Matthew Le God

Argument far from over. He was suggesting it was an annual wage bill of £100m, not over the entire duration of the contract. In those same 3 years contracts you are talking about, Saints would bring in over £120 million from domestic TV rights. Let alone all the other revenue streams.

20 in the Premier League 24 in the Championship 24 in League One Saints started League One in 24th place with -10 points I make 20 + 24 + 24 = 68 What do you make it?

I think it all depends on how good the new academy and development league structure proves to be. Might suit the club to keep them training at Staplewood until they are older rather than loaning them out if there is a strong games program at development level.

Their last accounts in March 2012 show turnover in 2010/11 in their first season back in the Premier League was £88.4m, and that includes the Carroll £35m deal. They have one game to go and are 1 point point behind 4th and 2 points behind 3rd. Even if they don't make it, or Chelsea win the Champions League and deny them a CL spot they have shown they are capable of mounting a serious Champions League place challenge.

£250m is "quite reserved"! You think it would need a £250m net spend to get the Saints squad upto Newcastle's level? They haven't spent anywhere near that. I think you need to guess again if you think Newcastle's wage budget is anywhere near £100m.

I'm not the one that plucks a £250 million figure out of thin air and then when asked to justify such a claim refuses to do so and turns instead to personal insults.

A truly bizarre way to debate someone. I asked you three reasonable questions in order for you to justify your £250m claim and then you back-pedal out of it. Too difficult to answer?

That doesn't answer any of my 3 questions.

No it doesn't, the spec at Staplewood goes beyond that at any of the clubs you mentioned and is costing a lot more.

Had Cortese said "we'll build one of the best training ground in Europe" and then failed like Milan Mandaric at Pompey did to start construction then I might agree with you. However Cortese in the 3 years at the club has led the club from 68th in England to the top 20 and is currently building a Champions League quality training ground and academy. That adds weight to any claim he makes about wanting Champions League football at Saints, he has evidence of backing up his claims and isn't a Michael Knighton figure.

1) Did Newcastle 2012 or Everton's 2005 sides cost £250m in net spend? No, not remotely close, good management and recruitment went a very long way. Yes some money was required but nothing like the sums you seem to think it takes. 2) Will any club under FFP be able to spend £250m on players? No, investment from owners is being vastly reduced. 3) Does it not make more sense to spend money on the academy and training ground and produce your own players bearing in mind FFP and EPPP?

You are still stuck in a Saints at The Dell and/or run by Guy Askham/Rupert Lowe complex. Things are different, Cortese has huge ambition and is backing up the ambition with evidence such as announcing a £15 million Champions League club quality training ground whilst in League One, and then starting construction of it whilst in the Championship. If Cortese merely wanted Saints like under Lowe to be a mid table Premier League team, he wouldn't bother with such a development and would reduce the scale and cost of it.

Signing them initially won't require them on large contracts if you do some good scouting and bring in some bargains. But to keep them long term contracts will need to be increased. Plus see the quote below... Cheers, I was just about to use that quote.

Delap was 11 years ago and cost £4m. Football prices have increased since then, however a strikefore of Ba and Cisse still worked out at little more than 2 Rory Delap's. How much did Rupert Lowe invest in Saints? Was it anything? I'm not saw he did put anything in of note, certainly note anywhere near what Cortese/Liebherr have done. So if Lowe as Saints chairman was able to sign Delap £4m, Delgado £3.2m etc then why not under Cortese/Liebherr in an age of larger TV deals sign the likes of Ba free and Cisse £9m? It will come down to wages, and the increased TV money from 2001 to 2012 will pay for a lot of that.

Probably not next season, but I bet we see Saints player on £50k p/w in the next 3 to 4 years.

So what? It works out at £4.5m each. Which is a little more than two Rory Delap's in 2001 under Rupert Lowe and his lack of investment. Are you aware Southampton are paying Lambert at the moment as a Championship club? Saints will get upwards of £40 million extra next season from TV money alone, let alone all the other increased revenue streams. Also, unlike most other Premier League clubs, Saints have no debt. So don't need to use any of their income to pay that off next season.

Ba and Cisse cost them £9 million in total or £4.5m each and when you consider Rory Delap cost £4m in 2001 with Rupert Lowe and his lack of investment, that really isn't a lot for Saints. Saints as a Championship side under Cortese without Premier League TV money made bids larger than that for Rodriguez and Hooper.

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.