No one can seriously doubt that we are safe, hard as it is for a Palace fan to take anything for granted. The simple fact is that 37 points will almost certainly keep you up this year, and that means we need 5 wins and 17 losses from 22 games. I really can't see how we are going to fail to achieve that even in my most pessimistic moments. Furthermore, at least six teams are demonstrably weaker than us by any imaginable metric. Bournemouth and Southampton are not PL quality full stop. Both will go down so that leaves only one place in doubt. Forest are probably not PL quality yet, but may have time to grow into being good enough. Everton, Leeds, and West Ham are all to different degrees seriously flawed sides not as good as Palace. For me, this is the first time in a long time I have felt there was no real relegation threat this early in a season.

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

It both kills and terrifies me to express it to others however I do feel the same.

At the very worst, relegation seems to be a distant possibility, as opposed to surviving it being our entire identity.

Now Zaha's got a bit of green grass ahead of him here... and finds Ambrose... not a bad effort!!!!

Gut says we are fine, and in a decent position to kick on.

Had we beaten Fulham and Forest I would have said we were 100% safe.

However we have a horrid run of fixtures now, I can see a world where we lose the next 7 straight. (Although in reality that wont happen)

This season is a bit like the one where Leicester won the league where lots of teams seem in a period of transition. It's a shame we weren't able to invest more last summer to take advantage.

With the players they have and the money they've spent I have no idea how West Ham are where they are, and yet they have been awful in some games this season, including a lethargic display versus us. With the quality they have I still think they'll get a run together at some point like Leicester did. Similarly, and begrudgingly, I also imagine Everton will eventually sort their act out, or they'll miraculously find £50million down the back of the FFP sofa to buy a new striker.

Bournemouth need to invest this window as with the squad they have they are in serious trouble. O'Neill gave them a new manager bounce but that has long since worn off. I think they'll drop.

Southampton are also in big trouble and I think (and hope) they'll go down. Hasenhüttl got them playing on the front foot and I think he would have got them over the line despite poor form. Eventually if you don't invest then it will catch up on you as it did to the likes of Burnley.

I think the remaining spot will be a battle between Forest, Wolves, and Leeds. We could have a big say seeing as 8 out of our last 10 games are against teams currently below us in the league.

It seemed he earned the position rather than having originally been in serious contention for it. With the proverbial wheels coming off you may be right; with new money often comes new expectations.

We're significantly less likey than some. I get that it can pay to be cautious but at what point does that turn into being defeatist? We forget how far we've come in recent years and are an entirely different animal to the likes of Forest and Bournemouth. We should look to push on, not look back.

Edited by MrWhyNot (04 Jan 2023 3.33pm)