Saint86

Right. So you can't differentiate a frustrating player from an awful tactically set up team. Illogical hatred from the fans, and then we **** and moan about loyalty. Feel free to "track back" and check my Tadic comments. I'm sure you'll find me terrified he's about to take a penalty or moaning at him for missing... Doesn't mean I can't see his virtues or appreciate the wider picture of how badly the team was set up for attacking players.

FFS Seriously... He played under managers that did not attack or commit bodies forward for two years. He is a techncaily gifted player who beats a man on the edge of the box and gets a cross in. He's been prevented from getting to those positions by tactics, and we've had no one in the box to bloody well cross to... Do people seriously think its a coincidence that his "game" improved exactly in sync with the manager changing, and saints all of a sudden committing men forward? He is a great player when it comes to doing what he does best. He's been quality for Serbia this world cup, and he will be quality for Ajax or us (most likely not) next season.

I think you are missing the point here Faz. From all major news outlets - times, to sun, to mirror, to express. This is the only paper not reporting we have a £13m release clause. Coincidentally happens to be the club's pet journo, who coincidentally makes out the club are getting paid more than anywhere else is reporting. Why, to incrementally ease pressure on the board and look like they're doing a good job. I can't help but smell a rat. We'll never know though. I got asked for sources of a low release clause, i provided. No one else has anywhere near as much evidence that we're going to get £18m atm. Lets wait a see shall we. I predict a pattern just like the Mane transfer for example... club says £36-38m, everyone else says £30m.

In truth Dodd, I just going on what has been reported regarding release causes. The truth is that we'll never know as none of us will see his contract. Admittedly these are all from last summer but a very broad selection of media outlets quote a £13m (15m euros) release clause - hence i state "laughably low". - I don't think many will disagree with that description of that price?!?! https://metro.co.uk/2017/03/26/arsenal-target-dusan-tadic-has-release-clause-of-just-13m-6535193/ https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/southamptons-dusan-tadic-coy-future-10616124 https://www.dailypost.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/liverpool-fc-keen-southamptons-dusan-13171107 https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/3775858/liverpool-look-to-raid-southampton-again-with-move-for-13million-dusan-tadic/ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/klopp-plots-southampton-raid-for-tadic-29ztr92r9 Even the club's pet jounro (who either blindly or willingly peddles the line) is reporting a £15m figure for the transfer. Given the trust I and most fans have in our club's media spiel, I find it likely that that cost for getting the scoop is an inflated price, or it is directly fed to him as such. It is common practice for clubs to do this. Sadly trust in the club's PR (particularly regarding player sales) has been at a real low in recent seasons. Lets not forget January's misleading reporting from this same source telling fans we were basically getting Promes etc. I just simply cannot trust the club's media sources anymore... not until some good faith is restored.

So, any solid news of incomings?

If he has his heart set on Ajax and they pay his laughably low release clause then he'll be playing for Ajax... So no, saints won't see the same Tadic obviously. Not really getting your point. Fans want to hate him, but as has been said, he was one of the main reasons we stayed up in the end. He played for two years with managers that parked the bus, played low tempo contain football, and with no bodies committed to the box. It is not his fault he struggled in that system. He is at his best when he can take a man on and turn him inside and out to get the cross in. We've had no movement, no pace, and no options for two years. Most players would struggle to create with zero options. He showed exactly what he can do at the end of the season under a decent manager in an attacking team. Madness to sell, but then if he's had enough, who can blame him? At least he isn't moving for money like most of the mercenaries we've had. I hope Saints fans don't go giving him abuse when/if he leaves. I don't disagree we need a shake up. For years we've sold quality and signed filling. But selling one of the last bits of quality is a bad thing!

I think he's a decent player. Hopefully he comes and does well. He should add something a bit different to our midfield with respect to goals, and for the money you can't really argue. What concerns me is that it was obvious last year that we needed another attacking mid / winger to take people on, link play, and create chances. We haven't made any real moves to sign one yet, and we're selling Tadic for half what he will cost to replace. Needs to be addressed PDQ.

I think England have got a good chance this year. But I can't say I particularly fancy Mexico in the knock outs! Give me any of the billy big boys with ego issues before a decent team.

Say what?!?!

Based on your comments, your attitude appears to be that anyone with a bad word to say about the running of the club currently should be scorned. Maybe I read that wrong but its what both your comment to me imply, and frankly I totally disagree with that outlook given the club's collapse in the last two years. Sorry if it ruffles feathers but its a growing viewpoint (thankfully) amongst the fans. This is a thread about Target, and at the end of the day I said exactly what I thought of his situation? He should be kept and given a proper chance at the club. His loan proved that if nothing else did. On top of that, the way he has been ignored by the club whilst on loan etc was very poor. We deserve to lose him sadly and respect to him if he does move to secure playing time and to further himself. This is a club built around an academy that a couple of years ago was hailed as one of the best in europe... You wouldn't think it these days.

