sydney_saint

I personally think the jury is still out on Gerrard as a manager. Won 1 trophy out of 9 at Rangers, and whilst going unbeaten for a season is fantastic, it was helped by a collapsing Celtic side under the abject management of Lennon, plus rangers going all out to stop the '10' and making some really risky financial decisions. And after an initial manger bounce, is he doing any better than Smith would have done? I think we will win this. We are just so well drilled at the moment that even if they have a similar or even better squad, we can overcome it

Right. So we are risking a chance to win the second piece of major silver wear in clubs history to protect the feelings of a 40 year old keeper who was without a club and is on a temp contract...

I do feel a little bit for djenepo. He really needed a run of games to develop and he's never really got it. Especially his style of position which needs confidence. I remember he put in a motm performance against chelsea, then got dropped for Redmond, and barely saw another minute that season (despite often on bench so likely fit). With Redmond getting chance after chance after bloody chance, djenepo deserved a run after that performance to see what he could with some confidence and not worrying about his position. But clearly he is done here and best thing will be to release him

I thought we would be absolutely fine when saggy chops was appointed.. 😕 I deserved a straight red for that one

Kinda my point

Does he hate the pompey scum?

I dunno if there are any neanderthals left who don't believe women should commentate. But the difference between the Newcastle game and here is night and day. Newcastle game was genuinely insightful and very sharp. Here we have some dude who sounds like he has wandered into the booth after a bender all night! Analysing nearly every big decision incorrectly, and just giving tired cliches like 'not enough quality in the final third'. Yeah mate, even my dog can see that, care to assess why you think that might be? On game itself and think we are playing decently. Broja could really do with another season or two here. For all his natural talent he still has some way to go and going back to Chelsea, or just getting farmed to differently clubs each year, ain't gonna help his development. Also, getting on Romeu anytime yellow

Comms are an absolute joke. Two similar handball situations. One 'clearcut' pen, the other not. Holgate goes late on JWP and hurts him but 'that's not a freekick'. JWP lightly touches Richardlison who hurls himself to the ground 'that's a freekick!'. Saints nearly score from a well worked corner 'That's a shocking corner'.

He no real man

It's no conspiracy. But I can't help but feel a bit resentful that the billion quid squad seems to regularly get easier draws. Look at the last five years FA Cup 21/22 Swindon (a), Fulham (h), Peterborough (a) 20/21 Birmingham (h), Cheltenham (a), Swansea (a), Everton (a), Chelsea (semi) 19/20 Port Vale (h), Fulham (h), Sheffield Wed (a), Newcastle (a), Arsenal (semi) 18/19 Rotherham (h), Burnley (h), Newport (a), Swansea (a), Brighton (semi), Watford (final) 17/18 Burnley (h), Cardiff (a), Wigan (a) If you take from the quarter finals and earlier, how often are they playing even a mid table EPL team, let along a top 8 kinda side? Just a bit annoying cos we could do with a run of fixtures like that.

Bloody hell. That was stressful. Firstly fair play to Coventry, their players gave that everything. Whilst we obviously have a little bit more quality, we could have had no complaints if they dumped us out. If I were a Coventry fan, I would be a little bit disappointed not to progress. We were absolutely there for the taking. I still have no f**king idea why we started so many reserves when we are 10 points clear of relegation, with a number of really dreadful sides near the bottom. If we go down this season, it won't be because we lose the next few games, it'll be because we absolutely collapse in the dozen that follow. Ask any fan would they prefer 13th instead of 15th in the table, or a long deep cup run where the players give it everything. As it is, our players are probably more exhausted from today. Still, we are through so hopefully lessons learned. We certainly have learned some things about some of our reserve players! Two bits of quality saved our asses.

That is utterly ridiculous

I think the signing was okay in logic. 15 million isn't enough to guarantee you a Prem quality striker these days so it is gonna be a bit of a gamble. Seeing a few championship strikers make the step up last few seasons, it was as good a punt as any. That said, the signs are not looking good. When Che struggled to score in his first season, there were a few positives to hold onto. It was clear he was strong as an ox with a good eye and technique for a pass. He was also getting in some decent position but lacking composure. I'm not seeing any of those same positive with Armstrong unfortunately. Most of his shot on goal are the type that fly in 1 every 10. He doesn't really link up play, and he's not getting himself in enough goal scoring situations no matter who the opponents are. Not ready to give up on him, but we do need to see a bit more.

I am absolutely baffled why we have selected this team. Ralph usually plays a strong side in cups, even if we are struggling. So why on earth have we played this team when we are 10 points clear of relegation? It is also changes the atmosphere in the stadium. Instead of a sell out crowd baying for blood and cheering the lads on, it sucks the life out of them when they Ralph hasn't taken it seriously. The front 3 have been appalling. No link up play, no movement, no intelligence. But then what does anyone expect of a front 3 of Armstrong, Long and Walcott?

Easy to target the 17 year old, but the senior players up front have been utterly diabolical. Armstrong especially disappointing given this is the level his is good at.

Would absolutely love Big Ange here when it is time to part with Ralph. I know some will say he's a nobody manager. But Celtic fans said the same and they absolutely adore him now. He's a serial winner everywhere he has been. Not only that, but he plays fantastic football whilst cleaning up silverware.

