RinNY

And another point: West Ham still have to play Cardiff, Middlesbrough, Brighton, Birmingham, Reading, and Hull -- all but Cardiff are home games for them. What this means, if West Ham win the Championship, in doing so they'll most likely help us get 2nd, because they'll be taking points from our pursuers. More likely, they'll end up splitting points with some of these teams, dropping one or two of those games even (Cardiff away, for example). And that means, so long as we just take care of business, our road to the title is right there. Keep the faith!

I would merely point out that, since we have more points than all but West Ham currently even after games in hand are played, to get automatic promotion we only have to match the records of every team other than WHam. Can we do that? Obviously we can, because over the greater part of the season we have already outperformed every team other than WHam. The most dangerous teams to us would seem to be Reading and Birmingham, and both of them have some very tough games in their run in: Reading have games away to us, Brighton, WHam and B'ham for example, and you know they're going to drop points in some or all of those. B'ham too still have to play several of the top sides, including WHam as well as Reading, and I note they just lost at home to Forest, showing how hard it is to keep adding wins & 3 points. Of course, we are quite as capable of dropping points here or there as the teams around us are, but we do have the advantage of more points in the bag. It's ours to win or lose: so long as we keep adding home wins, the odd away win against beatable teams (like Millwall & Palace) as we did today at Watford, and mix in some draws against tougher opponents, we should be just fine to stay in the top 2 (knock on wood). Fwiw, I still fancy us to win this league.

Playing for the reserves this week, and being ready to step into a competitive Championjship match, are two very different things: and Jaidi was pretty slow even before his injury. And as you say, no-one knows Seaborne's status or whether he'll play again (no-one on this board at any rate): but if he does play again it won't be very soon as he hasn't turned out for the reserves yet. Unless Fonte has recovered, an injury to Martin or Hooiveld probably would mean Cork would have to cover at CB, which would hurt us doubly: he isn't a very good CB, and we'd miss his vital influence in midfield! So that's hardly an attractive option. I'm still betting that, if there is a signing this week besides Lee and the hoped for but not yet close to completion other forward, it'll be a CB, a position we desperately need reinforced.

Seems clear no-one really has a clue who Adkins was talking about. I'll just say I seem to recall Adkins talking about the need for defensive help, which is obvious since at present we have only 2 fit CBs *****il Fonte's toe heals, & then we'll only have 3). And Adkins has already signed Lee and says, apart from the player most likely coming in this week, that he's still looking for another striker. So, since we're fine in midfield, my money's on a CB coming in this week, if we do get someone in. No idea who though ...

Well, saying that Walcott's playing better than Arshavin and Rosicky hardly sets the bar very high: they've both been awful, and the big question is why Wenger persists with them. A major reason Arsenal have been so inconsistent this season is that they have to rel;y on the likes of those two as "impact" subs: two players who never have any impact, except by passing the ball to the opposition (which happens all too frequently). That said, Theo has been disappointing this season, and he has not played better than Gervinho, to the contrary: Gervinho has been the more influential of the two. Theo has good moments, when you can see what the hype was a bout; but then he'll put in a pathetic excuse for a cross, or chicken out of taking his defender on and pass the ball 15 yards backwards, or shoot at goal and miss by a mile. Inconsistent is the kindest word one can use of him, this season. The depressing thing about Dyer, is recalling how easily Saints gave up on him. The Premiership is littered with Saints youngsters we failed to hang onto for one reason or another -- in addition to Dyer, there's Surman, Williamson, Hall, Baird, Best & those are just the ones I can recall on the spur of the moment -- and that's not counting the ones we sold for big money, like Bale, Kenwynne, Walcott, & Chamberlain. That's almost a whole team of players who were, and under other circumstances could still have been ours. How depressing ...

I'd love to see Saints make a strong bid to get Onuoha ... every time I've seen him play he's been excellent ... don't know why Mancini doesn't rate him, but I do ... getting him would be a real coup, a real statement of intent! I know that clubs like Wolves & Bolton & QPR are reported to be after him, but I'd think Saints could make a pitch. Those clubs are Prem League bottom feeders after all: is it better to play 5 months in the Prem & get relegated or 5 months in the Championship & get promoted? Is it better to join a club on the way down or one on the way up? People will say his wages are too high, but if saints are going to be truly ambitious, we're going to have to pay serious wages for serious players. And Onuoha would make our defence much much better, imo.

Let's face it, Jaidi is to all inents & purposes done; and who knows what Seaborne will be when he comes back from his head injury? The only real cover we have at CB right now is Martin, who is still pretty much untried. I agree that another CB is still highly desirable.

If we get Jutkiewicz (any news on that, btw?), it'll surely be as a complementary, bench player in the first instance. There's no reason to break up the Lambert/Guly partnership up front, which has been so successful, and I don't see Adkins doing that. But, as many have pointed out over and over (myself included) since before the season started: we rely very heavily on Lambert and have no real cover for him. He plays every game and just about every minute of every game, and we can't just expect that to continue all season. We really, really need someone who can spell Rickie for the last 10-15 minutes of games that are pretty much in the bag, and to fill in for him now & then if/when he gets a bit jaded and needs a rest; and above all, someone who can replace him should he (lambert) get injured! And that is surely what Adkins is looking for in being so interested in the likes of Jutkiewicz (and Rodriguez for that matter): a big, strong, young striker who can give Rickie a bit of a rest now & then, and cover for him in case of injury. And eventually, in a few years (Rickie's no spring chicken after all) replace him, perhaps.

