up and away

This is how I expected to set up and play from all the previous talk from Adkins, exactly what was required against City and so nearly worked. So proud of the players and the performance but in reality. still not sure how many points we will have on the board after 6 games? It's how we play against the lesser to mid teams that will decide our fate. We rode our luck at times, defended well and lulled City into a false sense of security, but I always thought they would get at least a point from the game. The crunch will come against someone like Wigan at home where we don't lap up all the pressure in the first half and expose the defence to get forward instead. Clyne looks a bargain already with others able to do a job in the Premier, but I am wary this will work with a committed attacking style in the Premier. Too many balls in defence were recycled into our danger area, Kelvin and Fox the biggest culprits with others adding cameo roles. Get the ball out of danger even if that means giving away a corner.

If you think they're daft enough to base costly decisions on one game. I do not. A+B doesn't always equal C, it's just easier for football fans to think that way. I know fans are generally the sharpest tools in the box, but it's a huge disservice to Cortese, Adkins and everyone involved to suggest they'd be so reactionary, so unprepared, not realise what the squad needed and not have their target lists sorted out before that. As if they'd have called off transfers if we'd won the game 4-0. You have to be the most naive person or never seen a pre-season before to care that much about friendlies. Our transfers would be the same regardless, I'm sure of that. The trouble with that logic is that it completely over looks the premise that many hold, in that Saints are not equipped for the Premier. We were far to laboured and slow in the last quarter of the NPC and the friendly games we have played this season give no comfort or reason to believe things have changed sufficiently. Only against Ajax where both were playing at a pedestrian pace did we look competitive. So all in all that Udinese defeat paints a realistic picture just for one game, even though we did play reasonable for good periods.

Unless we have complete agreement from Bologna, I doubt we have permission to speak to the player. That's just the way things work in all these cases. You have an agreement to pay the player £2M and the agent £1M according to reports, something unusual for Saints. Giving a grand total of £14.8M (Eu18.9M). Normally Saints don't pay players fees and agents but this would avoid Bologna having to pay an extra £1M to the original club, then makes sense. I can see us stretching to Eu20M but not £20M, but Bologna don't get much of a deal here.

The only reason Ramirez will be travelling to Saints is for a medical and a signing. Bologna would not give the go a head to travel without things being agreed, that's how it always works. Liverpool have that agreement and could step in but that's looking doubtful until they move on Andy Carrol. If this goes ahead it marks a very major change in direction for Saints in many areas. Cortese has been reluctant to go for the big salaried players so far, but I imagine baning your head against the wall in chasing quality has had it's toll and on agents fees as well. I get the feeling Alan Carrs accountant has arranged his tax, hence the net figure being described. Smart move by Saints if that's the case. We end up with a two tier wage structure but a lot of sense in that to get the quality for that odd player who can make all the difference. On the playing side and with the interest still in Phillips it looks like this is the guy we want to supply the bullets. It does fit in especially when you consider the interest in the Dutch play maker. Still with further required from the defence but this is the signing that could make all the difference.

It's being combined with 5 a day advice and a prostrate examination, just to take it into the 21st century.

The worrying thing is that this is just a continuation of his lesser form that we saw in the run in for the NCP. The other point is that none of our forwards look like they can take up the slack to make a difference. We still did it last season with our brand of pass and move but that is lost for the moment or just not effective enough at this higher level. We need a far more mobile forward line of something like Lallana, Sharp and Jrod but no guarantees we can get that to work. Maybe even Lallana, Chung and Jrod could be that combo, I don't know. All that I do know is that I have not seen it yet.

Exactamundo. We have not done too bad from this approach but it does have it's weaknesses in that you still need the striker to do the job originally asked. At the present we don't have a striker that can really influence a game, We don't look that bad a side but the worst combination for the Premier. Too pedestrian in how we mount our attack, no player who can take the game by the scruff of the neck and not able to penetrate in numbers. Add to that an inexperienced defence intent upon passing in possession and it does not bode well. All our forwards (Ricky, JRod, Lallana, Puncheon, Sharp +) give glimpses of their capability, but nothing that looks good enough for the long haul. Adkins has said he wants to tighten up defensively for the Premier but there is no much sign on the ground that is being done effectively. These are Adkins own words and Cortese will not have got into that but there is some merit in what Adam Blackmore has said. The whole of pre-season and he transfer window will be based upon a certain style of play combined with a certain type of player. I feel we require one real quality signing that I doubt we could get in a straight purchase but possibly available from the loan window. That will still give us plenty of time if required as long as we see the problem if presented to ourselves.

