david in sweden

....and we see that .. he isn't totally dependent on scoring with his head . His groundwork isn't bad either. Whilst the Turkish League maybe a bit suspect "quality wise" , the Belgian league he played in has masses of good players / teams ......and the irony is to think that we've had him on the books all the time. After the fiasco of those first four losses ..who else is left that we haven't tried in a strikers role ? Time is running out Russell, what have you got to lose - except your job?

.... .and if he does get some game time sometime.. and gets a few goals, Trabzonspor won't be the only team looking at him and pay the price and we may even get a return of income on the whole deal... At least he seems to be fitter than Ross Stewart. If we say age should be no bar, why isn't he being given a chance?. With his goal-scoring history, should we automatically assume that he won't be able to get goals in the Prem.? To be fair he didn't get a lot of game time , in a team that was bound for relegation and no creativity to speak of . The only person with anything to lose ....is Russell Martin, if he doesn't start getting points on the board.

Think I've been misquoted back there somewhere. In a side of fairly experienced players many of whom have played in the Prem. before Dibling stands out with his dynamic approach to attacking football, and seemingly " side-steps the Russball " formation. Given the ball... he heads straight for goal and isn't afraid to shoot on sight, something that some other strikers have failed to do far too often. He's exciting to watch, but I don't see him playing 90 minute games ( or even surviving 60 mins) and certainly not anything near for the remaining 35 games. He shouldn't be " overplayed" but providing he avoids injury, and occasionally start, he might come on as an impact sub. This way (with luck) ...he might last out through the second half of the season and DAJFU. If he starts scoring regularly, his " honeymoon period " as a new starlet will mean some of the more hardened Prem. defenders will leave their mark on him.....if / when they can catch him. The aforementioned comparisons with Bale and Walcott are not he same as we were in lower leagues then, and Shaw had barely played much more than one season when he left, and was totally out of his depth after arriving at Man.Utd .

Maybe not the best CB we've had in the last decade, but aside from the " Aston Villa loan fiasco " he's DAJFU and is now probably the most consistent name in the back line. Went through a bad time when Mark Hughes was "managing" and wasn't even given a place on the bench. If he reaches the 10 year period he will be in line with Jose Fonte who partnered 7 (?) other CB's during his time with Saints. A contract extension like this ....might suggest he'll likely become captain... after Jack's contract runs out next summer.

Agreed, but we'll be in a sorry state if he is the best choice and no-one else is comparable.

Yes he did , but was on the bench for the first two games before being subbed on late, and was pulled off in the third game. Good to see that at least he's getting some game time, as I always rated him when playing for our U21's.

Clearly.... Dibling has come into form at the right time and doesn't look out of place when facing up against Prem. sides. At this stage of his career there is no way we should be thinking if him as a 90 minute player, as his physique is still developing and the stress is too much on a young body... ( remembering Broja, Livramento, Lavia ) but whether he starts and plays for an hour or, comes off the bench as an impact sub. he certainly shows some attacking qualities that are rare in the club a.t.m. Whatever the outcome , I'm sure he will do his best at every opportunity. The suggestion that some " big club" will want to buy him is a real danger, but moving to a club who have 11 international as first choice players, means he won't see much game time (if any) and will spend most of his time in their U21 side, along with other Academy prospects who have been there since they were 8 y.o.. IF ..he continues to show up and.. (like Prowsey did in his early days), and started occasionally or always got minutes is a better prospect for an enthusiastic, talented youngster who wants to get game time every week. The prospect of " greener grass" (and / or a greedy agent) can often ruin a young player's chances of advancement. I was sad to see that Kamari Doyle (another talented lad who moved to Brighton last season)..fell foul of the managerial-change syndrome and instead of vying for a place in their Prem. squad, ended up going out on loan for a season and is an "also ran" ..on the bench at Exeter.

.....at least until the next window. Who knows ?...a few good games and his value may sky rocket and he'll be back in demand in Germany. Oops ! ,,,,,how did ABK get onto Ross Stewart's thread?

...and only assuming they put the correct postage on the envelope....

He's still quite young to be picked for the first team anyway, but in the form he has shown so far, it's certainly worth giving him a run of games .. who knows? ..he might even score a goal or two , and that's a skill we need badly just now. Whether he can play further on into the season is purely academic but right now I think RM is trying to find a solution that might get us even one point.

......or the truth .

maybe NOT. Dibling likes to run with the ball from deep and, from the little we have seen of him, Fernandes can at least shoot on target. This is Premier League and 4 at the back is the waste of one man, whereas the 5 in the middle should become attackers (alternative) defenders depending on where the play is / who has possession. We don't use the width enough, and starting all attacks on the left has become predictable.

