doddisalegend

Have you ever looked at Long's stats he has only scored more than 10 goals in a season 3 times in his career and one of those was in the championship. His normally tally is around 6 goals a season. Last season was his best ever top flight season he never has and likely never will be a prolific goal scorer. He has several managers before Puel all of how have failed to turn him into some sort of goal scorer.

Shaw certainly seems to have become Jose's emotional punch bag.... http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39499154

On balance though West Ham have picked up one point in the last five games Stoke have picked up four points from their last five games only scoring three goals in the process. Plenty of teams around us are not doing so well either. Every team from Watford down could theoretically be relegated but Boro and Sunderland look dead and buried so that's a lot of teams fighting it out for one place. The table is also skewed because we have two games in hand (not suggesting we will win them) makes it hard to judge our true position until we have caught up on those games.

In fairness I don't think we actually played at home in march did we?

Erm Chelsea and Leicester are two teams that come to mind that both dropped places heavily in the last two seasons it happens to all teams sooner or later..

On the other hand if we win we are 9th with two games in hand, having reached a cup final and having to deal with European football having lost our best player and both top goal scorers' to injury....fine margins this football thing

Do you find the battle for 9th -15th super exciting? I would probably have found the end of season slightly more interesting if VVD and Gabbi were fit and firing but we aren't getting relegated and we aren't going to be threatening a European place either it all has a whiff of meh now. Of course if your finding it super exciting good for you.

This is what it comes down to. Holding players to thier contracts just doesn't happen if a player really wants out. The important thing is getting a good replacement in and using the money to recruit well. Sometimes the club have done it incredibly well (Pelle,VVD, Bertrand) sometimes not so much (Clasie, Gardos )

Yes but that comes down as much to the club not doing a good recruitment job in the summer as the manager. As soon as Puel got a quality striker leading the line we were scoring for fun. It's interesting to speculate were we'd be had we signed Gabbi last summer instead of Jan. I doubt there is manager in the league that could have made a free scoring side out of Jrod and Long backed up by Tadic and Redmond ( who are both good players but can't score for toffee).

We've always been a selling club. The main difference is the club has more players other clubs want to buy these days thanks to the clubs decent recruitment policy. Imagine just how many of our recent players we would have sold in the last few years if Lowe was still in charge.

Looked like a foul to me not so much bullied as pushed over..

Fantasy scenario and realistic targets seem a bit of an oxymoron. It's like telling a bloke he can have that hot threesome with two birds he really wants but it has to be with two fat *****rs from pompey with STDs.....

No Gabbi no goals I'd just be happy for this season to end now it was all about the cup final and that's been and gone. Lets just get to the summer, get the usual summer sales out the way early and give Puel a full pre-season to build his team and go again next season.

from the OS Claude Puel has confirmed that Southampton striker Manolo Gabbiadini is set to miss the Premier League clash with Crystal Palace. https://southamptonfc.com/news/2017-04-03/team-news-pre-southampton-crystal-palace

Free kicks in particular it seems like Lambert was the last player we had you felt might score direct from a free kick.

Quite. I love the accusation that Stephens was bullied by Zlatan as if that some how makes him a lesser player plenty of players have been taken to the cleaners by Zlatan over the years FFS he has probably been one of the best CFs in recent history.

Lol Shane Long has only ever managed double figures for goals in a season three times in his career and one of those was in the championship. Last season was his best ever in the PL and was the exception not the rule plenty of managers have been unable to get Long to perform as well as last season. Tadic had loads of assissts last season but then he had Mane and Pelle to work with rather than Jrod and back to normal Shane Long. Your flimsy arguments don't hold water because the circumstances of this season are not the same as last season it would be a fine arguement if the only difference between this squad and last seasons squad were Puel and Koeman but its not ....

So we were lucky that bournemouth couldn't finish but at the other end all our chances weren't really chances....sorry that's just bollix. I watched the highlights on the saints site this morning which just reinforces my view of being at the match. We should have been out of sight long before Bournemouth's little rally in the last 20 minutes.

Yeah most I've seen him come of his line in a long time problem was he never inspired much confidence doing it flapping his arms or missing the ball completely.

TBF to our defence having Forster flapping around, not communicating and generally struggling with the basics of goal keeping behind them can't be inspiring much confidence.

No your right any other manager would be ripping up the league with Jrod and Long as their striking options. I bet Pep could turn them into world beaters. Hell Long is just a few good coaching sessions away from being the next Aguero...

From this weeks 10 things article in the Mirror. Fraser Forster wasn't at fault for conceding against Bournemouth but that was more by luck than judgement. For a man mountain, Forster doesn't command his box or spread confidence. At times he looks a bag of nerves when the ball is put into his box. That must be starting to cause a little concern for Southampton and England, given he is Joe Hart's backup. More than once Southampton's defenders must have expected better from their goalkeeper. He came and flapped at an early corner before missing a later loose ball which almost led to a goal for Andrew Surman. Soon after he came for a free-kick, spilled the ball and to compound the mess clattered into Jack Stephens, leaving the young defender needing treatment. On another occasion he did nothing, failing to communicate with his teammates, and Southampton needlessly conceded a corner. Hard to argue with imo. Between Forster's turd form this season and our all but blunt attack its amazing we've done as well as we have this season.

He struggled with the physical side of the English game last season I remember one of his first games when Lukaku destroyed him. He has adapted well now though good going forward, decent cross and will happily match any opposition player trying to get to the byline. I'm not sure there is much between him and Clyne now. Goes to show that sometimes you have to give a player a chance not every player can start like Gabbi

This

Morgan apart those that have gone to Man U and Arsenal (don't forget Chambers) all left young, for a big club, after one good season those that went to Liverpool were a bit older with more experience under their belt hopefully the more gifted academy boys in the future will take note and stay a few seasons before making the move ....probably not though