Watford 0-0 Saints Post Match

Fill your boots

We were concentrating on Thursday right?

Lol

Utter dog ****, should have lost.

HOOOOOOOF

Away point and clean sheet to a side still carrying some promotional momentum while we are still not at full strength.

My glass is half full.

We are not playing well at all, however we have just got a clean sheet & an away point? I have faith that Koeman will improve things, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Most people on here said they'd take a point so there shouldn't be much moaning.

positives-

-clean sheet

-fantasy football points for fonte

Don't be too hard on the team, much better defensivily it kind of shows our reliance on Mane that our attacking threat went when he went off. Shane Long tries hard but when he's not firing he's pretty awful to watch. Targett looked better but once again got skinned a few times. Wanyama had a mixed game, it's not the defence that worries me, our creativeness and zip in our attack isn't there. We didn't create one good chance, I think Pelle needs to be benched. The way he reacted when he was subbed after having a ****-poor game, shows he expects to start every game - well why not try Jay Rod up with Juanmi and rest Pelle and Mane, glad Koeman changed the system now he just needs to tweak the starting XI. The game was crying out for someone like Tadic who could play link balls to the strikers. Sadly our most 'creative' player was probably Davis!

Hopefully now Koeman appears to have sorted the defensive side he'll get them working on off the ball movement and passing in midweek as lumping it towards Pelle should never be plan A,B and C.

We are so bad at the moment that a draw to watford is a fantastic result

We went back to basics today, had a good shape, good organisation and defended very well as units over the pitch. This meant that we lacked much of an attacking threat, but that wasn't helped by the withdrawal of Mane.

I think we just needed to get back to basics with defending, which we did. The goals will come as long as we get the defensive basics correct.

Neither team deserved to win, neither team deserved to lose. Playing away at promoted teams in the first bunch of games isn't ideal.

In the circumstances a decent result. Can build on a clean sheet. Plus I won at the bookies

I'd like to publicly apologise for making a shît game worse by nerding up the match thread. As far as the game goes, can't really comment as it was so boring I barely watched any of it.

Yet another abject performance this season bereft of entertainment. We seem to have lost our identity.

Please can someone over the age of 8 rename this thread.

Sounds like a disappointing result and performance. Pretty glad I couldn't get a ticket now.

A game crying out for the invention of Juanmi. If I were the player and his agent, I would want to see Koeman in the morning to see if it is going to continue like this?

He has to start on Thursday!!

**** 0-0 that every team has once a season. Hopefully that is ours out of the way.

To right the team off so early is pathetic too. Last season we were awful at home to West Brom which was 0-0, second game.

Clearly need Bertrand back desperately and to bed in the new CB.

Most people on here said they'd take a point so there shouldn't be much moaning.

It's the performances that concern me more than the results.

Nothing to moan about really. We're getting better with every game. We'll win the next two.

We were worse in pretty much every position compared to last season.

If someone posts #wemarchon I might have to jump across to the assisted dying thread.

Point away is never terrible, and looked better at the back (playing a back 7) but on the ball pretty dire again.

Not clear what our style is, who the key players are (Mane aside) and too many passengers in the team (the likes of Targett, Long, JWP, Davis).

Positives were Caulker and Romeu but if we don't improve very soon both then we will struggle to challenge for top 10 IMO and will get dicked by the better sides whereas last year we often competed.

Koeman needs to find a system, and if he doesn't' think our key creative players like Tadic, Juanmi, Davis etc are up to it then he has a week to persuade Reed.

Tadic especially is a big disappointment, such a key player in our good form last season at the start yet anonymous so far this.

Oh, and Long should be kept as a last 20 sub, feel for the others having to link with someone who can't control/pass a ball!

The PL moves on very quickly and I think the club and some players have maybe become complacent.

Yet another abject performance this season bereft of entertainment. We seem to have lost our identity.

Organisation was better, but against a poor side.

Cedric got better as the game went on, and the two DM's looked good, apart from the needless bookings.

The ref must have been victim to one of Longs dives in the past, as he wouldn't give him anything.

Hope Mane is ok for Thursday, and hope above hope that we get a proper attacking midfield player before September.

There is a stark lack of players with genuine quality in our side. Nobody able or willing to get hold of the ball and dictate play. I hate to say it but I'm very nervous about the season ahead.