Is this such a surprise start ?....after all Saints have always had a history of poor starts ..and occasionally they haven't got past the first 10 games before garnering the first 10 points. We all knew that the Championship squad wasn't good enough for the Prem. and now we can see it . Even last season's better players aren't looking very convincing. ( AA, Smallbone , Stephens and Aribo.) Aside from Ramsdale, the starting side is more of less the same names as we finished the season with, and the new players still haven't come on line. Lallana's cameo at Cardiff was impressive and he gave the assist for the very impressive Sagawara on Saturday. (what a great shot). Clearly, AL won't be up for too many 90 minute games, but his influence was still obvious. Brereton-Diaz may lack any sophistication, but he's not afraid to mix it with defenders and I like that in a striker. Archer looks promising, but with some way to get himself established. Now is the time to persist with Dibling, (regardless of results), and Fernandes looks to be a real talent. Ugochukwa is not unfamiliar with the Premier League and worth a few outings, and I'm impressed by his physique when seen amongst our somewhat " short-sized " defenders. With the arrival of Cornet, and re-appearance of Fraser, we should have more pace and experience on the wings. Looking at the fortune that Man.Utd. have paid out for their squad latest, ( an ongoing process every time they change manager) ANY positives coming out of the next game must be encouraging considering any two of their players cost as much as our whole squad. Russell Martin has two weeks to get it together, and ANY improvement - even one point - will be very encouraging. FOOTNOTE: I'm throughly p*ssed off at the media who are still lamenting the fact that Leeds didn't get the third spot , whilst only finishing three points above us last season, whilst blatantly ignoring the fact that we actually beat Leeds three times last season. There ...I've said it .... RANT OVER !

Agreed Whitey Grandad, many new faces who aren't upto speed yet and the short-passing game we saw last season isn't working at present , but hopefully the international break will give a breathing space to put things right. Some of our best players from last season are still finding their feet ( Smallbone, Harwood-Bellis and Armstrong )...but the one thing that we really seek is the attacking build-up going into the final third. Possession is fine, but the final moves have become more predictable and lack the spontaneity of surprise needed against the higher quality of defender, which was obvious at Newcastle and Brentford. Although KWP and Sugawara (what a great goal b.t.w.) look convincing, the arrival of Cornet and Fraser will provide some experience on the wings. Let's hope a few changes can solve the problem for the next league game ..after all, it is ONLY Man. Utd.

Back in the day , I saw a Sky interview with Alan Pardew and inevitably it was full of questions about AP's time with Saints, and Cortese's negative attitude to the signing of Rickie . Pardew said .. Cortese asked me .." do you really want to buy a 27 year old centre forward for.... .a million pounds?" Pardew had to convince him as he had been following RL's progress for several years (from non-league to L1) whilst no other manager had dared to bid for him. After eventually signing him, Pardew told RL that he had to get properly fit, drop a stone in training and lay off the beer and pies.! The outcome is Saints history. Whilst you are correct (Old Nick) ...that Cortese did hold the purse strings and control everything, his judgment of players and deals was atrocious.. Amongst other bad decisions, his two big signings of Ramirez and Osvaldo were both made on borrowed money at high interest % rates, and both ended in tears as the fees and high salaries both on long contracts eventually cost the club the better part of ..50 million, whilst Nigel Adkins cobbled together a squad to win two promotions for a total cost of around... 6 million. (at 2012 prices) Football nous outweighs an idiot and his money every time, as we have seen in the past decade with some of the "so-called rich " Prem. clubs.

a real headline signing?........ but surely Rickie Lambert came into that category and pretty good value for just ... 1 million mind you ....only Alan Pardew knew that at the time, and Nicola Cortese thought it was a waste of money ..........

The time of the year when fans look forward to the signing of new talents ..(or old ones) who might hopefully change their clubs fortunes for the better whilst hoping the deals don't bankrupt the club. Saints haven't paid out much more that 20-odd million (at least until Ramsdale signs) whilst some other clubs have made panic buys that are already raising a few eyebrows - in surprise. It's no real problem for those "rich clubs" who regularly fork out 40 -50 million, which is virtually " par for the course " in their World , but for the rest of us the limits are more restrictive in a Prem. where .... " merely surviving can often be considered .... a successful season." Some clubs pay out huge fees, in the hope that a new acquisition might just be that " missing piece " that will improve their teams performances but that is not always the case, and we have recently seen the tragedy when a new arrival gets no further than the training ground. Our sale of Lavia to Chelsea last season recouped around 50 million for Saints, but an early injury put pay to his career ambitions with an injury from which he is still seeking to recover form. This season, several top Prem. clubs have new signings who have barely made it through their first " friendly games". Man Utd paid out 52 million for Yoro, only for him to get a serious injury, as was the case with Arsenal's 40 million signing Calafiori, and it was Brighton's 25 million which was enough to sign ( Russel Martin's target ) Matt O' Riley from Celtic but who lasted less than 10 minutes .. before a reckless tackle sent him to hospital and the prospect of a long absence after some serious ankle surgery. Saints now have the largest turnover in the club's history (and that's saying something) and have surpassed the record number of buys (10) that Ronald Koeman made when he arrived around 10 years ago. Needless to say many of those players who got us back to the Prem. at the last gasp in May weren't anywhere near the required Prem. standard, and several more were out of contract, so that barely a handful of the remaining " regulars " are likely to be starting games this season. Fortunately, we seem to have assembled a large number of new names, from some modest fees in the hope of creating some stability in our squad, and it's down to RM and the coaching staff to get the best out of them. Sadly, we have / will lose ...a few who once DAJFU, but simply - didn't fit the bill, or effectively play " Russ ball ", or who simply "wanted away ". Thank you to Ché, Stuey and Charly, and with the reminder that not all transfers work out as intended, and the grass isn't always greener... JWP's plight at WHam was somewhat unexpected, as their new manager doesn't value him as much as David Moyes obviously did, and our one-time U21 rising star Kami Doyle (who demanded a move to Brighton) has suddenly found himself on the bench this season - at Exeter. Success is (in part) ...being the right person, in the right place, etc, etc, ...but the timing of such occasions is not theirs to command.

