qwertyell

I quite like him. It's like stream of consciousness beat poetry. Just a jumble of short unconnected sentences devoid of any semblance of edge. "Big fan of Redmond. What he's been doing. Technical. Is that a bird? High quality. Bundesliga. I had the lasagne. Food is good. These fans are making a noise. Singing. Chris Wilder. What a great job. Tactical. So talented. Orange juice." He's been doing punditry for years yet I don't know a single thing about him or one opinion that he holds. He's the ultimate enigma. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Some of our performances this season have made me want to take up heroin. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

If they've got any sense they'll play big Haller up top with Antonio supporting and just hoof it. We won't be able to cope with their power and pace, and we won't be able to win the ball high up the pitch while their defenders fiddle around with it on the edge of their box. If the Shammers try and make it a football match, I'd back us to take the points. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

How was it so close? Villa were terrible, but our decision making and final ball were pathetic. Great endeavour and workrate - particularly down the right, where Prowse and Armstrong were machines. Credit to Djenepo. Never gives up. Box of tricks. The composure of a startled kitten on an ice rink. Classic Saints winger. A word about Obafemi - the last three or four times he's come on, he's just jogged around like Charlie Austin. You can't replace a hard runner like Long as sub and then half-arse about. I don't think he's going to make it. He hasn't got good enough attributes to compensate for he evident lack of application. The other results fell nicely for us today as well - 34 points feels like a relatively comfortable place to be. COYS Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Played quite well so far. Poor finishing and decision making has prevented us killing the game off. Villa growing in confidence and Grealish becoming more influential... No way this finishes 1-0. We need a second at least or we'll be dropping points again. All those tactical fouls on Grealish will mount up in the second half and we'll have players on yellow cards who can't get near him. At least we look miles better than against Burnley. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

We're going to have a problem in midfield. Smallbone is as lightweight little Jake Hesketh and doesn't do anything on the defensive side. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Who else are we going to play? Adams literally offers nothing. And Obafemi has been extremely disappointing since his "breakthrough" goal at Chelsea. It'd be great if we had better options than Long, but we haven't. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Doubt we'll go three at the back again having had such an upturn in results with a back four. Probable xi: McCarthy; Valery, Stephens, Bednarek, Bertrand; Hojbjerg, Prowse; Armstrong, Djenepo; Long, Ings. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Playing all their games away from home too. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Prowse, Boufal, Walker-Peters and Long were the only ones I couldn't make out from the training pictures yesterday (apart from Redmond, obviously). Although I thought I read somewhere else that Boufal was fine. So who knows? Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

The goal line technology has an inbuilt margin of error. I believe the offside technology has too (much bigger), but our league - in its infinite wisdom - has chosen to disregard such things as grey areas and accept as empirical fact that a freeze frame indicating someone is offside by 1cm is beyond reproach. IFAB have already given guidance that the VAR technology is NOT to be treated the same as goal line tech as it doesn't have the same consistent level of accuracy, therefore "clear and obvious" mistakes - not a marginal line call forensically pored over for five minutes with rulers and protractors - are the only decisions that should be overturned. So I'd argue it's not the law that's at fault. It's our referees ignoring the guidance from the law-makers and misusing a technology whose limitations they either don't understand or are too incompetent to consider. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Unlucky? Reina and terrible finishing are the only reason Spurs didn't score 10. Villa played well going forward - Samatta is a decent handful at centre forward, and Grealish is obviously a class act. But Spurs looked like scoring every time they turned the ball over. They're not a bad side at all, and capable of beating the worst home team in the league if we play like we did recently against Burnley and Wolves. But if we're going to stay up, it's an absolute banker for us. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Ings and Djenepo were in yesterday's recovery training pictures. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Or they could beat the worst home team in the league and suddenly we're right in the mire again (with our only creative players injured for months). Norwich are gone, but Villa and West Ham aren't absolutely awful. They're both more than capable of winning a couple more games than we do between now and May. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

All we deserve. Haven't turned up at all in the second half. Imagine shipping five goals (and counting) this season to a garbage Burnley team. Still think we're going to be in the mix for the bottom three until the end of the campaign. Concede too many goals "out of nothing". Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

General play is okay. Not a lot of quality in the attacking areas - haven't tested their keeper enough. Defensively we're much wobblier than they are. All their chances and half chances have been the result of our mistakes. If Vestergaard stays on, he'll give them a second goal or pick up a second yellow. Possibly both. Terrible on the deck and a total fraud in the air. Feels like another one of those Burnley games where we play all the football and they hoof, elbow and bundle their way to the points. Ref's crap too. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Ings giveth and Ings takes away. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

No. I think he signed a contract extension with Genk in around September. So he'll be more expensive than when we allegedly had £11m turned down last January. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

His jumping and heading are still 7 though. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Surprised. I would've thought a gash right down to the bone would've needed a bit longer than a week to fully heal. Especially if it's anywhere near the joint as any flexing can reopen a wound. The stitches have probably only just come out. Great news regardless that it seems to have been no worse an injury than that - even if he sits out this one as a precaution. It might be Romeu's kind of game anyway: physical, ugly, a lot of heading. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

No we don't. That appointment has been put off until, supposedly, the end of the season. No idea who is going to be making the decisions on contract renewals. Maybe the kit man - he seems popular. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

You're putting an awful lot of faith in these vague academy players that are about to be Premier League ready fresh out of the oven. I haven't seen any midfielders in the u23s who look anywhere near good enough to step up. Not even close. Harry Reed and Jake Hesketh are still miles ahead of the current batch - and they're not good enough either. I wish we had more coming through, but the days of Saints' academy being the envy of clubs around the country seem (hopefully temporarily) a thing of the distant past. Perhaps with Les Reed and Martin Hunter out of the way and Matt Crocker's return we can start to raise the standards again, but it'll be a long while until the first team sees the benefits. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Why 36 points, specifically? I think the survival mark will be higher this season - possibly over 40. Is this just another case of the club counting their chickens and complacently assuming they're nearly safe (so why bother signing anyone in January)? Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Actually, Lloris was terrible there - he could have come and collected that easily. By the time Ings reached it, the ball had traveled 60 yards and was in the 6 yard box with the keeper retreating. Was a lovely pass, but Lloris' ineptitude made it. And then Ings missed the sitter. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Didn't have a prayer with the first two - and the penalty was a dive. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk