Forester

No

I usually dismiss those who say “let’s hold on to player come what may” as deluded, and ignoring the negative impact of a disenchanted player kicking around causing problems, and then them leaving for free a year later. I thought that about Lavia, Salisu and still do about ABK for example. But I feel differently about Che. I may be wrong, but after disappointment hanging around for a couple of weeks I think scoring goals in a championship promotion bid is one hell of a good distraction. And a high scoring season for him, even if we then miss out on promotion, arguably increases his wage claim next summer for a Premier League club. So that, along with the fact that we will make many times more then £13 million by going up, would persuade me to keep him and if necessary let him run his contract down.

Probably because, uniquely, we have two strikers who when last in the championship scored over twenty goals each. I agree a back up would be nice in case of injury, but how you can say the attack is not fine with those stats is puzzling

Delagado must be a candidate here too. Different era with smaller fees

This

A few names to help you out here if this is a genuine question. Please attach name to club (and if they meet your criteria of not being better than mid table championship) they signed from: Hammond, Harding, Fox, Richardson, Butterfield, Chaplow, Cork, Lambert, Sharp, Puncheon

Think people need to calm down. Seen people questioning why we went down given marketable assets? The answer is we had some good promising players who were either too young or unfit to contribute in their first season in PL. Doesn’t mean they are crap, it means the strategy to blood them all at once was crap. I don’t believe we will have a fire sale but if some bids are big enough players will move only if replacements are identified. The owners want PL football big time

What an awful away game experience, the place is literally falling apart at the away end. On the football: - I don’t blame RM for making changes, and we need to give squad players time. I blame him for one selection, and that is using Perraud at centre back which was like a round peg in a square hole and was unfair to him and team mates - SAA is indeed very talented but needs to avoid “over playing” as on many occasions he had time and space to get a good cross in but chose to try and dribble all over again past full back. But a learning curve - It is indeed a shame as now he won’t get to give any squad players and/or new signings a run out in a fortnight

Let me help you then. It’s called “getting match practice in case needed”. Injuries and suspensions do happen!

When you get quotes like this emerging yiu can be fairly sure that one, or both, will be gone from Wet Spam by Xmas

Three weeks later in Saudi apparently

Agree great effort. On the “respect the competition” I am going there but fully expect us to play a different team to Friday because with a huge squad we want minutes in lots of players’ legs, particularly given high likelihood of exits from some playing Friday. I could see the following all not playing Friday but playing at Gillingham which is still a tidy lineup: McCarthy KWP Lyanco Charles Bree Lavia S armstrong Djenopo Adams Aribo Kamaldeen

I think this last paragraph is key. If the window shut now, and nobody left or joined from today, I would be perfectly happy with the current squad for championship. We have cover in all positions as we speak, have proven goal scorers IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP, and would in my opinion be well placed to launch a promotion bid. I also think several of our younger players will be much improved a year on. However we all know there will be plenty of movement and unlike recent seasons for me it is less about who we buy and more about who we retain. The danger of leaving it too late is that we may run out of time to land the replacement when someone moves.

I am certainly not in the “we can’t sell anyone good, ever” camp. And indeed many only sign for clubs of our profile as stepping stones promised through the recruitment process. However….. I absolutely don’t think we should sell players simply who state they want to go. Ignoring those who we would actively wish to exit, and simply hope for a decent price (Diallo, Orsic etc) I think we should be prepared to face down players, agents and potential buyers unless it makes great sense us to sell. And we are in a much better position than say Leicester as we have many younger players with long contracts who will still fetch good fees in a year or two. So I would say, reluctantly, if JWP and KWP attract a great bid then sell. If not, don’t. Both have played a part in having some good times at the club. Salisu and ABK appear hugely negative about staying, and neither are irreplaceable. So I am fine with those going if price is met. However unless someone offers us ludicrous money (sufficiently early in the window to let us replace) I am happy saying to Lavia, Alcaraz, Kamaldeen etc “tough shit, you are going nowhere”. The same with Tella, Tino etc. I can see us raising £90K to £100K selling players in the previous paragraph which is an enormous amount, in addition to their wages. Just for fear of offending some of our wallflowers we don’t need a fire sale. And if we retain the vast majority and bring in a couple of midfielders I am confident we will be right up there, even if no one can be certain it will be quite enough to go up. I would like to see something like the following in August for first game: Bazanu/McCarthy Tino, Bednarek, Lyanco, Perraud Lavia, new midfielder Kamladeen, Alcaraz, Tella Adams

Did you say the same about Sharp, Hammond, Fox, Richardson, Butterfield, Hooveldt, Chaplow? Or did you cheer them to the rooftops but fully appreciate the Premier League needed new signings?