Neither team deserved to win, neither team deserved to lose. Playing away at promoted teams in the first bunch of games isn't ideal.

Neither was playing the top teams. I guess ideally we should avoid playing anyone for the first few games of the season until we have our team sorted out, wonder if we could organise this with the PL next season. Its not who we are playing against that is the issue.

Awful match to watch

Fonte by a mile was MOTM,thought Davis and Romeu did well, the need for a creative AM on the pitch is so obvious,JWP is not the answer for that at all.

Tadic,Juanmi must be scratching there head as to why they can't get a game ?

Also from what I have seen Targett would not be playing at LB yet,Cuco looked more composed and better going forward.

Please can someone over the age of 8 rename this thread.

 

Sounds like a disappointing result and performance. Pretty glad I couldn't get a ticket now.

Can if they like but its true the title is exactly what will happen.... sadly

Utterly poor performance.

I think staying up will be the aim this year

A game in which both defences won their battles and a draw was the fair result.

Would have taken a point at the start, all things considered.

A point is ok. But the way we played was terrible. I think only Fonte played well.

Hoof ball, way too defensive. No quality at all. If we play like that against the top 10 teams we will get destroyed.

Well... tou could slag everyone off.... or you can support the damn team.

People need to accept that under this board, we will need to do rebuilding jobs (god help us post Koeman).

The current team hasn't quite clicked yet, but signs of progress today with a much more solid team. We need to start at the back and then work forward.

Newcastle away we should have won.

Everton we were poor against, but regardless they are a top 8 finish team this year and having a bad day against any top 8 team leads to a defeat.

Watford, new team flying high after promotion, away from home and after an awful performance... I'd take a draw frankly.

Tactics, and team composition need work. But we will get there. As it is, the balance is off, and hopefully the europa league will help us get that balance quicker.

Though Romeu was lucky not to get sent off. Target is getting better and better recently, finding his feet and confidence. Jose was a beast today. And Caulker looked better - wins a lot in the air and made some great saving tackles, but also still a tad sloppy at time and still ball watches too much. Cedric looking good, a little fighter and very fit it seems, never stopped running.

All in all, a clean sheet and a point away from home... On to the next one!

For those that want to grumble about the team, composition and teamwork... This is Les' master plan, flog our souls and put the money somewhere (anyone know where it is btw?)... We have reaped a load of praise for it over the seasons but at the same time, it can't always be good! So suck up, quit *****ing, and get ready to see how the new boys do when we settle....

Just look at the Mane thread last season for a view of how ****e it can be at the start - he is now viewed as one of our best players.

Shane Long is our Danny Welbeck.

What does Juanmi have to do to get on the pitch, wonder how many seasons it will be before we have an attacking midfielder who can create chances from open play.

Positives just 2 points off last years finishing place

Romeu and Fonte did their jobs well!

Negatives too many to mention

Just not creating anything. Everything seems to be hoofing it up to Pelle or long floating crosses. Haven't seen create so little in a single game in years.

Fonte was superb, and the defence looked marginally better than last week, despite deserving to concede when they missed an open goal.

Thought everyone else except Fonte were just average today and very sloppy with the ball.

Hopefully when Clasie comes back we will have a bit more creativity, along with Bertrand down the left side.

Main objective achieved - don't ship any goals

Secondary objectives aborted - gain 3 points and play entertaining football

We are so bad at the moment that a draw to watford is a fantastic result

We're on the up!

Awful, awful game. At least we got something from it.

There is a stark lack of players with genuine quality in our side. Nobody able or willing to get hold of the ball and dictate play. I hate to say it but I'm very nervous about the season ahead.

Anyone who's expectation is that Saints stay up this season will (probably) be happy come May. If you're expecting anything more, you'll probably have burst a blood vessel by October. Enjoy either way.

Just thought i'd refresh everyone's view of him since he doesn't get on much

Well... tou could slag everyone off.... or you can support the damn team.

 

People need to accept that under this board, we will need to do rebuilding jobs (god help us post Koeman).

 

The current team hasn't quite clicked yet, but signs of progress today with a much more solid team. We need to start at the back and then work forward.

 

Newcastle away we should have won.

Everton we were poor against, but regardless they are a top 8 finish team this year and having a bad day against any top 8 team leads to a defeat.