Nothing we have not seen there from the NPC. First goal was special but second was stoppable but that is the type of shot Kelvin gets beaten by. If this continues into the Premier we will be in big trouble, he won't know whether to make space off his line for the through ball or stay on his line from that far out. Hooiveld was just following the ball for a very poor third but the attacker was real class putting the ball through the defenders legs for the fourth. I was wondering where the 451 was for their first goal. Clear enough with a pedestrian team like Ajax to wander back into shape, a bit different against Udinese. Does not bode well for what many describe as the most dynamic league in world football? At present we are the worst of both worlds, neither attacking cohesively or defending cohesively. We don't have the players or the skill to make these systems work with just a fleeting acceptance of the principles. Either commit 100% to the system or stop wasting time with the charades.

We don't have the players to play the 4-5-1 (or variations of it). Rodrigues is being wasted in his current role, that's been apparent throughout pre-season, so I'm not sure why we've continued to persist with using him out there. Adkins in all his recent interviews has made a big play about new formations, being flexible etc, but if anything we haven't tried enough different approaches/line ups etc and keep using the same system that hasn't really worked too well. I don't think we have the perfect selection of players for 451 either, but it would help significantly if we picked the best players for that system to get something from the system.The 442 we were playing last season had all it's limitations exposed then. We can go back to playing the 442 of last season and have a Blackpool type of effect where some some extraordinary results will be ground down to mediocrity. For 451 to work we would have to adopt the system as England did in the Euros, The optimum set up throughout most of the game against top sides, getting more adventurous when we have the opportunity to push our weight around. Like England the more we expose ourselves with attacking play, the greater the risk becomes. Like England, we just do not have the players. Playing 451 against top teams we have to have the right players in the right positions. That means players that can defend effectively and get forward with as much pace as we can deliver. I know exactly what I can expect from last seasons 442 and that is definitely not good enough. I've seen the problems we are having with 451 but that looked doomed from the start with the players selected and their positions. Build the team up with players in positions that stand a chance of doing what is required and if that means no Lambert or one from Lallana and JRod, so be it. What we really need is a blinding injection of pace that would only come from a quality loan. Splash the boat out and bugger the wage structure for that one player who would make a difference. You never know, even those you had temporarily written off previously come back into the playing equation.

Why be confrontational? I'm genuinely surprised that someone considers our goal-scoring ability more of a problem than our defence. Did you go to games last year? I can't recall many of those games being against Premier opposition? And I do feel our attack will suffer because our known out is to commit players forward to create the chances, which will leave us very exposed in the Premier. Adkins has laid out his 433 stall (for that read 451 most of the time) and using the midfield to give the defence it requires, which should help a great deal. The only problem with that is it can make our defence a hell of a lot better until we have to commit bodies forward to score, then the whole pyramid breaks down. Ever since Fonte signed for us in League 1 he has made a good error per game capable of leading to a goal. Great performances in league 1 masked that heavily but were more apparent in the CCC, same errors but greater thereat to take advantage from. In the Premier I expect that to hike up further but offset more with a 451 set up. We have never had great pace or Premier skills to score goals but an excellent pass and move finished off by hard working players. A lot of that will not be any where near as effective next season. So based upon everything I saw last season and what I expect to pan out in the Premier, it looks like a toss up as what will be the stronger unit, defence or attack. There was no doubt about the CCC, but we are no longer in the CCC or playing the same system.

No need for an apology, just opinions being expressed. I don't totally disagree with your comments but I believe that does over look the dance that goes on prior to that last window closing. A lot of those players will not be without a squad number with a couple of days to go because they have been bought or transferred already, but that is very unusual to happen at the start of the window. Then if you take a club like Saints, they would be more than likely interested in the late pick ups from mid to top clubs that only become available after they have picked up that better player. It's different waiting on one club, another when you are in a chain waiting upon two? We are not talking about a high volume of players here, but just one Bellamy would be enough to change a sides season. For that one, possibly two quality players that could make a real difference to Saints will normally come close to the final wire, with the current squad system having it's part in that. There are bargains to be had but with every bargain comes the uncertainty if they will fulfil the promise. We have plenty of promise from our recent buys, but nothing definite to say they will do the job required. The best we can say about our recent acquisitions is that they look better than we already have, nothing about if they are good enough for the Premier. Then looking at what we have been associated with are players from teams relegated last season with no takers from established clubs.

