buctootim

Exactly. Missed most of preseason only been back a week.

Currently 23rd of 24 in the 'As it Stands' League 2 table. Only 45.5 matches to go!

Leicester are a great example of devising tactics which circumvent the fact that other teams often had technically better players. Their PL winning stats from last season look more like a bottom half team (many worse than Bournemouth), but they won by breaking fast, hard work and making a lot of tackles and interceptions. Compare them with Spurs who came 4th. Possession 45% (Spurs 55%) Pass completion 70% (Spurs 80%) Shots on target per game 4.4 (Spurs 6.6) https://www.whoscored.com/Teams/14/Statistics/England-Leicester https://www.whoscored.com/Teams/30

Cream teas, the Empire and blankets instead of immigrant duvets.

You can argue it the other way too. Capping your career off by playing for one of the worlds top teams for a fellow Portuguese manager who is revered in his homeland (I assume) for a shed load of cash must seem quite tempting.

First should be "Sticking pins in my eyes" surely?

No they weren't. They were voting out of the EU in the expectation that something would happen as a consequence - that immigration would fall or Britain would drop EU laws or we would save money. Leavers may not have all had the same vision for post EU, but the idea that simply leaving is enough is risible. A majority of people would not have voted for "Leave the EU after which maybe nothing will happen apart from the economy hits a wall".

The top clubs will always have more money to recruit better players so their overall 'technical' stats should be higher. However Leicester are a great example of shaping your tactics to suit the players you have - which is why Ranieri deserves all his plaudits imo. Saints too punched above our weight. atm I have doubts Puel can continue that trend, I hope Im wrong.

It was less than 50% - and more effective. I was referring to Pochettino's time here and making the point possession doesnt mean much if you dont do anything with it. Under Pochettino we were hard to beat but didnt create much and had a lot of draws. These are the team stats for last season under Koeman, more 'Barcelona' like than Poch, moving the ball more quickly. https://www.whoscored.com/Teams/18/Statistics/England-Southampton

Still missing the point. We weren't trying to play like them, we were doing the opposite. We prioritised retaining possession over taking on players / the goal and potentially losing possession.

I know you think thats a clever putdown, but it betrays your lack of knowledge. Barcelona and Bayern spend one third of their time in the opposition's third and average 16-18 shots on goal per match. At time under Pochettino we spent nearly all our time in the middle and we'd be lucky to get five or six shots. https://www.whoscored.com/Teams/37/Statistics/Germany-Bayern-Munich https://www.whoscored.com/Teams/65/Statistics/Spain-Barcelona

That was more Pochettino era irrc. Two thirds possession in midfield, but no-one willing to get it forward and take a shot - and end up losing.

So you agree that media outlets set the news agenda? You agree that is what is newsworthy isnt necessarily the same as giving information? Why do IS get all the coverage when they have accounted for less than 10% of the dead? We are doing exactly what IS want - giving them massive publicity and being afraid. At least IS murder with a plan - global jihad. We have no plan, we arent even consistent. Turkey buy IS's oil and fund them and arm them. The US arm 'moderates' who sell their weapons to IS. We want to get rid of both IS and Assad (who has killed the most of the c450,000 dead) but have no idea what comes after or how to bring it about. So we bomb, in the absence of any semblance of a plan, because we think we have to be seen to be doing something. More Libya anyone? The Western coalition arent the biggest killers in Syria - but we are prolonging the war, increasing the number of dead and driving people out of Syria - which provides very handy cover for IS infiltration into Europe, cover which wouldnt otherwise exist. So we are enabling our own terrorism. Its yet another cluster**** after Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and now Syria.

No Im good ta. Off on holiday to Paris and South of France next week with the kids. But then Im not the one scouring newspapers for snippets in a vain attempt to whip up hate. Trying to ressurect the long dead NF must be a thankless task.

Thats the spirit Wes. Analysis, experience, statistics, measures, comparisons, models and evaporation of business / consumer confidence are no match for your optimism. That will see us through. Just like Dunkirk eh? (obviously we were f'ucked for 40 years after that, but you get the idea)

Thats odd. I thought it was all over the news. By contrast these two fatal stabbings also in London on the same night weren't. I wonder why that is? http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news/14663378.Police_launch_murder_probe_in_Lewisham_after_teenager_stabbed_in_street/?ref=rss http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/police-launch-murder-probe-after-man-is-stabbed-on-battersea-estate-a3311426.html Why don't you and Jamie come out with what it is you want? forced deportations? gassing? Too shy to say? Only enough balls to witter and insinuate?

More exciting than Man City?

Bit harsh. He's probably reasonably competent when sober

Their board is full of people saying they dont want him - so I wouldnt mind if it went through

Everton linked with him too

Monaco isnt that bad - its good for seeing how the other half lives and deciding you arent missing much. I went to a (work) black tie fundraiser at the Hotel de Paris and stood on the terrace drinking and watching the Lambourghini and Ferrari drivers do a circuit round the gardens and fountain trying to out pose each other. Nice in one direction and Villefranche in the other are both close on the train and well worth visiting.

Fair enough. Plays for a Portuguese club. http://m.zerozero.pt/player.php?id=418747

Looks far more like 5'8" Bruma than 6' Debayo to me. If we had signed Bruma then Fonte would be the natural person to look after him.

We replaced number 9 with number 32! Obviously those tables are very subjective - but thewre are some highly ranked managers in there that realistically Saints could have signed.

I'm very excited "Delete will create a range of new digital consumer touch points". They really know how to communicate with fans