austsaint

I get where he's coming from - I assume you are a white bloke like me Whelk; by the way I enjoy reading your posts - cut through the BS and straight to the point. Thing is though, all over the world, including the UK, France, Spain, Germany, Australia, NZ etc for some strange reason some white people seem to enjoy taunting and abusing black players - go figure?

Yes, I did - quite comical that Glasgow Saint isn't he.....in a David Brent kind of way. Getting back to the game, I really hope Ralph sees the wisdom of leaving Austin, Long and Gallagher on the sidelines - maybe Long as a sub, and starts with a trio of Armstrong, Redmond and Sims. Only chance we have is pace and movement up front and on the break - long balls into the box isn't going to cut it. Given that JWP's form before the Brighton game was good, play him in a more central midfield role with Hoj and Romeu - he really isn't suited to that wide right role - that leaves Bednarek and Yoshida to round out the 4-3-3 formation. Having said all that I expect Ralph to play 3CBs and to start with Long.

Agree entirely. Will be frustrated if it's Austin or Long isolated up front with no impact while we sit deep to try and absorb the pressure. Hoping Ralph will deploy Redmond, Armstrong and Sims as a mobile trio to keep their defenders under some pressure.

Agree with your comments - yet hard on Josh Sims; the half he played v Spurs was exceptional and by any measure, even with tactical considerations he should have been rewarded on merit with more playing time. Difficult to "do something consistently" if you turn in a match changing performance one week and barely feature the next (game).

Agree with your comments - yet hard on Josh Sims; that half he played v Spurs was exceptional and by any measure, even with tactical considerations he should have been rewarded on merit with more playing time. Difficult to "do something consistently" if you turn in a match changing performance one week and barely feature the next (game.

A bitter/sweet satirical piece from Turkish which nails the uncomfortable truth - Gallagher is not up to standard and should have been able/forced to pursue another Club (Championship) some time ago. I thought Ralph erred in not replacing Ings with Sims who deserved a longer stint on the basis of that second half v Spurs. Sims pace, movement and direct running would have eased the pressure on our defence and given us a counter attacking outlet.

Did we switch off though? Or was it more a case of retreating deeper and adopting a hold on at all costs for an ugly but precious three points. Once Armstrong, Ings and finally Redmond were all replaced all our attacking shape, speed and penetration was gone and Brighton had nothing to fear in conceding a second. Hate to be critical but Gallagher showed in his half hour he's not up to this standard - slow and almost clumsy, like a younger version of Austin but without the clinical finish - where was Sims? We could have used his pace and run earlier and it was disappointing his excellent display v Spurs wasn't rewarded. On the plus side Yoshida, Hojbjerg, Romeu, Armstrong and Redmond all very good today. Much quieter games from JWP (who is not a wide player and was found out for pace today) Valery and even Gunn in goal looked far from convincing. Great result. Ralph said he wouldn't might playing badly away from home and picking up points after really good away displays which yielded nothing - and he got his wish. Liverpool now becomes an "anything is a bonus" game. A pity Wolves couldn't do us a favour.

Armstrong hasn't played badly but Sims should replace him. The nightmare outcome is Murray scoring from a scrappy set piece - Saints doing well in midfield.

Well done for a good humoured reply Do you think we can get by with 6 on the bench?

Indeed, I'm not a JWP fan but he fully deserves his place. The other two odd things about Nic75Sfc's team is the absence of Sims and Forster over McCarthy.

Like him as a player; like the sort of person he seems to be and now I like his politics.

I'm hoping Ralph doesn't forget what a great half Sims played v Spurs

Get off his back? Likeable character who should have been shown the door two seasons ago. Now clearly in decline from a level that wasn't that good.

Your card's been marked.

The other point of difference I'd make about Sims is he's a homegrown talent who has been overlooked. No one could say JWP has been overlooked after 7 seasons and nearly 250 appearances - let's hope he sustains his excellent form in the past 5 - 6 games.

Give it up Ginge - I've always been a fan of Sims and Harry Reed - and up until recently, my criticism of Ward-Prowse has been well justified. Get back in your box.

Sims has shown the ability consistently every time he has played to my eye. Just think he is a homegrown gem who has been overlooked - and its taken Ralph a while to get the message too.

You would have to say he is - a beautifully taken strike. Thought Ralph's half-time decision to belatedly give Josh Sims his chance turned the game - his movement, touch and runs turned Spurs around, brought Redmond into the game and took the pressure off our CBs. Sims has to stay in the squad - Ings, Redmond, Sims with cameos from Armstrong is the attack which can keep us up - not Austin and Long. Sensational comeback - great to watch that second half.

It has been hard to watch - Spurs outclassing us. Ralph has to try something different....4 at the back, Armstrong, even Sims on to try and put them under some pressure. Saints look like a poor Championship side today and Spurs look like a Champions League outfit.

The "don't give a toss" Lemina theorists are way off the mark. The man has been injured - fit, he's a cut above any other player we have.

Even though Fulham were poor and some luck went our way, it was a deserved win. For those arguing for Targett over Bertrand, tonight illustrated why a fit Bertrand must always be the choice - a true attacking full back/wing back who injected width, pace and telling crosses most of the night; special mention to Valery who improves each match. Bednarek very impressive in defence and Yoshida calm and composed. Three midfielders all had good games - PEH full of energy and bite; Romeu swept and snuffed out so much and that left foot half volley was crucial. Ward-Prowse worked hard all night and his effort to get to the spilled save for the second goal was testament to his work rate - he is still massively over hyped but he earned his pay tonight. Redmond's touch and decision making poor at times, but he made great runs into space and made defenders jittery. A great night of relief, and the hope of survival lives on.

JWP seems undroppable now, which is odd, Ralph seems to think he's an attacking midfielder - Armstrong can count himself unlucky. I'm disappointed Sims hasn't been given a place to liven up what is an attack lacking pace and movement. Do we really need 3 CB's at home against a side like Fulham?

It is a 50 - 50 game and the scary bit is Fulham look a better attacking side than us.

Good call - Redmond, Armstrong and Sims involved with Austin as a sub if needed. Four at the back including Bertrand and Yoshida. No Long, no Elynoussi, a long rest for Stephens and no start for Austin.

The trouble with your "if Redmond scores" and "Stephens wasn't playing" theory is the 3 or 4 easy goal opportunities Arsenal squandered and their complete "foot off the pedal" approach to the second half - let's face it; we were blown away by a far superior attacking unit. When we went 2 down it was hard to see where a goal was coming from with just Redmond and Armstrong advanced - and five at the back with three non-attacking midfielders. In taking Armstrong off (who looked quite threatening) we lost much of the limited attack we had - with little drive from midfield and no service to a threadbare attack it was apparent we would never get back in the game.