david in sweden

....but you forgot to mention that they play 46 games in the Championship and teams score bucket loads of goals every week, and no-one has suggested how we do that without goal scoring strikers. ...especially when we don't even try to attack in the final third...

All wrong !. ....it will be some unknown from a foreign league who can scarcely speak two sentences in English when interviewed on Sky... and who uses Esperanto and sign language in the training sessions...

of course if we do get three points, we can expect a congratulatory " Thank You " card from Pep.....

......seems to me that everyone "runs about" a lot , but no-one can score goals. We've had to rely on Adams and Prowsey's meagre tally. I know we've conceded a lot (in part because of having had 7 different CB combinations) but we've also lost a dozen games by a one goal margin, and after today ... have played 13 games without scoring at all. If we can pay 16 million for a proven goalscorer, and only give him 30 minutes off the bench, then we might equally well give someone like Ballard a little bit of game time - we surely can't get any worse..... next up is Arsenal !!!!!!

I think my calculator might be different to yours Nordic Saint .. I make it ...24 goals. He made his first team debut coming on after 75 mins. in the Cambridge Utd League Cup game and scored near the end. A very impressive career start... ....and even more impressive when you consider that he is still young enough to qualify as an U18 ..where he has scored 8 times in 9 League and Cup games .....and since moving up the the B team ...he has managed 15 goals in 23 games (with some of those coming on as a late sub). One of our best youth products in the last 15 years. I guess Adam Lallana had a similar start when he was at similar age.

Onuacho has only played more than 63 minutes in one game and his first 3 outings were in tough away fixtures @ Brentford, Chelsea and Leed,) where we had barely 40% possession, parked the bus for long periods and created very few shots / chances. Not really a fair chance to show up. He came with a goal scoring record, (and he didn't get that by always coming off the bench in the last 10 minutes). He deserves a proper start , and we should play him until he's on his knees, before subbing him off. We can't wait until our " theoretical relegation " before giving him game time alongside Ballard and Doyle (who also deserve minutes ). He signed in good faith, in the hope of playing in the Prem. and may end up being relegated without ever getting a shot on goal. Mara is very lightweight and shows occasional bursts of talent, but goes AWOL too often, and I often have to look to see where he is. Yes - he scored v. City, but in all fairness it was a great pass from Djenepo, direct onto his boot, and would have been more difficult to miss. For me Mara is still a work in progress, whilst Onuacho is an experienced player - almost 10 years his senior - with a proven goal scoring record. Whatever the logic of his " non-selection " is - it's a bit beyond me .

Any criticism of recent U18 performances must be tempered with a few key factors that can explain the situation better. The early season successes of the U21 side can be attributed to the 6 or 7 lads from the 2021/22 intake who began as 8 year olds ( JJ Morgan (now Chelsea), Ballard, Dibling, Doyle )...yet all started the season at U21 level, despite still qualifying to play U18 level. In January this year , we sent out 7 of the " regular U21 squad " on various loans, in addition to 8 others, already out on various loans. The massive changes in the U18 squad since then have meant that many of the new intake, even includes some 14 and 15 year olds who are coming up against opponents 3 and 4 years older, yet still manage to DAJFU , despite the massive age differences. Indeed, (in particular) 15 y.o Jay Robinson has earned starts with U21 side and even scored twice to win a game at Aston Villa. Aside from the "schoolboy players ", the current U18 lads are almost entirely first year graduates and struggling to come to terms with U18 level. This is not all bad news but extremely encouraging, as when they move up a level next season, it will make the club's choice of those who who are retained even harder. Inevitably, some will not make the grade, and some others may slip through the net but succeed elsewhere. The big dilemma is anticipating who may be " those late developers " who will not shine whilst they are still in their teens.

.....don't forget to mention Will Smallbone.

No direct comparison, but I recall when " arry" bought Peter Crouch into the side, and everyone laughed at his " clumsy style" , yet PC covered a lot of ground in one stride , and got some goals, too. Can't believe that Onuacho isn't worth a few starts instead of 25 minutes when all is already lost. Our current front line still has players who struggle to score once. It was nice to see Mara (finally) score but his goal v. City was so easy I could have scored it from my armchair. Onuacho has a good goal-scoring record in Belgium.... so how did he do that ? What do we have to lose.?

Relegation Plus / and / Minus? MINUS.. aside from the pride of losing our place in the top tier in the best league in the World ...we'd also lose all that lovely TV money for Prem. clubs. We'd lose some our very best talents... ( JWP and Lavia to start with ), but there maybe a bonus there, too (see below). Reduced crowds.. not likely to get even 20,000 - when you play the likes of Swansea and Blackpool ..depending on where they are next season. We would be one league closer to that mob at the eastern end of the M27. PLUS ...strangely enough quite a few. After sales of our best talents, and the welcome departure of a few more over-paid " bench warmers" the club's salary bill would be drastically reduced and give us less outgoings and a little more economic stability. Those vacancies from (sales of the above) would give a chance for the Saints loanees who have proven themselves at Championship level (the likes of Tella and Smallbone) ... and if we get an offer we can't refuse...and sold them ... we'd get good fees . The (albeit) bad experience of relegation would also give the " new " youngsters will have the benefit of having played a season in the Prem. We also have a dozen former Academy graduates (currently out on loan) who have already cut their teeth on lower league football in the last year and who would be in the running for first team places in a Championship squad, as well as those currently showing up well in the B team. Signing new players ?. One might assume that we would see " newcomers ", but as the current level of our signings is 10-15 million, that level of fee would be drastically halved, or even better than that. Sad to say ....Relegation - even for a short time - might not be a bad thing, and a quick return to the Prem. not so far away.

you mean ...like Nathan Jones?

