gio1saints

God I actually agree with both you are saying. The Kinks are so badly underrated but they massively inspired The Jam ( and so many others ) - two of my favourite bands. But I’ve got a heavy cold plus injured my calf reffing on Sunday so I’m obviously not 100%. Both excellent song choices. Only problem is, of course, - and frankly I am rather surprised that neither of you picked this up - but there is absolutely NO reference to Pompey in either song. Despite that, if DB joins and performs a half decent pass ( better yet a goal) I will be solo starting “ I wish I could be like David Brooke’s” from Block 41…..😇😁

Why just leave it at that cheery possibility? 11 goals in 46 games is not rubbish but you’re making it sound so. If you are looking to put the fear of God in to give Russ and Saints that little bit of extra “motivation” so obviously needed to ensure it’s promotion we get not just some “almost did it just lost in the playoffs “ rubbish why not go full catastrophe mode? Surely you should up the ante?😁 If we’re talking what happens ( for definite mothers life 100% gods honest not gonna lie to you) if we fail to get promoted why not add in that we will lose all not just some of our good players. Relegation to League one season after next a real prospect, humiliation in the derby when we get stuffed by Pompey a stone wall guarantee - Oh and that season tickets will cost more, concessions beers will cost more, and away fans will sing “ we’re just a small club in Portsmouth” to us. And we will only be able to dream about having a French u21 international in our team then. Not that Russ will mind- Russ gets sacked off rest of his contract and pockets a 7 figure sum either way so that’s a real bummer for him I’m sure. And it will all be his own fault too. 😃 That shyster. 😎. Why oh why couldn’t he have listened and dumped sekou when he had the chance and bought another proven goal scorer from Scotland or other top top league not kept faith with that Mara nil points. Beats me. Someone should write a stiff letter to the Board. I’m sure they are oblivious to this, the idiots! 😆

Almost as if, in training, the winger is told to….get to the byline….and cut it back for ( insert advanced midfielder often Will Smallbone?? ) rather than what many of us recall as the standard put it on a plate for a half decent CF roll it across the six yard box with a more horizontal pass. If I remember correctly Sekou scored recently by gambling at the back post from a Ryan Fraser cross expertly placed for him to slide it into the net. It’s possible Ryan was given a rollicking for not cutting it back correctly as per training instead of placing it there.😂 Could it be that because we haven’t had a half decent CF for so long the team has forgotten that pass is usually a rewarding place to put the ball? And Sekou was acting on instinct to be there not holding back his run so he could be on edge of the penalty box?🤣🤣🤣

SFC to other team/ striker / agent “ we’d like to take xyz on loan for 6 months” We can match his salary or go halfsies if he’s a big shot. Perhaps even lob you a negotiable fee if you get this over the line. Agent to SFC : “ will he play?” SFC to OT/S/A : “ only if Che leaves to be honest “ Agent to SFC : “ so is Che leaving then?” SFC to OT/S/A : ” we do not know yet. Maybe. It might be a last minute thing. Agent to SFC “Yeah, gotcha, whatever, maybe, hear from you at 10pm on final day of the window then. Bye. Click…,

Did you see the recent RM article about this? The one where he said we’d be mad to let Sekou go out on loan right now?

