Tom & Gerry

I don't care a monkey's if he's happy or not. Are you happy in your job every day?. If Ronald says he's not going that's good enough for me. Now he just has to knuckle down and do his job like the rest of us.

I'm always surprised at the number of people who do attend football matches,and even more those who having spent all that money leave before the end. So if people don't want to turn out on a Thursday night to watch a team they've never heard of it's only what I would expect. No doubt my expectations will be exceeded.

For a club that has won so little in the way of trophies over the years either would be fantastic. I'm not sure if Europa has the prestige of the FA Cup in this country, perhaps in Europe. If we won it would anyone notice? Balanced of course by entry to the CL. Maybe we could ask Ipswich Town fans which was better in the long run.

Sorry, I'll get me coat.

I know it's an alien concept to some, but players can improve you know.

Scoring goals in the Premier League is massively difficult. I just think with experience it will come for him.

If you are not in the Champions league a team is for one season only. That's the way it is now unless you have no players good enough for the bigger clubs. It even happens to Liverpool. There is nothing you can do about it but plan to replace those that leave. Yes they were key players last season, others will need to step up and be key players this. If Clasie signs and is a success he we leave if not next season the season after. Teams have always evolved , just not this quickly.

Poopey so nearly beat Liverpool in the semi final. A Saints Poopey cup final will never ever again seem so possible.

If you were really ambitious you wouldn't be bothered with these minor trophies, only the significant ones.

Lee Barnard was a good athlete and ran about a lot. I think there is a lot more to Shane Long than that in terms of skill and intelligence.

How come our academy can produce all sorts of players but never a goal keeper? Was the last decent first team keeper Gerry Gurr?

We've put in an enormous effort this season and now we've run our race, as have Spurs. The lesson and warning has to be just how fragile success is in this league.

Shocked to hear this. He brings back memories of many great times. RIP.

Cor Blimey, of course we must do our best with the hand we've got and I will be shouting as loadly as anyone, just as you Europa fans will cheer when we win a cup tie, though I have shockingly heard a few fans say they would rather us lose than draw a cup tie as it might affect our league form, but I'm sure that's a minority. I really am not trying to create a cup V Europa arguement which I agree is a false one. I am not even saying that we should change our priorities,though I would err towards playing our best possible team in the later stages of cup competitions. What ever happens happens but I would just prefer we won a major trophy, what is wrong with wanting to win something? Others would prefer we have a long run in Europe, fair enough no big deal. I do have concerns that Europa might hinder our prospects of getting that trophy but let us hope that we can march on in league and cup and over come those difficulties. The club do have a pretty good record at over coming difficult situations. I am also not as excited as some at the prospect of Europa. Yes we have some great if heart breaking games in Europe in the past, I'm thinking of Newcastle and Anderlecht in particular but this Europa is a different animal. I admit I don't watch it much but then who does tucked and hidden away as it is on ITV4. My impression though is of boring football,teams I've never heard of, half empty stadiums, and teams that lose the following week end. I really do hope though that the product is much better than the image. After all the JPT wasn't so bad after all was it. And I really hope our players improve for the experience and are not just more tired. I would love it if we became a force in Europe, it's just that I want that trophy just a little bit more.

Indeed. I well remember the Inter Cities Fairs cup where only 1 team per city could participate. Any one outside London, Manchester and Birmingham in the top half had a chance. The question was - will participation in Europa damage the club (lower league position, less focus on domestic cup competions) or help it grow and how can the club grow if it doesn't progress to the Europa if CL qualification is a step too far. I just thought that winning a cup first would mitigate some of the down sides of playing in Europa on Thursday nights and might generate interest that would help the club grow Some however are in denial that there are any downsides to Europa and seem to under estimate the excitement that a cup win brings. Just look at how many fans we took to Wembley for the JPT and how many are attending tonight for an under 21 game that is on Sky.

Not at all. Swansea raised their profile by winning the league cup. It's a mute point how much participation in Europa raised it any further especially as Gary Monk says they have reached their ceiling. For Saints winning a trophy first might be a better way of growing the club as it would put bums on seats in any expanded stadium for instance.

Or how about the old fashioned idea that we win a trophy and then go in to Europe. Winning something seems to be a concept people have difficulty grasping probably due to only winning one trophy in our entire history. That would be a better way to grow the club and it would be good for the fans and some of us would then be less concerned with the consequences. If the Europa league was so good for Swansea and Everton how on earth are we 7th without ever being in it. Of course I would like to see us play the teams you mention but we would need to get past an awful lot of dross to play them.

Grow the club? Like Fulham and Wigan you mean. Swansea and Everton? not really - which clubs have grown a a result of playing in the Europa League? Admit it it's just a jolly.

This is difficult. I am torn. I don't want Liverpool to succeed. Not because of any vendetta but it might ever so slightly help persuade players see that no one who has left Southampton for Champions league football has ever truly fulfilled their potential apart from Gareth Bale and he didn't leave for a team in the Champions league. Getting in to Europe would be success and I want that but I am desperate for us to win a major trophy and I know that we should be focusing on things we can win and that will be more difficult with the boring and tiring Europa League. I think I'm more ambitious than those who want European football just so they can have a nice holiday. But then again it is progress so I guess we just have to take it and see what happens.

I've dusted it off now. It was on the Diana Ross and the Supremes join the Temptations album. Any how thanks for the info and whatever version play it load and proud

Come on, it would be one of the greatest achievements in the history of football if we finished 4th. So dust off your old Diana Ross records " Dream the impossible dream". Just 1 more win than City and Liverpool in the next 5 games and we go to Manchester with a stab at history. It's on...at least until Saturday!

Midfield players are not the best defenders or goalscorers in the team. They sometimes shoot and sometimes tackle, run around a lot and mostly give short easy passes to players better placed than themselves. Occasionally they produce a defence splitting pass that leads to a goal and that is how they are usually judged by the public. Where as if a forward shoots narrowly wide or has a shot saved it is a good effort if a midfield player's pass is slightly off so that the ball is intercepted or goes out of play then he is a bad player. We once had a midfielder called Matt Oakley.Nobody thought he was that good but he stayed in the team and people ignored him and almost forgot he was there. Then one day the manager WGS said he was the best midfield player in the league (or words to that effect). We said - is he? we didn't know. So we looked and saw that yes, he was quite good, his experience meant that he knew when and where to run, pass, tackle and shoot and he helped knit the team together. I'm sure the same will be true of JWP and experience will make him much better top class player.

According to the "I" he is due to join up with the squad on Sunday

In 2012 we did not have the defence we have now. Kelvin will be perfectly adaquate for most games.

I am actually slightly more optimistic of Champions League football than I was. From thinking it was imposssible I now think it's just about possible given Man U's remaining fixtures and ours. I am also not totally convinced yet that Man U are the real deal. Yes they've had 2 great results but 2 weeks ago they were rubbish and the Manager was facing the sack. We would have to show our very best form of course.