Premier League strategy for promoted clubs

tricky

After seeing Hull spend £2.5 million on Anthony Gardner, I was wondering what the best strategy for a newly promoted club like Hull (or ourselves if were we to sneak in through the playoffs this year) would be.

A) You can spend lots of money, hope to stay up, with the risk of it all going pear shaped financially if you don't., eg Bradford?
B) You can enjoy your season in the sun, collect the money, keep the club safe, and look towards strengthening the squad in preparation for promotion the following season, when you can have a proper crack at staying up. eg West Brom, Charlton in 98/99? (and what Watford tried but failed to do)
C) Do a mixture of both and hope to stay up by the skin of your teeth, but if you get relegated face a struggle to get back up.

I think all three promoted clubs will struggle this year, but I don't really see how the signing of Anthony Gardner £2.5m, for example, will really help Hull to stay up. Maybe I've underestimated him as a player, but unless Hull strengthen everywhere then they will get relegated regardless. Unfortunately for them, we might see them get desperate for signings and buy a few premiership journeymen on high wages, only to get relegated anyway. Thats when the real problems start, as we all know.

Anyway, there is a point in all this rubbish somewhere - if we were to get promoted via the playoffs this year, what would be the strategy or plan of action that you would like to see Charlton utilise?

Do we chase the dream risking financial ruin, spend a little money in the hope of staying up and aim to become a yo yo club in order to have a full assault on premier league establishment but risk disappearing into championship midtable mediocrity, or do we risk cries of "no ambition" by investing little in the squad, but ensuring the future of our club is safe?

You never know, come the spring and the CAFC board might be on here looking for tips and advice!!

Apologies if this makes little sense.

T

Teamwork will get you so far but you're going to get hammered on a couple of occassions, so you need to spend a bit of money on quality going forwards, an average of a goal a game will not keep you up. But two goals a game against teams in your mini league will.

Hull and Stoke will struggle but West Brom have 4 decent strikers of which you'd hope 2 are premiership quality.

StanmoreAddick

I think that it's fairly obvious that our current board will take the cautious approach of plan b regarding it as a marathon rather than a sprit.

As is also fairly obvious, in some sections of the fans- the board will be damned if they do amd damned if they don't.

jimmymelrose

Go for B. Take the money and try to do it again and again until the Eurpeon league starts in about 2015 at which point we can take the new look top flight more seriously with the top 4-6 clubs gone.