SNSUN

Love it. Imagine the video he'll post up when Pardew finally gets the tin tack! Anyway I'm stuck at work so was intermittently following this game on Soccer Saturday. Loving the final score, same as last season, which shows that we're perhaps AS good a team, if not better, than we were last season with the English core. Very optimistic about the season now, looking forward to MOTD tonight! More of the same please Saints. Arsenal in the cup will be very interesting...

My guess is that the chicken pot pie they serve in the restaurants of Southampton actually contains real pot.

I loves a good Saints poster. It makes it easier to cross each player off as they leave us for pastures new. :-)

I like this. We could rename James Taylor's 'Fire and Rain' to 'Maya and Mane'. (Yes I realise that's not how Mane is pronounced.)

He's in the last year of his contract isn't he? He hasn't got long left here, I hope he can be professional until then. He was a good addition for us as he strengthened the keeper position and didn't cost anything, but Forster is the future. My biggest hope is that when Boruc does go, we are able to sign a good back up keeper and not have of rely on the awful Gazzaniga. (Unless by some miracle he does come good.)

Mané Mané Mané, must be funny, in a rich man's world.

We can definitely put out a 3-5-2 better defensively than Man Utd can, albeit without the attacking talent they have. Something like: Forster Alderweireld Fonte Gardos/Yoshida Clyne Morgan Wanyama/Cork Bertrand Tadic Long Pelle although I think Ron will go for a similar line up to the West Ham game.

Would YOU say no to Razor? Lord knows I wouldn't!

I'm not concerned about number 1), as the youngsters from the academy are a year older and wiser as back up players, and I must admit we have a very versatile squad, where seemingly each position has (at least) two senior players that can play in it. I'm with your concern on number 2) about the gelling. We possibly don't have the same team spirit as last year, and we still have on board JRod, Morgan and Boruc who openly wanted out in the summer. Add to that a lot of new signings and there's a lot of unfamiliarity within the squad. In Koeman we trust though, I think it will be easier to bond them than I initially thought.

I was under the impression, I'm probably wrong, that if another team loans a player and pays a fee for that player, then there can't be a clause stating that player can't play against his parent club. MLG to this thread, calling MLG to the thread.

None of those for us. Though as I mentioned on another thread, Victor Wanyama's brother McDonald Mariga is still unattached. Perhaps not for us, but has some pedigree and could do a job for another Premier League team.

Mayuka MK 2. :-D Ooh, imagine playing them both!

Tadic. I can see him costing Liverpool the most of any of our new signings next summer.

I said September 2nd and I stand by it! So the transfers in have been good, if they can gel quickly (and the relatively unknown qualities of Gardos and Mané prove to be good) then we should be in for a top half finish. We look strong defensively. My slight concern is creativity but overall I don't think we're much weaker than last season. I'm going to predict 10th.

Sadio Mané to the tune of Radio GaGa must be one of the most obvious chants of any player ever! It even popped into my head when I heard we were linked to him, and I never think of things like that! Oddly "We've signed Toby, Alderweireld" scans into the same song...

Are we getting anyone in to replace Taider? I notice McDonald Mariga (Victors brother) is still a free agent and eligible to be snapped up any time...

That nobody has posted on this yet shows the priorities lie with the new signings! I'm confident going into this game, I suppose it will help if we get no injuries for those playing internationals. 3-2 Saints in a thriller.

So which Premier League team 'won the window' this year? It was apparently Norwich last year (), this year I'm impressed by Hull's business. So that's relegation for them then!

Defensively we're stronger IMO, although Gardos could either be a hit like, say, Mike Svensson, or a miss like Forren. But on the face of it Alderweireld is an upgrade on Chambers (right now), Gardos should be an upgrade on Jos, and Bertrand seems to have filled the Luke Shaw hole nicely. (With a more experienced Targett behind him.) Central midfield is still strong too, keeping Morgan kept some doing. Add Cork and Wanyama to that, and JWP, Davis and Reed, and we're strong there too. It's in attack that I worry. I think we lack creativity, which is why I'm puzzled that we let Ramirez go. Yes he didn't play much last season but I thought under Koeman he'd have a chance to prove himself. Oh well. I think we'll be relying on Tadic a lot for creativity, and need to make sure he doesn't get injured. Still the window is shut and we have what we have. Now Koeman needs to make them gel and get the best out of them. I think we have enough to have an ok season, with the chance to strengthen in January of course, but I can't see us hitting the heights of last season. As for Mane, as an unknown signing, I hope he's more of a Pahars than a Mayuka.

Ramirez confirmed on SSN banner. Gone to Hull. With that, I'm off to bed. I can't stand anymore.

Club is being quiet. Keeping their cards close to their chest? Perhaps why SSN hasn't shown much of us all day...

Not happy with Gaston going. Takes the shine right off the other two signing. Anywho I'm up for work at 4:30am tomorrow, I was going to watch SSN Deadline Day to the wire but not sure I have the nerves. Probably will call it a night. Lets hope for a surprise 3rd signing.

Gaston going is madness, only a few days ago Koeman said he wasn't. Madness. We seriously lack creativity this season IMO. A lot will be relying on Tadic staying fit.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/28969497