Saint Fan CaM

I rest my case.

I said at the time he signed he would be a risk because of his knees and loads on here gave me stick. Look, the level we are expecting from our 'main' striker is beyond that which Austin can deliver week in week out. If Pelle does go in the summer we would be best placed to move Austin on and get a really good replacement in. Fact.

I would go with this and smash 'em... Forster Cedric Fonte VVD Bertrand Romeu Vic Long Clasie Mane Austin Bench: Rodriguez on for Clasie at 75 minutes with Mane moving central. But we won't. We will go 5 - 2 - 3 with Targett and Cedric to start so as to feed Pelle pointless crosses that they will snuff out easily.

2-1 loss for this one - I think Leicester are the type of side we don't like playing.

Best game of the season (so far). Wanyama proved he so much more than a big lump CDM - he can play the ball when he wants. Mane - a strange beast but one we should learn to tame and love. Martina - great performance. VVD - towering performance. Why fook didn't MOTD show/talk about Shanes nailed on pen?

Pelle realises finally that he needs to move to the ball to gain any advantage and scores two goals as a result. At last! Tadic put in a good shift as a creative AM. Stonewall pen turned down for some crazy reason and Mane's incorrect sending off is not punished in terms of the 3 points thankfully. Officials once again trying to make themselves more important to a result than the players.

Unless someone has a large 0-2 Pelle scorer bet on. (-;

Well I see nothing more than a loss in this game. No strike force of any substance, an impotent midfield and a leaky defence that includes the opposition talisman Yoshida (a shame really - I like the guy but every game he plays includes a horrible mistake and gifted goal. 2-0 Stoke...if we're lucky.

I just don't understand how anyone can criticise a players effectiveness when only the minimum of game time is afforded to the player. He's basically coming on to replace some tiring legs with creativity which he does. A prolonged run in the team, preferably at no.10 would provide the opportunity to critique him more accurately. He's not got the skills or speed of Mane however, so he'll not be a replacement for him.

You must have not been watching the game - Mannone did make 3 worldies to keep us out...one of which was from a superb close range drive by Martina, who incidentally had a really good game.

Ref was poor. Pelle was poor and most of their chances came because he carelessly gave away the ball - would rather have had the under-21 striker on in the 2nd half. Mane hardly interested until nearer the end. Our corners were dire. Their keeper made three world class saves to keep us out. And today just showed what fickle fragile supporters we have walking out with less than 85 minutes gone, although I have to say I'm so pleased they missed a cracking end to the game and a just reward for Saints. Just hope they don't bother coming again - worst type of 'fan' IMHO.

Sorry to say that it is at this point usually when Saints start to choke so this will be one of the toughest fixtures we'll have all season. Form of both teams is very good but I think the break will work against us and we'll lose this ... 1-3. It'll be a shame for Forster not to equal the all-time record for clean-sheets, but Chelski look like they have re-found the key to unlocking defences. If we give away silly free-kicks within striking distance expect trouble too. If we draw I think it'll be a good result - a win of any kind will be exceptional under the circumstances.

Agreed. And running at their defence - could be some 'slip-ups' there. One to watch is Clasie - will he start let alone last 90 minutes?

"With the exception of the West Ham game, he has recreated the dominant home performances we had gotten used to, and defensively the team have been superb on the road." - Don't agree with this bit. I thought we showed dominance by providing a defensive master class with 10 men in the Wet Spam game. Seriously top, top performance even though we only won 1-0 (we could have nicked another on the break twice in the 2nd half as they were pushing for an equaliser).

Well, that didn't take long for the thread to slide into insults and strangeness. Anyway, back to the match - there's been a far few draws I believe with Swansea. By all accounts we should win this 0-1 but they've improved lately and I can see a 1-1 on the books messing up the clean sheet record.

Problem with Clasie is that he is fragile. Pulled up last night with a strain and was hobbling for 5 minutes until he was pulled off. Hopefully not enough damage to stop him playing at Swansea, but we need a replacement on the bench to come in a replace him - I guess that will be Davis as Reed is not favoured.

8 points from 2 wins, 2 draws and a loss which I think will be a resurgent Chelski.

Wanyama tackle was never a red - definite yellow...he went for the ball but missed it - that's not going for the player. Poyet play-acted terribly and like a complete plum Clutterfook fell for it with considerable help from the Wet Spam drama club. I do hope we appeal, however I don't think Vic wants to be here anymore and it was a cynical way to miss games. Forster was my MOTM - didn't do much except provide us the win by making a world-class crucial save - as good as any goal scored. Plus it's his 5th consecutive clean sheet - incredible really given around a month ago he wasn't in the first team. To be fair, with the exception on VW, the whole team put in a brilliant shift and it was a well-deserved win.

It would be a good start to extend the Northam with an upper tier for all away fans - would transform the atmosphere of SMS for the better IMO and would assist in security keeping order too.

Got him and Wanyama as constants in me FIFA team - beasts together.

Surely a "look at me, look at me - I am the ultimate troll" post? As others have pointed out, the irony of it all is quite breath-taking.

I would have thought this was very obvious - apparently he had to sing 'Stand By Me' for his Saints 1st team initiation, so what about... When match-day has come, And St Mary's is not dark, And a win, is the only result we must see, No we won't be afraid, no we won't be afraid, Because Charlie Austin plays for Saints FC. So Charlie, Charlie score - for me, oh, Charlie Austin score for me, Won't you score, won't you score a goal for me. Got to be a winner surely?!

Really great watch. I hope Frazer remembers how Saints stood by him during a career threatening injury when we offer him a new contract. It just goes to show how bad J-Rods injury was and how he was brought back too soon initially, given that Frazer has actually leap-frogged him in his recovery.

We can win this if we keep up the same intensity and don't get overawed by their big names and big stadium. Must be much more belief now. However, Utd are much much better than the two frankly awful sides we've just faced, so I'm saying 2-1 Utd or possibly 2-2.

Pleased with the signing, however a slight word of caution. I believe he has little/no knee cartilage remaining and I would expect at £4m he will not be starting every game - far from it and he'll be rotated with Long if it's true. Perhaps someone with more knowledge can confirm?