Forester

I think what your analysis shows is that the crucial games are Swansea and Newcastle away. I think (hope) you have been pessimistic on saying just one point, but I accept that it is entirely possible you are right. In my opinion we need six or seven points from our three away games at Swansea, Wet Spam and Newcastle. I a man more confident in getting points on the road than I am at St Mary’s

People will hate this answer, but the truth I think is that the Board will argue: - we have lost just once in ten games in all competitions, and that was to Liverpool - with the exception of Palace, every time we have played a team for the second time this season we have either matched or improved the first result - we are through to FA Cup Quarter Final - the players do not appear to have downtools in terms of effort, it’s more quality of attacking play To be clear, I argued for him to be sacked after Huddersfield and Spurs games in December, but it is hard to argue that things have got worse since then. The question is would replacing him with nine games left make a positive difference.

Well I had us down to finish on 40 points but that included yesterday as a win. Not convinced 38 will be enough, assuming we get that many now, so very worrying. First half was what you expect from two teams in a relegation scrap who aren’t winning. Stoke to their credit were in our faces at every occasion in the first half and gave us no time. I always thought it would be hard for them to maintain that for 90 mins and that space would open up for us. We had some chances, but to be fair so did they with the 1 on 1 second half. I don’t begrudge them their point. Finally we took an eternity to take a throw, Long holding on to the ball, with every one seeing 2 mins go up on the board, so I don’t blame the red. Why should he add on more time for a free kick? How would we feel if we were Stoke and it ended up as a goal? Positives are that we got a point, we are hard to beat, and arguably are more set up to play away from home. Going to be very tight I think

Yes that gets my vote. Absolutely perishing and people chucking snow balls smashing the poor old guy’s greenhouse on the way out of the away end

Cup win

Excellent assist for Tadic today. Need time to settle, having had no pre season in England. I can remember morons booing Pelle against WBA in his first home game.

Watched game out here in Spain, much the better side first half but hanging on second half. Classy goal from Tadic with excellent Guido assist on the counter attack. McCarthy, Bertrand and Stephens all excellent. Quarter finals here we come!

McCarthy Cedric Stephens Yoshida Bertrand Romeu Lamina Boufal JWP Tadic Guido A full week to recover for Burnley, wins breed confidence and Romeu has more games where he risks suspension than just this one. Hoedt deserves to be dropped, and while I like PEH as a holding midfielder I don’t rate him in the number 10 so bring in Boufal who played well in the league game up there

I am one of the 7% who voted to retain MP. I would have sacked him after the home match against Udders and thought he was very poor wasting lots of winnable games. As a family we go to about 75% away games and season ticket holders, and away performances went backwards from Puel big time. However I genuinely think ON THE WHOLE things have got a bit better in the second half of the season. Only one team playing for a second time have we emerged with a worse result than first time round, Palace, and we are through to 5th round of the cup. At this late stage I think disruption would be a bigger gamble than sticking by him as I think we can get to 40 points with four more wins and two draws and am targeting Stoke, Newcastle, Swansea and Bournemouth with draws at Burnley and Wet Spam. I am assuming defeats in all other games. Away performances Manure onwards have been much better, and I don’t see the away venues as being a disadvantage given our style and the insipid atmosphere at St Mary’s. Let’s see how the cup run pans out and assuming we stay up we can make a decision on MP in May. If though we lost our next two games I see the argument for hitting the panic button, but not now. I realise this argument won’t be popular but it is genuinely how I see it.

I looked ever so closely at your reply, but somehow could not see you respond to the bits about having to manage without the 30 goals of Pelle and Mane as well as missing Austin and VVD for half a season. So go on, talk me through the possible relationship between fewer points and missing Pelle and Mane, you can do it!

This is a joke post from you given you were one of the morons who called for Puel out. He finished 8th, a cup final that Hughes hasn’t managed at, faced a fifty game season, missed out on 30 goals from a sold Pelle and Mane and then had Austin and VVD out for half the season. When will you wake up ad smell the coffee?

The one positive is that I didn’t have this down on my list of the 14 points we need to survive, which I still think can come from wins against Stoke, Newcastle, Swansea and Bournemouth along with draws at Burnley and Wet Spam. Also, after an awful Hoedt error again (remember Bournemouth), I thought we looked the better side for much of the first half wasting three great chances. Second half was a throw the towel in performance I am afraid and was up there with Spurs Boxing Day where we did the same. Very worrying. As others have said these next five league games and West Brom will decide our season and overall I don’t think today will have done either way. I think Hoedt is too casual for this standard of football right now and I would recall Yoshida to play alongside Stephens. That partnership looked quite good after VVD injury last season.

Have had years of doing that with both daughters, although not needed anymore for oldest! Only ever had a problem at Nottm Forest (the game we thought we were going out of business)when an officious steward demanded they get off chair but had no solution to how they could see over standing adults! I am sure you will keep an arm around them in case flip the top of the chair!

