Saint Fan CaM

Yep - as I said at the start - anything better than 3-1 and he’s done great. But…9 minutes of extra time??!?!!

And there it is - not enough goals and disarray in defence. Suga’s not been great this half.

Utter bollox VAR - everyone knows it depends when the line gets drawn that determines whether it’s onside or not…they just pull it back half a second.

Well I expect Russ will say the team have executed his instructions to get to half-time without conceding in perfect fashion. We all know how his halftime talks do wonders…I’m now quietly pessimistic rather than suicidal!🤣🤣

Anything better than 4-0 and I guess Russ will be deemed a genius! 😂

Utter joke. Basically surrendering the game early. Clown of Jones proportions.

Even with Dibling we’re looking very, very poor in the final third. That Lallana managed to craft such a lovely assist and Dibling was already in the box and only needed one touch to finish was an event that will likely happen once a season the way we tend to play…perhaps less. Let’s not get too misty eyed - it was one goal, albeit it a nice one - and the reason lies with the manager/coaching team. It needs to be said again - we’ll not know how good this team is until Russ & Co go.

Has he gone yet? 🧐

An ex-Prem Manager with a high level of experience, albeit with no significant success (e.g. titles) out of work for quite some time, if offered a contract to the end of the season with a decent bonus on Prem survival? Not sure, but surely he might be tempted? That would be an ideal scenario in my opinion - give SR / the club time to ponder over ‘what next’…breathing and planning space.

Yep, and there’s no point attacking without varying the manner in which attempts on goal are made. We’re so predictable in our build-up - almost schoolboy level. Whoever coaches this aspect of our play needs a rocket up their arse.

Bizarrely as there’s no chance of winning, this is one game where 70% possession would be a good thing to stop an absolute flood of goals against, so I’m fully on the Russball bus. With no Captain Jack to select we might see the dependable Manning re-introduced as he knows how to pass backwards and sideways very reliably thus proving we have the players to execute Russ’s master plan. Can’t see any hope of us scoring a goal so… 5-0 Arsenal. It’s going to be ugly.

It would be very easy to categorically state that we’re done for if Russ and his underperforming coaching team are left to continue on the same vein. I’d love to think he could turn it round, but I don’t think he’s capable of… (a) picking a consistent best side, (b) coaching the team to defend effectively, (c) coaching the team to play fast flowing attack minded football, (d) motivating the team to achieve anything other than passing backwards/sideways based possession football. Conversely there is every likelihood that there is a manager/coach out there with the nouse to repair the shambles we’re seeing unfold.

See above…^^^

That’s like watching your most prized horse run off over yonder hill, after your most trusted stable girl has left the stable door open. You know it’s pointless putting up a chase and for a minute all you can do is gasp at the ineptitude of the stable girl who is sobbing, not knowing whether to have a rant or call the authorities first. Whatever, you know for certain things will never be the same.

So you voted ‘no’? (I tried checking but the poll was anonymous unfortunately!)

That’s your opinion and you’re entitled to it. I’m not saying we’ve got anything more than a mediocre Prem squad, but it’s better than the results have shown. It’s the coaching that’s appalling. The recruitment has been awful too, but Russ has had his hands all over that too. Players that could get into Bournemouth’s team are - Ramsdale, KWP (unused), Downes, THB, Suga, Cornet (if used wisely), Dibling (if used properly), ABK (unused), TP (unused). But that’s not the point - they’re receiving crap, negligent coaching and team management. It’s utter rubbish to say Bournemouth are a relegation rival - they’ve spent better than us and have a better coaching set-up. They’re an established mid-table club who were out of sight by half-time playing quick expansive football, although I will concede Russ handed the first half to them on a plate.

I thought waking up this morning I might have softened my views in reflection of last nights debacle. Nope - the first half at least was an utterly dismal affair. But it didn’t need to be - that was inflicted on us (and the team) by Russ and the coaching team. The 2nd half despite getting a goal back was not much better in terms of performance - they still managed to move the ball around sluggishly as if they were drawing the match and yet Bournemouth still looked dangerous wanting a fourth. I didn’t want Russ to fail and I hate the managerial merry-go-round that Saints seem so good at perpetuating, but the show is over. The experiment has run its course. Whatever the question, Russball is not the answer and we’ll not know how good the squad is until he’s gone. Russ certainly doesn’t know - he just wants to be mates with as many as possible. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Stephens and Manning back in the team soon. However I don’t think the club will pull the trigger and sack him, such is the ineptitude. I’m thinking they’ll not even do it if we lose to Leicester. They won’t give a monkeys about having the lowest points total in EPL history. They’ll be thinking Russ is the man to re-build the team back in the Championship. Relegation - great way to lose the deadwood and start again. Break it to fix it. 🤪🙄

Good post, but the part highlighted is golden. If he hadn’t already lost the changing room, he has after tonight’s post-match comments. He’s become his own liability and he has to go before he does any more damage to the squad or himself for that matter.

Russ and his team are a busted flush. Pointless going over trodden ground - he has to go. Oh and the promotion - that was won for him by the players he had at his disposal…if anything the squad was better than his system allowed them to be in my opinion…he held them back from their true potential.

Coached by an inept management team that are mid-Championship level at best.

Strange (or worrying) - thought he was one of our better players this evening.

Not putting a striker on the pitch was the first mistake. The second was putting Cornet on the right when he’s been at his best on the left and expecting him to provide cover to Suga (he didn’t). The third was expecting Dibling to provide 95% of all creativity through the middle - an 18 year old in his 2nd/3rd game in the Prem. Fourth was expecting the team to beat their press by playing over our midfield. Just watching the Martin presser - he’s saying he’s hurt for the first half performance. So he’s blaming the players. Fuckwit.

And THAT is exactly the essence of it all. Forget the possession football propaganda…we have a poor coaching team end of. The team set-up for this game absolutely nails that fact completely. Go now Russ.

Thank fuck for that - Sumenye off.

Lallana turns his player…passes it to Downes who goes backwards to Bednarek who in turn passes it…backwards.