Minimum Requirements for 2008-2009

[Rashid]

So what is your minimum requirement for Rafa to get a new contract at the end of the season?

[Darkon]

Serious PL challenge
Good run in the CL

(Sign of progress like we have seen for every season Rafa has been here)

That would be about it for me...

[Roboklopp]

Where's the option of finishing below 4th?

[Rashid]

Where's the option of finishing below 4th?

On an Everton forum.

[Craig_H]

On an Everton forum.

We need to make a proper challenge, but 'until May' isnt necessary.

Continual improvement would be my answer.

So if we finish less than 10 points off the winners, that'd be acceptable.

[saj]

On an Everton forum.

Great reply

[Rashid]

So if we finish less than 10 points off the winners, that'd be acceptable.

So what happens like under Mourinho if Chelsea win it in April and just play their reserves allowing us to close the gap from 20 to 10 points?

IMO we need to be in the mix when the business end of the season is at it's climax.

[Craig_H]

So what happens like under Mourinho if Chelsea win it in April and just play their reserves allowing us to close the gap from 20 to 10 points?

IMO we need to be in the mix when the business end of the season is at it's climax.

That's a very selective reply and indicates that you just want him out regardless. Unless we won the title, which is unrealistic.

We need to still be 'contending' the title until March, in my book. April would be nice. May is also unrealistic as far as i am concerned.

[Darkon]

On an Everton forum.

[Rashid]

That's a very selective reply and indicates that you just want him out regardless. Unless we won the title, which is unrealistic.

We need to still be 'contending' the title until March, in my book. April would be nice. May is also unrealistic as far as i am concerned.

I didn't say win the title, I said challenge for it and that means be in the mix when it is about to be won - not slow down and be happy with 4th just because we stayed in 75% of the way. When GH came 2nd, we were NEVER in the mix at any time that season.

[Matt]

Third in the league and finally taking points off Utd, Chelsea and Arsenal.

[Craig_H]

I didn't say win the title, I said challenge for it and that means be in the mix when it is about to be won - not slow down and be happy with 4th just because we stayed in 75% of the way. When GH came 2nd, we were NEVER in the mix at any time that season.

Perhaps we have different ideas of 'contending'. It's more about the difference in points for me, than whether we finish 3rd or 4th. I'd rather finish 4th and within 8 points of the winners, than 15 points behind and 3rd, providing we continued improving. Turning 4th into 1st wont happen overnight and i'd rather see us getting gradually closer each year than having one good year where we're 2nd and then going backwards again.

I dont know when the last time was that a side finished 4th and then went into the following May with a realistic chance of winning it. Do you?

[anfieldanfield]

By March/April we have to be seriously challenging.

If we don't get close this year it's hard to make a case for giving Rafa another season.

[Rashid]

Perhaps we have different ideas of 'contending'. It's more about the difference in points for me, than whether we finish 3rd or 4th. I'd rather finish 4th and within 8 points of the winners, than 15 points behind and 3rd, providing we continued improving. Turning 4th into 1st wont happen overnight and i'd rather see us getting gradually closer each year than having one good year where we're 2nd and then going backwards again.

I dont know when the last time was that a side finished 4th and then went into the following May with a realistic chance of winning it. Do you?

It doesn't matter if it's 4th or 2nd - I want us to have a realistic chance of winning it at the end of April beginning of May.

[Craig_H]

It doesn't matter if it's 4th or 2nd - I want us to have a realistic chance of winning it at the end of April beginning of May.

I think end of april or beginning of may might be asking a lot but generally i do agree with you. Maybe beginning of april or mid april is more realistic. It'd be much longer than we've stayed in the title race for a very long time and as i said, you cant expect to go from crawling to sprinting so quickly.