I agree that it's a joy to watch City's interpassing - except when it's against us, but they really have a class squad. Interesting comment from Kevin De Bruyne ..who said that " Saints always give City a hard time, but that (Saints) lack a striker .. "or something". Our problem (for 2 seasons) has been that we lack a striker who can even score " occasionally" . For all the plaudits that Che Adams gets for determination, sweat and effort ...he just doesn't do the job, and more or less the same can be said for Adam Armstrong. Even given the enormous gap between Championship and Prem. level , I don't see how they scored those goals so regularly in the Championship?. ...and /or .. What sort of formation they played in when at that club ? . 1). Our most consistent mistake(s) has been signing strikers who did a job at their previous club but then come to us and are forced to play another role. 2). We also lack height and weight in the squad. Aside from the CB's there are few in the club who are over 6 feet and don't carry any real " muscle ". 3). Although we have signed some exciting young talents in the last year, the fact remains that for most of them, the Premier League was merely a "spectator sport " until last August. Coming up against the " real deal " every week has quickly sorted out the " men from the boys ". 4). Yesterday's line-up started with FIVE young players who had virtually no top-tier experience in any club (in any country) - and it showed. Their desire and effort is admirable, but their enthusiasm is " borderline" and the likes of Alcarez and Mara are just one bad tackle away from a red card. Once again we played a creditable 44 minutes, but I've lost count of the number of times this season that we've conceded in.. 45 mins. " + added time" .

Even with / without Haaland , their bench is strong enough to get the points. Champions League is the only trophy that Pep really wants to win and he may play it safe as Bayern won't be a pushover .

Seems like the Hammers don't sign any teenager under 6 feet tall.... .... either that, or someone ought to look a bit closer at their birth certificates ! their team are top of the U18 league and have at least a dozen points lead...

Having promoted a Swedish 4th tier side upto the top level, and getting them into CL his move to the UK , was predictable and he put together the best side Brighton have ever had, but .as Dirty Harry said.. " ..a man has to know his limitations " ... and his move to Chelsea and , for GP it was - " One bridge too far." However, he won't cry for too long, as his pay-off from Chelsea will probably pay a few bills ...for the next decade.

Three worst?. EASY.. those three who cost the club enormous sums of money in signing-on fees and huge salaries. Dani Osvaldo, Gaston Ramirez and ... "what'is name" Carrillo. .. between them gave the club a loss of around 80 million pounds. Money that should / should have been better-invested elsewhere.

Confirming my regular comment that the gap between the top of the Championship, and the bottom of the Prem. is ENORMOUS. Aside from the 33% British players (who may / may not be in their national teams), the vast majority of non-British players in the Prem. are established internationals for their respective homelands, and way above the standard of the average Championship player. We end up with a small group of "jo-jo clubs" ..who are too good for the Championship, but who are totally out of their depth in the " best league in the World " , and are then relegated again in one / two years .... and the cycle continues.

YOUNG, TALENTED ..BUT INJURED. Despite buying many good young talents during the last year or so , the fact remains that the stress of playing in the World's toughest league has proven to be a huge challenge for those who had previously been playing in the country's best / better U21 set-ups where they looked like world-beaters. The reality is that the Prem. has taken its toll of their young bodies and it has taken a very long time for some of them to recover anything like full match fitness. Looking back to the Broja loan, we saw a great half-season from him, but by Christmas every Prem. club had " sussed him out " and the subsequent ankle-taps and crude challenges made it hard for him to recover from injury and he was next to useless as a lone striker in the back half of the season. His short-lived career back at Chelsea was cut short with a serious (ACL ? ) injury. Since when Saints have seen Livramento, Larios (..who?) .. Lavia, and ABK (twice) out of contention for weeks at a time, in part because their young bodies don't stand up the the intense pressure of playing at the top level. Larios' last Prem. app. ( in October ) came before an injury lay-off and his return to playing lasted just 9 minutes with a recent B team match before he was subbed off again with an injury. As a comparison those greater talents we had 6-8 years ago (during Koeman's time) meant that Prowsey spent several seasons where he made fewer starts than he had in sub. apps. In time, (after Stephen Davis left) he became a natural replacement, and his " measured development " has since proven him to be one of the fittest / most consistent players in the entire league. It isn't just a lack of dependable, experienced players around them that is the problem for our young starlets, but their still-developing young physiques that are taking the stress when coming up against international opponents in every game, and not making any progress. In a year or two, many will have developed into excellent players and depending on where they are /and where Saints are will decide whether their early sojourns in the Prem. were... a bonus, or a handicap, and on their recovery from injuries they encountered along the way.

