The Kraken

Get Tella back and see if he can bring JRod and Jack Cork with him….

I keep seeing Adams (Che) for Saints lineups. Obviously with Armstrong the first name confirmation is required, who is Che Adams getting distinguished from?

It was initially reported as £6m by the Sun. They put out a table of all Premier League manager’s salaries which they claimed they knew for all 20 clubs. Other websites and outlets reproduced that figure. It may be true, it may not, but there were other reports out at the time that stated £6m was the figure Ralph could get to if he hit various performance metrics, one of which included winning the Premier League. So, as I say, I’m a little sceptical of that headline figure. Although tbf it also wouldn’t surprise me if it were true. We’re supposed to be paying JWP around £5m a year in wages so it’s not beyond the realms that the manager would be on more than the best paid player. But going back a couple of years or so ago it was also reported that RH was on around £3m a year.

Fuck me, talk about clickbait. The article itself gives the quote which is from a Footballer Insider journalist where he says: “Obviously nobody wants to be involved in a relegation fight, and I’m sure if an offer did come in it’s something that Che Adams would seriously consider.

I struggle to believe that. He only had another 18 months on his contract.

Lavia’s injuries have been excessive, but nobody should have been expecting an 18 year old to play every game of the season in about the most competitive position on the pitch. He was always going to miss a few games through form or knocks, the injuries have been more than that though. The massive mistake was signing Maitland-Niles effectively as the spare holding midfielder when he is nothing of the sort.

Who do you suggest we play instead of him?

On the flip side……You take an arbitrary 40 year period and change it to a 50 year period, then you can add Saints and Sunderland winning the FA Cup as lower league sides. But yes, I do agree. As a PL side we’ve often got an outside chance of doing well in a cup and that goes away drastically with relegation. That’s a downside, no doubt.

I can’t speak for others, and I’m pretty sure I’ve never said I “can’t wait” for championship football. I’d probably prefer it if we stayed in the Premier League. But, unlike around 2005, relegation doesn’t bother me. We are never going to win the Premier League. Massive success is defined as breaking the top six, which with Newcastle’s riches will likely become a top seven. It’s a bit of a closed shop. It’s not good going down, nobody should pretend it is. But its also not a disaster. Going to league One would be very bad, some time in the championship is just meh. We’re fucking shite in this league anyway so you get what you deserve.

Sadly it’s this.

I was chatting today with my pals about what’s gone wrong, and when you actually go through it, it’s just a clown show. From the end of last season….. Kept faith with a manager who had overseen an incredibly terrible run in of 5 points from 12 league games the previous season. Insist that the manager bring in a new first team coach / assistant manager, but they’ll be the ones to approve who it. Appoint a new head of recruitment who previously oversaw youth recruitment at a top premier league club, then let him spend a record incredible amount of money mostly on unproven young players from the club he was previously at. Then watch as the recruitment fella quits his job after the transfer window and says he wants to go elsewhere. Oversee a clear change in team formation over the pre season by switching to a 3 CB complete disaster, then watch the manager throw that in the bin within 3 games of the regular season. Persist with said manager who is clearly disillusioned with the whole thing and dialling it in until such point that there’s no other option than to bin him off. Install a manager with zero top flight experience anywhere and who horrendously outside of Luton Town, and who Stoke City fans rate as perhaps their worst manager ever. Give said manager more than a month to get his new team sorted, then watch him give his under-performing players an extended holiday while he gets his ideas sorted out, then takes his players on a jolly to southern Spain. Then watch the new manager changes his team formation from game to game trying to work out what he’s actually doing. Fucking hell, it’s depressing just repeating it

Christ I hope so. He’s the absolute embodiment of the lack of drive and ambition at the moment. Should have been removed for coming out with that shite that team position doesn’t matter.

Well done, you win the prize for spotting my intentional mistake…… 🤥 Swap in a young Oriol Romeu for the departed Frenchman. Or Jordy Clasie if you prefer.

Ignore the numbering, it’s already triggered my OCD.

It’s worse than that. We’ve basically sold a whole team and not replaced them. The formation below is based on the players who made the most appearances in season 2015-16, when we finished sixth. How many of our current players get in that side? You could maybe argue JWP if he’s having a good day, and argue about KWP I suppose, but that’s about it. Shane Long is on the bench, he only started 23 games that season and scored 10 league goals. We’ve been decimated with below average replacements since.

This. Lyanco at CM would make Maitland-Niles look competent by comparison.

Of course I expect to be entertained. Football is an entertainment industry, it’s why many thousands of saints fans pay their money every week. Why do you go if not that? Christ.

Almost correct, respect is earned over time. Or not.

I did it in Rhino, I was helped out by the bouncers. They sat me down outside the back of Caspian, patted me on the head and said ‘see you next week’. I think.

Where’s option 8, relegation from the PL followed only by subsequent relegation to L1? Because that’s what happens apparently.

Three. And you earn respect, you don’t just get given it.

Depends if we sign anyone else in that position in the window. If we’re still persisting with Adam Armstrong wide left in February then we’re fucked and there’s no hurt getting Tella back. Armstrong seems to be getting worse, not better. But we definitely need someone better than either of them. Tella didn’t too much for us last year for us, and during pre season he looked awful. That said, particularly in pre season, he was being played up front central and looked like a fish up a tree. The low benchmark to clear is whether he can be any worse than our other options. And being as he’s our player already it might be worth a roll of the dice if we can’t bring anyone else in.

Sounds about right. By 1 or 2 goals is a defeat, 3 goals a sound beating, 4 goals a big defeat, 5 goals a heavy defeat, 6 or 7 (seven) and upwards is a hammering. I reckon we might be able to limit the damage to just a defeat. Though I’m not confident and a sound beating or worse could well be in order.

Tbf they’re 9th in the table and defying all pre-season predictions of relegation. That said, if they were 19th in the table I’d still be expecting a heavy defeat. We are absolutely garbage.

Stones