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Comment | Southampton V Stoke City The Preview
by LordDZLucan at 15:29:43
Other teams have got better at nullifying us as the season has gone on. They learn from the first time they played us as well as from watching how other sides achieve success against us. Therefore I think we need to be more flexible in our tactics. Our full backs tend to be very good at attacking but not so good at defending. I would therefore be tempted to play 3 centre backs thereby allowing KWP and RM to play further up the pitch where they are more comfortable and effective. I know we’ve tried this before this season but we didn’t give it a proper go. The next 2 games are an opportunity to try to bed it in properly. |
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Comment | Southampton V Stoke City The Preview
by JoeEgg at 15:21:29
" Protestations that the fan base are bereft with the current side are way off the mark (in my opinion)."
Not so sure of the truth of this statement.
If we lose to Stoke and/or go on to miss out on promotion through the play-offs, I hope the vast majority of our fan base will realise the utter stupidity of playing the RM tippy tappy stuff with players neither good enough nor happy to play it.
We are not a Premier League side and it was not asking a lot extra from our players to win more games this season in the Championship. If next season we lose our best players and get a new selection of spares from the likes of clubs like Bournemouth, we shall soon start to struggle. Playing Stoke at the weekend might help remind a few supporters that their decline started when they failed to gain immediate promotion back to the Premiership. |
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Comment | Southampton V Stoke City The Preview
by JoeEgg at 15:11:38
" Protestations that the fan base are bereft with the current side are way off the mark (in my opinion)."
Not so sure of the truth of this statement.
If we lose to Stoke and/or go on to miss out on promotion through the play-offs, I hope the vast majority of our fan base will realise the utter stupidity of playing the RM tippy tappy stuff with players neither good enough nor happy to play it.
We are not a Prelier Lea |
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Comment | Southampton V Stoke City The Preview
by TimSaint at 13:32:07
Fraser had the confidence, life and everything else kicked out of him against Millwall - their game plan was purely to target Fraser and after 4 bad fouls on him, he was forced off injured and hasn't been the same since. |
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Comment | Southampton V Stoke City The Preview
by WestSussexSaint at 13:00:38
I realise everyone is entitled to their opinion but this site regularly presents itself as being in tune with the fan base. I don’t know how you can suggest that the fan base is feeling like we have been relegated. Yes there is a degree of disappointment at recent results which have meant we missed out on automatic promotion. But this is nothing like the feeling I and most fans experienced last season when each week we turned up to watch expecting to get beaten regardless of the opposition.
We are in the playoffs and on balance this season the fan experience has been ten times better than recent seasons in the PL because we have been competitive and winning most of the time. So I for one hope we are promoted but even if we are not will be thankful to the management and team for bringing som joy back to SMS this season. Protestations that the fan base are bereft with the current side are way off the mark (in my opinion). |
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Comment | Southampton V Stoke City The Preview
by A1079 at 10:26:15
I think RM needs to play the players that he is going to use in the playoffs because he needs to get them playing as a group again and they the players need to know that they are the ones that he has faith in to give us the best chance. The selection of McCarthy over Lumley was a really poor decision and sent the wrong message - I wonder how much that affected the feeling in the changing room. The message that RM gave out after the Cardiff game told everyone that he thrown in the towel from an automatic promotion perspective and that showed at Leicester in the players performance - loads of possession but no intent.
I am going tomorrow, travelling down from Yorkshire. I appreciate Nick you giving a supportive message of the fans because tomorrow is sold out (whether everyone turns up is another matter - I have been in 2 minds despite buying the ticket but I will go in hope that we see a different attitude on the pitch). The Saints fans support has been great this season home and away (accepting our vocal support has not always been as good as it could be). We have been there and we have been there in numbers and how let down those that went to Leicester on Tuesday must have felt.
As usual the players trotted out the same old stuff after a bad defeat about letting us down and must do better. Heard it all before after a bad defeat and you usually get a brief response and then they lapse back. I just hope the players get it as well as I am not convinced they all do or have the same desire - after all, to some it won't matter whether we challenge for promotion or not because they will just play out their loans or move on anyway.
Overall I have enjoyed this season and it has been good to watch and be a part of. It has gone a bit sour since the Easter period and there is a sense that the manager and the team have lost their way and motivation. It will be interesting to see not just how we react tomorrow but in the playoffs - will we be lions or mice?
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Comment | Southampton At Leicester The Debacle
by underweststand at 18:32:53
There is little to be said to provide an excuse for (Yes Nick) ..debacle was a good word.
For better or worse our back line picks itself every game even when swapping the full backs
and without your favourite whipping buy (Captain Jack). Sadly recent events meant that the injuries to Downes and Stuey meant that the midfield trio picked themselves, and after Rothwell went off injured Will Smallbone was " the best of the worst " even after coming on as sub. To brag about the fact that Adam. A and Che Adams have 37 goals between them is to totally ignore all the clear cut chances they seem to waste in almost every game. Unless our form picks up incredibly we may be hard put to it to win the play-offs and certainly very few in the current squad look to be anywhere near Prem. standard.
The thing I hated most about losing 0-5 was that Jamie Vardy scored against us -yet again.
