vectraman

Liverpool are in the champions league - they finished 4th....

In 10 months time, lots of posters will be saying we need to upgrade our midfield, because it is too slow and predictable. Unless something exciting happens before the window shuts and we sign a first team ready DM and AM who are better than we have got. We need to get out of the traps on the front foot and get up and around the top 6 by November. If we are struggling then, we really will struggle with a run of tougher games to come in November and December. Fraser Forster to have a much better season, if we keep VVD. If we don't, our defence is going to be much weaker then last season and I think FF will lack confidence in who is in front of him. Stephens and Yoshida are not good enough to be first choice CB pairing if VVD does go. So, we will hopefully be quicker getting the ball forward, stop farting about with possession for the sake of it, and get the midfield up and supporting the forward(s) whoever they are. If we start well, I can see us being around and about 8th again. Poor start, and the goals don't flow at home again, 14th. Need to take both cups seriously, and play to win with strong line ups. No ****ing about with second string sides in either cup thank you. It's all we realistically have a sniff of doing well in after all !!

Only if we're building a squad for life in the Championship. I'd like to think we are aiming higher than this selection. IMO of course!

With two home games to start, we need to get the can't score at home albatross off our backs. Need to pick up decent points early on as we have easier (on paper fixtures) start poorly, we could be in for a long slog of a season. Start well, score some goals, we could (and if we are half decent, should) be top six by November - because of our easier start. So, Saints - 10th. Champs - Man City Relegation Watford (worst team on form end of last season) Huddersfield Brighton

Just as well Leicester had Ranieri at the helm and an owner who did believe. They did it without hundreds of millions but with a positive attitude. Pellegrino's first team talk on your logic would be galvanising - yeah boys, we're never going to make top six so stop dreaming about that rubbish, top half is good enough.... Should invigorate new signings and existing players alike...

Yes they are. But the professor said that is irrelevant and a rich owners wealth would have no bearing on things....wouldn't help us be able to sign anyone... mmm

I dont recall seeing bournemouth shirts for sale at foreign airports, yet they signed Ake for £20 million without selling anyone. So how could they do that then? Yet we couldn't? Our income has to be greater than theirs. Please explain this oddity?

And here lies the problem. We take ages to decide to sack puel, ages to appoint his replacement, and end up playing catch up. Every time we change manager it's the same. The black box and all that is pure b.s. and most of us know that. Else we won't always appoint (amazingly conveniently) an out of work manager. We'd just go get our man and get on with it as we've known for 2 years who the replacement is And then against Swansea we'll be ****e, people will make the excuse it's early days blah Blah, manager only here 4 weeks blah blah and we will make excuses just like last season when we were dog ****e against Watford and Sunderland. Happy claps can see no wrong, but us dragging our feet sets us back weeks every manager change. Amateurish. Part of the reason I've not renewed my season ticket, plus back on shift so I'll pick and choose my games. We were ****e at home last season, even more ultra defensive after vvd was injured still let goals in but couldn't score. If we play more openly with our monopace midfield, we'll get taken apart by decent sides. If vvd goes we will really struggle. We have to improve the first 11, ditch the squad fillers and sign quality. Else standing still is what happened after the fa cup final under Lowe. Football is about winning and entertainment. It seems some on here just want to go along, sing he's one of our own to the opposition, and go home happy afterwards after their foreign stars whoop our asses. But hey, ours are homegrown, so we are better run than you, and even though we lost again, we will have the last laugh Home grown? Don't care. Quality is what counts, good enough for first 11 is what counts. No more buying ones for the future, first team ready is required. I can see it, others can see it, I hope les and the management can see it.

The 8 million plus wages for Fonté could be chucked into the pot... Plus the pl prize money plus the tv money plus all other revenue....how do the other non top 6 teams sign anyone?

Confuscious says:- He who keeps looking backwards can never see where he is going...

Romeu or Davis. Both deserving cases.

Surely though, in a court of law (not that it would go that far I'm sure) he is in breach of his contract, and could be sued?

Liverpool away too in the 0-0 draw...

