Saint Albert

Same with Moyes at W. Ham.

Sounds like McCarthy has picked up a nasty leg break in the Everton game off a challenge from Rondon...Rondon apparently in tears... And Stoke are now 2up from Diouf.

Allen’s just put Stoke up 1-0

I’m cheering for the draw. I don’t want us going into the Spurs game in the relegation zone. It’s been a game of poor quality so far, but Shaquiri missed a decent one on one chance at the end.

Goalless at the half at Stoke.

Sure. Here they are: You’re welcome.

Leandre does not seem to be all that excited about Carillo. He’d fit right in here.

He said something similar after the Watford game, if I remember correctly. I assumed at the time he was talking about Theo and Carrillo. The reason I’m allowing myself a forlorn hope on Promes is, I remember there have been statements made in the Telegraph about Saints signing a pacy winger. It’s the hope that kills you.

Pellegrino reported as saying today that Saints are closing in on two signings. Theo fell through because of wages, and not because Theo thought Pellegrino was so far out of his depth he made Allardyce look like Sir Alf Ramsay. nb I made up the last bit.

Hmmm...Neil Ashton seems to be taking aim at Les Reed’s ethics. I wonder how far he intends to go with it.

That’s the rumour in the press.

How long before it gets reported in the Daily Express?

According to this, Liverpool are contemplating loan move offers for Sturridge to Sevilla and Inter... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2018/01/18/liverpool-reluctant-let-danny-ings-leave-daniel-sturridge-verge/

I was thinking Conte’s fellow Italian, Gabbiadini.

Carroll to Chelsea with Batshuayi going the other way, has hit a snag with Carroll picking up an ankle injury... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2018/01/18/andy-carroll-ankle-injury-could-scupper-chelsea-move-leave-west/

I’m not a huge fan of hypotheticals, and in this case I want both but if I could only take one I’d sack Pellegrino. The club should have fired Pellegrino after the Leicester debacle. I think we all knew at the time that Les and Co. would be too stubborn to do the obvious and get rid of him even at the point where it was blindingly obvious that a change of manager was required. After firing Pellegrino in mid-December, a new manager could have come in and had time to discuss transfer targets with Les and Co. Perhaps we could have picked up a few better results, performed better, and enjoyed a slightly less precarious league position. Perhaps the new manager could have persuaded Theo that a return to Saints was the right move for him, instead of getting shown up publicly by Sam ****ing Allardyce. Anyway, instead of giving the new guy all January to get his and the club’s targets planned and over the line, we’re in 17th, are stuck with a lame duck manager who may or may not get fired this weekend or next weekend or sometime next month, and one transfer target who may be coming because of a previous relationships with Pellegrino but who may or may not want to come if we fire Pellegrino after the Spurs game, potentially leaving us (as far as I can tell) with no transfer targets in the proverbial basket. All that is to say, it has been a complete farce, and if the club has not yet run out of time to recover from this cock-up of elephantine proportions, soon it surely will.

I recall that they were linked with him a few seasons ago before he went to Chelsea.

Leicester City.

I imagine that Batshuayi would fit into the category of a player who would want a move in in order to enhance his chances of making the World Cup.

The media have reported Sevilla and Dortmund as being interested in him. If those options are available he won’t come here.

I agree. The club have left it too late, but I still hope it is not too late to turn it around.

Theo looks mildly pleased.

“The club hierarchy...are concerned by recent results.” Recent results???? I suppose we should be glad they finally noticed.

The first team seems to have gone awfully quiet on the OS and Twitter in the lead up to the Spurs game. I haven’t seen any first team interviews or training footage, since a JWP interview on the 14th. Perhaps it’s because whenever their account tweets something remotely connected to the first team such as the shirt competition, it is greeted with a barrage of Pellegrino out and where are our signings type replies. Early days, I suppose. I’m sure they’ll at least have something to say when Pellegrino does his pre-match presser.

It would be irritating if Andre Silva ends up at Swansea. Perhaps the club is prioritizing Carrillo because he’s cheaper and has played with Pellegrino before, but I don’t think that “cheaper” and especially “played with Pellegrino before” are factors that many supporters appreciate at this point in the transfer window.