IF.... Baz is fit / good/ enough to replace Ramsdale In January we would really have something to celebrate, personally I'll be glad when GB is fit enough to play in a match ..even for the U21's let alone play in the Prem.

yes they were ONLY a Championship side, but both teams introduced new names and gave debuts so that the performance can be seen as a good result. Individual stand-out moments; Joe Ledley got an outing ..was unlucky with the first two goals for different reasons, and in contrast to McCarthy wasn't afraid to use his feet and came so far out on occasions I thought he might go for a shot on goal. James Bree, not a KWP but did a steady job and scored a remarkable goal, and If we have to wait another two years to see another it will be worth the wait. Wood and Edwards showed a lack of coordination at times, but also CDAJFU at sometime in the future. and Charlie Taylor showed his experience in a one-off captain's role. Lesley UGO showed up and used his physique well, Dibling is improving with every game and makes a real nuisance of himself to defenders and gets "the treatment " he will have to learn to accept. Sam A-A looked good , but Sam E . just can't seem to get it right. Fernandes did well and scored a nice goal, looks a very good, and Cam Archer ... did what strikers are supposed to ...TWICE. Nostalgic return for Lallana and now the wait for another trip to Goodison Park in the next round.

We won't be signing Bijlow.. . .(and so Saints Martini got it right) so now it's ....back to square one. Ironically the phrase was first used almost 100 years ago by a radio commentator describing the passage of play for his listeners, and " back to square one" meant...... a pass back to the goalkeeper. ugh ! How I wish we could turn the clock back to June, after McCarthy had left the club after being out of contract. But now it suddenly seems like we have made no progress at all, in what is surely the most important role in the team. In the last few days of the " window " ...we are still back with McCarthy..... and a totally untried Joe Lumley (!) Saints will surely find " someone" before Friday, but the whole issue has become very ominous and very poorly planned.

I agree in principle that goalies who come through the Academy have been very few, (in part because young keepers take much longer to mature..) BUT ...if you can remember back to Bob Charles, then you may have overlooked Gerry Gurr who played youth football for Saints in the mid 60's , and then was a fairly reliable keeper (between 1967-70 ) . He played almost 50 League games (between occasional injury absences).. but did feature in the legendary match at Old Trafford (1970) when Saints beat Man Utd. 4-1 . (All 4 goals goals coming from Ron Davies). There are presently a handful of former Saints " youth keepers " playing at various levels in the Football League... (mostly L1 / L2 ).

one encouraging feature..on Saturday 24th ..the U18's drew 1-1 away at Crystal Palace ..pretty good considering that they had conceded 15 goals (fifteen) in their last 3 matches against Palace.

not having seen the match ( from this distance) the stats would suggest that despite the high possession % perhaps we lacked creativity in midfield ?...and then having only 5 shots ( only ne target ) to their 23 (!). The fact that we only conceded one goal is a saving grace, but we need our strike force to get their shooting boots on (perhaps a change of boot sponsor ?)...but there must be some goals coming from the dozen or more new signings.... Hopefully we may see some positive improvement v. Cardiff midweek.

Circle of trust ? .Is there anything about football on this thread ..or?

Players like Mara, Sulemana and even Alcarez are not bad players, but being young, suddenly adapting to another formation, and in this case " Russ ball " is a new phenomenon and it takes time to adjust ...and failing that they quickly become " square pegs". All " new managers "..(and we've had a few of those in the last 5 years) have their own tactics and ideas and sadly ..for every player " ..if your face don't fit " ....you've got one foot out of the door. Moyes' purchase of JWP was a signal that he understood the player's talents and skill, but WHam's new manager has other ideas. Historically, some of our best Academy products have had to find new clubs, not because they are " sub-standard " in any way, but simply because the incumbent in their role was quite simply... " irreplaceable". The dominance of Ryan Bertrand meant that players like Reed and Targett were all forced to leave if they wanted to get first team football (and succeeded) whilst the likes of Sam McQueen might have been a replacement for RB.... had he not suffered a career-ending injury. The timing of such events are often the "make-or-break" periods for some, in what is often ... a relatively short career. Many of us doubted a future for Mara given the "wandering role" he frequently displayed in games when he often seemingly " disappeared" for long periods, but in those better moments he showed us that .." there is a footballer in there somewhere ". Having returned to his homeland, he may feel more settled, and if his career "skyrockets " and he ends up in a French international squad at some future date, I won't be entirely surprised. Au revoir Sekou.