We’ve seen by the arguments above that it is a gamble either way with Che. Nobody has so far been able to accurately identify the stakes of the gamble or its constituent parts though -so here’s my attempt to at least sort them into two groups - Che intangibles and Che tangibles 1. Che Intangibles : Che’s presence in the squad ensures competition for forward starting places is high, driving standards up. Would a new striker have that same presence straight away? How long? Che’s experience of PB football under RM is high (there’s no time lag to learning it). How long would it take a new forward to match that playbook knowledge? 5-10 matches? 15? Does he start in that time if he does not know the playbook yet? Play off the bench? Che is physically fit, in form and immediately available. You’ve got to assume following the RS situation that the replacement is 100% fit - but in form and immediately ready and desirable he plays- as above it’s unlikely. Che is a respected professional, liked in the squad by players and management. Settled at SMS. Hopefully any new loanee comes is character checked accordingly. It takes time to settle in a new city. Sekou is also liked & respected. New loanee comes in does he take Sekous ‘ chances of playing away? Will he settle? Impact of that on SM and squad togetherness/ morale - and ultimately results? The closer to end of contract Che gets the more worrying & costly an injury could be to his entire future, his hopes & plans for himself ( and family if he has one) and ultimately career. All of which risk negative impact on his match day reflexes - despite his professionalism. The new loanee will look to make an immediate impact - and do whatever it takes to impress - this is a different mindset to potentially that of Che above. If that mindset is linked to ability/ class it could be the most important factor. See Ryan Fraser. 2. Che Tangibles. Che Adams fee achieved + his salary for next six months versus the salary (and fee) of an incoming replacement forward. We know roughly his wages and we know roughly what fee we might get. We do not know replacements’ salary or fee but my guess is they will roughly balance out. Value of promotion to the EPL: £100m + Opportunity Cost of not getting promotion to EPL : £100m+ Che’s goals and assists. Currently it’s a goal or assist every c. 145 minutes. Extrapolate that until end of season and assuming he plays every game it’s c. 6-8 goals inc assists between now and season end. Those are the tangible and intangible factors as far as I can tell. There’s more to add but which way do the scales weigh down on as the “best” choice? My best guess is that Saints will continue to research options and be on standby if an offer comes in for Che - but be reactive not proactive. I feel Saints would be happy to let Che see out his contract because the net money we get for him will probably mostly be going out on his replacement and a few Mil is small change in the grand scheme of things. Saints know what it has in Che and what it might get from Che between now and season end. Cannot guarantee same from any incoming. But if the right offer comes in they are prepared to act.

Good point. He won’t “down tools” but it’s his last big payday and one simple injury could cost him literally millions. I hope his agent sits him down and tells him that it’s better to get a new two or better three year deal with ANY club at a moderate salary than hold out until end of season for a sign on bonus in the EPL but don’t get injured as you’re ducked. Should be a win- win for him - and Saints. He could literally bust a gut for new team knowing he’s got that contract rather than having that fear back of his head. And in his place we could get someone who IS determined to do whatever it takes to earn a new deal AND a small fee which may be put towards new blood.

Ah I see didn’t know he had cancer and was out the game a while. Anybody fights back from cancer gets my vote! Consider me converted! Sign him up! 😇

No not really. As I said: Maybe I’m not up to speed on this guy perhaps I’m just ignorant. When did he have his period of being a superstar? 2019?

£50k per week for supposedly one of there bestest players? Why on earth would boscombe let him go if he’s really that good? Why has he not completed 90 minutes ( actually he came off ht last match) this season and only once been a starter? He comes on for 5 or 10 minutes per match, when fit. If fit he’s not a starter for them. For Boscombe Athletic ffs. It’s not like he’s even a prolific scorer or assist maker when playing. What’s the attraction? They are not such a brilliant squad of EPL stars that they can just do that, surely? I don’t see this player automatically gets to start at SmS from his recent playing history. Maybe I’m not up to speed on this guy but he does not strike me as better value than other goalscoring wingers. Is this a decoy for some other target?

Alex would be an excellent back up in the EPL. If he leaves there’s a £40-£50k a week opening for a player who actually might contribute on the pitch the remaining matches. Lumley looks capable of covering for Baz so it may be worth the risk. Unsure about our other keepers though.