Answer is no, Puel is flying at Leicester.....!

Really enjoyable away trip. Always close matches at the Hawthorns with us usually looking the better team but not always winning. Today I thought the result flattered WBA who looked long ball merchants, and once we got our goal we passed them off the field. Excellent performances from McCarthy, Bertrand, JWP and Lemina. Big improvements in second half from Boufal and Tadic. While still finding his feet I thought that Guido looked promising and gave us another type of pass that we have missed since Pelle. Three other observations: - Regis tribute was excellent, and the musical scene with scarves in the air, including Saints fans, was pretty moving - While both have their good individual moments, Hoedt and Stephens are a long way short of what we have been used to through the Lovren, Fonte, Alderweirald, VVD era in terms of defending aerial balls in our box. Can this be coached? I think so as look at the job Potch did with Lovren who has looked a donkey at Liverpool. - while for the most part our fans were excellent, we had some moronic shouts of “sacked in the morning” after about 20 mins of the game. Regardless of your view, why try to turn a game toxic with over an hour to go?

Just to be clear, these aren’t predictions. I will be delighted if this is how it pans out, I was simply setting out what the most realistic route to safety is.

With so many teams struggling for points I would be amazed if 40 is needed to stay up, but clearly need to target that. So 17 from 13 games. I think that would need to be 5 wins, 2 draws and 6 defeats. We must now target the following, accepting there are usually some freak results either way: Wins: WBA, Stoke, Newcastle, Swansea and Bournemouth Draws: Burnley and Wet Spam Defeats: Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Leicester, Everton and Man City Not only do I think this is the most likely route to staying up, it is also important that we do not lose to any of the sides around us. As frustrating as draws are, they do have the advantage of keeping teams in the mix and not starting to escape

Could be a lot worse, must back our chances of getting at least a replay. Am there this Saturday, but will be out of the country for the cup weekend. What is overseas coverage typically like of FA cup matches? I know all Premier League games are live but unsure about the cups

Made me laugh!

I heard a lot of moaning after they end of the game while leaving the stadium, and there seems a lot of negativity on this thread. As someone very critical of MP during first half of season here are a few comments to balance some of the stuff on here: - we won, and deservedly so. We should have been at least two goals clear by half time, hit the bar second half and wasted further opportunities and none of that is MP’s fault. Predictably Watford went direct late on and that was the only threat - unlike previous occasions where has been outsmarted by other managers, his decision to bring on Maya was imaginative. Now it may be negative, or cautious, but it at least showed he learned from the away game. I think Cedric and Pied are too small as half of a back four when team starts like Watford hoof it up to Okaka and co. - I thought there were some really excellent performances from both centre backs, Cedric, Romeu and Tadic first half. - He prioritised winning the game to build confidence, picked a good side and should be applauded for that. - finally we are in the last 16, and that is one defeat in six in all competitions. It isn’t unrealistic to go from no wins since November to playing champagne football overnight but I for one enjoyed watching us win and am please for MP and the players. Now we need at least 4 points from Brighton and WBA to make it an excellent week. Let’s be positive

I can tell you that the dome is nowhere near houses and the poster who shared this is, at best, poorly briefed...

May rest a couple of midfielders as it’s start of a huge week, but would play a strong team. As bad as things look we have actually lost one in five in all competitions and this is a very winnable game. Bring in Long, Boufal and Davis for Gabbi, Tadic and Lemina. Possibly rest both fullbacks as we need them bombing on in the next two games, and Yoshi May come back. So maximum six changes albeit good players coming in.

Good point against a decent side. Mostly all positives today, Bertrand the pick of some very good performances. We have closed the gap this weekend on Brighton, Newcastle, Udders and Watford and in the second half of the season have already picked up points against Manure and Spurs while our rivals have yet to play them in most cases. I hope now all the “play Gabbi” brigade see that he is a shadow of the player he was and wants away. In absence of any signings Long would come straight back in my side. I wanted 7 points from Watford, Spurs, Brighton and WBA. 8 would be fab, but think we need to target 6 with a win and draw minimum from Brighton and WBA. I wat to see us ahead of the “points per game” curve sooner rather than later

We agree! Well put

James on most topics I have you down as one of the sensible posters but it’s very weird that you dig out the Spurs result last season as some sort of evidence that Puel is crap. The facts are 8th, a cup final via glorious away wins at Liverpool and Arsenal, and he took over a Leicester team that finished below us last season, were below us this season and they are now 7th. Last season he had no Wanyama and crucially Pelle and Mane. Then no Austin and VVD for half a season. Can’t work out why this doesn’t speak for itself. It’s a shame if we can’t be seen to admit it was a huge error to fire him