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Comment | Southampton At Northampton Town The Verdict
at 09:55:18
At least we got the win, but an untidy match at times and thankfully Northampton's poor finishing saved our blushes, and the win came from the only player who really looked dangerous in attack. I'm concerned that our midfield hasn't started to "click" yet and although they are good as individuals, they need to find each other better in attacks.
Regardless of the fact that we have 4 or 5 strikers on the books none of them looked like scoring, and we can be grateful the Wrexham game was won by two "veteran" defenders.
At 36 , I don't see McCarthy as a reliable no.2 ..and if Bazunu has any injury / form issues it could be very embarrassing. One issue that annoys is the likes of Harwood-Bellis and Flynn Downes get yellow-cards for.. arguing with the referee(!)..bl**dy nonsense. If you do get carded let it be for an important reason. There is no VAR ..and the ref. is unlikely to change his mind and apologise. Playing the game out with a yellow to your name can be restricting in critical situations and a second card then creates two problems in the longer term.
Back to the beginning ...at least it's a win and we hope for a good draw in the next round. |
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Comment | Southampton At Northampton Town The Preview
at 17:29:35
We still have a large squad and a number of them will get minutes against Northampton, with a view to catching Will Still's eye, or conversely getting into the shop window for those who want away and to avoid sitting on the bench for the rest of the season.
Wood-Gordon, Kayi-Sanda and even one or two U21 hopefuls may get some game time.
A start for McCarthy to prove to Will that he is a reliable no.2 goalie a- voiding mistakes.
I shall look for another front line with Stewart, Downs and even Brereton-Diaz to start.
Some of Saturday's starters may be on the bench, and come on later depending on the state of the game after 60 minutes. If we are to succeed in this league, this level of opposition, one hopes that they shouldn't be too much of a problem. |
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Comment | Southampton V Wrexham The Verdict
at 20:49:30
Irony of ironies. With 25 shots ..yet no goals in the 89th minute, we win a free kick, and the thought came to me ..where is Prowsey when you need him?. What happened then and 6 minutes later became the most ironic happenings in almost any game I can remember.
Manning and Stephens (two players who most of us would have been happy to see the back of just a month ago) came up with the goods and saved Will Small's bacon in his first game as a manager. Whilst looking to introduce young talents into the side, it was the veterans who finally delivered the result.
Not to ignore the aging Ryan Fraser who had a good game without getting any reward. Whilst Wrexham were tearing up the pitch in the first half, they were rapidly running on empty in the last quarter when Saints came on strongly and forced the win.
In the days of VAR, we would have got two penalties and we must learn to adapt to the shortcomings of short-sighted officials, who can't keep up with the game and are too often badly-placed to see these offences. Hopefully we won't get too many games with finishes like that as it's likely to play havoc with my blood pressure.
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Comment | Will Still Speaks Ahead Of His First Competitive Game In Charge.
at 19:32:57
Your headline is...Will speaks ahead of his first game ..etc, but I think it's more interesting to hear his comments AFTER the first game. Did things go the way he hoped? ..and was his formation the right one for that game ...or, if it didn't - what's the next move?
I have the feeling that the line-up will change a bit in the first month, and with the "possible departure" of the players mentioned, who will come in as replacements?
Quite frankly, I don't think we will get a picture of Will's best line-up for at least 3 or4 games, but most importantly how many goals we can score?. We must expect to concede at times, but we'll need to score 90+ goals - if we are looking at a promotion spot.
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Comment | Southampton Technical Director Defends Jack Stephens Contract
at 10:40:41
Certainly last season was not he best in many ways and the red card incident involving the team captain was pretty low on the scale of approval. However, one thing that came out is " Captain Jack's" profile behind the scenes, in the dressing room and his reputed encouragement to younger players seems to weigh heavily in a rapidly-changing squad.
His 14 year tenure with the club stands alone as our veteran player. Since Jan.B's departure (after 7 years), the longest serving outfield player is probably Adam Armstrong (?)...and so there is very little " club" experience from any of the others, since Lallana's retirement.
I buy into all the arguments above (Nick). A long contract for "an average player" but in Jack Stephens we have someone whose dedication to the club goes way beyond his salary.
In time, he may not be an automatic first-choice in every match, (beside the new, younger defensive talents we have), but his very presence in the club may weigh more heavily (psychologically) for the playing staff than may seem apparent to fans on the outside. |
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Comment | Tyler Dibling Trains Alone As Southampton Supporters Say Club Should Sell
at 16:15:31
Clearly TD has got the bit between his teeth and has (supposedly) spoken with the Everton personnel and has his mind set on a possible / likely move, although Spurs may not be out of the picture and Newcastle has liked him since his U21 hat-trick up there a while ago.
