This Charming Man

I'd say it's about time to start panicking and questioning the ability of the transfer committee.

But they only get crowds 4k more than us and we are on the up. They were bottom of the premier league not so long ago, we have a much bigger catchment area than them!

Never thought of it like that. Damn my Dell sized mentality.

I'm in China at the moment and the vast majority of travellers I have met from all over the world have never even heard of Southampton (that obviously applies for city and football team). I just tell people I'm from London now as bored of trying to explain where Southampton is.

5,6 years ago Spurs began their major investment in players to move from the ever age team they were to the top 5 they are now and getting better. I recall that they let it known that they were after all these top players and willing to spend but it actually took them a while before anyone of real note signed up. I see a similarity here with us. Of course Spurs have a better pedigree than us so it will be a little tougher to convince many players to come but I love the fact that the intention and ambition is so clearly there. We may not get Damieo or Wanyama (although I think we will!!) and if so there are many many other options in the world so I am confident that regardless of how long we take to sign these great improvements we will certainly do it.

Spurs are a massive club, well known all over the world and with a decent enough history in Europe. It will take us a long time just to reach the level they were at 5 years ago.

Napoli are seemingly more interested in Dzeko and Gomez. Reckon he will wait it out and see what happens. I reckon it will drag out. Should we pursue other targets?

I imagine we must be his last choice, surely? If someone with a serous offer and CL football comes along, there's no chance he will turn it down. Considering his ability, I wouldn't be surprised at all if that did happen.

Probably time we move on from this now. Napoli and Zenit into the race, means Southampton are out of the race.

 

I admire Cortese for his ambition in trying to get these huge names but I think we're going to need to somehow qualify for Europe before any of these targets like Damiao agree to come.

Any mug can declare their interest in a player. Delivering players of this calibre are another thing though...

I've lost shoes on nights out before. Once lost a pair as I claimed I could throw them over a block of flats, they ended up on the newsagents roof just in front of the flat block. Another pair was lost on a beach when I was a little worse for wear. To this day I don't know of they were misplaced or robbed (I was in Bulgaria).

When England played Japan in Graz, Austria there was free Wifi in the stadium. Posting rubbish on Facebook/Twitter was far more entertaining than the actual game.

You had better hope for 2 days of rain if you want to see any play on Day 5.

Best of luck to him if he does join Napoli as he seems a top prospect but can't help but feel he'll be making the wrong decision. Napoli wont be half the side without Cavani and playing in a corrupt league wouldn't really appeal to me.

 

At the end of the day, Northcroft is the ONLY person/outlet reporting that Damiao to Napoli will happen. Numerous other outlets in Italy say that Dzeko is their number 1 target and Damiao is an alternative and until other outlets start reporting this, I'll still continue to think there is a possibility he will join Saints.

Some people on here crack me up. Damiao had probably never even heard of us until his agent advised him we had made a bid.

As for Napoli, they're one of the giants of European football with fanatical support and CL football to top it all off. Take your rosé tinted glasses off.

My mistake..

When you start throwing mincy little tantrums like that, it is inevitable that people will turn on you.

I am back in my office for the first time since the announcement today, and a few Italians from Udine have already indicated they might go.

That's 803 maybes then. This is heading for a sell out, IMO.

Seriously, if some of you are so disinterested or so dismissive of the info I offered in good will, why bother posting ?

 

No point in my saying I wont bother again in future, because its so unlikely I will be "at point" again, but if I hear any interesting developments in the weeks running up to these two games, I simply wont bother.

Nobody is having a direct pop at you, just merely mocking the information that the stadium provided you. Now put your tampon back in.

No. The car doesn't double as a submarine.

 

But if I lived in Tarvisio, I wouldn't hesitate to drive to a match in Villach.

Are you going to watch any Reading/Brighton/Bournemouth pre-season games?

200 Saints fans + 800 Schalke fans = half the seating gone.

 

But naturally all the German, Dutch, Italian or British tourists holidaying there won't be remotely interested, will they?

 

If I were holidaying there this year, I'd sure as hell go to a match featuring any team from Europe's top leagues v Schalke, but I must be a bit weird that way.

