Saint Fan CaM

Absolutely this - best post so far on this thread. Apart from this one of course.... [ahem]

I have no idea what this means, but I think I like it.

I look forward to the day when I can go to SMS and be confident that, barring an utter disaster, I will leave the ground talking about the fantastic, strong, leak-proof defence we've got! One can only dream! LOL

It's a shame for the lad that he needs to make up stories to attempt to deflect attention away from his shambles of a club. This story is not worth the toilet paper it was probably written on.

So, Saints are not prepared and not fit? Suggest you read the overall Stats. Morgan for example has covered more ground in matches than any other player in any team. JWP has twice shown himself to be one of the fastest players in the league. It's really not about fitness - it's about competency and brain power to read situations and react quickly enough. Fonte for example is unfortunately showing signs that he cannot cope, but that's nothing to do with his fitness.

We're away from home and in need of experience. In retrospect, there's a good chance Lambert will start as lone striker then. I've been pondering over who will get first dibs in midfield and attack on the team sheet if everyone is fit. Lallana (LWF) and Morgan (CDM) pick themselves IMO. So, what does that leave us with? JayRod at £7m - you would think that he has a starting place, but probably not if Lambert is fit, so he'll on the bench. I can see him slipping backwards. Ramirez at £12m - you would think that he has a starting place (eventually) - Right Forward? So when he starts, that's Puncheon on the bench. Mayuka at £2m? - given his pace and his immediate bench place, he must be in the plans but as left forward, if Lallana is playing he's going to start on the bench. Davis, JWP and Morgan have earnt their place in midfield as regular starters - can't see that unit being broken up in the immediate future.

I wouldn't pay much store to this. I don't think Ramirez can be judged over the course of a couple of internationals and anyway, when he gets up to speed at Saints his fitness and stamina will only get better because of the efforts made by the coaching team. Just look at the difference it's made to the likes of Lambert.

Like. (:

3-1 Arse. They will be too much for us. They play in a style that is similar to ours - keep ball. But with a team that probably averages 10% better than ours and can turn on pace into channels (something we don't seem capable of). If Ramirez is available for selection and fit, does anyone really think he will sit on the bench for 75 minutes against Arse? I don't believe NC will want to see £12m sat on the bench - do you? I would hope for... Mayuka Rodrigues (Lambo) Ramirez (Chappers) Lallana Morgan Davis Fox (if fit) Jos Fonte (Yoshi) Clyne .............. Davis Lambert (JRod), Yoshi (Fonte) and Chappers (Mayuka) on as subs to see out the game. Easy eh?!

Panics on the ball probably because he does not have the experience yet to turn a Manager's instructions into consistent deeds in a Prem game. I am sure he'll come good, but not now.

Considering Morgan was on the pitch at the end of the game, I would suggest the issue is one of stamina, not fitness. And it's true that we are starting to see why Morgan has been so highly thought of - it's not just his emerging technical ability - his physique and attitude is clearly superb.

Err, yes...yes we do.

Straight out of the 'Inspirational Coaching for Dummies' book written by D. Brent!

Why? I am really looking forward to your answer - I think I must have missed something here.

Great post. Love it when someone does their homework.

In answer to the OP - no. However, I do think the money spent on Rodrigues could have been better spent - we should never have placed so much (monetary) faith in a lower league player when what was desperately needed was to raise the overall competency level in the squad. You don't do that by recruiting more L1/Championship level players - we needed to be buying 3-4 players of Ramirez's stature.

Another round peg in a square hole. It'll probably happen before too long then.

Enjoying life and still supporting Saints? HTH.

For those who are wishing for Shaw, be careful what you wish for. Based on the games I've seen him play in, he has a long way to go before he is at a dependable level to cope in the Prem. In fact, I would go as far to say that Fox is a better option at this point in time and that's saying something.

Still about I think, but not a part of the 25 squad.

The answer to the OP will only be provided by a series of tests utilising Yoshi with alternately Fonte and Jos, plus analysis of his fitness in comparison to other CB's. This is the way NA works. So we will not be able to guess until we actually see him play. Even then, it'll be pure guesswork as the Management of the club don't want to risk giving any advantage to opposing teams and it's clear that strategy is paying off now we've got so many points on the board.

Woah! Wait up there people! What happened to the 25 man squad then?! I've lost count to be fair and can't be arsicled to find out, but surely there can't be too many spaces left in the squad for over 21year old players?!? However many spaces there are, perhaps we need to be thinking about raising the quality in defence maybe!???

I did say PARTLY to blame. Point is, to come out after the game and start pointing the finger of blame at KD when he had no chance saving their goals is daft.

I would wager Nigel will not do anything of the sort - to change one of his dependable senior players at a time where he needs experience to shine through would be close on suicidal for the team and his career. Gazza may be one for the future, but he's by no means the finished product and ready to take responsibility for a defence that is extremely shaky and lacking confidence at the moment.

Absolutely agree with this. Couldn't believe the number of plastics pouring out down the aisles when they scored the 2nd with so much time left.