It's must be a no-brainer for Tyler (given the U21 salary he's on at present) and so it's only a matter of time before someone meets our demands and a deal will be done.
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Comment | Southampton Weighing Up Signing Keeper Is The Target Already Identified !
at 16:15:49
Ryan is a good choice (all said in above article). Perhaps Bazunu has come back improved, but McCarthy is still with us for this season but isn't a first choice in the event of injury.
McCarthy's already extended contract will go out next year, and regardless of Ramsdale's future, we would still have a quality keeper in Ryan, and in the event of promotion Rambo might return , or if sold permanently to Newcastle(?)..we would still have a good keeper.
With the ongoing chaos at Sheffield Wednesday..who knows what will happen to those on their staff if everything goes pear-shaped. Shea's brother would easily find a home here.
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Comment | Southampton Set For Yet Another Turkish Transfer Stand Off
at 16:05:44
Agree with you (Nick) and kenchilds 70 (above).
Tell them them the price we want and not to waste the cost of the phone call unless they are prepared to pay up. If we don't get an offer near the 9..10mill. quoted from someone else, at least we wouldn't get screwed again. |
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Comment | Southampton Go Into Championship Opening Weekend In Strong Position
at 14:44:41
Over a period of 50 years or more, I 've made it a rule of never taking a serious look at the League tables until after game 7 or 8. Lucky goals, a VSR gift once in a while, one or two good displays and some indifferent results all play a part, but by then we can look at starting line-ups and see the gaps that need to be filled on the last day.
Few of the "old brigade" that Will inherited have shown up better any than they were before, whilst those youngbloods who got game time did well in their limited minutes.
By the end of the month we should have sorted the "wheat from the chaff" and Will Small will have some semblance of an acceptable squad.
With the " slo-mo RM possession formation" now a forgettable page in the club's history, we can look forward to some good attacking football, and even if we concede goals, can end every game with one point ..or more ..than the opposition, with the given knowledge that most promoted clubs need to score upwards of 90 goals in order to get promotion.
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Comment | Southampton Lose To Brighton In Behind Closed Doors Friendly
at 11:37:29
I never pay too much attention to " friendly games " - even those are aren't so friendly.
At best they are unsophisticated kickabouts, with regular players expecting to hold onto their squad places, and young talents looking to show-up and get the manager's attention.
The result doesn't cost the team any points, but to finish undefeated looks nice.
This season is different with a new manager who is cleaning house and (presumably) gave everyone a clean sheet from Day 1. I'm sure he has decided on most of those who will be leaving , who to bring in and will be looking to spend a little on some new names.
I think I was more interested to see the names of those who didn't get to play, rather than those who did get some minutes under their belts. |
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Comment | Everton See Tyler Dibling Bid Rejected By Southampton
at 10:12:51
A typical "cheapy bid " from a Billionaire's club, who will try to convince Saints that £27 really is " a lotta money". Next week they will return at £35 mill. and say that's the best they can do for young player ... in a Championship side... (blah. blah, etc).
We can acknowledge the "£100 million" quoted last season was almost equivalent to
pi**ing in the wind, but we should certainly hold out for a decent sum ...(at least half of that) AND a goodly sell-on clause plus bonuses. Any other clubs showing real interest should take note if they feel they can make " a killing" at the expense of a "small club".
We await the next move.... |
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Comment | West Ham Make Enquiry For Saints Midfielder But Get Knock Back
at 08:58:27
a note to GRIM (above).
True - the wage issue is a problem, but if WHam let him go at the end of the season, there is unlikely to be a queue seeking him, and a reduced salary might be win-win situation.
Romeu was a one-off. A hardline midfielder (in the mould of Jimmy Case) who DAJFU, and collected 66 yellow cards in 7 years ...whilst avoiding a single red.! He and Prowsey were a v. good partnership but after OR left, JWP was forced to drop even deeper and had no regular partner anywhere near Romeu's quality to support him.
JWP deserved the move to WHam, but showed he was more popular with Moyes than he seems to be under Potter. His apps. to date are nearly all as a sub. and his Saints role as a captain and "free-kicker" (after Rice left) went to other managerial / Hammer fan favourites who did no better, and several have since left the club.
The loan to Forest was fiasco, and clearly their manager just wanted an extra ar*e on the bench, and had no intention of using him to replace any of his regular starters.
All this supposition is still a season away, but the JWP / KWP partnership may well be the missing link in WHam's planning. |
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Comment | West Ham Make Enquiry For Saints Midfielder But Get Knock Back
at 09:24:39
Separate issues here, think Nick.
