sandwichsaint

What a difference a few weeks makes! From the rather pedestrian and lumbering performances against Watford and Sunderland to smashing WHU away and playing the champions off the park in their own gaff. Players who looked like square fish out of water now look beautifully dove-tailed into the new system, Romeu a definite upgrade on VW, Hojsberg settling nicely, I don't get the hate for SD, he fits the system well, Tadic if he could add a few goals to his game he wouldn't be playing for us, and Redmond has been generally excellent. Boufall to come too! If Austin can stay fit, and if JRod can play some games, and if Long can find last year's form we would be back as genuine top 6 contenders. Unfortunately too many ifs there and the lack of a top line striker will cost us. But loving our football, just fantastic some of the stuff I saw on the stream yesterday, Leicester were chasing shadows as we mixed it up short and long, with one touch and triangles everywhere. Really looking fd to the Burnley game now.

Said this morning Puel would take draw/draw from these two games, be interesting to see how we go Sunday after this.

Strangely soporific, somewhere between a pre-season friendly and a world cup group game.

Getting going now, is this the second-half surge?

Is Martina ****ed?

let off there, we're making lots of sloppy errors, don't seem compact at all, they are penetrating at will,

I don't buy this 'prioritising Leicester' stuff - we are doing simple squad-rotation/player fitness management. If Puel produces draw/draw from these two games he's done his job, and I've every confidence he will get that based on the way he managed the squad recently over 4 games in 12 (?) days - he got 4 straight wins there so I think we can cut him some slack on his selections for HBS and Leicester (at least until we've seen the results of both games ... and preferably the results of the Christmas games too!)

Same, not great timing, hopefully things get sorted.

KUMB - 'When Karen Brady promised us an atmosphere I didn't realise it was going to be provided by 3000 Southampton fans'.

Good to see that even John Hartson's given up on the club formerly known as WHU.

Creative tension caused by Boufal looking over their collective shoulders? Bring it on, I'm loving the rotation and competition for places. We are probably one good CB, one good DM and one decent striker away from being a top 4-6 side (will never happen, by the time we buy three more starters another three-plus will have left).

West Ham struggling again, 5L say they look shot on confidence and ideas and struggling in the new stadium .... you just know hat's going to happen at the weekend ...... West Ham 0 Saints 2.... go us.

1.5/10

Is there anyone on the forum NOT going? It looks like this will be the largest collection of internet trolls/soccer experts/finanacial whizz kids/forum geniuses/bed-wetters/PR plants and general malcontents ever assembled in one place. Shades of the round-up in Blazing Saddles. Has anyone got on to Batman yet to see if we can charter his submarine?

Can my wife be your wife for the day? I have two tickets for self and (disabled) son, Mrs Sandwich is making the trip with us, no way I would be able to take him abroad on my own, and she has no chance of a ticket (no ST or membership, just the old style membership number, tho she does a few games a year). Considering it's taken a couple of weeks to sell 4000 to theoretically our 'bestest' supporters would it be out of order for me to give it some special pleading and ask the tkt office for one of the remaining 1000 odd tkts?

Sorted, got my two after a 10 minute wait, totally brilliant. Hopefully everyone else gets sorted too.

Well done Puel and well done players, two excellent results this week and it seems like the rotations/selections worked out pretty well in the end. Bigger tests ahead, Sparta and Swansea both v poor but we can go to West Ham with every chance of a positive result. We certainly seemed a bit more coherent yesterday than in the previous home games and could (should) have won by three or four. Looking fd to seeing what we can do once Boufal comes into the team. Puel also seems to be using subs well both in timing and personnel.

Think David Peach might have something to say about that.

I would 'love' this to be true ... it's almost too good to be true though! Why would they go to the hassle of selling them online and then having lengthy collections/ID at their end? Surely they would set up a sales point at the ground during the day (where they could selL against ID), or even from their kiosks in town. Doesn't make a lot of sense but here's hoping!

How do you know they didn't? And fix that bloody PA! If they can't fix it can they at least not put a slide on the big screen for the oppo's substitutions ..... and probably for quite a few that sit around me for our own subs too.

Looking at the second picture down, if Shearer bowls a bit of off-spin, right arm over, I think he's got the pose just about right.

Don't forget, no beer in the ground on Thursday ...... UEFA rules.

my streams a bit rubbish but it would appear so to me, we can do this.

Perfect, Milan cock-up the allocation and we see a mass outbreak of red on red squabbling and a massive ****-waving, best-est fan contest. Wind it in everybody, we're all Saints fans! I have no priority for this fixture, I did my aways a long time ago and in all the leagues (I've seen Saints on I think 63 away grounds in the uk), I currently have a ST at home and make a 300 mile round trip for every game. I had no real interest or excitement in the Euro draw, I knew that with allocations of 2000-3000 there was no chance of getting away tickets. Saints pull out a San Siro plum, one of the biggest club grounds in Europe, here we go, flights booked for what will be one of the landmark games in our history ... we all want to be there. I'm not claiming any preference over the 5000 people who will get the tickets (other than anybody that goes on somebody else's ticket and doesn't get in!). Not quite sure what my options are now, I have no real interest in going out there and watching it in a bar. Anyone want to buy three plane tickets?

Second, just below me .....