SNSUN

This is the first World Cup I've had off in years... unfortunately if the due date is correct, I'll have a screaming 2 week old baby (our first) to take care of by England's first game.

5 more points puts us on 21 points after 21 games, a point per game average over the season gets us to that 38 point mark. However I do think we'll fare better against the "lesser" teams as the season progresses and we click more, and that 38 point mark becomes less of a worry. 5 points is very achievable in the 7 games this month and we should do better, but the games against Bournemouth, Leicester and Huddersfield need to be the priorities for points - anything we get from the rest is just a bonus.

Now let's hope we stick with it, at least against the big clubs, it's shown it can be effective.That was gutting but at least we didn't get battered - and I bet a few City fans were worried when we pulled it back to 1-1. (Off to look at Bluemoon...)Anyone know how bad the Cedric injury was?

Ooh I was close with my line up prediction! I'm pleased we're finally using 3 at the back - with the personnel we have, especially at centre back and with attacking full backs, this is the formation I think we should be using. My issue is that we're using it against City. Chances are we'll lose (as we did against Wolves) and the formation will be disregarded again. Still, I'm glad we have pace up top, the only issue with the line up is that Cedric and Ryan's job will be to whip crosses in, but we have no big man on the end of them. I'm hoping Shane has had positioning lessons from Chaz. I think we'll lose, but it'll be good to play well and get a goal against these...or two!

I liken the outcome of this game to the first appearance of Hypno-disc in Robot Wars series 3, when he tore Robogeddon a new arsehole. We could very well get battered. However Huddersfield showed that it's possible to stop them playing to their strengths and, even though they ground out a win on Sunday, that they are in fact fallible. My hope for this game is that we can annoy City and stop them playing. A draw would be a great result though. I would go with what seems like the minority, have Austin on the bench so he's fresh for the Bournemouth game, and play Long up front. Well it's unlikely we'll have much of the ball, so a pacy, annoying player could work. It won't be popular but my team would be: Forster, Cedric, VVD, Hoedt, Bertrand, Romeu, Hojbjerg, Lemina, Tadic, Redmond, Long. Solidity and pace is what I'm going for there! It won't be, but then I'm not the manager. I'd take a draw but I can see City winning this. Keeping the score down will be key. 3-1 City.

Between 8 and 10, although if we play as we have up to the Everton game, it could well be fewer, however if we play like yesterday it could be more. I'd like at least one 'scalp' in that lot, and not letting Watford do the double over us.

I saw 25 minutes of the first half, and the last 25 of the second half, as I was travelling to work in the middle. Ergo I missed the Everton goal (although I was listening to 5live in the car so I heard it) and both Chaz's goals. Still from what I saw it looked like we were playing some decent football, controlled but more importantly incisive stuff, and most of the players were having good games. From what I saw, I agree with the sentiment that Hojbjerg was having a good game, but there were a couple of times I saw where he lost possession that could have cost us, in the first in the build up to Tadic's goal, although he instantly put that right with a great pass to Boufal (I think it was) and once in the second half when he attempted a poor backpass but it bounced off an Everton player for a throw. (Show's their luck really.) I'll put this down as rustiness because he's been used sparingly. If he can get a run of games, he could easily be first choice. Having been at Bayern he seems to have good pedigree (akin to Romeu with Barcelona or Lemina with Juventus) and after that performance he deserves to keep his place. Tadic took his goal well, something he's been lacking as an attacking midfielder, and Boufal and JWP seemed to have good games. Bertrand and Cedric showed good attacking prowess - even though we won today, how we've not tried playing 3-5-2 apart from a poor cup game against Wolves when the season was as old as a baby sucking a tit I'll never know, with the players we have, the abundance of decent centre backs and attacking full backs, not to mention the potential to have Austin and Gabbiadini up front, it makes a lot of sense to me. Still I don't get paid millions to make that decision. My MOTM though is for Austin - a whisper away from a goal in the first half (which maybe he could have done better on, but he made up for it later) and he could have had a hattrick. All in all a decent win for a change. City now becomes a free hit, and then we go balls out for Bournemouth. Perform like today and there's no reason why we can't win.

