BARCELONASAINT

I quite often watch Celtics games as i have a soft spot for them and can honestly say O'Reily is the standout player in all the games i have seen of theirs. He has a great eye for goal, his passing is excellent and he has a really good engine on him. He is the one player in Scotland i was really hoping we might go for. To be honest i would be surprised but delighted if we beat other teams to him. He could be the next Wanyama, Telfor or Van Dick......obviously he could also flop and flatter to deceive

Sounds like the "Big Brother house" only its the new kit getting voted out!

That is a lovely looking kit and i can't wait to spend my hard earned cash, so much so i'm already stood outside the club store so i'm first in what i anticipate to be a very long queue to get this eye catching creativity!

nice goal by Danny Ings, direct freekick

https://sportwitness.co.uk/martin-braithwaite-everton-southampton-leicester/ I would not be against this purely based on watching him play for Barcelona. I was staggered when Barca signed him, it just wasn't a Barca signing, however Braithwaite gave his absolute all for Barcelona when he played and scored some very important goals. My one reservation is La Liga is not the Premiership and he won't get the time and space playing in La Liga gives you.

He speaks better English than most English people

Unfortunately i can only see one winner. Spain have been the best side in this tournament without a shadow of doubt and totally deserve their place in the final. England have played some good football in patches but overall it's been like pulling teeth watching England play and so frustrating given the quality we possess in the side. For 45 minutes we were excellent against the Dutch and then the second half we just got deeper and deeper. If we do that against Spain we will lose. England play like a team burdened by the failures of every England team since 1966, whereas Spain play with a free flowing confidence of a side that believes every time they walk out onto the pitch they will win. Like every other England fan i am desperate to see them win a major tournament but to do that they must not let Spain get into that comfortable mode and pulling England all over the place. I really hope it is Englands turn to win tonight, their supporters deserve to see that happen.

Found this article and Liverpool seem like they were sniffing around last season and the fee would have been in the region of £17 million. I think Saints have potentially done a shrewd bit of business here. Liverpool are interested in right back Yukinari Sugawara, Anfield Watch understands. The 23-year-old is a six-cap Japan international, currently playing for AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands. Suguwara, a versatile operator who has also featured at right wing and even at centre back, is viewed by Liverpool as a player who could potentially shadow Trent Alexander-Arnold. The former Nagoya Grampus star, who moved to Europe back in 2019, has less than two years remaining on his current contract at AZ and could be available for as little as €20m (£17m). Focussing instead on their much-discussed midfield rebuild, Liverpool did not sign any defensive cover for the first-team squad during the summer transfer window. However, it has been widely reported that the area remains a priority to strengthen in upcoming windows. With Calvin Ramsay heading out on loan to Preston North End for the 2023/24 season, 20-year-old Conor Bradley had been expected to step in as Alexander-Arnold's right back understudy, but a reported stress fracture to his back means he is unlikely to be available until at least November. Meanwhile, Virgil van Dijk's two-match suspension and Ibrahima Konate's latest injury have brought concerns to the fore about the Reds' lack of depth across the backline. Suguwara made 47 appearances in all competitions for AZ in 2022/23 and was a regular as his side made it to the Europa Conference League semi finals before being eliminated by West Ham. He scored three times and registered eight assists in last season's Eredivisie, while he has one assist to his name so far in 2023/24.

The defence looks pretty much sorted, we just need to strengthen everywhere else now!

I don't believe a word about the Danny Ings links, it's pure lazy journalism and an agent trying to get himself another pay day. Delap we are supposed to have been interested in for well over a year and i do believe we want him. IF it's true that both Ipswich and us have agreed City's release fee then i would be very disappointed if Delap choose them over us. Surely we can match or even better what Ipswich are willing to pay in wages? I think Delap could be a very good striker given the chance.

This time of the year is always completely mad with players agents making up bullshit stories and journalists only too happy to print complete crap. IF we are/were interested in Welington AND REALLY WANTED HIM, then there is no way Torino are guzzumping us. We would cough up the relatively small fee Torino are allegedly forking out and the wages we would offer would be far greater than Torino could offer. If he doesn't end up hear it's because it was all complete bollocks in the first place!

when i look at that list I reckon we are, we could or should be in for 8 of those players! WELLINGTON - we already are in for him YUKINARI - Ditto FLYNN - Ditto O'RILEY - We should be FRASER - we already are CLARKE - We should be DELAP - We could be JERONIMO - We are already MIOVSKI - We could be Thats a lot of players, but thankfully we are or have got rid of some dead wood already.

Anyone thinking Romeu could still cut it in the Premiership think again! It was a huge mistake Barca signing him and the manager admitted as much. I absolutely loved watching Romeu in the Barca shirt after having seen him in our Saints team for so many wonderful years.....however it was painfully clear time had caught up with him. The Spanish league is no where near as fast and brutal as the Premiership and Romeu has struggled in the last season. After initially being a starter he quickly found his playing time limited. Hojbjerg I would take back, he can still cut it JWP in a heart beat yes Reid, real grafter, i can see why he might be considered Redmond......please NO!