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Comment | No Togetherness No Character No Fight
by Boris1977 at 17:28:50
Sports Republic hold entire responsibility for their transfer policy ahead of our last season in the premiership by buying/loaning in a load of youngsters rather than buying fewer but more focused personnel where they were genuinely required (GK, CB x 1 at least a a half decent striker). They stuck with poor Ralph into the new season and then rushed into appointing the Welsh loony. They then panic bought a world class midfielder and massive striker neither of who was given a chance. We were relegated as bottom club in a weak premiership. Then they haggle over £1m compensation for a average manager (based on his stats at his two previous clubs). Rather they again failed to strengthen in the vital areas again, got rid of our better players, including a proven championship striker, and bought an injured striker for 10m, who has played 10 mins of football all season. Sports Republic are a bunch of hedge fund managers making low stake investment in the hope of getting a higher return. A successful football club cannot be run on that basis. While they are the owners we'll keep getting spreadsheet managers but rarely will they be given funds to buy quality players to fulfil the style of football RM plays. RM will always be a championship manager because of his stubbornness. Decent managers will do whatever ever they need to win matches - even if that means dropping a so called philosophy and winning ugly.
I wonder where we'd be if alongside the man city loannee we bought in a seasoned CB and kept Tella this team would have done under RMs style of play? |
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Comment | Southampton At Leicester The Debacle
by AmericanSaint at 20:40:04
Also, don't forget that who ever else in in the playoffs with us, will watch this game and copy the tactics, which will obviously cause us issues since RM can't change tactics on the fly. We will have to wait and see what happens. |
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Comment | No Togetherness No Character No Fight
by PezzaSaint at 20:38:58
I find RM’s press conferences rather bizarre at the best of times, but after the defeat last night bizarre is replaced with ridiculous! What on earth is he doing in saying we wouldn’t have lost 5-0 with JS in the team. It was nonsensical! He picks the teams!
I have a tendency to agree with those who say he’s lost the plot.
I |
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Comment | No Togetherness No Character No Fight
by SanMarco at 15:12:53
I think the JS comment was a dig at the fans, most of whom he knows he has lost.
I doubt RM will be with us next season but sacking him now would be idiotic. Promotion then RM off to Brighton and a proper manager replacing him would be the ideal - but when did we ever get that?
I don't think we should get too personal about all this. RM has done exactly what it says on the tin that SR brought in. Those fans that feel 4th is an over-achievement will wonder what all the fuss is about!!
My fear is that SR have an appalling record over managerial appointments so to assume the next one will be more suitable may be over-optimistic..
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Comment | Southampton At Leicester The Debacle
by SanMarco at 14:38:30
I think last night was the funeral ceremony for RM's way of doing things. He has imposed a style that is highly unlikely to work and Leicester rammed that fact home with a hammer and five (could have been more) nails.
What now? Both feasible answers to that involve a different manager. If we don't go up he has failed and if we do go up the prospect of next year under him is frightening. The only winner would be Ralph whose 9-0 record might well be surpassed. Cooper, Potter, Eddie Howe (I think Saudis will sack him in summer) are all better prospects whether we go up or not.
It was a sad and embarrassing evening and one person alone is to blame. WBA outplayed Leicester at the weekend - we didn't play at all. |
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Comment | No Togetherness No Character No Fight
by IanRC at 13:56:11
Frankly, the women’s season is about to finish and Marianne Spacey-Cale would probably do a better job than Martin in the playoffs. Any fool could see that balls over the top and speedy players were the answer but one speed Martin insists on playing out slowly. |
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Comment | No Togetherness No Character No Fight
by WoolstonSaint2 at 13:49:00
I have never been so infuriated watching Saints this season. Our tactics are awful, 65-70% possession and no shot on target- what is the point of this? When you play a competitive sport, you play to WIN. Last night was another complete embarrassment for our entire city on live TV. I am not buying another ticket until we change the way we play. Had enough now. I don't care whether we are 4th, 12th or 20th, but we always give every game a good go. That is the Southampton Way, not this current garbage. |
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Comment | No Togetherness No Character No Fight
by LordDZLucan at 13:47:59
Russell Martin’s comments were made as a reflection on what had just happened against Leicester and shouldn’t be taken in a wider context. Whilst we have had the highest scoring attack for most of the season we certainly haven’t had the tightest defence. The defence has been an accident waiting to happen all season and on occasions has been found out. Last night was one of those occasions. Hopefully in the playoffs we can refind our attacking mojo to compensate for the defensive issues. That was how we were getting results earlier on in the season. |
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Comment | Southampton At Leicester The Debacle
by IanRC at 13:45:27
Awful team selection and tactics, Brooks is useless and Edozie (whilst better) is simply not strong enough. Game was crying out for Sulemana and some balls over the top but the only one who couldn’t see that was our manager. Needs to go and if by any chance Potter would come we should bite his hand off.
Their first goal was offside and am I the only one who thought the referee had given a free kick in the build up that was taken with a rolling ball not in the right place. KWP badly at fault there.
Disgraceful performance. |
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Comment | Southampton At Leicester The Debacle
by gingerman at 13:29:00
I think RM has run out of ideas, he looked a broken man in the after match interview. Personally I think Steve Cooper would be a great alternative for us, but we need to move quickly as he will soon be snapped up come the end of the season. |
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