Saint Fan CaM

Welcome Nathan - I hope you’ll do well at our club and achieve the success we all crave for. You’ll get my support if I see better more dynamic performances from our team. Like others this seems an underwhelming appointment - one born of dogma and belief that the ‘Saints way’ is the best and only way, which has seen us steadily decline over the years since Koeman and Poch. So my biggest concern is not Nathan as such, but that he will continue with the same footballing philosophy and system employed by others…i.e. slow build up play. When I saw Sheffield Wednesday last night it was immediately apparent that even a L1 team moved the ball faster in transition and attack than we did and that was shocking. It’s the essence of why we’ve lost so many games and score so few goals. Our new Manager has got a huge task therefore in turning our fortunes around. He also needs significant backing early in the January window at least in a very decent 15 goal a season striker. It’s another rollercoaster for us Saints fans I feel.

Why oh why did I waste money to watch the same old drab rubbish? Got a bloody parking ticket into the bargain too.😣 Really hoped Selles would try something a bit different, but other than making a few changes, it was the same old. Shout out to Aribo, Mara and Ad Armstrong - truly horrendous, pointless performances in which they were were outshone by their L1 opponents. Game changed quite dramatically the moment Perraud came on and we went four at the back, then Stuey Armstrong came on to put an ounce of zing in our play. But honestly, whoever the new Manager is they’ve got a massive job coaching these players in how to attack with the ball. Wednesday were going for it with more pace and intent in the first half and for large parts of the second…you could be forgiven for thinking they were the Prem team. It really did remind me of the Lowe days - same feeling of despair and disbelief that we could be that bad. And we were THAT bad - still looking ready for the drop.

This…^^^

He was treated to a nice lunch at SMS today apparently, so expecting him to be in the Directors box this evening. I’m sure the Northam KWP will rise to occasion and sing a hearty rendition of “kumbaya my lord” to welcome him. Maybe.

No not a final judgement as such, but it will likely tell us how he wants the team setup and playing tactically. If we continue with the tippy tappy backwards/ sideways passing with slow build-ups and counterattacks I’ll not have high expectations for our continued place in EPL or my resilience to continue watching boring inevitable losses.

Can’t say any of the interviews I’ve seen of him have particularly inspired me, so I hope he’s got a lot more in his locker when dealing with our precious players. He’s going to need balls of steel and a very convincing approach to bring about a change in fortunes for the club. Very sceptical at the moment, but the first game he takes charge of will be the time to judge his potential. A part of me wonders if he’ll actually decide it’s too risky and stay with his beloved Luton.

Wanna bet?! 🤣

Not got good vibes about this guy…think he’ll be crying to go back to his spiritual home Luton by Christmas.

Would be incredibly stupid to play anything but a strong side. SW will be no pushover…they’re a good team driving for promotion. The club needs a lift by the team putting in a dominant performance and a convincing win. Good time to get new (or interim) manager bounce. Interestingly someone on here recently suggested Selles was the tactical man in the managerial team. If that’s the case and we see a typical tippy, tappy, backwards and sideways affair, I can see a banana skin and a nasty reaction from fans. Reckon we’ll scrape it 2-1.

For me the biggest positive was the stability and consistency he provided during his tenure. Until his untimely comments about his retirement, I never felt he had any other focus than his role at SFC which was so refreshing after so many managerial appointment cock-ups. He clearly tried to forge a strong relationship with the fans and was generally honest in his assessment of performances, however that started to fall apart towards the end. It’s a terrible shame that the club once again failed to back their manager in terms of maintaining squad quality and this has played a huge part in Ralph’s demise, however I have to say that Ralph did himself no favours at times in team selection and tactics. When looking back I will have no bad feelings towards Ralph - he’s kept us in the EPL and delivered some occasional great results - just like Puel, but for longer I guess.

That’s a concern as it suggests they want someone who can be told what to do AND how to do it. Someone who will carry on playing with the same shite football. Think I’d rather have Adkins back! Having said that, I’ve always been one to judge the Manager by the performances on the pitch and the results. Who knows this guy could be the re-boot we need, but at the moment it seems more like a Bednarek style own goal!

That’s a concern as it suggests they want someone who can be told what to do AND how to do it. Someone who will carry on playing with the same pass it backwards/sideways/possession is everything, style loved by Ralph. Let’s hope not and let’s hope he’s better than his Championship position suggests. Stranger things have happened but this seems too big a risk for SR.

