This game followed the pattern of the last dozen or so games, teams either capitalise on our lapses of concentration or they don't, this time they did.

Anyone who has watched recent games will have noticed a pattern emerging, when Saints get everyone behind the ball and protect the defence we don't concede, but the problem is that most of the team don't cross the half way line, if we try to attack then our defence cannot cope with breakaways.

This means that we don't seem to have the confidence to commit men forward knowing that we could get caught out.

The games follow a similar pattern, for most of the game we are tight, but then we are let down by lapses in concentration, then it is just a question of whether the opposition take advantage or not, against Bournemouth and West Brom we gifted them several gilt edged chances and they could not capitalise, likewise Liverpool, some have boasted that they failed to score against us in four games this season, that is true but to be brutally honest that is more to do with the fact that they can't hit a barn door at five paces than the tightness of our defence.

But play teams like Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal and they will punish you and it is no coincidence that in the three games against these teams we have conceded 9 goals and most of these should have been avoided.

This was the case last night against the Gunners, yes we were tight for most of the game, but in the two key moments we got caught napping, our defenders don't track players and they can't seem to read situations, how many times has a player had a free header six yards from goal lately ? the answer is far too many times and that is poor marking.

I have been harking on about this for months now, some seem to think it is not the fault of our central defenders, I'm sorry but it is, at least partly, although I mostly blame the manager for sitting back, doing the same things and getting the same results.

Essentially this team is the one that has been good enough to still be in the top 10, so what is the difference and the answer is the centre of defence, the partnership is 13 games and 20 goals conceded, that is 1.53 goals a game, that is appalling.

Games fall into several categories, the likes of Hull & Sunderland who aren't good enough to score against us, the likes of West Borm, Liverpool and Bournemouth where we get lucky after gifting them chances or Chelsea, Watford, Manchester City and last night Arsenal where they take the chances we give them and lets be blunt we do give them.

Yes it is a broken record that I keep harping on about this, but it is because it is happening week in and week out and now it has drained the confidence out of the team who are afraid to attack as they know that we cannot stop conceding goals.

Our last three seasons have been based on being tight at the back and that has enabled us to build on that and win games, now over the past 13 games we have been the worst defence in the Premier League, why is that ?

The manager has to take his share of the blame, he has kept doing the same things and has got the same results, he could have played Martin Caceres in the centre, he could have played Ryan Bertrand, he could have played Florin Gardos, he could even have played Cuco Martina, but he hasn't so it should be no surprise that again we have seen our defence carved apart and a game that we really should have had something out of has gone away from us.

Ironically we had the best chances against Arsenal and let us not forget they are still a team in the top five of the Premier League, this was not a bad performance overall, it was just shoddy defending again.

Good teams are built with a strong spine, take away any part of the spine and it is weak, that is our problem.

The overall answer is that this is a season where we have really underperformed, I said that the manager should be judged on his season not isolated games like Sparta Prague etc, the last 13 games has seen only 15 points gained, that is little better than relegation form, the manager has stuck rigidly with what he has seen as his best side during that time, the rotation policy has gone out of the window, yet results are now worse, performances are worse and the manager seems to be unable to change things or at least unwilling to change things and hope that things get better.

It is hard now to see how Claude Puel can come back from this, he has lost part of the dressing room we have seen public spats from the likes of Dusan Tadic and Shane Long, I would suspect that Jordy Clasie is far from happy at being out in the cold, the fans are firmly against him now and with season ticket renewals due up on Sunday the club will be looking at those who have not renewed, but more worrying is the manager's performance himself, it is not manifesting itself on the pitch, he is not dealing with issues and that is the most worrying.

On a plus side we are still 10th take 4 points out of our last 3 games and we should be able to stay 10th, Saints have to beat Middlesbrough on Saturday, if they don't then I dread to think of the consequences.

Photo: Action Images

LordDZLucan added 14:49 - May 11 Nick, I think we’re agreed that we’re letting in too many goals and not scoring enough but I don’t see the same root cause as you. We’re usually ok in the first half. Then when the game starts to open up, as it invariably does in the second half, our midfield struggles to get up and down the pitch. So therefore either the attack is isolated or the defence. An isolated attack doesn’t score goals and an isolated defence eventually lets in a goal or two. The solution is a couple of box to box midfielders. We had two once in Wanyama and Schneiderlin. Romeu does his best but he can’t do it on his own. If we had a striker that could hold it up that would provide some compensation but Gabbiadini doesn’t offer us that. For the remaining 3 games my solution would be to play Shane Long up front and to bring Harrison Reed into midfield.

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codge added 14:53 - May 11 Have to agree totally with you Nick, if is so obvious to all to see surely Puel can't be this dumb. The goals that come through the middle is alarming, why as you say no change in those positions is a disaster,l am starting to get a bit worried that VVD is only being held back so he will be sold and they don't want to get him re injured, maybe l am being to cynical hope not.