Like you ( Vectis) I try to analyse all the factors, although I certainly haven't ignored the real need to see the B team promoted this year. The B team had been on an excellent run until they hicupped with the home defeats against Leeds and Forest. It seemed to be an "unfortunate coincidence" that we had let 5 of the B team regulars (Payne, Small, Simeu, Finnegan, Lawrence - all defenders) go out on loan at the end January, at the same time we still had Sam Bellis injured we also lost Morgan to Chelsea and saw strikers Pearce and Turner go out in loan, and the emergency " import " of first-teamers McCarthy, Bree, Aribo and Edozie showed no obvious advantage at all in the Leeds defeat which (all things considered) was a bad defeat. The catastrophic loss in the Cup v Blackburn was a similar example where the inclusion of Bree, Lyanco and Orsic made things look even worse, whilst the remainder of the outfield was composed of 6 U18's lads, some of whom made their U18 debuts - with fairly predictable results. I don't see the change of coaching personnel, to be a major factor in the short term, but sometimes you can play well and still lose and it may have been down to " a bad day" at the same time as you have enforced changes in key positions. Saints have one of the youngest squads in the Prem. and with a dozen or so in " the usual U21 age group " already out on loan elsewhere this is reflected in the advancement of younger players in the other groups. Fortunately the two recent wins have put us back on track for the title, and I look forward to seeing this young squad move up a level next season.

Recruiting ..(the most difficult task in any profession)... is hard because at that age a lot of people can claim to be " successful " but at Academy level the " right man " needs to be a good role model who can relate to a teenage mindset, and not have a " sergeant major / dictator personality ". Dave Horseman did a great job with the current U18 / B squads, are almost interchangeable and Horseman is now working with Selles and the Prem.squad. Our luck during this last two seasons is that many of the newly-recruited Academy U18's have been with the club since 8 year olds and played together for a long period, and the fact that they are still here is proof of the successes in that mid range age group (9-15). These lads will have worked with the same coaches through the age-groups and be well-acquainted with them, so it's hardly " a problem " in the short-term so close to the end of season. We have also signed well from other Academies. Meghoma and Amo-Ameyan from Spurs, and Armitage from Cheltenham have fitted in well and some of the previous crop are already out on loan whilst still in their teens. It will be interesting to see which of the loanees will return next season and come into the B team / Prem. squads and those who may eventually find themselves a contract with lower league clubs, and work their way up. Whilst I agree that we need to replace those coaches who have left the club, we really need to get " the right people ", and if it takes a bit longer to be able to identify them...then I think it will be time well-spent and good preparation in time for next season.

Think some of you have missed Gaston Ramirez. When asked why he signed ( for Saints) he said .." I couldn't believe how much they would pay me". Rumoured to have been on 65K / week ...in 2013: The 12 million fee + a 4 year contract cost Saints about 25 million in the end, much the same deal as Osvaldo. .........another piece of " brilliant dealing " from Nicola Cortese, who almost denied Alan Pardew the 2 million required to sign .....Rickie Lambert.

even that is an understatement. During his sojourn with Saints he partnered 6 other CB's and we looked better and better as time went by. Our big mistake was letting him go when he was still in good form. After we bought VvD, Claude Puel decided he was surplus to requirements and let him go, only for VvD to get crocked (by Jamie Vardy) a month later, and we were left with Yoshida and Stephens as CB's. His eventual move to LIlle reignited his international career, AND he won a French title and a French " Cup" and is still in their start side (aged 39).

1998-99 was dubbed the Great Escape and it really showed. Saints were never out of the bottom 3 all season but finally turned the tide in the last 11 games, when we registered 5 wins, 3 draws and 3 defeats and ended undefeated in the last 5 matches with a total of 41 points. At a time when transfers weren't restricted to the January window, Saints signed the Latvian international Marian Pahars who was available for the last 7 games. His impact was immediate, coming off the bench to score in the 3-3 game v. Blackburn, and his double in the final home game v. Everton (2-0) was enough to secure our Prem. status. Never the tallest player in the squad he possessed a great turn of pace and was soon nicknamed " The Latvian Michael Owen" and his later performances showed just how quick and agile he was and gave us some good entertainment. The following season (99-00) he was top scorer with 13 league goals in 31 games, and 9 goals in (00-01) and 14 goals in (01-02) when he was regularly partnered by Kevin Davies and James Beattie as first line strikers. Sadly he was often badly injured by those defenders who were sharp enough to catch him, but he was fundamental in securing our survival at a time when we sadly lacked consistency in defence and goalscorers up front.

and they are so expensive in these bad economic times.....

can't see him returning to Saints. Always did his best, but rarely had a regular run of games and was seldom first choice for Saints. If B'mouth go down they may keep him, OR... he might go back to his home town side - IF Argyle are promoted to the Championship.