If you casually think I am "being negative about everything", you should probably check my post history. Its pretty clear exactly which part of the club I am "negative" about (I would say pragmatic/realistic). The rest of the time I fully support the club and am very positive. Unfortunately I see fans with the attitude you appear to have as a part of our problem. Overall our fans accept everythinand stand for nothing. The result is we get walked all over, accept mediocrity (at best), and spend our time insulting each other on a football forum rather than acting - unlike fans of bigger clubs. Don't get me wrong, I love casually cycling down the bath railway cycle path in my saints shirt, seeing another fan, and having a high tempo "come on you reds" cheered back and forth, we're a great bunch and will greet each other all over the world..... but our fans are a total walkover when it comes to bad management. We just let it slide until its usually too late. Very lucky we got Hughes last year. Literally, 1 game later or any other manager we were linked with and we would have gone down. Target should be kept, its as simple as that. Other clubs see him as prem quaility, but a team that just survived relegation, with only 1 other left back, are going to let a home grown fan of the club go... And that is ignoring the fact that this club is built around the academy and on the basis of giving kids a go. We've totally lost our way. Even Poch played Gallagher up front when he was here. Years earlier in his career than we are prepared to try despite him proving himself to be a useful player in the championship in poor sides... The club just blocked his pathway and shipped him out. Its bloody poor. Not all the kids will make it to prem level, but certainly more should have than have been allowed to. Look at the stagnation of Sims for example. But no, our fans have forgotten all about that since we got back to the prem. Total loss of identity.

No blame for this can be laid at Tadic's feet. He's been a good player for us and has decided to move on. The blame can be laid at the feet of those who have turned this into a club that he no longer wants to play for.

Giant **** up by the club. again.

Cracking window so far

Why are you arguing with him. He is either a troll, a footballing philistine, or some drunkard that everyone got bored of listening to down the pub so he turned up here. Just ignore.

I was going to respond to you but just can't. Never heard of you on this forum previously and you've been here since 2015 so that is a pretty low profile. However your attitude of just shouting everyone else down while spouting heavily biased sh1te is insufferable. One of the quickest ever posters to hit my ignore list. To say that selling Tadic (for half what it will cost to replace him) is a good thing is mental. And we're not even talking about the impact this will have on the dressing room or our prospective targets. Absolute shipwreck of a summer so far. We didn't even bag his replacement in Madison. And FYI, whilst you're banging on about JPW on this thread, the actual replacement for Tadic in our starting 11 will be Redmond or Boufal. Both are no where near his level. Goodbye.

Fans that are slating him for being average forget that he's had two years of managers that just defend. Hard to be creative for Tadic when he has had nothing to work with and no one in the box to cross to. Don't blame him for leaving, respect him for doing it for non monetary reasons actually. Says an awful lot more about our mentally disabled board more than anything else in the past few seasons. They really are utterly clueless.

No. Clubs will just put more money into his wages to compete against each other. We will see nothing above the release clause.

if true

The average league position of opposition teams was a lot lower when wilshire was playing I'd wager (just checked, He didn't play against Tottenham at home (2-0 win), united at home (3-1 loss), Man City Away (3-1 loss)). Can't be bothered to check further. Happy to be proved wrong ofc, but its a simplistic way to look at things based purely on average points per game, especially on such a small sample. He is a squad player there and gets used as such. That is why he is leaving. Basically his own words.

No. We got Carillo because we missed every other target by not paying market value, and then panicked and overpaid for what was left... For a manager we sacked a couple of weeks later. Its okay though, because none of that is the board's fault either

Sorry what, have I missed something? With Toby we had a legal agreement to sign the player following his loan deal, he was also spent the summer texting and chatting to the manager... Our board then elected to not close the deal and allow someone else to come in and offer the guy more money, also driving a wedge between the club and the most successful manager we've had since LM.... Did we have an agreement in place with Norwich? Have we allowed someone to come in an outbid us on wages again? If so I really am speechless. Obviously it was gross negligence in the case of Toby and should have seen Reed fired. If it has happened again he simply has to go.

Really, I never new that our players went to liverpool because they paid us what we wanted for them... rather than more money.... silly me. it comes down to the package we offered the player and his agent. I don't necessarily blame the club for this particular transfer falling, but there is certainly a significant pattern of transfer failings and a poor strategy. Hopefully we improve as the clowns at the top aren't going anywhere clearly. What we don't need, is fans constantly posting a biased defence of the failings with wilfully misleading posts.

Saints fans are going to be very disappointing this summer. That much is obvious.

I thought that was from our Glaswegion chum? Oh wait, same thing.