Dusic

£35m Mane must be worth £150m or so now? Brilliant player. What a signing by Saints, even if we did sell too cheap.

Presumably also its Rosser that will end up having the biggest say on who is brought in, i.e Allardyce's pal Glover? There isnt anyone ele remotely qualified in football at the club aside from the wee lad.

Could go back four but Targett always gets taken to the cleaners in that setup. Could well be his last Saints game at St Mary's.

Long has one more year on his contract but is 32. I would not offer him a new one but let me see out next year as he can still be a decent option. Losing him on a free as a 33 year old the year after isn't a big deal.

For Stoke read Cardiff!

Obviously we have lost a league high number of points (25) from winning positions, and many of those are due to late goals, with a good number after 85mins. Once or twice it can be bad luck or good play from an opposition, but over a long time period its a clear trend. I think these are a few possible reasons why: * 1. Poor central defenders Our CBs are overall not great and a clear weak area in the squad. So much so, that we have to play with five defenders to compensate for it. As they get tired, or an opponent becomes more forceful, logic dictates that more mistakes are made, and there are clear examples of this happening. We don't clear the ball very well, and like yesterday, often end up being pinned back. It was noticeable in the Wolves game how many balls Vestergaard headed away, he was missed. * 2. Poor defending against physical sides We have really struggled against the likes of Burnley, Stoke, Brighton at home, towards the end where those teams pump balls into the box or threaten from set plays. We are quite a small side, and struggle to clear the ball. * 3. Tiring central midfielders In addition to playing with 3 CBs, we usually play two screening midfielders and Hojbjerg and Romeu get through a lot of work. Romeu always gets slower after 70mins or so, hence why he gets so many bookings later in games where its easier to foul someone. Hojbjerg has a good engine but can be sloppy in possession, and as his energy levels drop it gives the opposition more time on the ball. Until Lemina came back we havent really had a sub option in this position, if needed. * 4. Lack of possession Since RH has come in we have become a really efficient counter attack team, but one that is happy to concede possession and then hit teams. The problem with this is that towards the end of games when we have something to protect we know the opponent will have a lot of the ball and that due to the time in the game we won't press them as much or get as close as we did earlier in the game, which gives them a better chance to create. I think one of Hasenhuttl's key challenges will be to add a bit more to our game whilst in possession. * 5. Getting a second clear goal This is a big issue, especially in games like yesterday where its fairly tight but we have clear chances. In the PL any team can score at any time so you aren't even safe at 2-0 but it certainly helps a lot, like in the Leicester away game. We need to improve here and be more clinical when on top, like under Koeman. * 6. Attacking style/tactics As we have few mobile strikers, RH seems to prefer keeping pace up front towards the end of games. In many ways this makes sense, and we often get chances on the break, but the likes of Redmond or Sims are never really going to be holding the ball up, meaning it often just comes back once cleared. I recall Pelle being outstanding at this late in games, and we don't have anyone who fulfils a similar role. In every squad there is room for a more physical forward IMO. * 7. Pressure For the last two seasons we have been in a poor league position where dropped points have a tangible outcome and some games are absolutely vital. This must play on the minds of players and certainly makes for a tense atmosphere, especially at home, towards the end of games. * Most of these pieces can be improved upon I think, and certainly its a part of Saints' game that has to be improved as it has directly contributed to our league position, and whilst RH has worked miracles, it is still there as it was under previous Managers.

A point we all would have taken before the game and its another on the way to safety - which was the only priority when RH came in. Games like this show two things: 1. You need to score the second goal 2. We don't really have good sub options for various scenarios - this aspect should improve next season. Nearly there...

Will be amazed if Ings or Sims start, albeit for different reasons.

RB Leipzig are set to sell Jean-Kevin Augustin, Bruma, and Stefan Ilsanker this summer, according to Kicker.

Be amazed if Ings starts this with Bournemouth to come on Saturday. Long will start I think.

