Saints V Athletic Club Bilbao ! The Verdict. Monday, 8th Aug 2016 10:52 Claude Puel again used virtually a different side in each half in a game that still left a few questions unanswered before next week's opener against Watford. Claude Puel mixed and matched his side in the final friendly before the Premier League opener next Saturday. His starting line up was perhaps disrupted by the injury that again kept Ryan Bertrand out of the game and the fact that the French manager did not seem to want to play both Fonte and Soares together in the back four in their first game since the Euro 2016 final, perhaps from a fitness perspective. So the starting line up although containing most of those you would expect to start in just under a weeks time, was still leaving some questions unanswered. It was the first view for many of the 17, 758 crowd of new signings Pierre Emile Hojbjerg and Nathan Redmond. Both looked good in that first 45 minutes, Redmond looked fast and pacy and caused the visitors problems, whilst Hojbjerg looked big strong and looking to pick a pass. Also in the centre of midfield was Oriol Romeu and he looked ready to step into Wanyama's shoes as the muscle of the midfield. The reality of the match though was this was one that was comfortable for Saints, they passed the ball well and apart from the odd occasion rarely looked like being under any pressure with Fraser Forster not having a save of note to make. The game was won just before the break when Steven Davis split the defence with a lovely weighted ball and Shane Long ran on to stroke the ball past a keeper stranded in no mans land. Four changes at the break and then several others throughout the second half did not seem to break Saints rythym and they continued to dominate the game although they could not add to the total. Jeremy Pied cam on for his first outing in his new club's colours and looked to be a tidy player and good back up for Cedric Soares. By the end of the game only Forster and Hojbjerg remained from the starting line up and the game petered out to a tame ending, but Saints still held the upper hand. The verdict of this game is that it may be a new man on the bench in charge, but the quality is still there, like most Saints fans I would still like to see a player or two come into the squad, ideally in the next day or so but certainly before the transfer window ends. The squad is strong with plenty of options, but it does perhaps need the icing on the cake ! Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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