Professor

The commentator on the stream I was watching was talking about league positions and said Saints might well catch Newcastle to go up to 8th but couldn't see us catching Man U. With only a 5 point gap and the advantage of the home game against them on the last day of the season I wouldn't be so sure. Man U have already lost 7 games this season which is the same as Southampton, so it could be that 7th place will be there for the taking.

Wanyama is looking a little match rusty but that should pass

Sorry to hear that but it does look accurate. If either one of them was progressing to first team level, he'd have surely got a bench place today. Saw Stephens in an u-21 video and he made a schoolboy error. It does seem the club will need to be in the market for at least one CB in the close season.

Yoshida and Hooiveld have competition from Jordan Turnbull and Jack Stephens which should be enough to keep them motivated. Benjii has already pointed out that our league position this season is virtually assured. If anything, the coaches may well see this as an opportunity for a development squad player to gain some experience.

To answer the question, "What has happened to Lambert?" isn't it obvious that the Father Time problem gets to every player and that for most the turning point is around 30? Defenders generally play on longer as do some midfield players, but where speed matters most, which is up front, the rot tends to set in sooner. It is slow and insidious but inevitable. Rickie is still a great player but maybe not quite as great as he was or great for shorter periods and next season he'll be less great, however hard he works to ward off the ravages of time. He's been brilliant for the Saints but just as we had to come to terms with the decline of MLT, Rickie's day is passing but like MLT, even at the end, a moment of magic can still see the ball in the net. Its just that such moments become less frequent until its better to replace the aging player with a player who is in his prime. RL can see that Osvaldo is first choice now so either he must settle for less playing time or move on, but when he does, he has a place ion Saints' history absolutely assured.

The instability of the set-up since Marcus bought the club has been an issue that has been overshadowed by success on the field. Having the club run by a single individual who was an employee without a personal financial investment in the business has been an accident waiting to happen. Sooner or later the owner was bound to want a say in how the club was run, if not personally, then through a board of directors. The private ownership of what used to be English football clubs is becoming a worrying issue but until it happens to your own club it's easy to turn a blind eye. Keeping the manager is now the most important thing so that there is some stability for the remainder of the season. It seems Cortese knew that was essential and he may have achieved that before he left the building but as fans we can only watch the developments. Our club, which we have supported for over 125 years is now just a commodity but if the owner, whoever it is, doesn't act responsibly, we don't have to turn up for matches and I'm sure Katerina knows that as well as anyone else.

The good news in this story is that the coaches must be convinced that Sam Gallagher is capable of being Premier League quality. Another step on the road to Academy talent in the first team over bought-in foreign imports should be welcome. No offence to Chung and his injury setbacks were hard to overcome, so good luck to him in finding a new club.

M-o-t-M is difficult. The 3 points would not have been won except for Gaston's pass, Lallana's strike and Boruk's save but neither would the game have been won if we hadn't had most of the possession with the game mostly well up the field while we also defended well. There were the 3 champagne moments but MoM for me was Shaw because he played so strongly throughout. How much more pleasure there is in driving home across the Itchen Bridge and coping with traffic out to the M27 when you have the warm glow of a home win to help you along.

Thought Cork played well but when Wanyama comes back the team will be stronger. We weren't dominating midfield today which was a factor in there being fewer chances for the front men.

At least if he was still in the Saints' team, he wouldn't be taking penalties, but it does look as if he'll be back in the Championship next year which is more his level

This week, being up against opposition that knows absolutely nothing about football, it should be easy for Stallone to come out on top.

The press report that SFC will not be buying this January should not be surprising as little would be gained by bringing in new players, even if they were world class. This squad is good enough for a finish in mid-table, probably around 9th where they are now, and adding a couple of players would make little difference. The team is not yet a top six side but a run of tough fixtures in December and key players out injured means that the December results are not an indicator for the rest of the season. It's highly likely that the staff are already looking at the needs for next season. Few would disagree that CB is the most likely spot to strengthen by transfer in, although that may depend on whether Jack Stephens is considered reliable enough to step up. Likewise, LB cover for Shaw may be available from the Academy if Matt Targett is still progressing. As for Shaw, Ward-Prowse and Chambers all three will be better players next year, being a year older and with a year's experience behind them, which will also be true for Reed, Gallagher and Isgrove. There is still enough promise in the Development squad that even in the summer we shouldn't expect a lot of transfers in, but maybe several out.

Jordan Turnbull and Jack Stephens.

Cheating in any other sport results in a ban. Football allows cheating to be punished with extremely weak sanctions which is why it has become endemic in the game. Oscar cheated and should have been sent off but he'd have still only missed 3 games and kept his full pay packet. If being sent off for cheating kept a player out of the game for a full season, and a genuine financial penalty, they would think twice before doing it.

There is nothing to be achieved by spending in this January window. 5th place is beyond us this season because there are too many teams, at least 6 or 7, with stronger squads than ours. We have a competitive first 11 with some surplus amongst the strikers but several are not as good as they will be as they gain experience and the lack of depth of top quality players has shown. But its too far into the season to do more than consolidate in the top half and to begin to have an eye on next year.

Looks like 4-4-2 but RL often slips into midfield and as a former midfielder before turning striker he's comfortable doing that. AL available off the bench if needed seems a good idea.

IMO not a waste at all. You can have enough understanding of a foreign language to be able to follow what is being said but the skill in translating is being able to find the correct English word to express the same meaning. I can imagine the same problem happening in Bishopbriggs!

Buenos días S Fry. ¿Qué te hace pensar que no puedo hablar español?

Very sensible of Pochettino to keep control of media interviews. The media regularly publish headlines attributing a quote to a manager when in reality the reporter put the words in his mouth by stating a phrase and the manager saying 'Yes'. Pochettino is far less prone to that by using his own words through the translator.

Nasri, a very nasty little creep. Clubs like Man City don't care who they buy as long as they are expensive but the cost of such players stops them from disciplining them when it turns out they are unpleasant cheats.

Perhaps my memory is going as the years pass but I don't recall Walcott, Bale and Oxlade-Chamberlain being hawked around for sale. As I recall, they were offered truck loads of money and were encouraged by family members to head for the bright lights.

Just saw Lawrenson on MOTD2Extra where the panel were discussing Sunday's up-coming games. When the discussion turned to Saints, Lawrenson couldn't bring himself to make a contribution and just stared at the desk. Very strange individual. The journalist on the programme was talking about a lot of positive stuff in the weekend press about Pochettino and about Saints' use of young English players saying you had to hope the Southampton Way would be successful. Went on to say that he'd been at Hull on Friday where he was told that Saints had been the hardest side Hull had met because the Saints' players all play for each other. All Lawrenson wanted to do was talk about Chelsea. Seems he's got no idea about football outside of three places, London, Liverpool and Manchester. All the more reason for the BBC to dump him asap.

Why have Arsenal borrowed a set of Southampton shirts?

After Saints have beaten Arsenal this afternoon, I'd like to see Merson and Lawrenson on screen explaining not why Saints won the game but why they, Merson and Lawrenson, are incompetent as pundits and are taking their employers' money under false pretences.

There's a poster for the Redknapp book in the window of my local Smiths with a sticker across the book saying "Half Price". Any thoughts on a more accurate sticker?