Watford, new team flying high after promotion, away from home and after an awful performance... I'd take a draw frankly.

 

Tactics, and team composition need work. But we will get there. As it is, the balance is off, and hopefully the europa league will help us get that balance quicker.

 

Though Romeu was lucky not to get sent off. Target is getting better and better recently, finding his feet and confidence. Jose was a beast today. And Caulker looked better - wins a lot in the air and made some great saving tackles, but also still a tad sloppy at time and still ball watches too much. Cedric looking good, a little fighter and very fit it seems, never stopped running.

 

All in all, a clean sheet and a point away from home... On to the next one!

 

For those that want to grumble about the team, composition and teamwork... This is Les' master plan, flog our souls and put the money somewhere (anyone know where it is btw?)... We have reaped a load of praise for it over the seasons but at the same time, it can't always be good! So suck up, quit *****ing, and get ready to see how the new boys do when we settle....

 

Just look at the Mane thread last season for a view of how ****e it can be at the start - he is now viewed as one of our best players.

Today it seemed like Koeman wanted to concentrate on a solid defense and then take it from there. And while the game was quite boring and the result not what we wanted, at least we had the small victory of a clean sheet. And I think we needed that. Now Koeman needs to build on this defense and add something up front. Losing Mané wasn't helping things in that respect...

**** 0-0 that every team has once a season. Hopefully that is ours out of the way.

 

To right the team off so early is pathetic too. Last season we were awful at home to West Brom which was 0-0, second game.

 

Clearly need Bertrand back desperately and to bed in the new CB.

We are clearly in need of some decent coaching - we are not doing what that the top teams do well - passing and closing down. We are standing 5 yards away from the opposing team player in pice saison and watching him do exactly what he likes!

If our players are going to be spectators they had better be buying tickets!!!!

Summary...

Better defensively but it was Watford after all. Generally terrible though ...

Is any coaching going on at all one would wonder!!!!

There is a stark lack of players with genuine quality in our side. Nobody able or willing to get hold of the ball and dictate play. I hate to say it but I'm very nervous about the season ahead.

You should be. Games are won by fine margins. We have taken three of our best players out, add two more that are injured and a woeful summer transfer window so far and you have a side that falls way short of what is required to win enough games to do well.

Things can turn around quickly though. With Bertrand and Clasie back and VVD in we might look a better side. Still need to get Juamni into the side as we are desperately short of magic in the final third.

And that my friends is why we don't need a attacking midfielder. There is absolutely no point because we have turned into Allidice's West Ham - hoof, hoof and more hoof over the top of the midfield to Pelle who tries to chest it down, but rather than lay it off to an advancing midfield, decides to shoot from 40 yards out with his back to goal. That's the game strategy now in a nutshell and it's going to be an awfully long and disappointing season unless something significant happens. I am hoping it's Bertrand and VVD.

PS: Wanyama was poor today - lost count of the number of balls he gave away and the number of times he was stood static ball watching.

I think Caulker was solid - ok let the slagging of begin then.....

Very poor game and uninspiring performance from us.

Fonte MOM by a long, long way.. He was an absolute rock today. Romeu looked good too and Yosh was solid.

At best a clean sheet and a point.

We went back to basics today, had a good shape, good organisation and defended very well as units over the pitch. This meant that we lacked much of an attacking threat, but that wasn't helped by the withdrawal of Mane.

 

I think we just needed to get back to basics with defending, which we did. The goals will come as long as we get the defensive basics correct.

 

Neither team deserved to win, neither team deserved to lose. Playing away at promoted teams in the first bunch of games isn't ideal.

Spot on. Obviously 3 points are always welcome. But the important thing was the first clean sheet in 9 games. If we had to go to Denmark on the back of a loss of a promoted side, and failed to win there, the bad feeling would have poisoned the Norwich match.

The reality of the situation is that by the WBA match, we can field a side that looks something like -

Stek

Cedric - Fonte -Van Djik - Bertrand

Vic Romeu

Clasie

Mane J-rod

Pelle

Until then, we have to keep on trying to win games with the players at hand. So looking forward as a foundation to build on, today was a nil - nil desperandum.

Id have taken a point at Watford but the performance was utterly terrible.

Clasie doesn't play that position though.

In fact, we have nobody that does it well.

So you are sure Van Dijk will sign then Guan?