UpweySaint

Come on, you know it’s not that simple. If he doesn’t have an agreed release clause (which is unlikely) then yes technically we can hold him to his contract but there are many reasons that is rare in modern football - many of which are clearly exacerbated by using being relegated. Sports Republic have got plenty wrong but they at least held out for decent fees for players last time around and I can’t see why it would be different this time. I hope nobody meets our valuation for him but if they do hopefully it helps us keep a competitive squad together.

We were linked in the Autumn, i don’t know if it’s genuine but you would think his price is likely within reach for us given the year left on his deal.

I guess wages might be a factor too. If he’s on a wedge clearing that and bringing in a okay fee may either help us get in somebody Still wants or get us closer to being able to retain one of the handful of players we would actually be keen to keep. Personally if the fee isn’t a complete piss take I’m not bothered. I don’t rate him particularly highly and think Stewart looks a better all round player - with a major caveat of ‘when fit’.

Johannsen also showed a lot of class in the Rotherham home game calling for the game to be stopped - as well as pulling off some really impressive saves.

Fair enough, good fishing! 😅

Really like him? I can’t see there being too many in that camp. He’s been distinctly average and I can’t imagine much more than a collective shrug if he stays or goes. If he goes you hope we can find somebody better- if he stays he is a good squad option and has demonstrable versatility. Nothing against him but I would be curious if there are reasons, footballing or otherwise, saints fans would have strong views on Aribo? Other than having a decent-ish song that’s easy to trot out …

He looks like an accomplished finisher - if the system suits him I think he could do well for us next season. I’m convinced there is a player in there (disclaimer - I thought Cedric was going to be top drawer and after seeing BBD against Lazio I thought we had done fantastic business!) 🤦‍♂️

Ebbsfleet’s new kit looks pretty good - the stripes stops for a clean sponsor then starts again…. This in white and red with P&O Ferries in the middle?

Shout. There is smart business to be done - Bournemouth, Brighton and Brentford are all proof positive. Starting to think we should change our name to BSouthampton - foolproof… Mentors/leaders of the right standard are so important. We haven’t had enough for a long time and it shows.

Fair point about the balance. Worth saying the market has left us behind to some extent. I dread to think what a lot of the players mentioned would cost now. Investing/gambling on potential is a sound strategy for a club in our position but it only really works when those players are bedded in to an existing core of senior pros of a good standard. I know he’s homegrown so misses the point a bit but take Dibling this year for example. He came in to the side and we ended up basically relying on him on a way that was unhealthy. Dibling playing off a Lamberts or a Pelle or even a prime Rodriquez is a different story. Easier said than done of course but from his talk it seems like Spors at least gets this.

I don’t agree. It’s a gamble. If things came together and they stayed up Delap’s goals would have likely been vital. Had they stayed up I presume the release clause wouldn’t have kicked in or been set higher. They’re probably down overall in financial terms but we’re not talking mega bucks comparative to the potential upside of the deal. I would have taken the deal in a heartbeat - we ended up with BBD and Archer instead - both likely to be out of the club and possibly at a loss.

Maybe though the counter is they got a top quality striker for a year without losing out. If they stayed up he would have been a massive part of it and I think the clause only kicked in because they went down. I would have loved him here and I think we would have looked miles better with him up top.

Christ if we only signed players I had heard of it would really narrow our scouting range! I agree that data can be used poorly and quantifiable data used in isolation is flawed but surely ‘good scouting’ includes the use of data?

What makes you think this is a data driven signing? I personally don’t get the anti data view but either way surely this signing is a bit more old school as the player has come from the same club as our new chief scout? I would assume he has watched this lads development in person.

Hard pass. Some things are more important than money. Ultimately we have no say and little impact on the club ownership but I would rather not see us used as a vehicle for sports washing.