Saint Fan CaM

Oh dear...Krusty Krueger has screwed up again?! Surely not?!

And the circus that is Saints FC just keeps on rolling on...roll up, roll up...Krueger the Klown in his best performance yet!

I simply will not believe a word that man says until we start against Pool with Morgan in the starting line-up and at least 3 decent new starters in the team.

Well, well. Silly season it is then. How long before this is jumped on by the journo hacks, the club issues a "we're not for sale" statement, followed by a series of so called ITK leaks of potential suitors. Yes, the plot is finally in place.

Simple. Because it suited the clubs strategy to lose the highest paid players. This suggests he is complicit. This also suggests that this apparent debarkle was planned and executed...I.e. it's not an unplanned mess...it's deliberate and calculated. Make of that what you will!

If it's correct in it's assumptions, then it's time for the spineless fools in the FA to do something - English football cannot go on like this before ticket sales plummet.

As Didcot said above - it's shambolic. I was probably one of the 1st to renew my ST. If the club offered a refund now I would seriously consider it. As they will not, I will live in hope through what will likely be a very sad season seeing the club disintegrate and then depending on the season and what happens next, I'll decide whether to renew again. All the signs are that I will get more enjoyment doing something else with my £730 - I don't believe in the Policy or Strategy of the club anymore so why should I support it?

It will be a London club - he was letting people know of his desire at the awards dinner allegedly. This has been festering for months now. The Board have completely messed up.

In a heartbeat. For want of a better description, NC's departure might be considered a constructive dismissal - a fait accompli if you like.

I find it just incredible that this mess has been allowed to happen and when players contract have been in place. The Board - including KL - should have been in emergency session weeks ago to plot a course so that incomings were interspersed with outgoing players. As it is, IF there is actually any money in the kitty as we're led to believe (why should we believe anything anymore), the club will get taken to the cleaners by the selling club AND wage demands AND agents fees will be higher because of the ineptitude shown. Then there's the scouting team - 2 players identified by Koeman and they're across the line pretty quick. So what about the rest of the targets - why has it taken so long? I'll tell you why - once Cortese left, managerial competency left with him. Too many (poor) cooks have spoilt the broth my friends.

Jeez - this must be one hell of a rant to take that long to write out! Come on Crabs, I want to settle down for a TV dinner. What's left to say though? Saints supporters have been well and truly shafted by a Board who have blatantly lied at every opportunity. The club is clearly a shambles. As I said some months ago (to howls of derision) - #itshappeningbutnotthewayweexpected.

Yeah, I'm hoping my intuition is completely wrong too. Trouble is the evidence so far tells me otherwise. ):

Sums up my thoughts completely. No point anyone at the club making any kind of statement as I will simply not believe it. I actually feel quite disconnected now. The only action I want to see now is the spending of all the warchest on some real decent talent. Anything less and another lie will have unfolded. However, if that's the case then I think I will not renew my ST next season - I can't support a club with no ambition and one where I'm lied to...doesn't inspire me to have any interest frankly.

I sense a lack of signings, with much store being placed with the Academy youth and giving them the opportunity to shine. Perhaps 1 or 2 more players in before the season starts. it's not looking too promising.

There's a simple question to ask yourself when considering these 'possible' links. How much chance did we have keeping our best players from wanting out to a top 6 PL side?

A good post, but perhaps not the full picture. I believe what has happened is perfectly in line with the Policies and Strategy of the club - its just been more pronounced because of the number of player departures at one time. This has come about because of the swift rise to the Prem with a large contingent of English players who now are ripe for picking and a good bunch of Academy products itching to get into the first team, coupled with a new Manager wanting to inject his players into the team. It all makes sense, as painful and risky as it may sound. The time to be concerned will be after the Liverpool game if we get hammered and there have been few signings of quality.

You're right...the adding up failed too.

You are simply wrong. If Staplewood was sold off, then I would be the first to agree. But that will not happen. No this is more akin to lean change management. Take cost out the business and generate quick and significant cashflow for reinvestment.

Agree with this, however to think we are not complicit I beIieve is wrong. Why else would we spend so much upgrading the Academy, scouting network, Staplewood etc? Ah no, Les Reed has been instrumental in much of this Strategy and has indeed done well. I suspect his friends in the FA...the Directors from the top 4 clubs...will be shaking his hand and telling him what a great job he's doing.

Without the insults, anyone who understands the Strategy of the club will recognise that the Academy is the heart and soul (lol) of it. And something tells me the OP knows this fully.

It's clear what the strategy is. We bring in English youngsters and develop them through the Academy with the promise of 1st team football if they're good enough. Regardless of anything, if a decent offer comes in from a top 4 club they will be released and sold. We will reinvest in cheaper foreign replacements to backfill essential positions in the 1st team. Our squad will be made up of upcoming youngsters and so will appear thin. This is the Southampton way. The evidence is there for all to see...how many of the players sold so far have been English or at least British? The teams above us seem to be mostly interested in our domestic product I would suggest. Of course the big problem this summer is that the squad has been bulging with decent English talent since L1 and there's a log jam of younger players coming through the system. You could argue that now was the right time to cash in and change things with a new manager coming in, however the risks are huge if you don't replace outgoing players with equal or better talent. So the big questions are these. Will the Board spend an appropriate amount of money to keep the talent level up? Will Koeman and his team be able to recreate the team spirit seen in previous years with a team of strangers? To assist in maintaining squad unity, will important players such as Fonte, Cork and JRod be retained? I don't expect JRod to be retained BTW....he fits the above mould and will be sold at the first opportunity.

Undoubtedly would be a great signing, but I am not confident that this Board can get this level of signing across the line. We shall see.

Exactly. The Board of SFC have ultimately lied. What the fook is the point in them saying anything now? Their words will ring hollow to all but the most gullible.

Saints have been one of the most financially secure clubs in the UK. Have just achieved an excellent PL finish - 8th and a few points behind Utd. This has been done with a backbone of a team assembled in L1. Reed has been there throughout. Ask yourself what has changed since KL took power away from Cortese. A finance man at the top...a motivational consultant figure brought in to manage change...and top it off with some 'yes' men. In industry this is the precursor to the introduction of 'lean' business management in readiness to make the company look financially more attractive. Put simply, like him or loath him, Reed is probably the only man on the Board that has any semblance of pure footballing interest at heart. He's clearly fighting a losing battle right now.

Except there is precious little evidence of either a big warchest or indeed players of substance wanting to come to us to spend it on.