Dusic

Doesn't really seem like it from the profile articles and video...sounds like he would more replace the type Rothwell was supposed to be: box to box but with a bit of quality.

Highlights for me the total lack of young players coming through that even with a small squad and a few to return e.g Smallbone, Charles the only younger players to train with the first team are players who have already featured for a couple of years. Obviously the lack of attacking quality is stark but recruitment will be key there.

https://gianlucadimarzio.com/it/welington-torino-sao-paulo-southampton Di Marzio, who is usually spot on with Italian related transfers is saying Torino still confident of beating Saints to Wellington by offering to buy immediately.

Seems Liam Delap is on his way to Ipswich as well as Greaves and Philogene! Re AOC I doubt anything in it and certainly wouldn't trust any report out of Turkey!

Understand this point of view but the PL advances all the time. Aside from the 3 promoted sides the weakest teams in theory are Forest and Brentford. Yet both of those have 3 or 4 attacking players that are better than any of ours. I fully expect some of our promoted lads to be pretty decent but even the most optimistic fan surely realises we need some major quality to be added in attack to even have a chance. Our best CF is about to leave on a free and our only reliable scorer last season struggled hugely at this level last time. IMO its those signings that will determine our fate.

Hard to argue with that. Unless the young player is really top like Luke Shaw, the reality is that a promotion race or relegation fight isn't really the ideal circumstance for a manager to give them a go. Unfortunately for us its hard to see the next 2/3 years being any different.

Delgado has zero relevance to our current recruitment. South America seems one of the few markets where there is actually value to be had for clubs without endless budgets. Quite happy for Saints to be looking there and in Asia.

Assuming we sign Fraser later in the window (assume Newcastle won't sell til after we have played them) then do we actually need Ghoddos? At some stage we will really need to sign some genuine quality in attacking areas...not sure he is that!

They are reporting that someone else "ManchesterWorld" are reporting that Saints are one of four PL clubs interested in him - bit of a difference!

Respect your knowledge so interested to hear your expanded view on this? IMO if the goal of the academy is to produce players for our first team and subsequently generate revenue then its madness that almost all of our recent best prospects have chosen to leave the club: Miles, AGR, Doyle, JJM, Dibling initially etc. Surely whilst you need principles its a little pointless if the market then dictates that the few academy players who have PL potential end up leaving to rivals? End of the day talent has a market value and ifnwe try to undervalue them does it do us any favours? Also...re pathway comments from others, its not just about first team apps. Our use of loan moves to develop players has been absolutely abysmal for years. Aside from Tella and Smallbone who were outside of academy age anyway I can barely think of a move that has gone well for one of our top lads. Doesn't bode well for the likes of Dibling, Ballard, Meghoma and SAA if they still don't get a chance here. Its clear something isn't working right whether strategic or execution of that strategy.

I'm fine with the signings we have made - would take Wood or Edwarss to be squad options every time over dross like Lyanco and financially its got more upside too. I'm more worried about the attacking element - we really will need to add some proper quality there (both up front and out wide/no10) to even have a sniff of staying up. Thats what will cost big cash and hopefully by being canny with the sigings we have made we will have budget for it. We are already weakened by not having Stu, Adams or Brooks so major work to do there in the next two months - needs at minimum one guarenteed starter.

Patience definitely required because ultimately it is very difficult to stay up as a newly promoted side. Chopping and changing won't help and we will be recruiting to play his way so clamouring for change after a couple of defeats won't help anyone.

What a blow for anyone working in the academy - its becoming more and more of a difficult to see an actual homegrown prospect make it. Only the very best academy players are good enough for PL football (or even Championship) so if you can't keep your top 5% beyond the age of 16 then you really have no chance of ever seeing a first team debut aside from players you buy in later on like SAA/Meghoma. Of our recent long term academy players who have clearly been very good at youth level nearly all have chosen to leave before making any impact in our first team: Morgan, Doyle, Dibling (came back as couldn't settle) and now these two. Its not really a good advert for our academy. The only players aside from Dibling who are anywhere close are players we bought in the same way, from Spurs. If Miles or Gomes don't make it at City or wherever they will still make a tidy profit on them whereas we will get peanuts - seems an unsustainable model for non big clubs. I get in some ways the idea of not caving to pay demands but if the point of an academy is to develop players for your first team and you have a couple of the best in Europe for their age then surely you do absolutely everything to keep them, even if that means upsetting others who are lesser players?

Is there any evidence that he has a "terrible, terrible attitude and commitment to the game"? His injury record, mostly shoulder, has certainly been a problem for him but I must have missed something?!

Swansea fans knew he wanted to leave last summer and knew he definitely would this summer so thats probably why they aren't bothered. I would much rather go down a path like this than another Lyanco or DCC type signing. Manager knows what he gets with Wood, player knows the style of play and its at a price where even if it doesn't work out there is still a big market for him unlike those mentioned above.