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DPeps added 15:28 - May 11 Clinging onto positives... the one good thing about this wretched end to the season is that it should serve as a wake up call to those in charge of the club. Years of selling all our best players has caught up with us, so that what we have now is a collection of average players under a manager with no experience at this level and a youth system that doesn't seem to be producing much talent. Some will say this is too simplistic an explanation but sometimes the simplest explanation is the correct one (Occam's Razor and all that) Boufal as a replacement for Mane... I rest my case

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SanMarco added 15:33 - May 11 I am astonished that Puel hasn’t at least tried Cacares. I thought Yoshi and Stephens ending up on their Rses for the first goal was quite symbolic. The ‘try not to give Giroud a free header a few yards out’ advice was obviously poorly translated by Black – he left out the ‘try not to’. It really does feel very flat at the moment. I am not sure where we go from here with this manager – we will remember him for a decent performance in a final but even that was spoilt by a similar mistranslation to the above (substitute Ibhrahimovic for Giroud of course). If I was one of our better players I would be thinking about a move now. We are dull and we are not picking up many points – a combination that leads me to think that something and someone new is needed: PUEL OUT.

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redandwhitedee added 15:50 - May 11 It is simply not the fault of the 2 centre-backs that we lost that game - or many others. Our problem ALL SEASON even when we had VVD and Fonte is lack of goalscorers. We conceded 3 sloppy goals at Crystal Palace in December with VVD & Fonte at centre back.. I don't recall you blaming them that day ?? With a decent goalscorer we would have beaten the israeli's at home and the season would likely be looking distinctly more rosy. The problem does not lie in defence, and the problem does not lie with the Manager - Maybe the attacking players need some criticism .. but really tell me which alternative team you would put out that would be stronger than the team Puel sent out last night ?

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SonicBoom added 15:53 - May 11 Lord Lucan Im not sure when the defence is isolated. You say it is sometimes but that means that the team is too far forward. What game is that cos usually no one except Gabbi crosses the halfway line!
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redandwhitedee added 16:13 - May 11 http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2017/05/11/southampton-fans-rave-abut-jack-stephens-di That is all.
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SalisburySaint added 16:18 - May 11 "I have been harking on about this for months now, some seem to think it is not the fault of our central defenders, I'm sorry but it is, at least partly, although I mostly blame the manager for sitting back, doing the same things and getting the same results." How come it is always the central defenders fault? the first goal last night was down to a poor pass by Redmond straight to an Arsenal defender when it should have gone to Bertrand the Defence was then exposed due to Bertrand overlapping run at the other end, not sure what the central defenders were supposed to do

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LordDZLucan added 16:21 - May 11 I agree redandwhitedee. I thought Jack Stephens generally had a good game. Very composed and reads the game well. If he can improve his heading he's a Premier league player.
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BoondockSaint added 16:43 - May 11 If he's a Premier league player, Les will sell him to the Scouse within the next year.
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the_saint added 17:05 - May 11 Total shambles I can't blame any of our players centre backs or attacking players I blame the manager that is clueless and tactically inapt don't think the players know what puel wants them to do
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highfield49 added 17:38 - May 11 If Puel can't motivate the team with enough desire and passion to go and win at Middlesbrough then there can be no more excuses. Like Nick I really fear for the future unless we appoint a top quality manager very soon. In my view if we lose the next game Puel and Black should no longer be in charge of the team, why wait till the summer to get in a motivator who can not only retain the best players but also add quality to the squad as soon as possible?

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SaintPaulVW added 17:43 - May 11 The problem is not the defence 'holding the attack back' The problem is we cannot score. Even if we let nothing in we would still only be drawing nil-nil. Would that really be taking us forward? Yes Yoshi and Stephens will not be our first choice CB's next season but they're doing an excellent job for now Most teams are playing with reserve players in some positions at this point of the season. So laying the blame on them when we lose a game or giving the credit to others when we draw is unfair. One of those goals last night would have beaten just about any team. The problem lies with Strikers and Midfielders in the main Long, Rodriguez, Ward Prowse and Boufal, who just simply cannot get a shot actually on target. The stats show it. Who ever is in charge of coaching the attacking players needs to sort this out.

