Sheaf Saint

Happy we've scored. Happy we're not losing. It's ironic though that we never score from JWP's good free kicks but somehow fortuitously manage to scrape one from possibly the worst one he has ever delivered.

Jesus f*cking CHRIST! We finally get a chance to break at pace after a Brighton attack, and Davis - like he ALWAYS does - slows down, dithers and waits for tyhe entire opposition defence to get back in position before deciding what to do with the ball.

Does that count as a shot on target from Boufal?

Well it's [positive to see Boufal and Carillo on. But why the f*ck are Long and Davis still on? This guy does not have a fg*cking scooby what he is doing.

He has to make a change at HT. Has to. I will be bewildered beyond any belief if he thinks that we can turn this around with the same personnel in the second half.

You know what, I think that's the first time ever you have actually made me laugh

Right, enough now. I've had it. I haver really tried to keep faith with MP, but that team selection tonight, and the inevitable flat, pedestrian performance that it has produced just shows how utterly clueless he is. And he's just standing there with his mouth shut looking all upset and confused. Why aren't you running up and down the touch line screaming instructions to your players? Why are you persisting with players who have been completely f*cking terrible for months (Davis and Long) and leaving talent like Lemina, Boufal and our new record signing on the bench? I've lost my patience with you now, you useless pr!ck. Pack your bags and f*ck off out of our club.

Someone really needs to have a word with Cedric and tell him to leave the shooting to someone else. It's f*cking embarrassing watching him attempt it. And then Glenn Murray does something up the other end that no Saints player has yet managed tonight: a shot on target. We are f*cking woeful and don't deserve to stay up.

And that sums up our position. You make your own luck, and we just can't even buy a break right now.

The rot started maybe 2-3 years ago. You have been spouting the same f*cking tedious bullsh!t for about a decade now.

Right, now is the time for every single one of you motherf*ckers on that pitch to stand up and show us what you are made of and how much you want to stay up. 1-0 down in a massive relegation 6-pointer, at home against the lowest scorers in the PL. I want to see you going all f*cking guns blazing for their goal at every opportunity. Pellegrion, I want to see you screaming instructions at the players and showing some fire in your belly, rather than just standing there looking confused like you always do. Get Shane Long off NOW. Brighton are going to sit on this lead and try to hit us on the break, and if you haven't worked out by now that Long is utterly f*cking useless against teams that defend deep then you are more of a f*ckwit than I had previously given you credit for. COME ON YOU F*CKING REDS!!!!! Show us some fire and passion. You have to bust a gut for a result now. If you don't then you deserve to get relegated and we will finish adrift at the bottom of the table.

We look like the away team so far. Scared to commit players into the opposition half.

Yeah it seems like the standard "Thank you for your application for employment. We regret to inform you that you have been unsuccessful, but we will keep your details on record should any opportunities arise in the future" as they are chucking your CV in the recycling.

I'm optimistic still, as I feel it is just too far down the line to fall through completely now, but I have no ITK credentials so don't take my word for it.

This could just be a negotiating tactic from Spartak though. We've met the asking price they initially set, but maybe now they are just trying to see if they can squeeze any more out of us.

But doesn't that also depend on the deadline day for the country that any incoming signing comes from? I mean, they can't buy a player from the PL in Feb as our window has shut by then.

BBC are reporting that he wants to come to us. If the rumours about him being at SMS for the Watford game are to be believed, then he has probably already agreed personal terms. This latest 'rejection' seems to me to be just a standard part of any negotiation. We want to pay amount X, Spartak want amount Y, and we'll end up agreeing an amount somewhere in between. Just look at the number of bids that Arsenal had turned down for Aubameyang before it finally happened today. I have no ITK credentials, but I'm fairly confident this will still happen. It seems to be too far down the line to fall through now.

It's also entirely possible that Spartak will agree to let him go for less than the amount specified in the release clause if they feel that it's still a good deal for them and the player makes it clear he wants to go.

We're still waiting for you to eat your own sh!t like you said you would if we made the playoffs in 2007

The only change I would make to this would be to swap Tadic and Boufal. Tadic is far more effective on the left and Boufal less so.

Aaaah, so. This is all making a lot more sense now. I'm struggling with the series on the whole though. There's lots to enjoy about it, but there are also some glaring plot holes and aspects which are just far too ridiculous. Obviously with any sci-fi there has to be a certain amount of suspension of disbelief, but all the previous incarnations of Trek at least had some degree of believability to them. This just feels a little too 'Hollywood' for my liking.

Oh yeah. Ooops. I didn't really follow the qualifying campaign very closely. I guess because I really don't give a sh!t about the world cup this year anyway. England will inevitably get knocked out by an average team, and I won't be watching be watching on principle because of the corruption at FIFA that saw Russia get awarded it in the first place.

His contract runs out in December, I believe. Perhaps Shandong Luneng (sp???) are looking to recover some of the transfer fee they paid and are trying to offload him before that. SSN reporting that he wants to be closer to Italy and also would like to try and make their world cup squad as well.

I didn't watch the game and have so far only had all the comments on here to go on. And it's got me thinking... Earlier in the season, Man U came to SMS and walked away with a 1-0 win after they took off an attacking player and went ultra defensive to counter our late onslaught. I don't seem to remember many people criticising Mourinho and calling him things like a tactically inept clown after that. I've been critical of Pellegrino at times this season, but credit where it's due. He recognised the change in the opposition tactics and adapted his own to defend it. If he hadn't made he change and Watford had got back in it, the very same people having a go at him now would still be having a go at him but for a different reason.