I understand what you're saying regarding Hoj, when he first appeared for us last season, I admit he looked like he had quality about him. As the season progressed, whether through lack of regular game time, trying too hard or whatever, he just seemed off the pace. He also didn't look amazingly fit and seemed to be 'carrying a bit extra'. If the new boss can get him leaner and keener again, I would certainly like to see him flourish. It's just a big if.. fingers crossed for him though.

I'd be somewhat concerned that "ambitious" Saints believe changing nothing would be progress. Keeping our best players of course would be excellent, hence the long contracts. Selling jrod was sensible, fonte brought in 8 million too, plus tv money etc we should have enough to sign two very decent first team ready players. If we sold two of Clasie/jwp/Hoj and replaced with bigger, quicker, more dynamic DM and AM I'd be happy. Only concern would be an injury to vvd would leave us with a weaker than average cb pairing again. Our team lacks height and pace, two attributes that I believe are crucial in the pace/power hungry premier league...

4-4-2 Forster Cedric Vvd Stephens Bertrand Redmond Davis Romeu Tadic . Gabbiadini Long Subs - the others!!

I think you can tell the quality of our midfield because nobody wants to buy any of them!! The midfield is the engine room of the team, and sadly all of our midfielders are fitted with economical diesel engines, they'll keep going for a long time, but at a slow pace. We need a lot more power and pace in our midfield. Dynamism is missing. Some height in there wouldn't go amiss either... if we sold any two of them (out of Clasie/Davis/JWP/Hojberg) and replaced with tall pacy upgrades, one a DM, one a CM, I'd be happy and say our work is done transfer wise...

We need a CM. We need a goal scoring midfielder. We don't need another lightweight 10 goals a season forward. Who is he going to play instead of? If we are playing 1 upfront, as sadly is rumoured, surely Gabbiadini is the main man? Hopefully it's a press rumour...

Looking at the original post title, I was going to suggest that maybe you should try the "grinder" app. I think the place we need a big, strong unit is to partner Romeu in CM. A Yaya Touré type would compliment the side very well. Someone with a slightly nasty edge, because as a team we are a bit, umm, too nice? If they had a decent shot on them, that would be a bonus!!

You are right. If it's about investments rather than winning football matches, maybe Saints should switch to buying up property, letting it and selling for profit in a few years time. I want to see players who improve the first team if we make signings. Not fringe squad players who might play in the early league cup rounds if they're lucky. No point in signing squad fillers, our squad is already numbering a fair few bang average players who add little.

It's a number 3 from me. Probably an unknown teenager signing for the youth side. Our last business of the transfer window

We need to stop thinking about "value" and start thinking practical! If we signed him for £25 million, he stayed for two seasons, and scored 40 goals, I'd say that would be priceless! So what if city could buy him back for "only" £35 million after two years. It's the goals that are important not the "value" that posters are getting hung up on. The club seem to be brain washing fans into thinking value for money rather than quality is the most important thing. We should only be looking at players now who improve our first team, not young squad players who are unproven. Sign a proper DM and AM that'll be us done for the close season. Do it early so they can train and gel, not leave it late like we always seem to so we start the season on the back foot. We need to hit the ground running this season with our "easier" early fixtures. Last thing we need is to rock up like we did against Sunderland and Watford and play like strangers.

Never heard of him, I'd like to think for a top 8 team we'd be shopping in Waitrose rather than Poundland... Sounds like a newly promoted teams level of signing?

You can tell how average our "best midfield options in the league" are, because none of them are coveted by another team. None. The whole bunch are decidedly average at best, all very similar (slow and (except Hoj) short), and none of them can shoot. Winning combination of skills that! If the club or more importantly the new manager, don't think we need reinforcements in midfield, then we will have another season of limited goals. Even the golden boy homegrown one of own etc JWP can't thread a killer pass in open play. For the U21's he looks good. In the pl he doesn't. Why? Time. Pl is played at a fast pace that doesn't give him the time he needs on the ball, and he is a luxury on the pitch most of the time, and he's probably our best one!

I hope Bertrand stays. If he doesn't, Targett is nowhere near good enough to be our first choice LB. He is too slow, and doesn't read the game well enough, sadly.