gio1saints

@Lord Duckhunterwhere do you get the inspiration for your ( oh so classy ) name calling of Saints Manager? You will not be surprised to know that your obvious expertise and new found interest on the topic of our Manager’s “ class” is a matter of some hilarity on forum. The banal and sadly unimaginative attempts to belittle RM that you engage in are, frankly, not all that good. We get that you hate him, hate his football, always have. But please save yourself the bother of banging on about his “class” as a proxy for your issue with him as if you are the paradigm of classy behaviour on this forum. The jokes worn thin.

Are you giving inspirational lectures here about class in the same sentence as the classy name calling for RM that is your hallmark? Can’t handle a little bit of pressure? It’s actually more supporters like you with your overreaction that cannot handle it. Start of season you’d have hung drawn and quartered him, then you had to stfu during the record run but now you are back giving lectures about class and handling pressure. Too funny.

That’s certainly true here on this forum. There’s going to be more coming out with the nasty stuff for sure. The response of people around me yesterday was out of control mad. The mood just changed 180 degrees very rapidly. There was absolutely no middle ground whatsoever and it felt, to me anyways, that with each crazy shouted outburst the others around me in Northam were becoming more emboldened to emit even more nut job stuff. The insults towards Will Smallbone in particular were not just ridiculous but shameful. The trigger hair groans and abusive outbursts for every mistake or each additional pass he made instead of route one just left me with earache and hair spittle from the frothers behind me. People have paid and are entitled to opinions. Entitled to shout out displeasure. But if this carries on it will make matches harder to win not easier. Saints Fans say they are loyal but actually many are as fickle as fuck- minute it goes wrong pitchforks come out. Otherwise how do you justify the disgusting comments thrown at the players yesterday? Being “ loyal” is not synonym for being allowed to have an abusive relationship with a loved one- which is essentially what support for saints currently is for some at SMS . Minute loved one cooks a nice meal it’s all play nice. Burns the steak - abuse. Watching and having to endure the outbursts made me wonder what kind of households these people go home to- and what those households have to endure domestically. Quite frightening really.

i think team including RM are believing our own hype. It started about five matches ago. We seem to have lost our humility and willingness to chase every ball and instead rely upon our way so superior skill way so superior talented players and our state of the art pB based football. The only thing relentless about these last matches has been how lacking we have been in working for each other. Too often players isolated too often only backwards passes available. We are going into matches as the big favourites and crumbling mentally. The only match that looked like it could be our “ level” funny enough they showed up for 25 mins v WBA. Just cannot cope with being overdogs. As well as the squad tinkering this is an obvious psychological hang up. Playing as overdogs is a special skill - and there’s research out there for those interested in sports Pyschology - and we do not have it, yet. There’s still tIme to resolve the issues is the only good news. A lot of what they did today was ok but the critical bit in last third they just chickened out. Oh for a greedy goal scorer who shoots on sight!

KWP is playing left LM!!!

It’s an attacking line up for sure. Can see KWP being encouraged to push push and us to revert to a three at the back. IF KWP does what he does - driving with the ball- both RF & DB might get some passes in dangerous areas - Che please just score when it rebounds out to you from 3 yards. 😁

Dont want to disappoint you but Baz kicked the ball long around 7/8 times in the first half alone v Hull. It was the most he’s done any match this season and we lost possession almost immediately each time. And it was a terrible first half. He was kicking it wide especially to RW and hull just were regaining possession. Because very often AA was not there ( but I suspect he was meant to be). AA was deeper ready to pick up balls from the mf or cb’s. SO if the game plan was to attack that flank in particular Baz got the message and out the ball there but AA was out of position. On the left flank Sam was unable to challenge and win any long ball either. The long ball to Sam on left and Adam on the right was a failure. It might work with Kameldeen and Ryan because they have genuine turn of pace. But if we are going to play that tactic the players must : (1) be in the right position to receive and (2) have the pace to get to ball first if it’s flat or a distance to run to get it or (3) be able to compete for an aerial ball if it’s high - and come out still in possession Nothing wrong with playing long when circumstances dictate or even as default at times - but not stupidly as per first half last week. Poor show that was from Russell.

