Matthew Le God

Yes, I did. You've even quoted me saying it! As I said...it highlighted some weaknesses, but that is a good thing to expose them in preseason so it can be addressed. Better to find out now than being complacent after thrashing team after team in pre-season.

Stoke City have the 3rd highest net spend in England on transfer fees over the past 5 years. 1: Manchester City - £382.2M 2: Chelsea - £190.7M 3: Stoke - £60.1M 4: Aston Villa - £50.6M 5 Manchester United - £36.6M

Not really. We beat... - the 9th best team in France - a recently relegated English Premier League team - a Swiss second division team We drew with... - Arsenal reserves - Bristol City We lost... - narrowly against the Dutch Champions - narrowly to the Belgian Champions over 45 minutes - badly against the 3rd best Italian side It highlighted some weaknesses, but that is a good thing to expose them in preseason so it can be addressed. Better to find out now than being complacent after thrashing team after team in pre-season.

How does playing Wolves and Bristol give an indication of what it will be like against good Premier League sides? They are both in the Championship. Playing the Dutch Champions, Belgium Champions, 9th best team in France and 3rd best team in Italy are tests. They help Adkins work out how to play against Premier League sides and where he may need to strengthen.

Why does that make "no sense"? Saints wanted to be tested in the pre-season against strong opposition, it gives them an idea how strong Premier League sides would test them and which Saints players can rise to what will be needed. Playing friendlies against poor opposition all pre-season doesn't tell you alot.

That was on 26th January 2004, not pre-season.

Umm... yes you are.

The Kraken was the one that brought it up, not me. Why don't you call him a "freak"?

Easily countered by them also having attendances you would call "low" and also at lower prices.

All you have done is said it is daft, not explained the reason why you think it is daft.

Not at all, people are used to spending on one home pre-season friendly. Saints had four this summer, people simply weren't going to goto all of them, so to combine attendances isn't a daft way to look at pre-season attendances. You can also factor in things like the home Olympics and the Ajax game being live on TV. Who cares anyway, most league games next season will be 30,000+ sellouts at St Mary's.

Add up all the attendances from Ajax, Udinese, Wolves and Arsenal/Anderlecht and it is quite a healthy number for pre-season home attendances. Does it matter it is over a number of games? It is very rare for Saints to have more than one pre-season friendly and most people won't want to goto more than one. Look at the pre-season home games as a collective rather than individually.

It is you that is overreacting. It is a pre-season friendly against the 3rd best team in Italy ffs!

Caption competition...

Does it? Add up all the attendances from Ajax, Udinese, Wolves and Arsenal/Anderlecht and it is quite a healthy number for pre-season home attendances. Does it matter it is over a number of games, as it is very rare for Saints to have more than one pre-season friendly and most people won't want to goto more than one?

Because after 12 minutes we are losing a friendly to a team that came 3rd in Italy last season?

The 4-3-3 can quickly switch to a 4-2-3-1. All it takes is for Schneiderlin and Lallana to push further forwards. They have even done that during this pre-season. Adkins likes to make a number of quick switches during games and the midfield and forwards often rotate. Although Rodriguez isn't a natural wide man they will be looking for him and Puncheon to cut inside on their stronger foot and Fox and Clyne to provide the width with Schneiderlin dropping deep to cover them.

Why? In terms of what we currently have, today's side is Adkins 1st choice and will use the system I posted in #21. The only difference would be Davis instead of Ward-Prowse, Guly Do Prado maybe instead of Puncheon and any new signings.

It'll be the system we have used throughout pre-season... K.Davis Clyne Fonte Hooiveld Fox Schneiderlin Ward-Prowse Lallana Puncheon Rodriguez Lambert Ward-Prowse is playing because Davis is still building up fitness and Cork is injured. Of course he is doing extremely well to put himself in contention, but I can't see him starting games if Davis was fully fit.

If you were a Saints fan between 1891 and 1950 you wouldn't have said that. Things change...

SaintRichmond, should we revert back to blue socks and blue shorts? If not, why not? Applying the same logic of heritage as you now, blue shorts and blue socks account for a large % of Saints history.

You also said... "After the Sash period they changed to Red and White Stripes, and have always been known by them" Which simply is not true - see 1980 to 1989. What makes 1891 to 1950 any less of our heritage than any other period? 59 years is 46% of the club's history wearing blue socks and blue shorts. Should we revert to blue shorts and blue socks? If we wear the all red kit for the next 59 years will you accept that as our traditional kit? What do you view as Leeds United's traditional kit? They didn't wear white until Don Revie changed it in the 1960's. So when you said... "for as long as I can remember", you blanked out a 9 year period in the 1980's.

I'm guessing you don't remember/weren't alive in the 1980's then - the most successful decade in the club's league history. Not true. From 1980 to 1989 Southampton used... From 1891 to 1950 Southampton wore blue shorts and blue socks. Should we revert to blue shorts and blue socks as we had them in "our heritage" for 59 years!

He is 26.

****! You found me.