To be fair, despite it being irksome and repetitive at times, it’s first class trolling from @Turkishand his cot chums. IF they are privy to inside info - say on Amed - but are not supposed to tell - then they won’t tell. Jobs, careers and a lot of money are at stake plus reputations and confidences. Not negotiable really. Clubs like Saints in particular are notorious for wanting to keep stuff under wraps until the last minute. Teams like MUFC have millions of fans around the world searching for ANY news on their players. IF any info gets leaked out into the public domain it can only therefore be via it being illegitimate ( ie stolen or unauthorised disclosure), accidental ( Agent leaving his email on bringing amed in on loan open for the secretary to see who happens to tell her saints supporting bf) , sheer stupidity of the player or their entourage ( Amed telling his bruv in the nightclub he “going south “ soon with smile on his face ) - or done with express purpose of encouraging bids or contract renewals for their client ( Amed you need to play man yoo first team so if I can invent bunch of demand from other credible teams maybe ten Haag gives you a chance and your wages gonna be ten times the present in no time at all. That’s like a million pounds a month for the kid. And a big wedge for his agent. It’s big money not amateur hour stuff. Posting “clues” that might identify Amed is the same as posting his name on the internet - if the clues are genuine. In which case the provenance would be as the above para. And it’s a very big problem ( unless it’s done specifically for the purpose explained) Posting “ clues” that might identify a target but are actually just BS is simple trolling. And can be remarkably successful. The internet is full of the click bait approach to marketing. Difficult to tell but the more clues usually the less inclined I am to trust the source and to think it’s all just a fun game for some mildly bored 😄adults on the Interweb.

Ah memories of Orient away in the Cup…torrents of urine cascading down the terraces between our feet from our fans above….crammed cheek to Jowl surely more there than the ticket allocation…having physical “discussions” with Orient nut jobs on the bridge nearby on way to the ground. Wishing I hadn’t worn my cut off denim jacket with full set of Saints patches on the back ( well it was the height of fashion for away support then!) coming home as was such an obvious target..

If Amed Diallo is going anywhere surely he would go back to Sunderland? I’ve not been able to ascertain his fitness but when and if fit then he would obvs be a prime candidate for this apparent left footed right wing type player we are supposedly keen on. His wages are £28.5k pw so that’s not a problem and he has obviously scored at Champ level last season including plenty beauties cutting in from the right and left foot curling it - essentially what KWP has done couple of times this season. Only question mark is his defensive awareness. AA and RF are excellent role models in that regard. Sam has definitely improved over the course of the season but KS and Amo are still not quite there on that.. If he really commits to off the ball tracking work then would be a high quality signing. But I still figure Sunderland would be first choice. Ryan Fraser is showing that if you are a genuine class player then that skill + 100% fitness + high football intelligence = plenty goals and assists in the Championship. Frankly though, given how underwhelming Antony has been I’m surprised Manutd don’t try him instead of the players on 10-15X his wage…

The Resident football expert speaks wise words. 😂. I already made my case for Sekou above without any heed to rely on bollox statistics but seeing as you have presented such a powerful and concise refutation 🤣🤣🤣I feel it’s only polite to respond. This will be fun….Guess who our top five players for goals and assists are per minutes played in the squad? This season? Let me help you, in case you do not have access to my well thumbed version of the invaluable guide for saints fans known as the “Mr stattybollix book of saints stats”😄. First it’s AA, then that crap Sekou Mara then that ( who must be) even more crap Che, then ( logically it follows) the incredibly crap Ryan and then lastly ( and God he must be absolutely the pits) Super duper crap Sam. Maybe the last two or three are other way around but it’s certainly. First AA, Sekou second. In other words if you want a goal or an assist this season the stats say AA is your man then that crap Sekou Mara and after them two then those other even more crap Che Adams, Ryan Fraser and Sam Edozie. Those last three in particular must be on for super crap championship team of the season for not even be more effective than the crap Sekou Mara per minute in delivering goals or assists. But those stats are BS and mean nothing right? But nothing is not the same as “crap”. Is it? Nah it isn’t is it. If you wanted a few more goals or assists out of Sekou then it might help if he was given more than 283 minutes all season in mostly tiny chunks to do it. God forbid he starts two games in a row or even gets on two games in a row! Even so he’s second only to AA, ahead of Che, RF and Sam. Not so bad for a crap player usually given five minutes at the end. Must make those other players extra crap I guess. But stats are always crap anyway so I’m guessing that saying Sekou Mara is crap is still within the grounds of acceptable- though that does somewhat put some of our allegedly better players into a somewhat uncomfortable position of being more crap - but that’s irrelevant because if you are deemed crap by the football expert then you are crap and there’s no getting away from that clear, obvious, unchallengeable fact. 😇🤣😂

