washsaint

Amen to this.....Saints played really well tonight: especially in the 2nd half. Only an inspired goalkeeping display stopped us getting 3 points and I would just like us to play with that attacking verve more at home. If we can next season could be good. I am stunned that there is any talk of Puel losing his job and the phrase 'be careful what you wish for' springs to mind.

And I think that's been the issue this season. His tactics work a treat mainly - but only away from home. At home we try to play the same way and its too defensive - we should be more attacking at home but we're not. Hull was a good example of this - we sat back and Hull were happy to also sit back. Hopefully he gets another season - but his home tactics have to change.

The guy is an absolute genius and the total opposite of Puel. He has had Hull playing attacking, scintillating football and the results speak for themselves. Why the love affair with this guy? He brought in 8 or 9 signings in January and the way they play is dull and insipid - a game they have to win today and they don't muster a single shot on goal. Then the usual suspects will say 'he got a big win at xxxx' while conveniently forgetting the win home and away Puel engineered in the semis. If Chelsea lost Kante, SPurs lost Kane and Arsenal lost Sanchez for half the season they would struggle - as we have losing VVD to injury.

Shame there's no like button. All those jacking off over Silva are mental - the same guy whose team plays an even more negative style than we currently see. Puel should be given next season - we have seen flashes of brilliance but not enough. His style at home needs changing: it is well suited to away games but not home. As an experienced manager and with better players at his disposal next season I would hope he would do better. But to talk of sacking him is mental and shows how deluded the 'want it all now' new super fan and message board posters are.

He's a striker who can't hit a barn door from 3 yards out. Yes, he makes a nuisance of himself and runs his socks off for the team - but he is one of the major reasons we have been so goal shy this season. He is awful - really awful in front of goal and 3 goals in 34 games shows that. He had a purple patch last year - aside from that his whole career has been more as a nuisance player with pace than as a goalscorer. And I'm sure management isn't happy - which is why he and JRod have not started much. They had their chances and were awful.

Except in front of goal - which is what he is paid big bucks for. In front of goal - he is rubbish, utter rubbish.

A win is a win but a bit disjointed. The pivot point for starting to hang on was when Long missed the penalty -score that and we likely score 4 or 5. Unfortunately both Long and Rodriguez showing they are not up to it. JRod, goal aside, was incredibly poor. Long ran his socks off but if he is a striker Elvis is still alive - he does so much right but is useless in front of goal. Still 3 points and if we can finish 8th then the season would have to be judged as a reasonable success: allied with the Cup Final. Would like to see what Puel can do after his first season - most players coming in need a season to adjust so we should cut Puel some slack. The entertainment value has to go up though.

A win is a win but a bit disjointed. The pivot point for starting to hang on was when Long missed the penalty -score that and we likely score 4 or 5. Unfortunately both Long and Rodriguez showing they are not up to it. JRod, goal aside, was incredibly poor. Long ran his socks off but if he is a striker Elvis is still alive - he does so much right but is useless in front of goal. Still 3 points and if we can finish 8th then the season would have to be judged as a reasonable success: allied with the Cup Final. Would like to see what Puel can do after his first season - most players coming in need a season to adjust so we should cut Puel some slack. The entertainment value has to go up though.

Sorry, but I agree....I think Bertrand has been very poor on the whole this season. Today he has been very poor.

Real snoozefest.....really thought Puel had us playing some great stuff a while back with fast attacking football. However, we are back to being as dull as dishwater. I really think more fans would be behind him if we did not play this defensive, ponderous style of play. It is really, really dull watching Saints on the whole. Most frustrating is that we have seen at times how well they can play when we are not playing this dull, ponderous slow style that offers no threat. Perhaps controversial, but I think Bertrand has been exceptionally disappointing this season.

Really starting to repay the faith shown in him by Puel and starting to look a very classy, Premiership level CB. Proving beyond doubt that it has been far better to blood him and see if he can develop than play an on-loan guy who will be gone in the summer. For me, Stephens has been our best defender in recent games and I believe he will be a truly outstanding playing alongside someone like VVD. His reading of the game has improved enormously as has his defending. Overall I think we have a gem on our hands and hope he is given a chance next season.

What a bunch of utter, utter t***s on here. Saints gave it a good go but Chelsea are just a far stronger side (lets not forget they beat Spurs by the same score at the weekend). Defensively we were poor (although thought Stephens was pick of the bunch back there), Boufal was awful second half after a promising first half and I thought Romeu had a poor game giving the ball away in dangerous areas (not for the first time this season). We looked fairly dangerous going forward and JWP played some fantastic balls in. I really think davis slows our play down and gives the ball away cheaply. Any team (including Chelsea) would miss VVD in the center - I actually think a Stephens/VVD pairing could be very, very strong as Stephens is classy on the ball and his reading of the game is improving all the time. But what a surprise....the hysterical tarts on here claiming the sky is falling in. Utter, utter w*****s.

