Jimmy_D

I suspect we've already exceeded your expectations from when this little project started at the bottom of League 1. If you don't want to believe that we can go higher, that's fine, but considering the wave of optimism we've been on for the last few years, as well as the fact we seem to have tapped into a different, better, way of doing things than most other clubs, you really shouldn't be surprised that other people think we might just be able to do something awesome here. Maybe we won't make it, and we'll drop back in future, but that's no reason for you to try and constantly, repeatedly, belittle other people's optimism now.

The really interesting thing here isn't our ambition, plenty of teams have that. It's that the media and the England setup seem to be buying into it. They seem to think we're going to have a chance to succeed and are falling over themselves to have the chance to say I told you so if we do.

I regard Luke Shaw as the best possible left back we could get here in the next few years, so selling him, regardless of price, would weaken us. Would £30M replace that?

Apparently so. http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/news/article/saints-voted-programme-of-the-year-1202707.aspx

Worth keeping an eye on this over the next few days. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25129711

Sky seem to think that one of the arrested is a former Prem player that now works as an agent. http://news.sky.com/story/1174673/football-match-fixing-claims-six-arrested

Pretty clear they're in a battle to remain in League Football now.

Personally a little disappointed. Think the fact that injuries have stopped him getting a decent run in the side have had a big effect on him settling in. Looking at how Rodriguez has gotten better and better since he started getting regular time on the pitch, I think Osvaldo is well worth persisting with, because it feels like he has the attributes he needs to be better than him.

Disappointing result, especially the manner of it. Encouraging stats away at the league leaders with half the defence missing. Feels like the squad is maybe deeper than we thought.

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?47819-Post-Match-Reaction-Arsenal-2-0-SAINTS#.UpDhMXggG0c

Ah dammit.

Come on! Point at least here for the taking.

Corner!

Decent game here, even without my Saints specs on.

Still doing ok here... Come on...

I don't reckon he'll be back up to speed after his injury yet.

Aye, been all us with their keeper being forced into decent saves more than once since that though.

Feels like we've been the better team overall this half apart from that Boruc mistake.

We're still in this!

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?47817-Arsenal-v-Saints-Match-Thread#.UpDHhnggG0c

Our goals will reduce Arsenal's goal difference.

That was the whole team changed, difficult to judge on that.

We haven't seen Hooiveld yet this season. He may well have improved a lot since last season, going by how much other players have improved. (Fonte the obvious example)

Think it's more reacting to the ones that have already given up.

We got good results under Tino towards the end of last season without Lovren.