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SaintBrock added 18:18 - May 11 Is it relevant that our past three managers have been defenders, that we have been very good in defence and shutting up shop but relatively poor at scoring goals? Is it as simple as ex-defender managers knowing absolutely nothing about attacking play and goal scoring? Just a thought.
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AmericanSaint added 18:23 - May 11 I know I will get many negative marks but dont care. 1. I dont know what game you all were watching, but we held our own in the 1st half and forced Chech to make to great saves. The last 15 minutes was ours. 2. Sanchez's goal was world class. Beat any defense, period. I have watched it numerous times and Orzil was the key. when he got the ball he make a perfect pass to Sanchez to open the defense up. Most other players would have taken another touch and it would never have happened. Also, blaming Stephans and Yoshie for that is stupid Nick. They went for the block and Sanchez's made a great fake. Simple as that. The play started with an Arsenal counter-attack after we lost the ball in midfield. You want to blame anyone its the middle fault for that goal. 3. Second goal was simply a counter attack against a tired team. 4. While I am a Davis fan, he had a horrible game in my opinion and could not keep pace with orzil or the midfield. He also had a great layoff given to him on the 18 and instead of taking a crack he make the bad choice of a second touch and we lost the advantage. I personally think Hojberg or Classie would have been a better choice for this game. 4. As I said in a previous post, our defense is not the problem, no matter what you think Nick. We are 9th in the league on GAA, 14th for goals scored and 17th for goals at home. THAT is our problem and if you cant see it then your head in the sand. See the link for yourself: http://www.soccerstats.com/team.asp?league=england&teamid=30 5. Finally, while I am still undecided about Puel, I agree that if we do not get 4 point and I really think 6 from the last 3 games, then he has lost the team and has to go. My big problem is that if the papers are telling the truth and the board is already looking for someone else, then highfield49 is right and they need to move now and not wait for the summer. My personal problem with this is that if we finish top 10 and get 6 points from the last few games, then I think he should be given another season. Remember Sir Alex Ferguson had a horrible first season at ManU. I am not saying Puel is SAF, but you all need to put it into perspective. So go ahead and dislike my comments, but many on this board forget where we have been only 5 years ago and that other teams would love to have our problems.

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BoondockSaint added 19:03 - May 11 The only comment i disagree with is "other teams would love to have our problems" I can't think of one, no matter what end of the table or league they are in would like to have a board whose business plan is to sell their two best players every single year, often to their closest rival!
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AmericanSaint added 19:18 - May 11 BoondockSaint - Yes the board problems are ones nobody wants. The problems I am talking about is the 10th place position, a Cup final and not being relegated. Unfortunately the selling of our players seems to be the plan and until we say no and are willing to make players sit and we are willing to pay them for that, things will not change as players always want to go to bigger clubs for more money.It the crappy part of football, the economics when you do not have a owner willing to lose millions a year for player's salaries.

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redandwhitedee added 10:57 - May 12 Boondock Saint. Actually other clubs do look at our Board enviously. i think our Board - and Les Reed in particular - has done a fantastic job. Generally always managed to replace the top players with even better replacements - and in the case of Redmond - i still believe a huge potential to next season replace what is an almost irreplaceable Mane. We sold Lovren and replaced with VVD (+8m profit), we sold Luke Shaw and replaced with Bertrand (+20m), we sold Wanyama and replaced with Romeu (+6.25m). We sold Boruc and replaced with Forster (-11m), we sold Mane and replaced with Redmond (+23.54m). We sold Clyne and replaced with Cedric (+10.3m). Sold Schneiderlin and replaced with Ward Prowse (+29.75m). Sold Lallana and replaced with Tadic (+14.45m). Sold Jack Cork and replaced with Clasie (-6.8m). Sold Fonte and replaced with Yoshida (+5.44m) Guys - you need to put the Board's transfer dealings in recent years into stark perspective.. Do you not remember the previous days of selling Theo Walcott and replacing with Ricardo Fuller !?? I could name hundreds like that under the previous regime(s).. This current Board have done a magnificent job - and deserve our gratitude for keeping the club afloat, gettign successive promotions, keeping the club in the Prem, creating in a very short space of time (but exactly to their timescale laid out in their business plan) a club which is admired worldwide for the way it is run, and for being brave enough to bring their own players through - yet still maintaining a top 10 position. Really, what more does anyone realistically expect ??

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Letiss7 added 11:34 - May 12 Totally agree with Salisbury Saint, Stephens and Yoshiba are not to blame for the two goals we let in, mistakes were made elsewhere further up the pitch. The same rationale applies to the fact Gabbiadini did not score, nothing creative behind him.
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TimSaint added 15:44 - May 12 Jeez what is with this lapse in concentration band wagon that you have been on for the last couple of months ? Every goal or chance we concede is a lapse - and is always pointed in the direction of our 3rd and 4th choice centre backs !! We are playing Arsenal FFS, so clearly they will create chances against us with top quality in attack. Even the Arsenal defence must have had a lapse in concentration, when Tadic was clean through, but perhaps they thought its only Tadic and he will have a lapse in concentration and won't score, oh and Gab will also have a lapse in concentration and won't score the follow up !! It works both ways !! The issue was that we had too many players on an off day that night, with poor passing, control and choosing the wrong option too often. The rest of the team try to compensate, but get tired and because we are not in front when we should be, get frustrated and it is then that mistakes are made. Their first goal was a superb piece of skill, which stemmed from an awful mis-control from JWP on the edge of the Arsenal box !! The 2nd should have been cleared much sooner in the build up, but if you leave Ramsey v Boufal on the edge of the 6 yard box to win the header, there is only going to be one winner. Giroud bullied our defence once he came on, so we decided to leave him unmarked !! At the other end, poor passing from great positions and electing to shoot when a cross was the better option, ultimately cost us - but we simply cannot compete when 3 or 4 are having an off day !!

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