TotalSaintsPod

Our latest episode is out, picking through a frustrating 1–0 defeat at Preston. Another slow start, plenty of possession and no reward against the side bottom of the table. Martin, Steve, Glen and Alfie discuss whether opponents have found a blueprint for playing Saints, the impact of Kevin Schlotterbeck’s injury, Nathan Wood’s omission and Leo Scienza’s fitness and form. We also look at where the squad needs strengthening in January. Chris from the Rams Review Podcast joins us to preview Derby’s visit after the international break, and there’s some welcome positivity from Saints Women’s 4–1 win over Sheffield United. Interested to hear your thoughts: are the recent problems mainly down to missing players, or do we need to simplify how we’re playing? Listen: https://pod.fo/e/74093a Watch: https://youtube.com/live/6zkZGZC9wvM Thanks as always to everyone who gives it a listen.

Appreciate that! And great to have you along for the last 200-odd episodes.

Thanks! We've had a few comments like this, I think since we're all on camera for once, in person. The lads wear the TSP merch every episode, and all drink from the glasses/mugs as well, so no changes were made for this one. We all really like the stuff and wear it even off camera 😂

TSP 400: Saints 4–1 QPR, Promotion Hopes & West Brom Preview Hi all, We’ve reached 400 episodes of Total Saints Podcast, so Martin, Steve, Glen and Alfie got together in person for this one, with a 4–1 win over QPR giving us plenty to discuss. We look at Matsuki’s growing importance, Dobbin’s movement up front, Bragg’s performance and what Ward-Prowse brings to the midfield. There’s also the disallowed goal debate and a discussion about how Saints’ recruitment has shifted towards building a team ready to win now. Looking ahead to West Brom, we discuss rotation, injuries and whether a point would be a good result. We also reflect on a year of Tonda and ask what could stand between Saints and automatic promotion. Plus, a few memories from 400 episodes of following this club through just about everything. Would you take a draw at The Hawthorns? And after these last two wins, what’s your biggest concern about our promotion chances? Watch: https://youtu.be/Q3l8zpyVfgM Listen: https://pod.fo/e/71bd4b Thanks to everyone here who has listened, watched or contributed over the years. We really appreciate it.

Total Saints Podcast 399 – West Ham 2-3 Southampton! A Statement Win? A very enjoyable one to record this week after that win at the London Stadium! We're looking back at the 3-2 victory over West Ham, including that incredible start, James Bree's goal and Daniel Peretz putting in one of the best goalkeeping performances we've seen for a while. Plenty of credit to go around, particularly for Dobbin stepping up in Larin's absence, Ward-Prowse on his return to West Ham and the defensive effort to see out the result. We also discuss whether this was a genuine statement win and what it means for our promotion hopes, with Saints now just three points off the top two. We then turn our attention to QPR on Saturday, with a Rangers supporter joining us to preview the game, talk about their impressive form and give us an opposition perspective. Plus, Alfie talks us through his interview with Johannes Spors, including the latest on Eckert's contract and whether we might see any business in January. And next week we're celebrating 400 episodes with a special in-person recording in Southampton! Listen: https://pod.fo/e/6f5267 Watch: https://youtube.com/live/KCMaAeKMsvg Interested to hear what everyone thinks. Was West Ham our best performance of the season so far, and are you starting to believe we could be genuine automatic promotion contenders? As always, thanks for listening and watching!

The latest Total Saints Podcast is available now, with plenty to get through after Saturday's frustrating 0-0 draw against Bolton. Martin, Steve, Glen and Alfie discuss the penalty decision that somehow wasn't given, but also look at the other reasons Saints failed to take all three points. There's a fair bit of discussion around Tonda's tactical changes, particularly the decision to move Tom Fellows over to the left, and whether we made things unnecessarily complicated against a Bolton side that came with a clear game plan. We also get into the striker situation, Cyle Larin's recent performances and why Divin Mubama continues to struggle for minutes. On the positive side, it's seven points from nine and three consecutive clean sheets, so there's certainly plenty to be encouraged by. In the second half of the show, Russ from West Ham Network joins us to preview Saturday's trip to the London Stadium. West Ham have been scoring plenty of goals, but their supporters don't seem entirely convinced by the performances so far. Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/live/UtOmx3_0qdE Listen to the podcast: https://pod.fo/e/6cf185 Interested to hear what everyone thinks about the Bolton performance. Was it just one of those afternoons, or did Tonda make life more difficult than it needed to be?

