I'm literally not defending him. I want him gone regardless of Saturday's result.
It's just hilarious that the same people saying we've somehow overperformed this season by finishing 8th, are also saying it's realistic to expect us to finish 2nd next season. These people also said we overperformed by finishing 3rd last season, but then point to that same 3rd place finish as evidence of our level.
I get that you're saying we were capable of finishing higher, but by our actual performances we're lucky we didn't finish lower, but ultimately, the argument that we're lucky we didn't finish 15th (or whatever it was xPts had us at) and the argument that we're not far from 2nd or 3rd, are fundamentally incompatible, whichever way you look at them.
As I said, I expect City and Arsenal to have a lock and 1st and 2nd. I expect Liverpool, Chelsea and Newcastle to be among the contenders for the remaining spots in the top four. I think there's chance Villa and/Spurs could also find themselves in the mix again. Even without a complete disaster of a season, top four isn't a guarantee (as Liverpool found out last year).
Regardless of whether we over- or underperformed this season, I think it's setting yourself up for massive disappointment to think we've a realistic chance at 2nd or 3rd.