The last manager who preached a possession style was Puel, who despite finishing eighth, taking us to a cup final that we narrowly lost and didn’t concede a goal en route to the final, including a two leg win over Liverpool, was sacked with many fans booing him on the end of season lap. He did all this with Van Dijk injured from Xmas, having sold Pelle and Mane and playing 49 games that season. I remain of the view that it was a mistake (the season that followed under Pellergrino and Hughes was only marginally better than this awful season) but accept most fans disagree. However the point of raking this up again is to say that people have not enjoyed an “anti possession” style either when we lose. Oh to have back the so called boring eight place and cup final. And before some smart arse says “yes but we only got 46 points”, then consider the facts above and that in any season that would be comfortable mid table position

Stupidity demanded that we travelled for this. We left as the stoppage board went up to try and get a connecting train from Brighton. To my utter astonishment we were outnumbered by Brighton “fans” choosing to skip their European lap of honour! Incredible complacency from a club fan base about to realise how you have to enjoy these moments that don’t last forever. Anyway to the game. Aribo again guilty of embezzling his salary. Is he the laziest player ever to line up in a Saints shirt? Cannot believe this guy was in a European cup final a year ago. Thought Lavia was well short of normal standards, assume speculation all getting to him. And McCarthy needs to be better with first (under him, not point blank) and third goal (beaten at near post). Positives were good performance from Theo and return of Tino. That really is it.

I would be very happy with Parker. Spent two seasons in championship with two different clubs and got both promoted. Not too interested in his Premier League record. Deal with that at the right time

McCarthy Bree, Bednarek, Lyanco, KWP JWP, Lavia Alcaraz Walcott, Adams if fit (Mara otherwise) Kamaldeen

I think some of our younger fans are about to go through a rapid learning curve about the championship, and that “what gets you out” is not the same as “what will keep you up”. To unpack that a bit: - there will be a number of players who “aren’t cutting it” in the Premier League, and have been hounded by some fans, who will either find their level permanently in the championship or others who, like Tella and Smallbone, would have benefited from being developed in that division rather than thrown into Premier League from the outset when simply not ready - in the “find their level” camp with limited or no headroom space to grow into being Premier League regulars I suspect this includes Adam Armstrong, Aribo, Bree, Stephens, DCC, Lyanco, Djenepo, Tall Paul, Moi, McCarthy, Perraud, Walcott (at this age) Stuart Armstrong (at this age) - in the “benefit from a year or so there” camp are Bazanu, Tino (because of need to rehabilitate), Larios, Mara, Kamaldeen, Edozie - that leaves people who will probably go for various reasons, mainly money and ambition but also some dead wood (Orsic, Diallo etc). I am hopeful we will hang on to some, like Alacaraz, Bednarek, but others being realistic will not stay. The point being that I would be happy to retain any or all in the first list, while recognising almost none would be good enough if we got back up. From our last time in that division (both going down and coming up) we had some excellent servants who would never cut it in Premier League, such as Kelvin, Richardson, Butterfield, Harding, Fox, Hooveldt, Surman, Hammond, Chaplow, Guly, Sharp, John, Viafara, Saganowski, Wright-Phillips, Makin, Perry (at that age), Jaidi (at that age), Connolly (at that age) So I think the ideal is that we retain say 12-15 of our squad, move about 10 on and bring in 5 or 6 experience players. I get the feeling many people want a “mass clear out” without really thinking through the difference in standard

Me too! A couple I could describe their careers but can’t find name in my mind!

Bazanu or McCarthy Tino, Bednarek, DCC, Perraud New Dm, New DM Smallbone, Alcaraz, Tella, Mara This is not unrealistic in my opinion as August line up. Assumes sale of JWP and Lavia, KWP, Salisu, ABK and Adams. The big gap is clear and we need a Dean Hammond type character who is decent, but not special, on the ball but really puts a shift in

Championship full back of the year by all accounts. Some of our fans need to wise up that a small number of “will never make it at top level” can be highly effective in championship. By way of evidence m’lud I submit the following exhibits: Kelvin, Butterfield, Richardson, Hooveldt, Harding, Fox, Hammond, Guly and Sharp

Assuming we do go down, and being realistic about some players who will command big fees/attitudinally/need to go or want out, I would expect the following to leave: ABK, Salisu, AMN, JWP, Lavia, Moi, Orsic and Adams. Moi (out of contract) and AMN (loan only) save on wages and the others in addition to lowering wage bill probably would bring in over £120 million. That is more than double the drop in income from first year out of Premier League and so we could invest a decent chunk of that. I would be happy to see the following remain, some of whom are not good enough for Premier League but I think would do a job in championship: Bazanu, McCarthy, Tino, Bree, Larios, Perraud, Bednarek, Stephens, Lyanco, DCC, Diallo, Aribo, Smallbone, Djenepo, Edozie, Armstrong (S), Alcaraz, Tella, Armstrong (A), Theo, Kamaldeen, Mara, Tall Paul The gaps for me, if everyone on my retain list stayed, are biggest in central midfield where last time round Hammond and Schneiderlein were terrific. We would need to bring in two quality players for that department and at least one proven goal scorer. But I don’t think much more is needed. The goalkeeper and full back departments are stronger than last time in championship, several good attacking midfielder or winger options and centre backs ok for that division perhaps needing one more. Purely for example, but both were indeed in championship last season for Bournemouth, if you put Lerma and Billing in the middle of the park in that team in my opinion it would be decent. That type of profile player.

Correct, I went there not knowing if we would exist a few weeks later. And then Marcus arrived….