I guess so. You are not wrong. Being complimented by most of the league of opposition managers after the match they just lost or drawn with us probably means very little. It’s a very safe comment to trot out post match. Covers their butt so to speak. If they said we were rubbish what does it make them?

It’s the kind of match in which think saints favourites obvs to win but both teams to score might be a good bet. 12/5 if interested An ultra aggressive SW press “ may” catch us out once, perhaps even twice but by same token we like playing g through such high presses and shown many times we can be devastating. A 4-2 ( 40/1 looks tasty) would not surprise me at all.

He will start every week at Hull be there superstar player and likely they will accommodate for his talent and play FOR him - not other way around. He might play 20 full matches between now and end season that way. I strongly doubt he plays that many for Saints. I strongly doubt we make him our main man either. He has to buckle down and win and keep his place in our first 11. With strong international quality competition there. Given same money for both I know which looks better to a kid. ( though possibility of getting a medal with Saints is a factor I guess?)

Thank you @VectisSaint and Duncan for the correct details. I would never have thought that night at the Priestfield that Saints away form could be record equalling or breaking this season! Even if we do not get promoted - but ESPECIALLY if we do, I think some measure of acknowledgement of this record breaking/ equalling from us is worthwhile. We get precious little to cheer and celebrate about as long term Saints fans to be fair! From the club POV I imagine Club Shop merch should be all over this - T-shirts, mugs DVDs, duvet sets etc. 😍. You know the kind of thing - “ 12X years all time league and cup matches unbeaten record - and we still hate Pompey” T-shirts should sell out 😂. From the supporters POV - I doubt a massive banner or banners would be allowed but it’s worth asking ? Or one of those mosaic type signs or pictures made up of hundreds of A3 pieces of paper to hold up at both ends might be fun and get around that. What they say or reveal - argue amongst yourselves! More likely to get a “yes” might be a parade of surviving old time Saints players on the pitch before our last home match kick off for example to get a round of applause. Might be a nice touch to record both our past and current history making? Just a thought..😇

Next season in the Championship OR the EPL will be a massive challenge for one reason or another - as everyone rightly points out. But its hardly a revelation or cause to cast shade on what’s being delivered today. THIS season was guaranteed to be a massive challenge and, to date, Saints have found most of the answers, most of the time. And increasingly so last 19 matches. Im sure there’s work been put into the alternate scenarios of promotion or not. Whats undeniable is that Saints ( SR, RM, JW and all the others that have been vilified) have delivered and are delivering a strong reaction and response to the desolation of bottom of the league multi manager nonsense of last season. Yes they can be blamed ( well, the SR can) but the response is there. Mark of a person is not failure - we all fail - but one’s response to failure. By that measure, in this current season, Saints get a big ✅. And its as good a preparation for whether we go up or not for next season as I can think of.

