woodsaint1

I've said the exact same on another thread. We're lucky if we get 1 every other year who is good enough to make it at PL level. You're hardly going to know that though if you're putting square pegs in round holes as opposed to giving them a chance. Jankewitz should be given the chance tomorrow, not Stephens

Would be another ringing endorsement for our prestigious academy if Stephens was preferred in CM ahead of Jankewitz. We've already had CMs and CBs preferred at RB ahead of Valery and happy to get by with one senior LB instead of keeping Vokins as backup. Long was also preferred ahead of N'Lundulu and Obafemi for most games. Not to mention the list of other academy products out on loan when we're on record saying that we dont believe in the loan system It makes you question the point of the academy if all we're doing is feeding lower league clubs for nominal fees (if any fee at all). If they're not good enough to be given a chance then our academy needs a serious overhaul

Going to another teams forum and setting up an account for team news 😂😂 has teletext not reached merseyside yet. Simpleton

Cant argue with any of this. I personally felt that Puel deserved another season to at least try and build his own team. In his defence also, we missed VVD for most of the second half of that season, but he made us hard to beat with Stephens and Yoshida at CB (a feat in itself). Ultimately, this led to a bland style of football which the fans and then the owners became impatient with. Anybody who lumps him in with Pellegrino and Hughes should seek help. I think we'll win another handful of games before the seasons end and finish 11-14th which given where we were in December is very disappointing. However, it was probably where i seen us finishing at the start of the season. I honestly believe that Ralph can take us to 8-10th next season if hes backed and we finally move beyond some of the bad transfer business which has held us back in recent years. However, he also needs to adapt his style of play as two 9-0 defeats is unacceptable for any club, let alone a PL one, and our team confidence at times has looked shaky to say the least.

Honestly believe that if we dont find a new owner by the summer then relegation is a strong possibility next season. With Gao wanting to sell (and get as good a price as he can), we will likely see little to no investment in the summer window (hence the reference that we're looking to take advantage of the free transfer market). Also no guarantee that money from any sales will be equally reinvested. You cant stand still in this league for too long and hope to be ok. That being said, if our owners try and push through a sale without conducting due diligence on prospective parties, we could end up with some joker like DaGrosa or be saddled with large debt like Burnleys recent takeover. Among the 5 parties interested, there surely must be one who genuinely wants to invest and push the club forward 🙏🏼

We have been poor for the majority of the last 5 years I agree, but I'd rather rate Ralph and his team on their own merits (this season and last) and not that of his predecessors Pellegrino and Hughes who were at the helm during that period

Although McCarthy made some good saves against Leeds, he was also suspect for the 1st and 3rd goals. He has also been on the receiving end of conceding alot of goals recently. I would take him out of the firing line and put Forster in. Hes kept clean sheets and deserves a chance. Still think we've no other option but to persist with Bednarek at RB. Would bring Djenepo back in to offer that defensive protection. Unless Diallo makes an unexpected return, it will have to be Jankewitz in CM. The kid will want to prove a point, so why not give him a chance. Would rather him play this game where we're not expected to win, than be thrust into a 'must win' game against Sheff Utd next week. Ings, Minamino and Armstrong all need to start. Attacking-wise we've been poor of late so we need our best attacking options on the pitch. Forster Bednarek Vest Salisu Bertrand Djenepo JWP Jank Armstrong Ings Minamino

There's no denying how pish we were in 2018 and 2019, but to say our PL form post lockdown last year was temporary is a bit ridiculous - 12 wins, 8 draws and 5 losses (44 points from 75, just shy of 1.8 points per game). Sustaining that over 25 games isnt 'form', its the sign of a good team. Likewise, although our 2021 form is very poor - 1 win, 1 draw and 7 defeats (4 points from 27, 0.44 points per game), I would need to see this run of 'form' sustained over 25 games - to the end of season for example (averaging under 1.1 points per game or relegation form) before I would agree that we've returned to our 2018/19/early 20 levels