Got to question the methodology when Spurs can demolish a stadium and build an unnecessary (from an environmental perspective) replacement and still come out top! Though I do think Levy would make the team walk to away games to save a few pennies

f**king hell, stupidly listened to the audio, sickeningly disturbing. Innocent until proven guilty of course. But if that audio is even remotely true (and there is no reason to think it isn't) then he is an utter scumbag and deserves everything that is coming to him. Just absolutely awful. How can you do that to someone you love and care for? I hope she gets the support she needs. Assuming this goes to court, that will be three court cases for EPL footballers for sexual assault.

I can meet you part way on this, but not as far as you. I find the media sometimes generates a narrative, and anything a player does that broadly meets they exaggerate. With Ramsdale, any save he makes now is met with a 'Another astonishing save by Ramsdale' even if it was a regulation save. I used to keep, and things have probably changed. But I find his positioning a little bit off, which makes his saves look more spectacular because he was out of position. That's fine at the moment because he is seeing the ball so well and his reflexes are sharp. Any drop in form could potentially expose this pretty badly. One way you can sometimes judge whether the keeper is using technique or just their eye is where the ball goes after making a save. A good keeper with strong foundations will not just make the save, but will automatically ensure the ball is played out of danger. A bit like a boxer like Usyk, it is just ingrained in their technique. A keeper using their eye won't be able to do this as well, and I have noticed that Ramsdale will parry the ball back into the danger, especially with low shots. Pickford used to do this. That said, he is doing much better than I expected. My gut is that people are getting a little carried away. But he has also shown enough to me that there is a reasonable chance I am wrong.

God that's a real throwback.

I was never keen on the way he ripped up the way we played as soon as he arrived. Usually when a manager arrives, the team is in a hole and ripping things up is needed. But we had just come off a couple of exceptional campaigns, and for the most part had played some really good football with a good system. I know we had lost Pelle and Mane, and they were huge losses I am not understating that, but there was still plenty of talent within the side. Tadic in particular. Puel did have a bit of money to spend, and could have used the money to buy players that could fit into a system that was already working well. Instead he replaced it with this turgid possession based crab football. Of course the fans were not gonna be happy seeing both worse results and worse style that stifled our players. I personally feel Tadic never got his mojo back with us after that, yet he was a truly fantastic, entertaining player on our books. This is all more on Reed than Puel in fairness, it was an atrocious fit. Puel did have a chance to turn this all around. Which is why I don't think people need to sympathise with him. After the final there was a real good-feel factor around. Gabbiadini looked the ducks nuts, and there was no realistic risk of us going down. It would have been the perfect time to let the handbrake off a little, especially at home. Give a little something back to the fans and also the players who wanna have some freedom. Instead he doubled down, things got even worse, goals totally dried up at home, and many of the fans turned, and also the players did as well. I certainly do not miss him, neither do Leicester fans.

Fantastic rearguard and ballsy performance by all against a very talented, albeit underperforming side. I do want to draw put the performance of JWP in particular. He has been unfairly singled out by many on here. 'son in law', 'gutless', 'rarely makes a tackle'. That kinda crap. Sometimes compared to the 'great' English 70s and 80s midfielders who slid hard for tackles, wrestled hard, 'rallied' their sides, and through their talent and bravery failed to qualify for numerous major tournaments in the 70s and 80s against majorly inferior opposition....real passion that! He's honestly such an asset for us. Doesn't hide. Plays whilst injured. Sets an example for the younger lads. And genuinely is everything you could ever ask for a Southampton Skipper. Yet some would happily boot him out, yet complain when a player like VVD leaves that there is no loyalty left in football...

Just seeing this now. But if you read through some of the posts, there were quite a few backhanded compliments at him.

It's laughable that there would be some on here that groaned when JWP scored. I simply don't understand. We have a player who is a solid premier league player, who loves the club, who plays every game without ever ducking or demands a rest, who shows no arrogance and appreciates everything the club has given, who trains hard and constantly tries to improve themselves. Yet some fans would happily pick him up and drive him out of the club. Then moan when ings leaves that there is no loyalty left in football.

Maybe I am just becoming long in the tooth. But this kinda analysis fucking pisses me off. I don't think we are necessarily playing any better than we did in our opening games, just the level of opposition has gone down. The modern analysis seems to focus simply on W, D and L and no context. You could lose back to back to back games against City, Chelsea and Liverpool, and the media will be putting pressure on the manager for not getting points on the board. And if you beat watford, norwich and Brentford in consquetive games, you are on track to win the fucking league and do a Leicester. The simple analysis is that we played harder teams to start of, and whilst some were pissing their pants, we did well to get some points on the board. Now the games are easier, we are putting more points on.(this also goes for those wetting themselves thinking we play better without JWP cos he missed our easiest game of the season and we won). Likewise the opposite with Villa. I am now always flabbergasted by the sheer basic level of analysis that comes from the media. Villa were ahead because of fixtures, not because they were playing any better than us. P.s. This was very satisfying. I will never in my life forget this not given as a penalty