NewYorkSaint

In a desperate hunt for good narrative here... on the evidence of second half -- i.e. with a basic defense in place -- we're a much better team than Bournemouth. Who are third in the premiership. Boufal has come alive so beautifully. Romeu is an incredible player. As is Bednarek. With Moussa back we're going to play amazing, exciting football. Hopefully Ralph learned today some key lessons, and we can build from here.

The one thing that's been impressive is the number of times we've stolen possession from them. Romeu is usually the key. Bring on Bertrand, move Cedric back to right and keep the aggression up... You never know. Next goal crucial.

Excited to see Danso again. C'mon saints. (Great to see live in the US. Odd that you need to travel a few thousand miles to get free live coverage.)

Adams' promise really clear. So unlucky not to have scored. He really looks the business. Djenepero and Boufal are exciting going forward. vestergard some alarming let-offs how is this 0-0..?

worth remembering: it's really hot there. that a) part explains the slight lethargy of saints and b) shd mean that 10-man brighton really tire second half. we do need boufal or dejenepo on. Ings has had a decent half. Need him to show leadership this season.

This where the £ advantage of the top teams really shows. Adams looks really strong. But Mane a class above. His market value now >£50m. We don't have that to spend. That comparison apart we won the first half. Exciting to watch, and I love our midfield. Bertrand, Redmond, Adams also exciting in combo. We'll be a team to reckon w this season. Just not top 4.

Burnley playing beautifully against Arsenal. Makes me feel a little, just a little, bit better about last week.

I hope this doesn't happen... like JWP a lot.

Excited by the pace of our play. Here we are nearly 80th min, still high press. Boufal, Hoj, Valery all looking strong...

A few positives today. Redmond... spectacular. Ings, some promising touches and constantly fighting to win the ball... just not clinical in front of goal. But given we're stuck w him, I felt a little happier at what i saw today. Long also some great interplay, just not in the penalty area. Valery, a couple of glorious moments. I like our midfield. And when our defense is healthy, Bednarek, Vest, and Yosh are a strong base. So... i don't think the rebuilding project is quite as hard as some make out. The main thing we need: a striker with killer instinct.

Presumably Yoshida injured. Him in for Stephens and that's our strongest line-up currently. Personally prefer 4 at the back w stronger midfield. Just maybe not those four. But with hoj, romeu, lemina, jwp, we should really dominate midfield and there are strong options up front. I'm going 4-2 Saints!

Players we can build an exciting team around: Gunn, Yoshida, Bednarek, Vest, Valery, Bertrand, Romeu, Hoj, JWP, Lemina, Redmond, Sims, Long (I think), Armstrong (maybe... has been promising on occasion). Targett is reasonable backup wing-back. The rest I wouldn't miss if they left. Suspect Ralph feels the same. The Minimum needs: a lethal striker, a genuinely reliable centre-back.

Disappointing half. A few positives, the main being Forster! A couple of decent saves, including in his supposed weak spot of down low. He had no real chance on the goal. And contrary to opinions here, Mo has shown flashes of real quality. His combining with Armstrong and Long has been the best we've offered so far. I think we need Romeu on second half though to shore up midfield. And maybe Redmond for Ings. Not seeing Ings do much yet.

Disappointing half. A few positives, the main being Forster! A couple of decent saves, including in his supposed weak spot of down low. He had no real chance on the goal. And contrary to opinions here, Mo has shown flashes of real quality. His combining with Armstrong and Long has been the best we've offered so far. I think we need Romeu on second half though to shore up midfield. And maybe Redmond for Ings. Not seeing Ings do much yet.

It's on CNBC in the US. Blistering start by Saints.

Awful first half, superb second half. Wonderful to have Lemina back. We need him. Armstrong a much better bet than Sims based on what we saw today. We'll be fine. We played some sensational football second half. But we do need a top-class striker. And we do need better cover in defense. If we had two centre backs good enough for us to play 4-2-2-2 we'd be able to lock up midfield and maintain strong attack. That's the way I hope we go this summer. A bit of work to do before then. But we'll get it done.

So much luck in football. Their best shot 10 inches lower and they equalize, and it's a v different mood here. As it is, we can all breathe. Didn't see anything from Gallagher. But Armstrong had a great game, as did Hoj (prob my MoM) and Romeu.

Yes!!! great result!

Played pretty well. Def by far the better of the chances. I actually prefer Saints w back 4 and extra midfield strength. We just end up controlling more and playing further up the pitch. Hoj+Romeu+JWP+Armstrong... strong combo, and winning ever more of the ball. Nice to have Ings back. I have a hunch he may do something a little special second half. p.s. here in US, live on CNBC.

I agree w OP that a rule shift to award something less lethal than a penalty kick for lesser fouls in the box would improve the game. indirect free kicks from within the box would be exciting to watch. Two alternatives: a short corner, hockey style... or make it a direct free kick where the defending team can only place two defenders in the box along w GK. The red card rules also need paying attention to. It's crazy to ruin an entire game because of reckless behavior of one player. Send them off, and - in violent cases - ban them from future games, but allow them to be substituted. The penalty should be on the player not on 30,000 supporters. I also think yellow card shd be accompanied by 5-min sin-bin. Alas, pretty hard to change the rules. And the ones we have still make for an amazing game.

The one flaw in Poch's management is that his players put TOO much energy into the first half, then pay a price. That happened repeatedly when he was w us. Spurs were unbelievable first half, closing us down with alarming pace and ferocity, then blitzing forward. Hass's injection of pace at half-time was the perfect counter-strategy, right when they were tiring. We shocked them. so...very...happy...to Sims back. Love watching him play. With him, JWP 2019 and Valery, who needs transfers?! (kidding) The excitement's back!

Saints can be really proud of that. Deserved at least a point, given the bad reffing first half, and the incredible heart shown after going 1-2 down. Suddenly we can start looking forward to top-6 games again. Count me satisfied.

God, I remember this feeling. I LIKE this feeling. Saints up against one of the great teams and more than matching them. If we'd signed Valery for £30m, we'd be pleased w the quality he's showing. What. A. Player. Gunn superb. Redmond tireless. Whatever happens from here, it's an encouraging day.

We'll do this. Great midfield. Redmond to bamboozle. JWP scores again! Saints 3-0

we're being way too harsh on stephens. he's making a supreme effort against a player taller than him. really unlucky. My frustration is all at Long. He has showed zero threat with the ball.Can't seem to run with it. Gave it away twice pointlessly when he was in great position. Earlier some good flicks and passes from him, but his overall skill-set worrying. always has been. Redmond incredible. JWP strong. Romeo a rock. Armstrong exciting to watch, despite some bad passes. Slattery ...promising. Overall we're a much better team than Burnley. We did that w/o many of our best players. We'll be fine.