SaintBobby

What we really want is for City to have nothing to play for on the last match of the season (1st or 2nd place being a certainty), plus them to be in the Champions League final (I assume that's a few days later), plus us to be level with Man Utd heading into that game. They'd roll over, surely?

I've never trusted that site. They seem to treat all individual match results as equally likely (I think they start the season giving every team a 5% chance of becoming champions).

As explained elsewhere, he isn't eligible. Apparently, you can't play in a replay if you weren't registered for the first fixture

I'd go for a few changes. I'd probably start with Targett, Isgrove and Long. Damn shame that Jay's return date has slipped. Biggest worry for me is lack of cover at centre back. If one of Fonte or Gardos gets injured or sent off, we have a massive problem.

That would be a recent change then?

I still think Europa League is the realistic shot and that Champions League is going to be too much of a stretch. We've adapted well to injuries so far, but I still think, sadly, that two of Man Utd, Arsenal, Spurs (and possibly, just possibly, even Liverpool) will end up above us. So, if you're a (mild) pessimist like me and want to chew over how we make it into the Europa League, these are the outcomes you want to maximise our chances: 1. Chelsea to win the Capital One Cup. Alternatively, if Liverpool or Spurs win it, we'd like them to finish in the top 6. That would keep open the chance of Saints only needing to finish 7th to secure European football. We don't want a Sheff Utd win, even if most "neutrals" do. 2. If we don't win the FA Cup ourselves (or end up as runners-up to a top 6 team), we want the final to be between two top six sides. If the final is, say, Stoke v Everton or even Chelsea v Ipswich, this means a Europa League slot going to a team outside of the top six and so seventh in the PL won't secure a Europa League place. 3. Subject to the rider* below, we want an English club to win the Champions League but to finish outside of the top 4. Arsenal are the only credible candidates for this, unless you think Chelsea or Man City might win the CL but collapse so badly in the league that they finish out of the top four. (* I assume that if 5 English teams qualify for the Champions League, that we still get 3 Europa League slots rather than this being cut back to just two?)

The game is def on Weds, right? Surely it's more interesting than f-ing Spurs....

Toby for me.

Paul Telfer

It did use to be very moderately funny. Those days have long since gone. Credit to you though, you do still get the very occasional bite.

It's brilliant trolling by RK. Love it.

Great 41 minute advert. Loved it. For the main audience (presumably Americans with some interest in "soccer"), I particularly liked Ralph's suggestion that Southampton FC are basically the same as the Green Bay Packers...

Sorry, maybe behind the curve. I bought mine yesterday.

You can still get into corporate hospitality for £25 a ticket

I hear it's the top-rated movie of the year. Oscars are certain. Even mean-spirited delusional Saints fans queued round the block to watch that film.

It's surely a much more exciting story than Swansea. Because the trajectory of our ascent is so much greater/faster. They steadily worked their way up. Good for them. But they weren't days from liquidation or at the bottom of the third division with a ten point penalty 5 years ago. They also didn't have the summer of Armageddon. And then the incredible, pundit-defying rebuild. Nor do they have the academy success. If CB Fry thinks an hour-long documentary entitled "How Swansea City beat Bradford City 5-0 and thereby won more silverware than Southampton in recent years, assuming you don't count the Johnstone Paint Trophy" would make more gripping viewing, then I'd advise against a career as a commissioning editor in television....

Good question, Vectis. I think the corporate areas have been less full, bizarrely (prices gone up too much?)

Gary Neville made a good point. The authorities can only take action if the officials confess they didn't see the incident. Would you want to confess to that in your report, if you were that linesman?

Charlie Austin Stewart Downing

Any update? Out v Arsenal?

Definitely want Bournemouth up. Although I doubt many Saints fans consider it a serious rivalry, I'd like some sort of neighbourly rival now Reading have sunk and the skates have disappeared.

The corporate section is a bit weird...technically, it's home fans only for the Saints bar/Channon section...but to say the rules are observed in the breach is an understatement. Against smaller teams, e.g. Yeovil in the cup, the MC usually makes a point of welcoming the away fans in the lounge.

Due to African Nations Cup, Newcastle will be missing some really key players on Jan 17th, no? And might Bony still be missing for Swansea on Feb 1st (or at least jet lagged?)

We should play the ball more to his chest. The way he can control the ball off his chest, often as an accurate one touch pass is quite amazing.

I'm going to return to a topic that comes up every now and again. Why is the Chapel end so absurdly quiet? I'm not into the whole Ultra thing, but if we moved (by offering a discount) 100 or so singers en bloc from the Northam end to the centre of the Chapel end, the atmosphere would improve markedly. Atmosphere yesterday was pretty good though, all in all.