Interesting spot and no doubt a big factor on us. However, it shouldnt come as a surprise to Ralph that there are plenty of midweek games during a PL season and we therefore need a sustainable system/style of play to be able to deal with that (because we will never have the luxury of a big, quality squad to rely on). If we have any ambitions to play european football again then the games will come even quicker

Never know. Fulham hadnt beat Everton at Goodison in forever before winning there the other week. That being said, Fulham are a much better outfit than we are right now and Everton will be riding high after the derby win. Would take a draw all day. One thing which is becoming clear, Sheff Utd the following week is looking like a must win. They're an awful side with countless defensive injuries and relying on Sharp/McGoldrick/McBurnie for goals. No doubt we'll find a way of making them look good though

Ive been fully supportive of Ralph, but there comes a time when blaming Gao, Les Reed, Dave Watson, injuries, VAR, Ian Branfoot or whoever else for our current problems wears thin. The blame rests with Ralph right now. He took this team to the top league and the praise deservedly flowed in. However, hes now taken this same team on a run of 1 point from 24 and must equally face the criticism. Its simply not good enough. In a matter of weeks we could be out of FA Cup and within touching distance of the relegation zone - who would have thought that at Xmas

Not quite the finished article, so we'll sell him? We can all agree that Adams isnt the best finisher, but at least hes getting himself into them positions. As we all know it took him long enough to get his first goal (some horrible luck too) but since then hes got 8 goals and 4 assists in his last 25 games. Thats not a bad PL return for a second striker. His hold up play and passing can be excellent at times. The link up him and Ings had for a few months was great to watch, so we know whats capable. Also need to remember that hes only 24. I dont see us getting much better for a second striker, we just need to find an adequate replacement for Ings should he go.

Bednarek was pish at RB on saturday. That being said I still prefer him ahead of Stephens

The longer it drags on, the more likely that Ings and Bertrand will both be gone in the summer. Hopefully we can also shift the majority of Lemina, Elyonnoussi, Hoedt (can always hope), Long, Valery, Gunn and Forster for reduced fees. In terms of incomings, which will dependent solely on money made above (Gao wont be investing anymore if hes looking to sell), I think we would need the following - GK - McCarthy is ok but as we've seen his distribution is poor and hes made a few glaring errors this season. He should be a backup as opposed to a number 1. We were linked with Dragowski at Fiorentina before. Would be the sort of GK to improve us. 2x LBs - Rico Henry at Brentford is a fantastic player and should be our aim. I've seen price comparisons with previous Brentford sales - Benrahma, Watkins etc but they were goalscorers who will always attract bigger fees. Brentford could have their hand forced if they miss out on promotion. Would obviously need another as backup as Vokins does not look like the answer. RB - Backup to KWP is a must this window, no fannying around. Still surprised Ralph hasnt ventured into the German or Austrian leagues for signings yet - could hopefully pick up an option there for a low fee or somebody out of contract. Although a different league, West Ham picked up Coufal for 5m so it shows there is bargains out there. AM/No 10 - Would like to see us look at Pereira from WBA once they're relegated. Could be the Tadic style player we've been crying out for. Walcott could be another addition on a free. Cant see us pursuing Minamino if Liverpool are looking upwards of 20m. Tempt them to loan him again, but who knows FW - Will be the most important and likely the difference between us being midtable or relegation candidates should Ings leave. Not sure who we should be looking at but we'll likely need to reinvest the majority of any Ings fee to find a decent replacement. Yes I know we're skint, with an owner wanting to sell, but we can always dream. Who knows, we mIght a new owner by the summer. COYS.

