Perhaps one of the most difficult previews that I have had to write, perhaps one of the most disorganises, unmotivated top flight Southampton teams I have ever seen now has to go to one of the best teams in the Premier League, surely there is only one outcome.

At the start of the season Russell Martin resolutely stuck with the same outfield 10 players in the first 3 Premier League games, in the next 3 has has chopped and changed as he desperately tries to find not even a drawing formula but a drawing one.

He managed that against Ipswich last week and having got a point on the board at last, the hope was that we could build on that and move on.

But the team selection and tactics at Bournemouth were torn apart from the previous week and so were we on the pitch.

So how the hell do I try and predict what the manager is going to do, although it is far easier to predict what Arsenal are going to do to us.

I am truly worried about this result, it is hard to see just what the manager can do to prevent anything other than a massive home win for Arsenal and I use the word massive with real fear.

If Russell Martin was looking to rebuild his teams shattered confidence after the defeat at the Vitality Stadium, he had a strange way of doing it, yes he took the blame for not playing a striker, but to him that wasn't the root cause of the problem, nor was his selections in other areas, it was squarely on his squad who in his eyes would have won the game if they had implemented his tactics as instructed.

So what happens at the Emirates on Saturday is fairly easy to predict, you have a manager who is stubborn and you now have a team that despite what is put out to the media are clearly baffled with how they are being asked to play and have no faith in their manager.

Assuming that the Southampton board don't make a dramatic decision today, then Russell Martin will be in the dug out in North London and if that is the case I feel that the only hope is that the players take matters in their own hands.

They put in a performance that is despite their manager and not because of him, they play the way that they should be, clearing the ball when the situation calls for it and not continually playing passes along the back, sometimes to suicidal proportions.

Sometimes a squad can put in a shift for their own pride, they can see that the manager is almost done, so they can do so without fear of reprisals, they will read the media, they see that the owner himself Dragan Solak is said to be not happy with the way we are employing the possession football game, they have nothing to lose.

The problem here is that over the years that I have watched Saints battle against relegation, we had squads that had a core that were big enough to stand up and be counted and I am not sure that we have enough of that type in the squad at the moment.

There are too few players who have the club coursing through their veins, Jan Bednarek perhaps then only Jack Stephens, Will Smallbone, Adam Lallana, Kyle Walker Peters & Adam Armstrong, only Bednarek started at Bournemouth.

Of the 11 who started at Bournemouth only Jan Bednarek & Tyler Dibling were at the club before Martin himself joined just over a year ago, of the 5 subs used, Cameron Archer & Ben Brereton Diaz joined in the summer, as did Adam Lallana who rejoined, Ross Stewart joined last year and only Joe Aribo predated Martin and he has only been here two years.

This tells you something about how Martin has stripped down and rebuilt the team, now he puts up as our saviour Ross Stewart, a player who has barely played since joining the club and who has only 3 sub appearances and 113 minutes Premier League experience.

So I think by now you have got the gist of my feelings before this game, I go with little hope, I see a manager who is floundering, he either does not know how to change course or he is unwilling to do so, both are not good for Southampton Football Club.

I have nothing against Russell Martin, he did what he was brought to the club to do and that was get us promoted, but it doesn't seem that he can step up to the plate at this level.

Change now is inevitable, it seems the board are just waiting to get this game out of the way and then they can lay the blame firmly at the feet of the manager and not a new one at that.

Sorry that this preview has been hijacked by the manager and his tactics, truth is I haven't a pin and a squad list to hand and that is as good a way as any to predict what Russell Martin will do at Arsenal.

But one last hope comes from our last visit to the Emirates two seasons ago, it came on the back of three straight defeats in a six game run that had seen just two draws, we were heading for the drop and Arsenal to the Premier League title, but we lead 3-1 before conceding 2 late goals for a 3-3 draw, so sometimes lost causes throw up a surprise or two.

All Photos Via Reuters

wibbersda added 11:57 - Oct 4 Score 3 goals ...I think not.
0

saintmark1976 added 12:08 - Oct 4 Could be an interesting time for the Owners and Board if we were able to get an against the odds win or even a draw Nick. What would they do then reference Mr Martin ? Twist or Bust or just more prolonged fence sitting ?
-1

A1079 added 12:44 - Oct 4 I am going tomorrow and I usually look forward to a visit to a London club but this one fills me with horror. I can see nothing but a resounding and comprehensive defeat. 6-1 to Arsenal would not surprise me. I am not sure where I can find hope from - players don't usually take matter in their own hands - if they don't believe in the style, the manager etc then they don't usually lift themselves. That said, some players claim they do believe in what he is trying but is that just for the media - do they really - who knows! One vague hope is that Ramsdale has a blinder but for 90 plus minutes..........can't see it. Up until this last week I was still with RM by and large (with some obvious reservations like most) but he has not helped himself at all with his team selection, his tactics and his post match comments. If Bournemouth was a bad day at the office you could live with it but it feels a long way from just being bad day or night - it feels more ingrained than that. All that aside I will go, hope us fans, no matter what happens are noisy and show some humour and try and enjoy the day out.

9

SaintPaulVW added 12:50 - Oct 4 Saints' fans are never too far away from a make or break game. If only one of our many strikers would come into form, I think there might be a rapid change in attitude. COYR
1

wessexman added 15:52 - Oct 4 After sitting through the infamous night against Leicester, I also went to the next away game at Arsenal, where we came away with a draw when we should have won. Different circumstances but same scenario. I just hope RM, for once, looks up the word pragmatism in the dictionary and takes in the information. A bit defeat tomorrow will see the end of RM but, it will also destroy what is left of the squad's morale and the supporters come to think of it.

1

mushinexile added 17:56 - Oct 4 Contrary to popular belief, I think Championship players who were good enough to be promoted are good enough for the Premiership, provided they are supported and developed. Every player wants to be a top flight footballer and most train long and hard with that aim. A good manager will get the best out of them and if we had the results we COULD have had we would not be where we are. If a change of manager saw us finish fifteenth which I believe could be possible, we would all b e agreeably surprised. I hope one is appointed tomorrow.

3

YosemiteSaint added 18:29 - Oct 4 Well, if recent seasons are anything to go on, we've got to get 9-0 out of the way at some point, so it may as well be tomorrow.
0

codge added 21:19 - Oct 4 Sadly l am going with 5-0 Arsenal don’t like being this negative but hopefully we play a lot better than last time COYR.
0

Andylad63 added 07:35 - Oct 5 Although, I am normally a little pessimistic by nature, I have have two possibly outcomes for this one. 1. We battle hard, show amazing spirit, go a goal down, find a worldy in reply to equalise, only to lose by a single goal in the dying seconds. Giving RM a stay of execution and allowing us to go back to usual rubbish after the international break. Bear in mind we often do well against Arsenal. 2. They score two/three goals early on, we re-group hold them around halftime and get nailed later in the second half. Arsenal are a much better team this year than they have been for a long time and my predictions, although for defeat, are based on hope rather than good sense.

0

Blogs 31 bloggers

Southampton Polls