Belgiansaint

So it seems there is one Mister RL at SMS everyone seems to like. Good news.

Besides, he's only 27 so he's got a few more years in him.

we'll walk this car park!

Not much. It's not Friday.

same for me

Very few words about Saints, really. "They had one chance and scored one goal" at the very beginning of the interview and that's it. The rest was about their preparation for the coming season.

It also seems to indicate that, with the perspective of investment, Saints remain an attractive destination for someone with AP's pedigree even in L 1 and - 10. Interesting times ahead.

I like it

Met Dave once when he was manager at Wolves and he had a player on loan in my hometown club. We had a beer and a bit of Saints chat. Top, top bloke.

but I don't care http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmoJkPiKzW4&NR=1 enjoy

I stand corrected for Venables and Sir Bobby, but can't remember Hodgson getting major results. May be wrong, though.

a) WGS b)NP (though I love qwerty's reference to Pierre-André Schürmann, I was in Amsterdam when Lausanne properly outplayed Ajax in the UEFA Cup - a gem of a game!) c) Saeijs, Oakley, Baird, two strikers d) Club ambassador or catering manager e) can't say, never been to SMS f) see d) g) a competition where fans would have to hit the bar or goalposts with a shot from the centre circle h) something comparable to this site's banner

I should think KD has earned a world of credibility, but does it make him a leader considering he's a GK?

Which seems to go to show that the English coaching system is close to nowhere? How many top English coaches have left England to go on and enjoy success at the highest level wherever they went? I am pretty convinced that someone like Wenger would be pretty successful almost anywhere on the planet. Name ONE English coach who would arguably be as successful in a footballwise attractive league (ie Italy, Spain, Germany, France - marginally Holland to make room for McLaren)

No Fuc-bloody-king way! (sorry for that went to the movies yesterday "looking for eric" is just brilliant)

I do get your point, Badger, but what I mean is if you get the right persons (investor / coaching staff / squad) in the right places then the nationality is irrelevant, while it seems some people on here make it a stumbling block. If you have a Turkish manager getting a Romanian striker banging 20 goals per season, that's fine by me. I am more than certain there are many, many players abroad who'd make the cut at Saints level and who are being written off because they dont have a British pedigree. If Saints are ever to get back to PL level -and Jesus almighty knows how much we want that - it has to start now. I'm not talking about a spending spree, even though a few bob to strengthen the team wouldn't come amiss, but start building a mentality, instilling along-term approach to football. It may take longer before you reap the sows, but the rewards will be all the greater. Just look how teams like WBA were unprepared to take the qualitative step. We have a marvelous opportunity to do just that. Getting prepared for the battles to come is the key.

I have read on numerous occasions on this forum that "we need a British manager", "we need a real, typical English CB / striker / winger" or that "English football is now in the hands of foreigners". I know full well this has much to do with the way football is played in England, especially in the lower divisions. But what sense does it really make? Was ever being British a guarantee for success, let alone quality? One will easily and rightly point at the recent Dutch experiment at Saints but the club's demise started well before that when the dressing-room staff was mostly British (Wigley, Grey, Sturrock Burley), didn't it? And among our favourite players we very often name Egil, Golac, Van Gobbel and many others. English football never had it so good since there were foreign investors / managers / players involved. And it was George Prost who presided over the development of the academy. And, considering Ali Dia does not come into the reckoning, if you start talking about Van Damme, Delgado, Chala and others, one could easily point the finger at homegrown players who disappointed equally (what's Mark Hugues's scoring record for Saints?) Now Saints are lucky enough to have a mega-rich foreign backer and even though I'd love to see WGS or NP back in charge, I don't care a tiny bit about the nationality of our next manager. Give me a good manager who'll pick the right players to get SFC back to where it belongs and I'll be the happiest fan on earth. What you need is competence on the board, charisma and tactical nous in the dressing-room and talent on the park. Passports don't have anything to do with that.

The fact that a boot-camp manager is needed is, I think, undisputed. But the fact that Keane's name could spring to anyone's mind, knowing that a) he's at Ipswich, and b) seems to hate Saints with a passion, is just beyond me.

If I understand things correctly, ML set up a company for the sole purpose of buying the club's parent company. Does it mean he now owns SLH and the club can still be run by the PLC or did he simply paid the debts to get out of admin and the PLC days are well and truly over?

This is a magnificent day!

I remember reading that piece in the Guardian. Scary. Can't someone remove the signposts so that man doesn't find the way to SMS?

I guess Bill Shankly couldn't have put it better.

OK, Micky, he didn't do it on purpose (at least we all hope). But why does he leave unscathed - perhaps but for his ego - and the players are penalised?

The unfair thing is that the guys on the pitch end up carrying the can for the (non) actions of those in the boardroom. RL et al will go scot-free and honest blokes who happen to play football well enough to make a living out of it and sustain their families are left in limbo.

I agree wholeheartedly + 2