Ramsay struggled horrendously against Derby so not sure it would have made it any better. Clearly you need two capable RBs, like when we had Clyne and Chambers at the same time.

Poor from us, the most Hughes like performance under Hasenhuttl. If you don't play with intensity then you just won't compete at PL level, especially away. Key points: 1. Sims poor, doesn't do the basics well enough. For me not a starting player 2. JWP is poor at RB/RWB - not quick enough 3. Stephens is done 4. Lemina back the only positive - great goal and adds mobility 5. If Cardiff lose tomorrow then any points vs Bmth should keep us up. Want to get those points as soon as possible as it could get squeaky again otherwise.

Looks like Glover is definitely joining then and also a player pathway type role which I guess is mostly Academy related.

Reading up more on Glover he is an Allardyce lapdog, having followed him to West Ham, Sunderland and Everton. Hope this isn't true, he doesn't have a great record and doesn't appear to fit our style. Surely there are better candidates for what is a decent job?

Seems certain there will be some new hires this summer in the support staff structure. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-6934445/Everton-chief-scout-Martyn-Glover-frame-new-Southampton-head-recruitment.html Recruitment link. Sure the guy is competent, but not sure Everton and Sunderland have been known for excellent recruitment over recent years...

Its not nonsense. He isn't a quick player. Nobody would ever describe Boufal as pacy.Hence why he ends up having to beat the same player again quite often. He completes dribbles with skill, nobody is denying he is a good dribbler but he isn't a fast player and countless times RH has said he wants fast players. Besides, as you acknowledge, Boufal's end product is dross.

Redmond is better suited to the PL and has a better attitude. I have always rated him and now in a better structure he is playing well. He is a better player than Boufal. I would rather have someone else with different attributes rather than Boufal.

Boufal has had his chance and isnt suited to the PL. He has no pace and little end product. Happy to move him on and get someone RH actaslly wants who fits the style.

The Arfield story was denied by one of the Scottish papers last week after it first came out. RH has already said we will be going for younger players. That said, the overall slant of the article is probably true and hopefully we go for good young players with a few British ones (Adams, James etc) among them. Better sell on potential as well.

Yes he has done well in the last two games (less so over the last two years), but he is a great example of an attacking player who has never added composure to his game despite years of coaching.

Possibly. Although some players never do. See Shane Long.

I feel that with Sims as a starter you lose quite a bit of control and as he is quite raw and often doesn't do the basics particularly well. Yesterday it was a good tactical decision to start him as Wolves wing backs play high and their CBs are slow so he got in good positions down the sides of their centre backs. I doubt he will start at Newcastle or Watford though,as we will probably go for the extra midfielder - which we massively lacked yesterday at times. We only gained control of the game once Romeu came on. Personal opinion is that over the course of a sample more than one game, Sims will make a better sub than starter, especially away from home. Also whilst he played well, he absolutely fluffed a very presentable chance that could have made the game virtually safe by HT, didnt hit the target with another good chance and also failed to play in Ings for a tap in. He has many good attributes but IMO lacks composure which will ultimately hold him back a bit as a starter unless he develops it, which he may well do. Great sub option though for next year and far better than Elyounoussi.

Bednarek, JWP and Hojbjerg have all done well, albeit none for the entire season. Redmond has played every league game, been our best player in many and our main attacking threat in pretty much all. To come back from his situation last year shows massive character and professionalism. Without him we would 100% be relegated and for me its not a difficult decision at all: he is clearly the POTS.

Excellent result - better than the actual performance but we have been due some luck. Great subs, and changing the shape worled for the goals but also made us a lot more open. Questions about JWP in a two are still valid IMO, he wasnt very good in the first half and we missed Romeu. Vestergaard very good I thought, he has really come on since the Cardiff mistake. For me Sims is a much better sub than starter, but good work for both goals. Redmomd our POTS by a country mile - hope we can keep him and extend his contract this summer.

He made a great impact today. One of his best sub performances for us I think. The style suits him, and he is a good option from the bench.