Nordic Saint

Then let's hope they discover Bremer before his transfer value rockets. Just checked the latest transfer rumours and it looks like it's already too late. Man City and Liverpool are both being linked with him. As you said, on our budget, it's difficult.

We need an upgrade on Bednarek. We need a big central defender who can win everything in the air. We really need Dael Fry.

Howe has told his team to put high crosses and corners into our penalty box at every opportunity because our central defenders win almost nothing in the air.

It was a well-worked goal. Basically, big centre forwards scoring headed goals from long crosses and corners against us is a recurrent theme and Newcastle would have highlighted that in their planning for this game. We are a good team but our weakest link is still in the centre of our defence.

Dael Fry would be better.

Forster has arguably been our best player this season. We could replace McCarthy with David Raya but a new centre back is a priority. We should buy Dael Fry in the summer but Salisu and Valery might still form a good central defensive partnership. A deadly finisher would be good. Andrea Belotti will be available on a free in the summer but we'd need to offer him mega wages. It would be worth it though.

Ironically, we let both Chambers and Mings go and they looked far superior to Bednarek and Stephens. But, I'm optimistic that Salisu and Valery will form a good partenrship.

I wouldn't always believe what journalists say, especially football reporters from Portsmouth who write about Saints.

To be fair, the lengthy interruption came at exactly the right time to help us win that game. After we'd just regained the lead, it gave our players a breather and stopped the threat of an immediate equaliser. I must admit thinking at the time, the longer they stay out there, the better. West Ham's players and fans never regained momentum after that.

I must agree I never rated his defensive capabilities very highly when he was playing at right back but as a central defender he is an absolute revelation: a real rolls royce of a player. Another masterstoke from Ralph playing him there.

He was outstanding last night: sheer class. He has shown this season against some top teams - Spurs, Chelsea and West Ham - that he is a very good centre back.

The only weak link in our best starting XI is Bednarek. Our priority this summer should be to bring Dael Fry in. We should have bought him instead of Vestergaard. His price has gone up now after his performances against Man United and Spurs but it's still not too late to get him. If, as seems likely, we can't keep Broja, Andrea Belotti, who'll be a free agent in the summer, would be the ideal replacement.

Fry has shown against both Man United and Spurs just how good he is. I've wanted us to sign Dael Fry for years, ever since I first saw him play against our Academy. The combination of Salisu and Fry would be our best since Fonte and van Dijk.

Hopefully it's no more than one. This is our most important game of the season so far and we need our best XI starting.

If all teams want to wear yellow and blue, it could get confusing. Yellow and blue armbands would make more sense.

Year of the Cat (2001 Remaster) - YouTube

If we'd had Forster instead of McCarthy in goal, it would have been a comfortable victory: "McCarthy started between the sticks for Hasenhuttl’s team but his performance left a lot to be desired. Indeed, his was the lowest match rating awarded to a Southampton player. The 31-year-old was beaten at his near post for both of Norwich’s goals and picked out a team-mate with only 11 of his 17 passes (65%) McCarthy also played just two accurate long balls out of eight, won zero duels and lost possession six times at Carrow Road on Saturday." Norwich 2 - 1 So'ton - Match Report & Highlights (skysports.com)

A match made in hell (or Bradford)

They are an upmarket version of Burnley: horrible to play against but they grind out results. Hopefully, Arsenal have burst their bubble tonight. That's the first time for 3 years Wolves have lost after scoring the opening goal. I channel switched between the Emirates and Ibrox. The Rangers v Dortmund game was much more entertaining. What a brilliant performance from Rangers over the two legs and what an incredible atmosphere at Ibrox.

A section of the front rows in the Itchen south is reserved for staff. You sometimes see young players and coaches sitting in them in their club tracksuits but I guess when they have games, they leave them empty. They also seem to be reserving the front section on the halfway line, at the centre of the Itchen, for corporate tickets (perhaps corporate season tickets), as even though they always appear as unavailable on the ticket site, like Club Wembley, they are mostly left empty nowadays. Unfortunately, like Club Wembley, these empty sections are right in front of the cameras. Then, of course, there are always the hundreds of seats left empty in the Northam for fan segregation. Recently, that little section at the front of the Northam/Itchen corner, behind the corner flag so you really notice it, always appears to be kept empty, and the whole of the block was for the Coventry game so I guess it will be for the West Ham game too. Then for midweek games especially, you get empty seats in the family stands because of school. It's a pity they can't put some of the empty corporate and family stand seats on general sale when the game is 'sold out'. Perhaps we have too many corporate and family seats, and we certainly seem to need more seats kept empty for fan segregation than most other clubs do. Going back to the OP, there was a period in the late 70s when all four sides at the Dell used to sing OWTS very loudly for long periods of games. Winning a trophy definitely had a major impact and probably the high point of home vocal support was reached at a midweek cup replay v Forest in February, 1977. That was the most deafening and intimidating it ever was. It helped that there were almost no Forest fans there. When there are a lot of away fans, as there were for the Coventry game, our home support fades a bit. That's why some people say our vocal support was better when we were in League One: there were very few away fans, so the Northam was almost like a proper home end. But, if we win the cup this year. I'm sure out home support next season will be the best ever at St Mary's.

I think he's right. Armstrong, Ward-Prowse, Romeu & Elyounoussi may not be the best individual midfielders in the Premier League but as a unit they are second to none.

If we'd had Forster in goal and a midfield of Armstrong, Ward-Prowse, Romeu and Elyounoussi all season, we'd probably be well on course for a European place now. But,as long as they don't get injured, we can still win the FA Cup and that would be a superb season.

I expect it's what Newcastle wanted. They can stay down south for both the Chelsea and Saints games.They also have their rearranged game with Everton on a Thursday. Saturday 5th March PREMIER LEAGUE Newcastle United15:00Brighton & Hove Albion Thursday 10th March PREMIER LEAGUE Southampton19:30Newcastle United Sunday 13th March PREMIER LEAGUE Chelsea14:00Newcastle United Thursday 17th March PREMIER LEAGUE Everton19:45Newcastle United

The only passion a Pompey fan is going to feel for Southampton is a passionate hatred. I wonder if The Athletic also has a Millwall fan reporting on West Ham and an Everton fan reporting on Liverpool?

This was another of his recent articles: Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl to consider retiring once contract expires in 2024 - The Athletic He sends them to all of the national papers and they do seem to get quite a lot of coverage, as any negative gossip about a football club is always welcome.