Agreed. When RM talked about the “process” and the “bravery” required to play this style of football many supporters previously loudly deriding him are rightly turning their opinions around 180 degrees. Whats remarkable is that it’s taken only 3-4 months to convert a shambles FC into a 19 games unbeaten team. From top to bottom we exude a confidence and class as a club unthinkable last Summer. We have our team spirit and much of our pride back. Even our stewards are getting complimented! ( see Walsall forum - v complimentary about club in general and our team - more so than here!) Not one post match interview by an opposition manager on this run has failed to say “Southampton are a very good team”. We are winning matches by 4-0 like it’s normal now. Nearly half our home matches we score 4 goals now! Anyone still wants to hang onto belittling comments for what Saints are doing are welcome but I feel that I’m watching probably a once in my lifetime thing happening right before my very eyes and I’m grateful I’ve been able to watch and participate as a supporter in it. COYS! Stay present and enjoy it! 😇

Declaration of being subject bias. I like Sekou and I think once he has graduated from the schooling he’s currently getting he will be a fine player. Furthermore in which case he will be great value for what we paid and are paying. Whether the playing results from him will be fully realised at Saints remains to be seen - but I, and hopefully everyone else except his most frothy haters, sincerely hope so. I know this might sound odd but to me it looks like he is still learning his position. It seems like he’s been at Saints learning his craft ages and the logic goes we should have more evidence that he’s been “ improved” by our coaching. And that what we paid for in terms of skill goals talent and potential has not been delivered enough to date. I can fully appreciate and understand why many here feel he has made inadequate progress. By those criteria his general “improvement” is relatively scarce - a few goals and nice touches aside . Like his match day appearances. It’s pretty obvious he’s not mastered and is fluent in the disciplined style or approach or thought or physicality or concentration or positional sense of our game - yet. And you can add any number of other important details that are necessary to be the #9 in this PB system. Or the #10 as RM has occasionally tried and has said he’s used Sekou as in training. That can and has made him look out of sorts when we do (occasionally) actually get a chance to see him. Lazy is a word used a lot here for him but I personally strongly disagree - you need only look at his face to see the frustration within. That’s not lazy that’s it’s not clicking in- yet- and he desperately wants it to be : result he misses chances and looks inelegant and fails to shine consistently - and that’s a self defeating psychological factor called a barrier to performance NOT laziness. Calling him “ lazy” is frankly lazy criticism ( no excuses for that pun I know 😂) RM has alluded to psychologically informed reasons ( what others will undoubtedly call excuses ) for unnamed players apparent underperformance in previous matches. Choose to ignore that as psycho babble and call him lazy all you like might but I genuinely feel under RM he has got the ideal coach to help him release the ( invisible) mental shackles on his ability. Basically cut him some slack. He’s a kid learning to be a man, my sons age pretty much and ge has got a lot of growth ahead. Writing him off now - as many here do - would be a waste and a bad mistake. Have faith. If he makes our squad and gets on the pitch it’s not because he’s useless in training. Remember that. 😃

One notable feature starting to become more apparent to me (anyway) is how most teams coming to SMS this season set up deep and stand off defensively - allowing us possession- but then once they go behind, and especially start of second half, they attempt a high press more often. This has caused quite a few scares in quite a few matches. we look not very good sometimes but it’s quite often the oppo are putting in extra energy to regain possession early. And then what happens is, assuming they don’t score or we don’t f&vk it up somehow, is that there is a cost to this in terms of oppo energy - and we find breakthrough spaces more often. And from these we often score late goals - like yesterday. Ive seenThis pattern kind of repeat itself even away from home. Not every match but enough to be noticeable. Amd I guess that is a big factor in why we persist with the playing around at the back. We end up winning or drawing more matches that way - this season at any rate. So carry on!

Ryan Fraser just nailed his place in the starting line up next week no ifs no buts! Sam is going to have to work very hard to dislodge him. And KS. As it should be. Great loan move that - 10/10 for Saints recruitment and management.

Note on Dibling : maybe it’s just me but the way he runs with the ball, kind of ramshackle way but the ball keeps up, and he gets that bit of time and Space to himself…and then looks up and easy as you like delivers a premium quality pass….last time a young player with that kind of body shape and look did that that I can recall his name was Matthew something when he was playing his early matches for us and had that rep as being a bit special when he came on. Tyler may well be an absolute gem in the making.