The latest Total Saints Podcast is out now! Another 1-0 win for Saints, this time at Norwich, and we've finally got that first away league victory of the season. Martin is joined by Steve, Glen and Tom Prentki to look back at Wednesday night's performance, including Tonda's squad rotation, the contributions from Dobbin and Edozie, Matsuki's winner and Casper Jander's excellent return. We also discuss the back-to-back clean sheets and whether Saints are starting to develop the resilience needed to challenge towards the top of the table. Then it's onto Bolton at St Mary's on Saturday. Can we make it three wins in a week and continue our perfect home league record? Plenty of discussion about the team selection too, particularly with Jander returning, Downes carrying an injury and several players pushing for starts. As always, feedback and thoughts welcome! Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/live/Jc4PLxsMZiE Listen to the podcast: https://pod.fo/e/6c04c1

Well, that was worth waiting for! The latest TSP is out now, and unsurprisingly we've spent plenty of time discussing Sunday's 1-0 win over Pompey. Nearly 22 years since our last league victory over them, and we managed it with ten men. Not sure many of us would have predicted James Bree being the matchwinner either! Martin, Steve, Glen and Alfie go through the game in detail, including the slightly bizarre starting formation, Bragg's sending-off, Azaz's excellent assist and the defensive performance that followed. There's also a good discussion about whether we made life difficult for ourselves or whether Pompey were simply too poor to take advantage. Either way, we'll take it! We then move on to the Tonda verdict. Alfie explains some of the more interesting findings from the FA commission, including the difference between the original allegations and what was eventually established. We also discuss whether this clears the way for a new contract. Finally, we're joined by Adam Harvey from the Pink Un to preview Norwich away on Wednesday. They've had a difficult start, but there's a feeling amongst the panel that it'll still be a tough game, particularly given our away form. Plenty to get through this week! Interested to hear where people stand on the derby performance. Was it a sign of real progress, or are we getting carried away because of the opposition? And perhaps more importantly, does James Bree now have lifelong immunity from criticism? 🎧 Listen: https://pod.fo/e/6aa6df 📺 Watch: https://youtube.com/live/9mp0cYeZb_A Cheers!

TSP 395 – Southampton v Portsmouth Preview This week’s pod is out now, with most of the focus naturally on Sunday’s South Coast Derby. We’ve got Andy from the PO4Cast joining us to give the Portsmouth perspective ahead of the game - how their season has started, some of the injury problems they’re dealing with, their goalkeeper situation and how they might approach Saints at St Mary’s. On the Saints side, we also discuss the continuing wait for the FA’s decision on Tonda Eckert, Daniel Peretz’s injury and whether Aaron Ramsdale should come straight in if he misses out, Cyle Larin’s fitness, Casper Jander and our score predictions. Hopefully this one has a bit more life to it than last season’s 0-0… 🎧 Listen: https://pod.fo/e/6863fc 📺 Watch: https://youtube.com/live/bKESTmygwSs What are we all thinking for Sunday - and if Peretz isn’t fit, surely it has to be Ramsdale?

TSP 394 – Wrexham, Tonda’s FA hearing and the away form Plenty to get into this week after another frustrating afternoon away from home. We look back at the 2-1 defeat at Wrexham, where Saints created enough chances to win but once again failed to make them count. There’s discussion on Larin’s difficult afternoon, Scienza’s injury, the substitutions, the defending and whether the lack of depth beyond the first XI is starting to become a concern. We also spend a fair bit of time on Tonda Eckert, with his FA hearing reportedly set for Thursday. We discuss the possible outcomes, whether a touchline ban would be manageable, what a wider football ban could mean for the club and whether Saints would appeal any sanction. Also covered: JWP back on the scoresheet Schlotterbeck’s first really poor game James Bree’s form The Wrexham social media stuff The Aston Villa friendly Casper Jander Saints Women The wider academy recruitment issue Interested to know where everyone is with the away form now. Concerned, or still relatively relaxed given the chances we’re creating? 🎧 https://pod.fo/e/637af0 📺 https://youtube.com/live/4erqbaPMFrA

TSP 393 – Bristol City 4-1, Larin on fire + Wrexham away New episode of TSP is out following the 4-1 win over Bristol City. Martin is joined by Steve, Glen and Alfie to go through what was another very entertaining home game, although probably not quite as straightforward as the final score suggests. Plenty on Cyle Larin after another couple of goals, Matsuki getting his chance and taking it, another productive game from Azaz, Nathan Wood, the impact from the bench and why we still seem completely incapable of keeping a clean sheet. There’s also a decent discussion around the Tonda Eckert FA case, with the feeling that we may finally get some sort of decision during the international break. Then we look ahead to Wrexham. They’ve started the season poorly and were hammered by West Ham, but Saints are still yet to win away this season, so it feels like quite an important one before the break and then Pompey. 🎧 Listen: https://pod.fo/e/60d02b 📺 Watch: https://youtube.com/live/5Ee1JbaAcq0

