we really should expect Spurs to do better than fourth. Maybe Redknapp's judgement should be called into question. Why isn't he doing better?

 

Villa are a point behind Liverpool but are also widely considered to be having a great season. But if they fail to beat their previous two sixth-place finishes, how good will it really be? If Liverpool are so 'poor', why are the 'excellent' Villa not way ahead of them? Again, it's the Ex Factor.

 

Man City are spending the GDP of Belgium to get just one point ahead of Rafa's mob. So how good are they? And how bloody long will he wear that damn scarf - it's not even cold anymore.

 

So we can see Liverpool are being judged against an entirely different standard to their rivals. Essentially Rafa and his squad are being slated for not being as good as their critics think they should be, as opposed to being as good as they actually are.

 

Having watch a spirited, if somewhat ragged defeat of Spurs, it seems to me that Liverpool are, if anything, slightly over-performing with the talent at their disposal. Strip out the Ex Factor and you've got a side with some fairly ordinary players in the top six with every chance of finishing fourth. Hang on, isn't that actually really quite good?

 

Benitez is often criticised for assembling a squad of players, many of whom look short of quality, but hang on again; it's the same squad that finished second. So wasn't that actually a brilliant achievement - finishing so high with players who are so average? This season is more on par for the quality of the squad.

 

I wouldn't pretend that all is well at Anfield and that Benitez walks on water but they suffer much more than most from the Ex Factor. Shed the burden of it and things don't look nearly as apocalyptic.

[Andy @ Allerton]

Andy likes this.

[Redray]

by John Nicholson at football365.com:

 

Our Buddhist friends tell us that it is attachment that brings pain in this material world, which is a bit of bad news for a football fan.

 

While you may not feel like donning the orange robes and chanting Om, the whole issue of expectation does need to be addressed.

 

 

Not really that sensible.

 

These would be our Hindu friends not Buddhist!

[WillG]

BURN HIM!

[Andy @ Allerton]

Not really that sensible.

 

These would be our Hindu friends not Buddhist!

 

 

They might be going to a fancy dress party

[Redray]

They might be going to a fancy dress party

 

Well then he should have made that clear.

 

Sloppy journalism.

[DecidedByPoll]

I'm not sure I'd call John Nicholson a journalist really. Four years ago I had a run of four or five articles printed on F365 with the offer of a bit of paid stuff if I kept it up over the world cup. I changed job and concentrated on that, so it fell away, but if you're good enough and you become friendly with the editor of the site it's not hard to get your opinion up there.

[Spiblish]

Also this by Tony Barrett in The TimesGillett tells terminalogical inexactitudes

[Redray]

I'm not sure I'd call John Nicholson a journalist really. Four years ago I had a run of four or five articles printed on F365 with the offer of a bit of paid stuff if I kept it up over the world cup. I changed job and concentrated on that, so it fell away, but if you're good enough and you become friendly with the editor of the site it's not hard to get your opinion up there.

 

You tend to get the more insightful and balanced articles from good amatuer journos in my opinion.

[DecidedByPoll]

You tend to get the more insightful and balanced articles from good amatuer journos in my opinion.

 

 

Yeah - there's some terrific writing from football fans who are knowledgable and honest about their own and other clubs. Mostly becuase they don't have to respond to an editorial agenda. There's no doubt at the moment that 'Rafa's lost it' is selling more papers than 'Rafa's quite good actually'. Symptomatic of the current sensationalisation of everything culture. Adam and Joe had a brilliant phrase for it when talking about Simon Cowell's tendency to say to any act that in some way it was the best he'd ever seen.. 'an orgasmic parade of revelation'.

[Fastardo]

Also this by Tony Barrett in The TimesGillett tells terminalogical inexactitudes

 

Wow, he's savaged him there. Brilliant

[Spiblish]

Wow, he's savaged him there. Brilliant

I agree it reflects what most people on here think of him too!!