I stayed away from Watching Saints live in person or even live on tv because I often could not cope with the emotions when we played. It came to a head in the fa cup at the Ricoh one year and I think we won and it was JWP first goal but I just did not enjoy it - at all- actually the opposite. It took me such a long time after that to be able to watch live again after, Neurodivergent idiosyncratic person that I am. Having a ST in Northam is like masochism - I force myself to watch but I’m trying to brave it out even though a lot of the time I don’t like being there even when we win. Masking is effing bad for everyone but I just feel there’s no point running away from it though - and I’ve never run, ever. Not starting now. Emotional regulation can be a struggle to get right for autistics. But I support Saints always will do cannot just unsupport them.

He’s being compared positively from what he does in training with other perhaps overrated attacking midfielders at Juve ( paraphrasing from a bunch of Italian media sources) who are not performing. They especially like that he is always wanting to take the ball on the half turn and be aggressive/positive - unlike other current Juve players who are often playing safe just rebounding passes from the cb’s. Sounds familiar! My problem with Charlie - who I love- is that yes he was told to be aggressive and go positively forwards with the ball - but it so often caused a turnaround that he was as much a liability as a joy ( occasionally) to watch. IF the rest of the team were told to especially carry the water for him ( as deschamps was once described as) and he had free reign no prob - but that not been the case and he’s expected to wash his own dishes at saints- and defending after a chick up that’s not his best skill. He is not Messi or MLT, yet. If ever. BUT - If he even gets close good news for Saints. He is obviously looking decent in Juve training though from what I’ve read so these stories are positive not negative in any case. The’ manager ( Allegri?) is basically just settling for a top four place now as Inter have the Scudetto in hand so Charlie may get more chances anyway., PS. sry for mixed metaphors but you know what I mean. I hope. 😇

Here’s my take, all with the benefit of hindsight of course; 1. RM messed around a winning team needlessly. There was a strong case to play the excellent and winning starting eleven from the WBA game - but that was overlooked in favour of essentially giving minutes to players and tinkering around with tactics. Nobody would have criticised putting out the same team. And I dare say it would have performed better. 2. Both the selections and the tactics were very quickly shown to be ill advised. NOT changing the tactics or the team fast enough when that was abundantly evident showed lack of flexibility - and perhaps over-attachment to dogma. 3. There was no lack of effort imo but the players were hamstrung by the poor match tactics and by the ill advised changes. To single out individuals playing badly or uncomfortably or inefficiently in that set up is to miss the main culprit- Russell. 4. Hull were very effective and excellently set up with some strong joined up play abilities. Certainly play off contenders. 5. Sometimes. Many times. RM has got it right and we look smooth classy and take teams apart. When we misfire as in recent matches, it looks simply awful. There has to be a step somewhere inbetween - because if we are not turning teams over like we were before the alternative cannot be conceding 2 goals before half time like this two home matches running. 6. The WBA match first twenty five was what we CAN do. But the matches v Huddersfield and now Hull and certainly for long spells in other matches we have shown both mental and tactical flakiness. 7. My personal opinion of course but from where I was standing it looked like many of the players lacked absolute belief in what they were doing. And again that down to the Manager. I praise him when he’s good, I defend him when he’s criticised unfairly ( as he’s was earlier in season) and even more when him and team get personal abuse - but in this instance I’d say fault squarely on RM. He and the coaches have got some serious soul searching to do with the squad before next match. As do some of the players.

My bloody unlucky saints sweatshirt! 😡This is worse than Huddersfield. Worse than Gillingham. Worst first half seen at SMS all season.Fans v angry. Ugly atmosphere .

Exactly right. When at the moment of crisis, when you need your “ touch” to be perfect and to be full frosty mode he showed his class. I could imagine our other forwards fumbling that touch or attempting to hit it into the defender first time. He’s a very good player- though defensively he is still not quite with the programme. Keeps scoring and assisting I’m not complaining though!

I’m wearing my lucky Saints sweatshirt for this one. Because of my poor memory I cannot remember if I’ve ever seen a defeat in it this season- but I’m not going to let a detail like that get in the way so am going to take a gamble and suggest it strongly to the world that it is indeed a lucky charm. In doing so I encourage the Universe to manifest Saints victory tonight and respectfully ask it it to take into consideration the vibes of winning luck that emanate from the #sweatshirt-that-has-never-failed. 😇😁 That should do it. Might be cold so an extra sweater in order tonight too.