I see some media outlets are reporting Wolves have pulled out of the "race" to sign Che now they have signed some Norwegian striker. Looks like Everton are the only other side mildly interested in him. I really hope we don't still have an offer on the table for him. I don't want a player here who has only renewed his contract because he couldn't get an offer anywhere else.

I must admit I am finding our current transfer policy refreshing. Gone are the days of buying unknown foreign players who might be the next big thing and welcome to buying predominantly British players that either know the Premiership or RM believes can make the step up from the Championship or the Scottish league. We need mentally tough players as well as grafters and the odd flair player that will complement the side. Goodbye ABK, Sully, Alcaraz, Mara, Tall Paul ABK made of glass and attitude stinks Sully absolute waste of money, only a great player in his own head Alcaraz has the potential to be very good in Europe but not in the Premiership Mara is lazy and no signs he will ever make it in England Tall Paul just not a Premiership player

I have watched a fair few Celtic games last season and i have to say Matt O'Riley really stood out for me. O'Riley and the lad Clarke from Sunderland were the 2 players at the end of the season I really hoped we might go for.

Really?? you don't think the club are capable of writing off a player that cost millions less than previous complete write offs? I give you Carrillo, Tall Paul and i could go on. It's got bugger all to do with investment, the club rate Baz (wrongly or rightly) I personally believe the club made a great mistake relying on such a young and inexperienced keeper and pretty much throwing him under the bus because until he got injured they really believed McCarthy was a lesser keeper. Baz may yet become an extremely good goalkeeper, he is very young for a keeper and has time on his favour.

I'm very conflicted about Ings and his possible return. He is very experienced at this level and can score goals out of nothing. If he can stay fit he could be a very shrewd signing. Players returning to clubs they have played for previously i'm never really sure about to be honest.

I was lucky enough to have known Elijah as he reffed a lot of the league games i played on Saturday mornings. For such a young lad he was always so approachable as a referee and always had time to chat before and after a game. I was heartbroken when i heard the news and can only imagine the heartache you and your family must be going through Noodles. My thoughts and prayers are with you, may he rest in peace.

I have a slightly cynical view on the whole Alcaraz thing. So Rasmus our director of football has a brother who is the founder of a transfer platform called "transferRoom" We signed Alcaraz through the platform. They made quite a big thing at the time out of it and the signing was used massively to promote the platform. I believe it was the first transfer into the Premiership (at least from South America) done on the platform. We've since signed other players through the platform (which we have as a club now publicised as being thanks to TransferRoom. These to me are more than just footballing moves!! The insinuation , particularly with Alcaraz, is that TransferRoom used Saints to advertise itself and position itself!

we are allowed more than 5 loans, however only 5 can be named in the match day squad so someone has to be left out.....the obvious one for me is Holgate

Ok Bad Wolf and Whitey I have a question for you as i am really struggling to understand your logic here. I'm guessing both of you at some point have played competitive football at some level. Are you telling me that neither of you have walked of the pitch at full time and shook your heads in amazement that you have just lost a game you completely dominated and outplayed the opposition yet nothing went for you in front of goal and the opposition have scored from the only chance they had. Then the opposition players say to you as they are trudging off '' we don't know how we won that you were by far the better team" OR The complete opposite where you have played in a game and been battered and outplayed but have won the game and come off admitting "the opposition were the better team" and "we got away with one today lads" Are you seriously telling me that every game Saints have won we were the BETTER team because with more than 50 years of watching Saints i can tell you we have won games where we were definitely NOT the better team and to believe anything different is just being arrogant!

I never want us to lose a game, even when we had that idiot Jones as manager and another defeat might have got him sacked earlier, i just can't want us to lose. However that said i honestly want us 110% focussed on automatic promotion and therefore would not be too upset if we play a similar side against Watford as we did in the last round. If we lose then everything is all about those two automatic promotion spots with no distractions.

wow, just wow. I'm absolutely delighted Ipswich lost and it was a brilliant David v Goliath result but you really must be on some strong meds if you think Maidstone were the better side. Ipswich absolutely battered them and this was one of those games that every Ipswich player out there will be saying in years to come "i can't believe we lost that" It was a freak result, a mixture of cup magic, great goalkeeping, piss poor finishing and every Maidstone prayer being answered. Just because a team wins a game doesnt mean they were the better side!

The 76 side are and will always be heroes in any Saints fans eyes that were young enough to witness that incredible day in May 1976 when the much fancied Man United were humbled by Division 2 Saints. I was only 11 years old at the time but my god i can remember that day and the next day waiting for my heroes outside the Saints pub in Millbrook like they were only yesterday. RIP Mel and thank you for making a kids dream come true.