 

Schalke have deadly rivals in Borussia Dortmund. No chance of any of their fans turning up, as we wouldn't go to see a Skate pre-season match if we were in the vicinity, would we, not even to go along hoping they got hammered? Schalke is among the top 15 sized clubs in World football, so not really much of a draw at all. The Italian and Slovenian borders are both just 45 minutes away, but why would any football fans bother to travel from there to see any team other than one from their own country?

 

No, you're right, there will only be 1000 fans there max.

The French border is only 45 mins away from us. You planning on taking any Le Harve pre-season games in?

The ticket office suggesting turning up an hour ahead for one of two reasons that I can think of:-

 

a) People arriving early will generate more revenue in sales of food and refreshments

b) The advice is meant to be helpful to those attending, because it takes into account said local traffic conditions and the amount of time they anticipate taking to process the projected number of attendees.

 

I suggest that people pay more attention to those with experience of attending other pre-season matches in other countries, in different sized stadia, against other teams, as they are bound to have a really good idea about it all.

The fact the game is being played in a poxy athletics stadium which is pay on the day suggests the locals and every tourist in the region on that day isn't going to be whipped into a frenzy by this fixture.

Didn't Alpine mention the other day that the stadium didn't originally even know what his dorris was talking about when she enquired about the tickets? Then again, the stadium management could've been out setting up the rings of fences and security checks to cope with such demand? Maybe they were caught in the 4hr tailbacks regularly generated in this sleepy town with a population of 55k?

Maybe Alpine should pitch a tent outside the turnstile so he can beat off competition from the 800 Schalke fans and 10,000 holidaymakers all desperate to catch a glimpse of De Ridder and Jos.

Its worse than this. It has gold print, FFS.

 

Tacky. Very tacky.

Agreed there. The gold is disgusting and makes it look cheap and nasty.

Horrible shirt and absolutely disgusting that NC seems adamant on moving away from our stripes.

Still, it will be lapped up by the morons and bought in it's thousands.

Sorry but I cannot see why anybody would bother to travel thousands of miles at their own expense to watch a few friendly kick-abouts to help get players match fit for the new season in which substitutions will be the order of the day and results meaningless. Anybody contemplating this must have some serious obsessive psychiatric disorder, I mean what's that all about? What are you scared of missing? Get a life fella's.

 

They'll be playing at SMS in the PL soon enough, no doubt testing your patience and heart condition as per usual.

So you don't enjoy weekends away with your mates on the beer? Seeing places you wouldn't normally visit?

Why are you scared of going? Mrs won't let you? Scared you'll miss too much Eastenders? Worried you won't be able to get a pint of Carling over there?

I dont think people are going to travel all that way without a ticket and aim to turn up at the ground five minutes before kick off.

That's what me and the 18 others I went with did last pre season.

Some cities are no surprise but Luanda in Angola and Juba in South Sudan in the top five well above places like Copenhagen and Geneva, how come?

"At the top of the global list, Oslo is followed by the Angolan capital of Luanda, where the goods and services commonly purchased by expatriates are difficult to access and command a premium"

I was in Oslo last summer and it was extortionate. Luckily we found some bar by some dodgy market that was about £5 a beer. The only downside was all the Somalian smackheads that also frequented the same place.

I'm off to Tokyo this summer as well, anyone know where the Somalian smackheads drink there...?

I believe when we play Sociedad, that will be for the new 'Cortese Cup'. The winning team also get's the opportunity to dine with Nicola Cortese.

5 weeks since the end of the season and not one pre-season game announced yet , looking through other teams websites we appear to be the only club this slow off the mark.

 

the players are due back for training in just over a week, and football league starts in Aug 3rd so any friendlies v lower league will need to be in July.

 

I wonder if the chaos in the marketing department with the sponsor debacle is causing delays in other decisions to be made as well.

 

if the rumours are true about training camps in Spain and Austria perhaps we won't be playing domestic friendlies anyway.

We are the only club in the Premiership not to announce their pre season plans.

Flights from Bournemouth to Malaga looking at about £150 return. Not far from Seville too, a City I've always fancied. ALWAYS wanted Saints abroad in the sunshine with San Miguel!

 

Will have the credit card poised to book up the moment they confirm on twitter!

Seville is a stunning city. Probably one of the most picturesque cities I've ever visited.