8 points clear and a game in hand on Fulham who have pretty much played all the teams around them twice. They still have City, Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs, Villa, Arsenal and Wolves in their last 13 games. Yeah we'll be fine once we reach 38 points

Romeu has never done that at any of the clubs hes played for. Hes not going to change now. Thats why Diallo offers us a great option, hes like a Romeu/JWP hybrid

Two players who have really flattered to deceive, Redmond and Djenepo, were very good today. Cool from Minamino, the more minutes he gets under his belt he will be a great asset. All hail Salisu. He looks impressive. We can throw all the Forren comparisons in the bin now. Vestergaard very good aswell. One negative is that Bednarek is clearly not a RB, positionally he struggled and got done a few times. Honestly think he could with a rest. Seems to have played every game for us for the past 2 years. Sooner Diallo or KWP is back the better

If we cant get another measly 9 points (cant see Fulham getting to 38) then we deserve to go down because that would be less than 3 wins from our last 21 games 😂😂😂. Thats not going to happen no matter how hopeless we can be at times. Hopefully we can be nearly there by the time the FA Cup quarter final comes around

Yes I would seriously bet against it. The same saints squad who have coped with a relegation scrap twice in the last few seasons. Also the same Pompey team who have pissed away promotion the last few seasons - what a bunch of gutless bottlers.

Would personally go with JWP myself. Hes done very well there before (mugging off Zaha being the best memory). Does Ramsay not normally play CB for the B team anyways? Would give Jankewitz another go in the middle of the park until Diallo returns. It cant get any worse than his last game (can it?) and the kid is ready to make amends

100% agree that we've lacked leaders since Fonte and VVD left. Though i do remember the many calls for us to sign Cahill at the time yet Palace have largely struggled the past few seasons. Dont agree that we have a team full of 'losers' or that that really matters. We have a few 'winners' on top of Bertrand - theres Walcott (plenty of FA Cups with Arsenal), Forster (won everything in Scotland with Celtic in both spells), Armstrong (Celtic again) and KWP (won a under 20 world cup). Tbh outside the top 6/7 teams in the league, most teams in the league are full of players who have won bugger all of note (not including Championship titles) and be classified as losers. The likes of Leeds, Burnley, West Ham to name a few. In fact up until Liverpool won the CL and PL, their team was full of players who had won very little (Mane, Salah, Hendo, VVD, TAA, Robertson, Gomez Firmino etc). Their coach had lost a lot of finals too. The team has shown a strong mentality to win a relegation decider against Swansea, then again survive from where Hughes left us, then again after the first 9-0 to have an excellent 2020. Mentally we'll recover again, but yes this could be assisted with bigger personalities (not like Austin) and leaders - not necessarily 'winners'. Ultimately i think it rests with poor recruitment in years past which we're still recovering from. If we have better players then winning and strong mentality takes care of itself. Still think we're two transfer windows away from being a better team across the board - thats with the appropriate investment which has been lacking. We can always hope. One mental area which does need addressed is the capitulation for the two 9-0s. League 2 clubs wouldnt have lost those games by that margin. A combination of a coach who needs to learn/manage how to shut up shop and players just going AWOL is unacceptable - regardless of poor decisions and red cards.

The same people who were righly praising our performances pre-xmas and likely claiming this to the best Saints team they've seen since 15/16....are now saying this is the worst Saints team ever and claiming that we're watching the demise of this club. Only on SWF. Honestly, enjoy your day doing something other than venting fury at your keyboard. Its only a game of football

The same bad team that was top of the league after 12/13 games and into the quarters of the FA Cup? We're in a bad spell, but we're not a bad team

I know we've lost the last 5 in the league, but just seen on motd that we're 19th in the form table for the last 10 games (6 points from 30). We need a win tomorrow to stop the rot

If Wolves were to win then they go above us. For a team having a supposedly poor season, it just shows how close the league is (except for the bottom 3). We're only 4 points ahead of Newcastle who have been absolutely dreadful. We need a win to halt the league slide otherwise we'll be sitting 15/16th in no time. Would be some fall for a team playing really well and sitting top less than 3 months ago. Need to be positive though. 2-1 Saints