Well that was poor. Every time I am back in the Uk and catch a game we lose badly! Puels tactics were too negative today and we paid them too much respect. Felt for Clasie - Hojberg and Davis were terrible. can';t believe someone said Hojberg was MoM! Most worrying was Boufal. From the time he came on it was like watching Ali Dia - he'd lose the ball and half heartedly track back and his passing was abysmal. Zero confidence but I hope he is better next season or we have another expensive flop on our hands. There was 1 player I thought was magnificent and that was Stephens. His passing and last ditch blocks were very impressive - especially as Bertand and Soares were woeful today. We deserved nothing from this game and a 6 or 7 - 0 scoreline would not have flattered them. Very, very poor but take nothing away from City - their movement and pace was sublime.

What an utter load of ******. We played some lovely stuff today and had enough chances to bury them n the 1st half but without Gabbiadini we lose so much (not just the goal threat). Thought JRod was OK to start today then went off the boil and Long's pace makes him a threat until it comes to finishing where he is woeful. Add in tadic disappearing completely in the 2nd half and bottling challenges and we lacked real threat. In terms of improving players.........JWP, Redmond, Cedric, VVD, Stephens, Yoshida all spring to mind so that is complete pony too. We were missing our 2 best players today - VVD and Gabbiadini but some of the stuff we played was sublime *****il the finishing which has been our problem all season).

That was a display similar to those we witnessed before Gabbiadini. Absolutely shocking up front and Tadic was abysmal. Then we got overrun in midfield and were lucky not to concede. We need to take our chances...Tadic, Rodriguez and Long very wasteful.

What a bunch of thick t**ts that inhabit this forum. Mentalists - rather than actually digest and listen to what Puel says you're too busy taking sly digs because his English is not perfect and claiming, despite not spending any time with him, how uninspiring he is. I'm sure that most of you are all so wonderful you can't do anything wrong. I am with always-sfc on this one. Thanks for posting the summary Shroppie - it is clear what he wants to try and do and we have seen that with time on the training ground the players are improving. JWP and Redmond in the England squad are proof of this. We could have a very good season next year without the distraction of Europa League and Euros.

Pointless trying to have any kind of reasonable discussion with you........your avatar sums you up.

Why? Because we didn't have the players up top to play that system. Austin is immobile, JRod and Long were incredibly wasteful and you and your kind who have whined and cried about the diamond haven't actually accounted for the fact that his style of play is to be fluid and interchangeable and not a rigid formation. He started Tadic in the #10 role at the start of the season but we didn't have the strikers to make that effective. We still rely on crosses into the box but the difference is we now have striker who can create space, anticipates, etc. SO the reality is that I don't think Puel's preferred tactics have changed much at all - it is simply that he can now have confidence we have the players to play his preferred style. While some of the play earlier this season was dour and poor, how much of that was down to the fact our strikers could not score for toffee so he had to tighten up at the back? Koeman did the exact same thing last season and we ground out results until confidence returned and the front 3 came back to form. But still, that won't fit with your warped agenda that seems to be to moan and whine about anything to do with Saints.

Bunch of w*****s really. The reason he has changed the formation is simply that he now has the players in place who can play the style he wants whereas previously he had to set up to play to offset our weaknesses. JRod and Long (and Austin) have proved themselves incapable of adapting but we now have Gabbiadini. If Puel is backed in the summer we could be in for a great season next year.

Jrod, Clasie, Martina, Taylor, Austin for me. With bringing in a quality CB and CDM and then we have some team. As others have said would like Seager/Gallagher to step up next season to be backup to Gabbiadini. Don't see Long being much more than backup/come on for 15 minutes as he and JRod have failed to take their chances this season. JRod has shown flashes but not enough to push himself to the front of the queue. As VFTT says, Austin simply does not fit into the fluid, fast style that Puel likes. Now we have a striker that can play the way Puel likes we can all see what that means from an attacking perspective. No way will Austin fit into this.

What do all you Puel haters think now? We are playing some beautiful, beautiful attacking football recently. Yes the defence is poor, but we effectively have our 2nd string CBs playing. What a difference it makes having a quality striker..............

Very, very sloppy from Saints. Romeu has been very poor and we need VVD back: Stephens, unfortunately, does not look like he is good enough. We have looked great going forward, not so good defensively. If we can keep VVD and get another good CB and DM in we will have a great season next year. And go Manolo!!!!!

It's you who is talking rubbish. He did not choose to go out of the Cup: we got beat and even a full strength side may not have won. You really think every other team had to play 3 games in 5 days over Christmas? They did not. Yet we now have a small number of games over the next few weeks yet our fixtures were so congested earlier this year. I believe only Man U have played more games than us this season - and yet you think we have not had it especially bad. Don't know what kind of world you live in but the real workd isn't one of them!

Yeah, and they made 6 changes yesterday. You really are bonkers if you think we could have played the same team week in week out this season. Has Puel overrotated at times - IMO yes. Has he been hamstrung by having strikers and midfielders who could not hit a barn door from 6 yards out most of this season? Absolutely. The Man Utds of this world have the squad depth to rotate and not lose significant quality. With our injuries and squad depth we have not had that luxury. I truly believe with a full pre-season (no Euros with players coming back after the season had started, jaded and straight into 2-3 games per week) we could see what Puel is all about.

This with bells on........