Lambert is one of the most reliable penalty takes playing at present: and that's no mean skill! He has a terrific free kick in him too. He's big and strong, an intelligent player, good header of the ball, shields and holds up the ball well, plays his team mates in, knows where the goal is, is indeed a natural goal scorer. For all those reasons, I have no doubt he could do a job in the Prem. He won't be the force in the Prem that he is now, because he lacks pace & quickness, and Prem defenders are just faster, quicker, & stronger than the ones in L1 and the Championship. But for his penalties & free kicks alone he'd be worth his place in a Prem squad, in my view, and he has more than that to offer.

It's interesting to note that the four strikers we were supposedly really interested in this summer -- Sharp, Maynard, Jutkievizc (sp?), and Jay Rodriguez -- who all stuck with their teams for one reason or another, now find themselves playing for the bottom four teams in the Championship, while we are comfortably in the lead at the top. Anyone think any of those guys might be regretting not moving? What has struck me is the number of strikers Burnley have been stockpiling: Charlie Austin, Sam Vokes, Danny Ings -- what's that all about? Something suggests to me that we may actually have some sort of agreement in place to go back & get JayRod in January. Burnley certainly seem to be getting ready for life without him ...

Of the six players listed as signed by Adkins, 4 are currently first team regulars (Fox, Hooiveld, Chaplow, Cork) and another, Steve de Ridder, is one of the most regular players to come off the bench, and has played an important role as substitute. I'd say that suggests that whatever exactly Adkins does in terms of loan signings or January signings can be expected to improve the team either by becoming starters or getting on the field as substitutes. Since the first team and squad are pretty good as is, I'd expect only 1 or 2 signings , and for them to be impact signings -- possibly at CB (signing Hooiveld permanently) and a big and/or pacy striker, to spell Lambert.

Lacked pace (to put it kindly), and often had glacially slow decision making: seeing him dwelling on the ball only to get dispossessed was so frustrating. When he had time or inspiration hit, was capable of excellent things, but just not consistently a Prem class player, in fact he just wasn't really suited to the fast-paced English game. There's a reason we paid $4million for the rather limited Delap basically to replace Anders, after all. He shows up well in Swedish play, & even in internationals: he is given the time on the ball to decide what to do, and when he has time he can certainly pick out a good pass & deliver it.

No.

I doubt 80 points will guarantee promotion, though it'd no doubt be enough to get into the playoffs. Those playoffs are hardly a sure bet for promotion though. To secure automatic promotion -- which must surely be our aim now -- I reckon we'll need to aim for 90 points, though a few less might do it. We won't win all our remaining home games; but if we maintain good home form and beat the beatable teams away from home, there's no reason why we can't hit 90 points and automatic promotion: we're a quarter of the way there after all, already!

Terrific player when fit & motivated; head case, however, injury prone, and on the down slope of his career. We have an experienced head in Hammond; we have excellent and hungry young players, with lots of upside still, in Cork, Morgan, Chaplow, & Lallana. What exact role would Bullard play, except to disrupt the dressing room & retard the development of one or other of our younger players? No thanks.

Watched the goals on the youtube link: wow! All five classy goals, created by superb inter-play, and finished with skill and class. Not a scrappy lucky goal among them, unlike Ipswich's second, which we really shouldn't have allowed. What gets me excited is that we aren't just winning, we're winning with style and conviction, playing good football. This is not a lucky start: it's a very very good start. I hope we don't get complacent: as excellent as the team is, we still need new signings. We rely so heavily on Fonte at the back and Lambert up front, we must get in a new CB and a new striker to provide competition, to help partner those two, to give them a rest now & then, even (god forbid) to replace them for a bit if they get injured. And let's hope we can keep the team together. I'm thinking that in Cork, Schneiderlin and Lallana we have three fourths of what could be a great midfield for years to come, not just in this league but in the Prem! That pass from Schneiderlin for Lallana's first goal would have raised praise and awe if Messi had played it, it was that good. What a great time to be a Saints fan!

Only saw it on the web, but: great game by Saints. We restricted a pretty good Leeds side to a very few half-chances, scored three excellent goals, and could have had more. From replays, after Chaplow hit the post he was scythed down from two directions by two Leeds defenders when going for the rebound, in what should have been a clear-cut penalty. And the penalty given Leeds was very, very soft: the ball hit Martin's chest & rolled away across his upper arm. Nothing he could do about it, no intent, and it didn't prevent any goal-scoring chance for Leeds, so while technically the ball did touch his arm in the penalty box, 9 times out of 10 that would not be judged a penalty. So it could easily have been 4-0 to us! So a great start to the season. More of the same, please!