Every season it gets bunched up to the last few days, even longer with the squad system now. The top teams and others have not completely sorted out their squads and as yet cannot confirm who will be definitely staying or going. Most of the players wanted by clubs become available when they are not included in the squad and then get made available for temporary transfers. If you want the real quality players that can make a difference you just have to wait until the top clubs all over Europe have made their minds up. Our season will be heavily influenced by those quality players we manage to get in before all the windows close. To me it looks like our squad is too light to survive but if we want that extra quality I don't see a practical alternative unless you start splashing out silly money. Even then you are looking at maybe's like Jarvis, there's no guarantees better players will take you on until they see the cold light of day and forced into a move to be able to play.

Without doubt the best value for money is Mark Dennis. Worth the pint every time, even though I hardly ever agree with what he is saying, he brings up a smile every time. Still have the thoughts of him chassising out of the suites with sandwiches poking out of his pockets.

I don't know where this goes as a priority but it is predominantly down to the midfield or defending attacker giving too much space to the opposition in front of the defence. The very worst example is when there is a midfielder / attacker in a decent defensive position to stop the goal, only for the concentration to wander and let the opposition have a free go. Kelvin has done reasonably well but he does have a slight disadvantage because of his height.

433 or 4231, the key to all of this will be the 451 used for the majority of the game in defending. Adkins has wisely decided we just cannot go toe to toe with the top teams and expect us to come up with points. We have to be able to defend and defend well. There's a lot of sense in your thinking but I would add the following, it has to be about having the right players in that midfield that can defend. Otherwise you are just destroying everything you have set out to achieve. Ricky just does not fit the lone striker in a 451, we can only accommodate him in the midfield. But I just don't feel he is good enough to put in a good enough defensive midfield job that has to be mandatory if you need to play this system (which I am sure we do). If ManC put an extra midfielder in against us (as Italy did against England in the Euro's), I really don't see an escape unless we are geared up for it from the start with the right players. Both Lallana and JRod prefer playing on the left, cutting in on their right foot to do the damage. I don't believe Lallana is as good else where but there is logic in having JRod on the left because he is the better header of the ball. As I expect most of our attacking will come from combination work with Clyne down the right, it's important to have someone to get the best from it.

On that basis I would be comfortable using those previous season ticket sales as a good inicator for our eventual crowd figures. The top clubs will be sell outs, it's just going to be a question of how much lower the lesser games draw. If you can't find ways of getting the demand up high enough to make things difficult for those games, it would not surprise me to see crowds of 28k, even lower with the odd times and sky. But as soon as we get demand up that should easily generate the higher numbers. It will come as long as we are in the Premier with this drive and direction. After seeing so many wait so long and patiently with the Dell, I really do not feel that is a valid argument. In my case I almost gave up on league games, substituted by early rounds of the cup, reserves and juniors. A lot of us found alternative methods of supporting Saints without giving up hope of a regular ticket. My experience is that it generated even a bigger demand, supported by the numbers who took up the offer of S Mary's after waiting all that time.

My guess would be about the same, maybe slightly less, but the OP has made a very good base to start from. I am very impressed with this figure when you consider the Dell effect and it's implication on the waiting lists for season ticket holders. I believe going from the Dell to St Marys is a bigger pickup of season ticket sales because how monumental the new stadium was to Saints added to the frustration many suffered waiting for a season ticket for so long. I don't discount the significance of Premier return but nothing like the bottle effect I remember of being actually able to get a seat for every home game and the new facilities. We know from the volume of season ticket sales when we left the Dell (23,000?) that it generated difficulties for getting seats, the right combination of seats and all the hassle to go with that. That volume of season ticket sales should provide similar demand as previously, if not initially then eventually with retaining Premier status. It's all going to boil down to how easy it is to get tickets and the pressure that generates with many having to go in early for tickets for fear of none, fuelling the equation. It's possible that just being that 500-1000 season tickets shy of previous will be enough to put enough slack into the system that the pressure for those free tickets will not be there. That could easily drop an extra 1000 off the total, giving a running total of 2000 a game less on average. But I really do not expect that to last long if we maintain our Premier status because of the club direction. The way we are going this season and the manner in which the club wants to develop, especially the youth makes this very exciting times. Next seaon I would fully expect that demand to be back to old levels or higher for Premier football. I believe these are very good level of season ticket sales because we have not been brought up with the lack of tickets generated by the Dell. How we are going to then talk about 40k+ crowds is another matter but based upon European football from an emerging talent of youth, that could easily do it. The trouble is every other team in the Premier will be attempting the same eventually. That's going to come down to how good Adkins and Cortese really are.

