John Boy Saint

Well for a Dull drizzly Saturday night that was quite an entertaining half of football

He must has realised the schadenfreude was about to go into overdrive on here, and thought he had better shut us up

Hahahahahahahaha!!! Lovren ............ What a fantastic brainfart!! The gift that just keeps on giving!!!!

Oh dear they have just put their foot on the gas

Yup my error, was listening with half an ear on the radio, summary was a bit airy fairy.

Must have gone out shopping for some new tights......... So in his absence I will deputise and start it. Listening to Arsenal hammering on the door of the Sunderland defence, but failing to break through at half time. Arsene will be sending them out with dynamite second half.

Tadic on the bench Boufal to start, hope he has a storming first half, then around 55-60 mins change up to Tadic, because Tadic will come on with a Bee in his bonnet, when he has a point to prove he is verging on unplayable with all his little tricks and feints............... That said they both know their way to goal playing both of them could be a giggle,.. Might need the midfield to be right on their game though.

Has that big Pub in the marina re opened? EDIT: Just seen that it has, but I don't think it's suited to being inundated with a horde of footie fans, looking a bit swish now couldn't see a telly......... Probably get a nice pre match Woo-Woo without getting a strange look from behind the bar

Probably why Barcelona are allegedly on the sniff round him.

None of them as they left without too much of a second thought for Saints. Bale would be a different matter, as he was sold as a necessity.

I see we have Mike Jones on the whistle for this one, think he was the one fell foul of what looked like a school boy prank when a Saints player was doing up his boot laces as he was walking backwards didn't see the Saints player and fell over him. Might have been up at Sunderland.

As has been said already a bit of a messy game, but going back to the Sparta game when Claude started shuffling the pack, when I saw the team on the wall at the back of the bookies under the Chapel. My first reaction was "that looks ok". Then saw the Sunderland team on the TV screens thought, they are taking this pretty seriously. I think the overriding thing Claude has quickly achieved is togetherness in the full squad, Jermaine Jenas mentioned something about it some weeks back on TV, when talking about rotation, in that as a fringe player you want to feel included. I don't think there is any doubt that all the players on the squad list right now feel wanted and have a purpose. Harrison Reed summed that up perfectly as every time he has taken to the pitch he has (to my knowledge) never let us down with his performance, last season he seemed to have vanished into a dark place that had fans asking what's happened to him. Then he popped up in the Palace cup game and played really well, getting right under the skin of Cabaye especially, after that game he said in an interview that he likes playing under Puel and that when he came in he had spoken to him and told him not to be so aggressive. Last night I thought he was immense playing in the Romeu role up against a Wardrobe and an American Fridge freezer without any trepidation and constantly showing for the ball regardless of who was bearing down on him. I think his performance also shows why Clasie has upped his game in recent weeks......... Last season under RK Clasie could have one leg hanging off and an eye patch over one eye and he still would have been on the bench ahead of Reed. Sam McQueen is looking an old hand at it now, Stephens I think was trying a little too hard, and second half after a couple of miscontrolled balls just seemed to let his head drop, which was a surprise. Disappointment for me was Isgrove, the lad has had a couple of great seasons out on loan playing week in week out against monsters in lower leagues and acquitted himself very well. last Last night first half there were flashes, but the moment that summed up a poor second half for him was when the ball came to him up front in acres of space enough to turn and run at goal like he has done out on loan, he didn't even think about doing that but just playing the ball back to where it had just come from..... And backwards. Young Olomola was twitching to go with him in support if he had turned. A moment that summed up Claude and the nippers up well was when Olomola came on, and instantly decided to chase the ball across the Sunderland defence (much to the crowds enjoyment) Claude was out on the touch line telling him to calm down. Moyes was all of a lather re the penalty, he should be lucky he still had 11 players on the pitch at that point as baldy who took out McQueen 1st half should have been in the showers as that was full studs up and agricultural but both ref and Lino (who were crap) saw nothing in it, matey who had committed the foul knew he was in trouble and was very quiet at getting away with it. Overall it wasn't a crackerjack cup tie, the game was decided by a lovely goal scored by our most expensive player, who you would hope would score goals like that by default, but what the game did show is right now under Claude Puel the club is in a good place.