Great goal Davis!!!

Is the season still going? FFS. I foresee this being one of our "anomaly" games, where completely against the run of form we pull an excellent win out of the bag... and then I wake up and it's 0-0 or worse. Any kind of win would paper over some serious cracks though. Up to 16 points would see us somewhere back in mid-table and Pellegrino would be keeping his job for another month. If people want Pellegrino out then a loss would at least have some kid of silver lining attached to it. Surely the powers that be can't keep him on after a loss from a poor Everton side... can they...?!? Personally I'm going for a 0-0. I still wish we'd try with 3 at the back though. With the players we have we're perfectly suited to it.

He's a cracking player Dusan. A real game changer. He's got a sharp eye for goal and is key to our attacking force this season. I wouldn't let him for any less than £30 million. Whoever wrote that article can't have seen many Saints games lately.

Out. I'm usually supportive of the manager but it's obvious he's out of his depth. We're a top 10 side with decent players sliding towards the relegation zone. We need a jolt, someone that will kick the players up the arse.

Need somebody with pedigree, someone respected, a good tactician, someone that can attract good signings, and someone the media like. I think Mancini would fit that but we wouldn't get him. The more I think about it the more I think we should bring Koeman back. Personally, and I said it in the summer, but I think Rodgers would be a decent fit, but I can't see him coming to us mid-season. I look at Allardyce, and as much as I think he'd be a short term appointment only, the more attractive a proposition I think he'd be for a top ten club that are sliding towards relegation... I feel dirty saying that... Get rid of Pellegrino now. He's had a bash and failed, he's wasted our easier fixtures with some poor football. He doesn't even know what our best team or formation is. With centre backs like ours, we should be playing 3 at the back.

According to recent comments by Brum manager Cotterill, he doesn't fancy Gallagher up top, preferring to play him out wide. Quote at the bottom of this article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/41821683. Get him back in January if there's a break clause I say.

RIP Saintlee

McCarthy Cedric-Stephens-Yoshida-Hoedt-Bertrand Pied-Romeu-Lemina-Targett-McQueen. That'll stop Salah and Mané. No less chance of scoring than usual either! Sell VVD before game for £100 million. Or £50 million if they also take Forster.

Sorry Pellegrino, but it's not working is it. The players look disinterested, the build up play is slow. I'm usually supportive of a new manager until proven otherwise but it seems like little has changed from the end of last season. Our points total masks how poor we've been. Fresh blood needed at least to give the players a jolt. Big decisions for Reed coming up. Surely he can't keep faith in Pellegrino for long, can he? Have we reached Allardyce levels of desperation yet?

This has been dire watching, half arsed jogging after the ball, overplayed passes, dodgy positional play. Brighton look like they want it more and deserve at least a draw if not more. Subs needed now to spice things up, this is when we need to see the pace of Redmond and the bustle of Long. Gabbiadini is isolated, Tadic has been poor.

Lovren is so shyte it's hilarious. How the dippers could do with a decent defender right now...

Ignore that, was using SaintsWeb as a notepad for work and pressed send. Not my cleverest moment...

Tall black male teen, white beats headphones, black sleeveless puffy jacket, grey jeans, emotionlessly doubled through the WAG. Got hit.

Ffs Saints are doing my heart no favours...

And that is why you play your best players every game you can. Great goal Gabs!

Can we just score please. This is getting really old.

Michael does what to the Saints?

Chatting to my friend (Dipper fan) and came up with the notion that none of our current crop of players would get in to a first eleven of players we've had since we've been back in the Premier League, besides Virgil, on paper at least. It looked like: Boruc Clyne Alderwereld VVD Shaw Schneiderlin Wanyama Lallana Mané Rodriguez (pre-injury) Lambert Subs: Forster, Lovren, Bertrand, Romeu, Davis, Tadic, Pellé. Is that accurate or would you alter it? I guess arguments could be made for Bertrand or Forster, but that's a pretty damning look at the quality of our current first team compared to players we've been lucky enough to have in the past. Nonetheless I have high hopes for Lemina, Hoedt and Gabbiadini, so if they come good then our recent recruitment hasn't been too bad.