Matthew Le God

Newcastle have shown that 2 years after being in the Championship you can mount a serious Champions League bid going into the 38th game of the season. Yes, Newcastle are a bigger club than Saints but their net spend in recent years on transfer fees really isn't that large at all. Ba and Cisse cost them £9 million in total or £4.5m each when you consider Rory Delap cost £4m in 2001. That really isn't a lot for Saints. The main issue would then be down to wages, but you can still put together a highly competitive team in the Premier League at no where near the wage levels you seem to think it takes. It hasn't cost Newcastle "hundreds of millions" so that is ********. Careful management at board level and 1st team level along with a reasonable amount of funding and good scouting goes a very long way.

Really? Not exactly a long term prospect at 41 years old, his Skate connections don't help him, plus he wants to live in the West Country and struggled to get into a poor Bristol City side at the end of the season due to a lack of form. Might see him end up at Exeter City, Torquay, Bristol Rovers or Plymouth on low wages.

1) They don't have "new wealthy owners", they haven't had a takeover (yet). Plus if they do, he isn't as rich as the Liebherr estate (not even remotely close). 2) As recently as the year 2000, Reading averaged 8,985. Between 1963 and 1998 they didn't average more than 10,000 and they averaged under 4,000 as recently as 1992. 3) They are now looking to expand to 38,000. 4) Under 4,000 to 38,000 is quite a jump in 20 years isn't it? But they believe it is possible. 5) So why is it not possible for Saints, who have far more solid long term fanbase evidence than Reading do?

Robert Green has a reasonable chance of going, yes I know he has played in the Premier League before and England. But you said "who played last season in the Championship", which is what Green did. Plus technically, by your reasoning Hodgson won't take Scott Parker as he played in the Championship for West Ham at the start of the season!

Maybe I was wrong and he hasn't a clue! Or is just trying to flog his clients.

Redmond is 18 years old and Mutch is 20 years old, I think they both have a great deal of potential to improve considering their ages.

SI's MD Miles Jacobson follows this agent on Twitter. I know Miles has contacts in the world of agents to help with the development of FM.

Both are very good young players. Redmond a fast winger, Mutch a central midfielder.

John Voysey ‏ @brummieagent After last night's display #Saints are preparing for a double-swoop of #BCFC's young talents Jordon Mutch and Nathan Redmond. https://twitter.com/#!/brummieagent

If that is true, wouldn't the creditors would be better off voting against the CVA and the club being liquidated?

Can't you just tell us?

They will be all on http://www.firstrowsports.eu pretty much, including all the 3pm Saturday kickoffs. Nothing beats being at the stadium though.

The Man City way is just one way of doing it. Newcastle haven't spent anywhere near £300m to achieve a Champions League push. Just look further down, Leicester City threw more money at the Championship than Saints did yet they ended up in mid table and Saints were promoted. Money doesn't guarantee success. - Newcastle got Cisse for £9m and Ba was on a free transfer. So £4.5m on average for two very good strikers. They are 5th. - Liverpool got Carroll for £35m and Suárez for £24m. So £59m for those two players. They are 13 points behind Newcastle in 8th. Yes, you will need some money to support a Champions League push or Championship promotion, but good scouting and good management at board and 1st team level goes a long way!!!

I didn't say that. They still make up the highest %, but it has significantly dropped in the last 20 years particularly since the Premier League started. The other groups I mentioned have risen in % significantly.

How many more times, I said ambition AND resources. The resources required to sign top players back then was not a huge amount more than for an average player, there isn't the gap there is today. Liebherr and Cortese have high ambition like in the early 80's at Saints but also resources on another level to that of the early 80's.

It is certainly less than in any other decade of the last 120 years. Family stands, corporates, middle classes, children, woman etc etc all take up far higher % of the crowd than ever before. He is right as well about the area, Hampshire is relatively affluent compared to many other areas in England.

What point are you trying to make? You are providing evidence of Southampton able to sign very high quality players and finish 2nd in the top flight. You are doing all of this whilst trying to support an argument that Saints can never compete at the highest level. Yes, Williams joined Arsenal, but one player leaving doesn't take away the high league finishes and high quality internationals joining Saints. You seem very confused...

Just ideas at the moment and if they do happen it will be many years away...

I said ambition and resources. Not just one but both. The resources needed to sign players in the early 1980's were relatively tiny even if Shilton and Keegan were on large wages for the era. I hope you weren't one of the people that used to criticise me for using old data to support my point. You are now going back over 30 years!

Lowe's Staplewood in 1998 is completely different to Cortese's Staplewood as it will be in 2013. Vastly different in scale, capital expenditure and ambition. St Mary's is merely a mid sized Premier League stadium, Lowe had little ambition beyond that. His initial ambitions were to build a 25,000 stadium at Stoneham, that clearly was far too small. Cortese on the other hand is building a training ground that wouldn't look out of place at a Champions League club. He has also stated his ambition to see St Mary's to be 45k+. Cortese has ambition far beyond Lowe settling for mid table in the Premier League. And so far Cortese has backed his ambition with success on the pitch and bricks/concrete etc off the pitch.

Whilst still at The Dell, which was significantly holding them back from progressing any more. Plus as you have just stated, a club like Saints have been capable of finishing 2nd, signing the current European footballer of the year and the World's best goalkeeper - albeit 30 years ago but you were the one that brought it up not me! You really aren't helping your argument here.

Who knows? I don't and you don't. However things like unveiling £15 million training ground improvements and category one academy plans whilst a League One club does suggest Cortese has both high ambition and high resources. So if he believes Saints can compete towards the top, why so much doubt in him, he has put down a lot of evidence in the last 3 years that show a lot of substance. Remember... I'm not the one ruling things out completely. But Cortese has done little to suggest so far he is merely full of hot air. Take a trip to Staplewood if you want to see ambition backed up with resources.

Ambition and ambition plus large wealth are two different things. Keegan wasn't on huge money (in comparison to today) and largely came because of Lawrie and a few other mates he had in a strong Saints side.

He left in 1984 whilst Saints were at The Dell and not owned by particularly wealthy and ambitious people. Again, not a like for like comparison.

If the Liebherr estate and Cortese really show some ambition then I wouldn't rule it out as quickly as you have. Announcing a £15 million training ground development on par with some of the best in world football and category one status academy whilst in League One is quite ambitious is it not?