New TSP is out after what felt like Saints’ most complete performance of the season so far. Southampton made it three wins from three Championship home games with a 3-1 win over Swansea, who came into the match unbeaten and having conceded just once in their previous five. We spend quite a bit of this one discussing whether we're beginning to see the makings of a genuinely strong Southampton side rather than simply a decent run of results. Plenty on Finn Azaz, Leo Scienza’s best performance of the season, Cyle Larin's form and the developing Flynn Downes/James Ward-Prowse midfield partnership. We also talk Nathan Wood and Keven Schlotterbeck, whether Downes should be wearing the armband more regularly and some of the nervousness around St Mary’s when Saints continued playing out from the back at 2-1. There’s also a good discussion prompted by Nick in our Patreon WhatsApp group about the Northam Wall. Has giving Saints fans the entire end now started to make a tangible difference? Then we preview Bristol City on Saturday — another side coming into St Mary’s in good form, three consecutive wins, 11 summer signings and, of course, Dom Ballard returning. The wider question we ended up asking was probably the most interesting one: Are we starting to see the version of this Southampton team that can challenge for promotion? 🎥 Watch: https://youtube.com/live/lPTm0KlhF9I 🎧 Listen: https://pod.fo/e/5f4378

TSP 391 – Lincoln 1-1 Southampton: did Eckert’s changes cost Saints? The latest Total Saints Podcast is out now. We spend the first part of the episode discussing another frustrating away draw after Saints conceded an 87th-minute equaliser at Lincoln. There was plenty of disagreement over Tonda Eckert’s decisions. Should Leo Scienza and Cyle Larin have been taken off after 62 minutes? Did switching to a back three invite Lincoln onto Saints? And, after the transfer window, does the squad have enough quality coming off the bench? We also discuss Welington’s spectacular goal, James Ward-Prowse’s return, another strong performance from Keven Schlotterbeck and the uncertainty around Saints’ best defensive partnership. George Rees-Julian then joins us to preview Tuesday’s game against unbeaten Swansea, including their excellent defensive start, how Saints could hurt them and whether Eckert should change the midfield. What would you have changed at Lincoln, and what team would you start on Tuesday? Watch: https://youtube.com/live/adLeO6cl2BE Listen: https://pod.fo/e/5e0fe0

TSP 390: Did Saints Do Enough in the Transfer Window? The summer transfer window is over, so this week’s podcast takes a proper look at Southampton’s squad and whether the owners delivered on their promise to build a team as good as last season. Martin is joined by Steve, Alfie and Tom to rate the window and discuss whether Saints have enough quality and depth to challenge for automatic promotion. Aaron Ramsdale’s situation, the returns at centre-back, James Ward-Prowse, Sam Edozie and the lack of experienced cover up front are all on the agenda. We also look back at the 1–1 draw with Birmingham City, including Schlotterbeck’s header, the defending for the equaliser and which players made a case to start this weekend. Kyle from the Stacey West Podcast then joins us to preview Saturday’s trip to Lincoln City, their approach under the new management team and the changes Saints might make. We’d be interested to know what everyone thinks: how would you rate the transfer window out of 10, and is this squad good enough for the top two? Listen: https://pod.fo/e/5c1d8a Watch: https://youtube.com/live/3gJV_enDd8E

TSP 389 – Saints 5–1 Millwall, Schlotterbeck and JWP debuts, plus deadline day The latest episode of the Total Saints Podcast is available now. Neil is in the chair alongside Steve, Glen and Alfie, looking back at a much-needed—and eventually emphatic—5–1 win over Millwall. There’s plenty on the slow opening, the tactical change that helped turn the game around and the much-improved intensity after Saints went behind. The panel also discusses Schlotterbeck’s excellent debut after only one training session, Nathan Wood’s performance alongside him, James Ward-Prowse’s return, Matsuki offering a more natural threat out wide and Tom Fellows finally getting his first goal for the club. Attention then turns to the final days of the transfer window: possible departures, where the squad might still need strengthening and whether Ward-Prowse is enough to cover the loss of Shea Charles. There’s also a full preview of Tuesday night’s game at Birmingham, including the likely line-up and score predictions. Listen here: https://pod.fo/e/5a2d64 Watch here: https://youtube.com/live/TOooQkGNO-c A quick note that this was recorded on Sunday morning, so anything that happened later in the day won’t be covered. The team will be live again on Wednesday at 7pm to react to Birmingham and the final transfer business. What did everyone make of the two debuts—and would you keep the same starting XI at Birmingham if Flynn Downes is available?