Guessing we have chosen Wood over Edwards, or at least its been the one thats easier to do. RM likes going for players he has worked with before so will trust his judgement. Wood has played for Eng U21s of late so clearly seen as a player of high potential and if RM thinks he is a good character too then for £7m or so it seems a worthwhile addition.

Thanks for sharing. You could post the link to where you take your info from as well like most of us do - as lots of people want to know the source and take a look themselves. E.g: https://x.com/TheSaintsFCBlog/status/1807426350602424732?s=19

Of course it might, but its still obvious what they are doing better and doesnt show too much sign of stopping. For example right now in Rushworth they have a GK who they could probably sell for £20m who has barely played a single game for them, if at all. He is probably better than all our GKs. They also know they can probably get way over £50m for Mitoma, Ferguson, Joao Perdo, Verbruggen, etc and haven't spend much of the cash rhey got for Caicedo as yet. And all clubs certainly don't have this cycle. A lot never really have and it doesnt happen by accident - its having strong and experienced leadership (like Paul Barber), an excellent recruitment team and a long term view rather than for example wasting £20m on a targetman for a manager you sack about 3 weeks later. Good signs we have learned and are adapting - recruitment (in and out) really is the no1 key for a club of our size.

Ideally you have an excellent recruitment team that identify players before they are known, develop them (whether at Saints or out on loan) and then take advantage when the rich and reckless come in for them. Easier to do that when to have a.) a settled recruitment team (we haven't) b.) a defined style of play to recruit for (we do now and did for some of RH tenure) Our issue for the last 6 or 7 years has been that we haven't found enough of these players, consequently haven't sold anyone for big money in a long while (Lavia aside) and because we havent had a strong enough core of PL players whenever we have had a potential gem they have largely struggled in a poor team. I know people hate comparison clubs but look at how Brighton have used the loan market to develop their players (White, Mitoma, Caicedo etc) - its light years away from what we have done largely because they planned ahead and have signed a lot of players they havent needed to throw straight into their squad before they are ready. Our only recent recruitment pattern seems to be allowing our better players to get to one year left on their contracts, being forced to sell under value for £15m - £20m and then replacing (sometimes) with players who cost the same but have no experience or proven quality. KWP this time around, previous examples include PEH, Ings, Vestergaard, Clyne, Wanyama. Suprise, suprise it caused a gradual decline because the replacements needed time they didnt have to adjust to the PL and in some cases were just not good enough. British players tend to have a better market to sell even to the Championship for those that dont quite make it, so that focus makes sense but now we are part of a multi club setup and Goztepe are back in the Super Lig - lets use it to our advantage and try to recruit better in other markets...like Brighton have done in South America.

Yeah its a great deal for Brentford if they manage to pull it off. Good player who is only likely to increase in value. Certainly a better use of £35m than Sulemana and Onuachu. With Brighton signing Minteh for upwards of £30m too it shows that even potential starts with a 3 these days. Our record fee is probably the smallest in the league by a decent distance now, Ipswich aside.

Ridiculously the next few days could prove quite important in the fight to stay up as seems a few near the bottom including at least Leicester and Forest still have significant PSR concerns, with further points deductions possible if sales don't take place. Crazy that June 30th is almost becoming a mini deadline day of its own!

Funny to read posts about KWP being a defensive liability when just a month ago everyone was rightly pointing out that he kept the Championship Player of the Year in his pocket for 3 games. I know its a defence mechanism but its ok to just be honest and say it how it is: disappointing to lose KWP who has been great for us both defensively and going forward. Probably our best player. Whilst I'm on the topic of bad takes...these posts with lineups for next season are absurd for two reasons: 1. There is zero chance we will only sign frees and loans and end up with starting front 3s as weak as Ghoddos, Arma, Fraser so its a waste of time doing lineups at this point before we have done any proper business (we know the market hots up in July/Aug because its the same every single year) 2. Most of those lineups wouldnt get 20 points...its only been a year but some seem to have forgotten how strong and ruthless the PL is.

Strange one as he doesn't fit the way the manager wants to play. Don't think he is good enough/suited enough to be a successful #1 and Lumley isn't good enough to be a #2 so we have a problem in this position. Bazunu an irrelevance for this season as he won't be fit for the vast majority - but clearly a factor in why we are not seemingly signing a new #1.

I read it as being that we would pay a fee for Downes as the two deals would be separate of each other (there are never genuine swap deals for accounting reasons).

Get that Manning isn't highly rated but I do think he is slightly different in that he is still the best LB we currently have, played majority of games last season and therefore would need directly replacing before letting him go. The others I agree just seem easily surplus to requirements.