My view is that it started to go wrong a good 24 months ago. I’m sure Ralph will pick up a really good job in a European club somewhere, perhaps closer to home and family. For us SR have a massive challenge to repair the damage, recruiting a suitable and highly competent Manager - someone who can truly inspire our young squad to better results. I just hope whoever it is gets to decide how to coach the players into playing in a faster, more dynamic manner that befits the EPL. Then they have to back that Manager significantly in the January window with 2-3 top class players to raise the overall quality of the squad. It may be too late - let’s hope not.

I cannot believe there’s any supporter that did not or still does not want Ralph to succeed, however for reasons we may not be fully aware of, the performances on the pitch have been extremely poor. And the troubling thing is that this has been apparent for two seasons and not properly addressed. There has been some improvement across the defensive line, however that’s masked a new young goalkeeper being given the no.1 shirt but actually not being an EPL level player. The midfield and attack have been progressively weakened without sufficient quality being brought in, with some players apparently losing their way because they rely on better players being next them (e.g. JWP and Romeu). However, the above is overshadowed by the style of football we play…overly defensive, predictable in attack and a lack of precision in passing. This is not about silky skills, it’s about resilience, belief and stamina and if our players are not able to achieve the fitness levels expected of them to move faster then our recruitment and coaching staff need the light shone on them. Ralph may not be entirely to blame then, but inevitably if something is not working a change needs to be made. And in the case of SFC’s continued tenure in the EPL that needs to be made without further delay. Plus we need at least one excellent proven striker in January…possibly also an attacking midfielder too.

Forum as flaky as the management of our club. Ralph out but I’m so despondent I actually don’t give shit anymore.

Once again AMN acting like a complete pussy letting Woods have a sight of goal. We’re going down without significant surgery by SR…make no mistake.

Utterly abysmal finishing one again from Adams after a great cross from Ely. We’re losing very, very ordinary. There’s only one option to shake this up. Ralph out!!!

YeH, saw this too and thought it was a really good analysis that aligns to where we’re at.

Yeah, PO postcode starts a stones throw from us in Locks Heath. When we moved to the area I rejected a couple of houses that were across the divide with PO address codes. Stupid, but just couldn’t face seeing it on my mail every day.🤪🤮

I retired this year and one of the first benefits I realised was going to be possible was watching as many of the daytime games as I wanted. Since being a kid I’ve always liked the big ceremony of the World Cup and the chance to see how the likes of Brazil are playing compared to our players. However, the excitement for this coming tournament has been significantly subdued largely due to the controversy surrounding it. I’ll still be watching a good number of games though because I can! Like so many things for those of us of a certain age, the now doesn’t seem to match up to the expectations of the ‘glorious’ past. Back in the 60’s-80’s life’s experience’s had some substance, rather than the corrupt, superficial, fake news, throw-away society we live in now. Rant over…I need some caffeine!

He’s clearly not at De Bruyne’s level, however he could be our version of Saha or to some extent even MLT. At the moment he’s neither a really competent defensive mid or a link-up attack minded mid…his set pieces are not as potent. To be honest I’m struggling to see his value at all, which is a shame because he’s definitely got the ability to be more.

Again agree - our front line tends to be very static and flat along the last line of defenders. We don’t move forwards as a group effectively. However, with JWP I don’t think his awareness of what’s around him is particularly keen - even when he’s in acres of space to make a turn and dribble forwards he’ll still favour a backwards or sideways pass. I’m convinced this is why his successful pass stats look so (superficially) high.

Agree with most of this, but do wonder whether JWP is a key part of the problem. His highly negative play is either of his own making or because he’s been instructed to be ‘safe’. I tend to think it’s the latter because I’ve noticed that when we’re chasing a game he changes and shows a willingness to attack more, albeit not entirely successfully. One of the important missing elements of our game is effective link up play from midfield…JWP could be the answer if only he was given the green light to be more positive. IMO of course.

I’d say that we’re looking very Norwich-like at the moment and ultimately Pukki didn’t manage to save them did he? I don’t think he’s the answer - we’d end up having three Championship level senior strikers who can’t find their feet and still be relegated.

Arsenal are not Newcastle and let’s face it, it’s a rarity nowadays to see a move as fluid and quick as the one that created our goal.