trousers

And Ralph was supposedly a stand-offish disciplinarian... Which can also be a dangerous thing... I guess the really good managers are somewhere in-between

P.s. BA's 'manage your booking' website is utter shite! How these IT systems pass the 'go live' gateways is baffing... Maybe one for the 'things that get on your tits' thread!

I'll let you know in a couple of weeks! Thanks again all for the insights, tips, etc. Flying out at stupid o'clock tomorrow morning so see you on the other side 👍

His memories of The Dell don't seem to suggest he was a player or manager 'back in the day'... if that's what you're alluding to...? https://www.saintsweb.co.uk/topic/544-top-10-memories-of-the-dell/#comment-17717 P.s. has he met Jonathan Fulthorpe recently...? #throwback

Football is too results driven apparently... 🤦

Source? Versus who? Ross Stewart playing too? What's the capital of Peru? #toomanyquestions

Isn't the fact that Martin has been 'doing it for while' the very reason why SR/Wilcox employed him in the first place? i.e. If Martin's approach didn't fit the way SR/Wilcox want to play then they wouldn't have employed him? #chicken #egg

Someone posted this the other day, which may answer some of your questions? https://www.skysports.com/football/news/15126/10549782/does-pep-guardiola-have-the-formula-for-stopping-the-counter-attack And also found this: https://www.coachesvoice.com/cv/counter-pressing-gegenpressing-football-tactics-explained-klopp-guardiola-bielsa-hasenhuttl/#:~:text=Pep Guardiola&text=The use of full-backs,press following a defensive transition.

I've got a WH Smiths book token if that's any good?

Isn't this 'possession football' malarkey more about how SR/Wilcox want the team/club to play and Martin is simply a means-to-an-end manager that fits their strategy? In other words, I don't think it's a case of laying any blame on Martin for the way we play, he's just fitting in with what the owners & director of football want?

*Should have

Midfield too light I think?

Ah, fair point... I take it back... Sell, sell, sell!

If we end up selling this fella before the remaining windows close I'm going to cry... If any player is likely to compensate for our defensive frailties then surely it's him?

Yep... Along with "ATM machine" and "LCD display"... Cretins

As Lady Trousers will testify to, there's lots of things that I threaten to do on a daily basis but never get around to doing..... (sorry, that's the best analogy you're going to get from me!)

You'll need to get used to it because that's the way we'll be playing for the foreseeable future. Hoofing the ball clear isn't an option (under the SR/Wilcox/Martin philosophy)

Great overall post @chiknsmack but I'm inclined to disagree with the point you make above... To me, it's essential, not just "ideal" that a keeper in a team the way we play needs to be a good shot-stopper too. Possession football is naturally high risk and it's therefore inevitable that we'll give the ball away in our final third much more than our opponents... as such, we will have much more 1-on-1s with our keeper than other less possession-obsessed teams will, in addition to more speculative shots from outside the box. It's therefore imperitive that our keeper is a good shot-stopper, otherwise the goals against tally ends up outweighing the benefits of keeping possession of the ball in the first place.

This is what I don't get with SR's / Wilcox's strategy... I understand the rewards that a high-possession strategy can potentially reap, but given the inherent risks of such a philosophy - i.e. that we will have much more counter-attacks against us compared to a 'normal' team - surely the highest priority of such a system is that you get the best possible shot-stopping keeper you can in order to defend said counter-attacks? It's pointless going for a keeper who is "good with the ball and fits our play-out-from-the-back approach" if he's not much cop without the ball....

I scored it 4/10 so I'm delighted with my rating so far...

Because the majority of footballers aren't blessed with the highest of IQs...?

This interview seems to have gone under the radar somewhat, amongst all the post match analysis, so thought it might be worthwhile it having its own thread given how interesting it is (IMO), especially in light of yesterday's result (it was recorded just before the game it would seem)... Some egg on face for Wilcox given yesterday's performance...? (Paraphrasing Wilcox: "everything is great at the moment")

All bar 6 players will be on international duty though...

According to Russell Martin in his post match interview, there are only 6 players who won't be away on international duty, so there won't be any substantial time to work on improvements before the next game.

I've often wondered this about our relatively recent fixation of sticking religiously to a playing philosophy. To me, it gives the opposition an advantage in that they always know how we're going to play and once one team works out how to counter the philosophy other teams follow suit. This is what ultimately led to the downfall of Hassenhuttl IMO. We just ended up being far too predictable and unadaptable. There's certainly an element of being 'too clever for your own good' when trying to be different to how 'normal' football is played...