1) Fernandes was the only stand-out success in a disasterous season, and surely left an impression with several other Prem. clubs. IF ..he goes anywhere, we should make sure that we get a good deal for someone who is our most-marketable player at the moment.
2) JWP has his won place in our club history, but despite that still had his detractors (and not a few on this site). For my part I thought he was highly dependable, especially when playing alongside Romeu in midfield (sadly we never successfully replaced either of them).
His subsequent seasons playing deeper, denied him the chances of exploiting the attacking role that always suited him best.
IF WHam signed him for 3 years (?) then he will be in his final year when the season starts.
Having signed KWP, I think Potter would be daft not to give them a chance to play together for a longer time before making a decision about letting him go / renewing his contract.
Would I have him back ?...I think he is still a class act, and for those who may cite their disappointment at the return performances of Walcott and Lallana, we are not talking about the same beast. I think Prowsey reads the game well and would DAJFU as someone who could help others and still has the energy - and legs- to play for another 3 years. |
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Comment | Southampton Winger Set To Move To France
at 16:04:35
Tricky situation for teenagers who join the club and then can't nail down a regular starting place in order to justify their fee. Now at 22, Sam still hasn't established himself, which has been tough luck as it has been a tough period - in the reign of 3 managers ( or is it 4).
Given the chance I'm sure he will make a career for himself and maybe even return to England with another club in the future..which is also a reminder than we ought to have a juicy sell-on clause in the sale ..just in case. |
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Comment | Farewell To Jan Bednarek
at 09:15:43
Fair to good in a revamped defence that had lost Fonte and VvD, but was seldom MoM , but best said HDAJFU on many occasions. He may well be good with Porto if they have a defensive formation that suits him.
One recalls that after being recklessly discarded by Claude Puel,.... Jose Fonte had a great career in Europe and continued playing into his late 30's.
I hope that Janne can find some form to stabilise his place at Porto. |
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Comment | Bazunu Faces Uncertain Saints Future Even After Man Of The Match Performance
at 11:12:35
This is (presumably) an adjunkt to Ramsdale's future, which is likely to be elsewhere. Much of Bazunu's "reputation " was based on the critical season In the Prem. after moving from the League One level there were certainly flaws in his performances. However, he is still a young keeper and historically even the best keepers will take time to mature.
We have McCarthy as the alternative and it's fair to say that his time is past, although he is at best.. a stable sub. in emergencies, but not a consistent performer over a season.
Even if GB stays this season we will need A.N.OTHER to challenge him for the no.1 spot.
Names are being bandied about but we will have to wait until all the pieces are in place before seeing who that will be.
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Comment | Southampton's Latest Transfer Link Is Not What Fans Want To Hear
at 16:24:10
to bowlercow.. I vividly recall the 1967 Chivers deal. It looked good at the time as £125K was a league record at the time, but the problem was (once again) Spurs had seen us coming and clawed back £45k in selling us Frank Saul ...as part of the deal.
A " fairly ordinary player " whose one distinction was that he had scored the winner in the Cup Final earlier that year. He may have been a pleasant fellow off the pitch, but was no replacement for the huge goalscoring talent that Chivers possessed and like others longed for the life in London and returned there just 2 years later having played just 60-odd games and managing 2 league goals and another 10 in somewhat meaningless Cup matches.
Whatever fee we got for him in return was a pittance considering the original outlay.
As for Gueye, he may get a few practice games before being shipped off to one of our European "partners", but only time will tell. Signing this sort of player may look good but few are likely to have the talent to succeed in the Championship - let alone making good in a squad looking for a potential return to the Prem.
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Comment | Southampton's Latest Transfer Link Is Not What Fans Want To Hear
at 13:34:08
this is not a signing that Saints fans should be overly glad / or/ upset over.
This type of player is yet another youngblood from a foreign league who had a standout season but a good spell in our U21 league will show us whether he is a big find, or another " type Seko Mara " who will find his true level, and likely be forced to return to his homeland.
Alternatively, he may suit Götzepe or Valenciens set-up and he can stay within the group. |
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Comment | Who Will Captain Saints This Season
at 18:33:01
Players like JWP were nailed-on selections in every game, as well as being team captain.
Memory serves that we've had " club captains " before, but that didn't mean that Jack is necessarily an automatic starting choice, if he is to be with us for a longer period.
Alternatives ? ...There is no certainty that THB will still be here come September, and I have the feeling that he has one or two behavioural issues he must learn from, but Shea Charles already has a lot of league experience and is also captain in the Northern Ireland team and so maybe he is a good choice in what is an otherwise " fairly young" squad. |
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