SNSUN

In hindsight, every time we start a new game as Southampton on Football Manager we're effectively sacking Nigel in this way! :-D

Do you ever get the feeling Cortese has been waiting to do this following two defeats to make it seem less of bummer sacking Adkins, only for us not to lose two in a row for ages...

You got your wish, let's see if it works.

Will he stay now? He sounds as shocked as we are. Keeping him is the number 1 priority for the future.

Relegation would mean we'd lose Shaw, Clyne, Morgan, Lallana, Gaston and possibly even Lambert. It'd be disastrous. Adkins had looked like he'd keep us up, and do it playing good football. Unbelievable.

HA! Well at least TDD's attempt at the manager's name made me giggle. Nothing else will at the moment.

I don't care if we finish tenth, sign amazing players and finih next season in the top 4. Right now I'm just gutted about losing Adkins after all he's done for us. I was really enjoying this season until this.

We were all expecting a signing and we lost a manager. It's like queuing up in a line for free BJ's from Megan Fox and ending up getting bum love from Mike Tyson.

It's a terrible decision in that we're now holding our own in the Premier League, having been promoted twice, under Nigel Adkins. Shocking on that score. Adkins had done nothing wrong, was a lovely bloke and a good manager. STABILITY, gone out the window in one fell swoop. OK, maybe in a years time we'll be calling this decision a masterstroke as Pochettino takes us to the brink of the top 4, but right now it feels like a kick in the ********.

I really, really hope this is all bollix. I'm enjoying being a Saints fan at the moment, I understand big changes will happen in the next few years to make us competitive in this league if we stay in it but I didn't expect anything this soon. I like Nigel, he's a cracking bloke and manager and I'd hate to see him go.

Spending a fortune to sign Ramirez. £12 million one summer and a bit after being in League One, and one of the hottest young prospects in Europe. Plus it took away the tag of having Delap as our record signing.

Or a 23:22 announcement tonight...

I'm home now, get announcing.

If he signs, can he wait until 14:30 when I get home from work please, so's I can follow it on here please. Please. And Thanks.

I'd definitely add Cork to the OP's list. Played a bit part in the Olympics but our form improved drastically when he came back into our side after injury. His flexibility in positions surely makes him a candidate for an England spot in the near future, especially with an ageing midfield. Shaw will play for England, but I'm less sure about Clyne. If we stay up this season, build on it, and next season "do an Everton" then I would expect International honours to flow for some of our squad members. (Relegation this season would be catastrophic when you think about it. Back to Frazer, Fox, Chaplow and Hammond next season...)

Two shots on goal for us tonight, two goals scored. Clinical. Benitez is clueless - we had chances. Should score chances. They had 18 shots on goal, 3 were on target. Torres must go down as the biggest waste of money of all time. I'd rather have 50 Rickie Lamberts.

Stunning result - result of the season even though it wasn't a win. Agree with what's been said - "feels like a win" " a free point" etc etc. I'm normally glass half full but have treaded with caution this season - and indeed I saw nothing from this game, so I'm astonished we drew. Triffic. Now for Everton.

The score will be 5-3 to Chelsea. Goalfest.

People using Vauxhall have copped a bad day to travel, especially the rota'd staff. Reports of two dead now, presumably the pilot and one on the ground.

I'm travelling to Mexico in June for my belated honeymoon, and there and back we're supposed to be flying on Thomson's Dreamliner. I expect the issues to be sorted out there, but while I'm looking forward to flying on it, I'd be happy flying on a different plan if there were still doubts. I'm not the greatest of flyers, I must admit.

I don't know if one of you spotted this, and I can't be arsed to trawl back through 8 pages, but a Liverpool fan in Norway on one of their (many!) forums wrote:

I know I started this thread, but some of your injuries are making me feel queasy...

I can see the New Forest ponies running and hiding, for fear that Cortese will use their heads to put in the beds of players that refuse to sign on the dotted line.

He has no Premier League Experience.