It ain't Fonte we need cover for, it's a partner for Fonte we need! Jaidi seriously is not likely to play 46 games (or anything close) and be good enough; Martin and/or Seaborne can provide cover, sure, but we need a good, reliable CB to partner Fonte most of the time. If the thinking is that Martin can do it, then we need a cover CB in case of injury to Martin or Fonte; but either way, we need another CB.

If we want to challenge for another promotion, we need a few quality signings, surely that is obvious! We cannot rely on Jaidi, given his age, as our main CB partner for Fonte: maybe Martin or Seaborne could step up, but they're both unproven at this level, and if Fonte were to be injured we'd be f*cked. An experienced CB, preferably one with Prem experience, still young enough to have the speed and endurance for the long season, is absolutely required. In midfield, we have some strength at CM, but another player there to provide competition for Hammond/Chaplow is highly desirable. Even more so, though, we need a winger: after Oxo and Lallana (assuming we can keep them) we are weak in this regard. Holmes is unlikely to be good enough & fit enough to play a major role, and Guly does not seem at his best in the winger role. A quality and versatile winger (one who can play on either side, ideally) is needed. And let's face it, our striker options are thin. Lambert is very good, but untried at Championship level and a bit slow. And if he gets injured, what then? Barnard may or may not be available; Connolly may or may not be able to stay fit; Guly may or may not prove to be more than a bit part player, an impact sub. We need another quality striker to challenge for playing time and increase our options. That's at least 4 signings I reckon we need, and that's the minimum. Anyone other than the author of this thread disagree??

That's the risk Arsenal, or any other team buying him, would be taking. They have to assess that risk against their evaluation of the player's potential, and their finances, and decide what they think is a reasonable fee to offer. And Saints have the right to say, no thanks: we won't sell for less than X pounds, paid in such and such a fashion. And if Arsenal (or whoever) don't like it, they can lump it. Or if they really want the player, they can pay up. Any asset is worth just exactly what someone is willing to pay for it, no more no less. If Arsenal (or hoever) is willing to pay 12 million (or more even) for Oxo, then that's what he is currently worth, end of ... Whether he'll still be worth that, or more, or much less, in 2 or 3 years' time is what makes the transfer maret what it is: a gamble ...

I don't feel sorry for him at all! He's a guy who has never, since he left Saints, really worked to maximize his potential. He has coasted. He has taken the money, and not cared about being a back-up player. If he had really been interested in making the most of himself, he'd never have signed a new deal with Chelsea after they got Ashley Cole. He'd have forced a transfer to a club where he'd be first choice, and then worked to show Chelsea they were wrong. Instead, he took the money to sit on the bench. And he has gotten paid a sh*tload of money for turning up to train & then sitting on the bench. Why would you feel sorry for him?? What's to feel sorry about? He has to be the luckiest so-and-so in professional football: paid like a superstar for years, while never performing at superstar level! He's never been a great player since he left Saints because he hasn't been arsed to be: he took the money and ran. To hell with feeling sorry for him!

It's absolutely tragic thinking of what a force Saints could have been, with Walcott playing down the right, Bale down the left, and Kenwyne Jones through the middle ... tragic!

S****horpe have gone as far as they're ever likely to go: with their ground and the gates they get, they pretty certainly can't afford to stay in the CCC for liong, ad certainly couldn't afford life in the Prem. Despite our fall, Saints are a club with a Premiership ground and Premiership gates: last season, though in L1 with a ten point deduction, we drew bigger crowds than some Prem teams! In other words, regardless of current League positions, Southampton are a bigger club, with bigger possibilities and bigger ambitions, than S****horpe will ever be. That's no disrespect to S****horpe:t's just a fact. So though Adkins would drop a division coming here, he would be doing so in the hope (expectation?) or rising to heights he can never achieve with S****horpe.

Phil Brown is a manager who took Hull ... let me repeat that: Hull ... into the Premier League, AND kept them up in his first year there! Let me run that by you again: he took Hull City to the Prem, and avoided relegation his first season there. In fact, it could be argued they might still be there if they'd kept him, in spite of the fact that they are, well, Hull City, and totally broke. I short, Phil Brown is a damned good football manager, especially at the level we are at and for what we want to achieve in the next few years. And anyone who suggests otherwise is flying in the face of the evidenc, and is a damn fool: with all due respect (on this issue, not much). Assuming MO'N is a fantasy, Phil Brown would be a bloody good hire!

The thing is, and here's my reading of Pardew's remark that he doesn't want to move too soon because better players may become available later: over the next week or two, the Prem teams are going to have to settle their squads of 25 players. As they do, that means that some marginal players (for the Prem) are going to be left out, and become available for transfers or loans. In addition, as teams decide their squads, the younger fringe players will also start to be made available for loans. Since we have 3 top strikers at this level already, bringing in a big name is unlikely: how would such a player fit in? Behind Lambert? Bumping Lambert to the bench? Not going to happen. My guess is that Pardew is looking at younger guys who can come here and learn behind Lambert, starting a few games as necessary but mostly coming in off the bench. I bet we'll be happy enough come September. The squad numbers indicate clearly enough that up to four new signings are still anticipated, to fill numbers 8, 11, 13, and 25 ...