Hi, Saints foundation published their impact report today. Hit the link if you are interested in the details. Has to be said- Well Done! We should all be very proud of what is being done in the name of SFC. https://res.cloudinary.com/southampton/image/upload//fl_attachment:6194_SFC_Foundation_Impact_Report_2022_23_ryswso//v1708336336/Saints Foundation/Supporting Southampton/6194_SFC_Foundation_Impact_Report_2022_23_ryswso.pdf?_s=public-apps

My only ( mild) concern In the game of possible consequences though is that it’s not impossible Newcastle consider JW if they lose Ashworth? Can’t really say no to that spending power? Only job I see RM being offered soon is the Scotland one post euros- but think he’d probably reject it if we were in EPL. Not sure replacing De Zerbi at Brighton is actually such a good gig for him as I previously thought and he’s not going to a top six team anytime soon. Has won nothing to date and that needs to change -starting with promotion to EPL.

Would not be surprised if a few of our most hard running players get a bench rest for this one- Will, Stu and AA. That might mean return of Downes, Brooks and Che. Or Rothwell, Aribo, Shea or Sam take your pick… What to do about LB though?

Tend to agree. Our last home match was a dire first half against a team this lot just beat away. Any repeat - or the Bristol not turn up and That may let hull score a few and 5 goal second half miracles are not a weekly thing we can rely on. Prefer straightforward win put to bed by massive first half but more likely, If anything, getting to HT NOT losing and then see what our better 5 subs can do against them in second half is what I think is most likely path to victory.

Nobody’s pinning their hopes on it. It’s just a what-if chat. The reaction of the piss on your dreams brigade here is what I cannot fathom. You know better than anyone you cannot express positivity about Saints without someone. somewhere giving you evils. What’s more avoidable ( and so sad ) is the sycophantic saints supporting stooges posting laughing emojis at obvious personal insults and abuse of other saints - just for having the temerity to imagine a “ what if” scenario even when full of caveats like “ but of course it won’t happen” that they disapprove of.

Hilarious and well informed as ever.😇 No didn’t realise that what people think has no impact on results. Thanks for the update. And just in case I was thinking I was someone else, again thank you for letting me know I’m not Rosa Parks. You are a kind person that’s for sure. Don’t know what I or this forum would do without you being so helpful - especially now you consider me a mate, what with your info knowledge and suggestions about stuff. 😇

Thank you @SaintJackoInHurworthfor the upbeat way of looking at these fixtures. It’s very unlikely but not impossible as you say. Nothing great was ever achieved without one person choosing to think differently. Never stop defying the prevailing paradigm! Especially here with the resident living dead that thrive on morsels such as your post.

Juve were terrible last night and despite that he never got on. Probably just as well avoided being associated with their worst perf all year losing at home abysmally to udinese 0-1.

Sun Tzu’s Art of War predates The Law of Requisite Variety - which is a NLP ( Neuro linguistic programming) foundation principle. Simply put it states that he who shows the most flexibility will ultimately master the system. In practical football innit terms it means that rigid PB dogma only gets you so far- being a one trick pony will not work endlessly. At the Championship level we play at our dogma is good enough, often enough, at present to be top two. But the theory essentially can be interpreted as a warning that we must be prepared and willing to adapt and evolve. Basic example: It may be very rare at present to go “route one direct long ball” for example but it may actually be the optimal route to win games in which teams overcommit forwards and attacking midfielders in a bid to press our PB play out from the back game.

I’d love to believe that’s true and for outward public consumption purposes I’m totally confident that it is. But humans are fallible and pride and ego sometimes can fuck yiu up despite good intentions

Yup he did indeed and that was very reassuring. He always takes personal responsibility and he also praises his players lavishly. With emotive language like “ love”. I’m 99% probably wrong to think things getting a little frazzled on the edges. Onwards and upwards!

Hope I’m wrong probably am so forgive my overthinking it but my somethings up / complacency radar is going off a little. Other stuff is maybe getting in the way. Maybe even some squad resentment that RM seems to get all the glory but but they sweated for it. All submerged under the drive to go up of course and all the words and actions contradict that narrative of course -but the kind of little fissures that can grown into big cracks if not dealt with seem to be there. For example the players taking the pee out of the RM fist pump celebration with Wee man few matches back hinted at that. That the team has been bollocked- and he told us he’d done so- at halftime the other week May irk. That supposedly the big match day emphasis is on not sloppy starting and yet two matches running that’s exactly what weve done - like the players been told and gone - duck it I’m not doing that. Just tiny probably nothing making something out of nothing little signs that got me a little questioning. 99% I’m wrong and the professional manager and professional players know and will do what’s required to win. Here’s hoping for a great result tonight! COYS😇