Didn't we bugger them about for the next 2 seasons at the Dell too, leading Fergie to open one post match interview with "when did they say they were going to knock this place down: as it can't come soon enough".

I think in the past couple of games something has changed with him, so something has possibly been said. Or add to the mix the comments from Harrison Reed, regarding Puel and him, after the Palace game has seen Harry rediscover his belief, and as a result beginning to push Clasie to up his game. I can see Puel being one of those technical trainers who like Clive Woodward did with the England Rugby team looked to improve each player by 1% each training session.

You do wonder after all the effort he has put in over the years to be a professional footballer, whether some small part of him says "I wish I had stayed there and could play every week"........... Sadly though the money monster has probably decapatated that small part.

Common theme of fluid football mentioned above. Mrs JBS knows her football, (footie on the TV it's her reaching for the remote and 4xx being pressed). She will identify a flaw with a player and 99 times out of 100 she will be spot on. Sunday evening when we got home out of the blue she just said "some of the football we are playing is almost hypnotic"............. Not the sort of thing that she says, slightly out of character.

I thought Liverpool was (tongue in cheek) the capital of Ireland?

I do believe it's class C1 on your license......... It's a bit of a big bugger, even more so if you are use to toddling around in a Fiesta size car........... Even bigger if you have to take it down a residential street full of piggy parking.

Strange that nothing much has been reported of the open door policy that Germany had to "refugees", now sees the security chain on and the open door very much just a small crack. Nor the early morning deportations they have been carrying out on those welcomed in to big cheers lots of clapping, and the brass band playing along. All of this is a very fine line, some of these folks have had a horrible time and should be helped, but when a load of so called children turn up and they look unlikely to be asked for ID down the off-licence then questions need to be asked, if we just let folks in willy nilly like Germany did, imagine the questions that would be asked if the goings on in Cologne this past New Years Eve happened in London. Lineker Tweeted what most people were thinking, maybe he should have thought a bit longer before posting.................... Lily Allen just has a new album to sell.

I noticed that Puel seemed to put a lid on Martina and McQueen bombing forward during the second half yesterday, which made me wonder if with the full back positions being so thin at the moment he was trying to preserve their fitness with Sunderland, Chelsea, then Inter on the horizon. With the talk about Stephens playing right back, I seem to recall something when Hojbjerg first joined us that playing right back was in his repertoire. I also noticed that when Hojbjerg and Martina are on the pitch when Cucu races forwards Pierre slides over to cover the right back slot. maybe that's an option too, which allows Maya to play as a steady left back and Stephens to slot into the middle.......... but then I seem to recall SD and JWP have deputised in the right back position too when circumstances have arisen during the game and a sticking plaster has needed to be applied. Eitherway it is a bit of a conundrum.

We flew into Geneva drove through the Alps via the Mont Blanc tunnel. Then back to Geneva via the Simplon Pass on Friday passing Lake Maggiore along the way, I will be returning to Milan just to go and visit the Italian lakes.

We flew into Geneva drove through the Alps via the Mont Blanc tunnel. Then back to Geneva via the Simplon Pass on Friday passing Lake Maggiore along the way, I will be returning to Milan just to go and visit the Italian lakes.

Next door in the MGallery had a heap of Accor points to spend, Mrs JBS birthday on the day of the game so pushed fhe boat out as we are there from Tuesday till Saturday.

Leave it here - nice write up, obviously the buoyant mood of us Saints fans touched the reporter. On the Metro to San Siro, there was some hearty singing, sitting by us was an Italian lady on her way home from work she was fascinated by it all, asking Mrs JBS alsorts of questions about the songs.

Flippin heck!!!!!!!!!! Amazed that you weren't arrested for having your pants pulled down in the square!!!! What at were you drinking? beer brewed by blind Monks of a silent order, where the filtration process includes letting the beer flow over the nubile naked bodies of Virgins personally selected by St Peter and God himself!!!!