This had a lot to do with Lallana, rather than their individual merits. Which one aided Lallana better going forward and could deal with gaps left from the lack of cover. I always thought we had an even choice at both FB's until things changed at the start of last season. Butterfield in dominance at the end of the previous season where his passing was that much better. although defensively weaker. Come the next season Richardson had moved on to make the spot his own.

Early days, but I really enjoyed the game, Only read his page but would agree with all the positives fans have highlighted. One problem I felt was that we were very pedestrian in front of goal, something that would cause us problems in the Premier. Guly looked very sharp and it was his involvement which seemed to turn the tide on Ajax walking over us in the first half. Billy looked sharper when he came on but we still have to finish off the pre-season to see where we really are. Ajax will not be your typical Premier side we come up against and I feel a lot more will be required, but at last after seeing this game I know we have a chance. I still feel we need a 15 goal a season Premier striker without opening up the midfield to provide the chances. A good game and the players who were not so great today could easily prove me wrong, here's hoping.

After speed reading the actual document, there is no actual requirement to own a lot of these facilities, but sufficient access to such facilities over the year. There appears no minimum number of players required for each level, just sufficient for a team, which can be as low as 4 for the youngest up to 7 for the eldest where overage is allowed, The only strict requirement is the level of staff required for nominal, increasing per player number. Financially its going to be more cost effective for groups of 20 and multiples thereof. In effect the whole EPPP document is what you would expect laid out for pupils of any private school, but with the emphasis on football and governed by the EPL and OFSTED.

That being the case, will we get re-audited once our new buildings and everything are in place? The new buildings may not come so heavily into the equation as most imagine. There has to be a base level of facilities but it's possible most clubs could have that anyway. One specific area is for allowing the younger academy players to have on site teaching such their travel time can then be incorporated into coaching and practice. This will be numbers related but I am not sure the audit deals with it in that manner (does there have to be a minimum number of students at a particular level?). They will require a staff / academy player ratio throughout all aspects, backed up by the qualifications of the staff. Most of this will be in the form of written, technical and evaluation procedures for the academy players that has a standard reference back to the FA.

By definition an audit will be based upon actual rather than proposed. As they have just completed and "ticked off" the audit, we must be talking about something relatively new, within the last month or less.

Our business so far has been an improvement upon what we have already, but the excellent part has yet to be proved. The big problem we have is that we don't know if these players will be top ten standard of the Premier, it's all a chance. This is all going to come down to how Adkins gets the team playing in the Premier. I feel Adkins has that in him, but again a chance because he nor any of the other staff have actually achieved this. I am not expecting much more than this because that is the reality of the situation and happy enough that my team has that shot at the Premier. After the window has closed we will find out exactly what each team has done and a better idea of how this will shape the season to come. I certainly find the hope attached to these new players as exciting, but this has to be tempered by what the OP has expressed, no certainties. I would have no problem with Scott Dann when you take into account his injury problems, but again it could be seen as more of a possible that an actual for the Premier.

Bearing in mind that over recent years Palace executives have described the tribunal process as a total joke. Southampton taking the mick looks about what you would expect as a competitive offer. Why even bother to comment further when it is now out of the two clubs hands? The answer lies in the fact these tribunals come up with a price far less than the selling club is happy with. So why do you feel that a club offering what could be around the expected rate not be sensationalist? You have no idea of the fee, just a comment from Palace that could have come from one of their previous tribunal rulings.

I think there are two aspects worth considering, the monetary gain you provide to the club and the support you give it. For the monetary side that would be simple, a system based upon how much profit your expenditure brings to the club, rewarded by upgrades to the suites, club functions and store. For support that would be based upon games attended with an add on for season ticket holders. Season ticket holders would get 5 preferences on away games and 5 preferences for extra tickets per season. With an automatic first right to their seat at home cup games. All other allocations would be simply upon games attended, irrespective of season ticket holder or not.