Toon Saint

If that is true I'm assuming we are only considering unemployed managers? Releasing a shortlist including managers under contract would be a pretty spectacular PR disaster - not to mention a legal minefield.

Hardly rocket science though is it? We can say its shrewd if we appoint a manager who actually succeeds in keeping hold of our key players. Until then the jury is out.

He could have answered straight up with 'not yet' and then explained the procedure for finding a manager. It feels like he is circumnavigating the question - feed viewers with positives about our extensive scouting network (who surely are not all out looking for potential managers?!) and then slip in the answer that we have not spoken to anyone without actually saying it directly.

I get your point about remaining positive to project a stronger image of the club. To say he is 'disappointed' would have looked a bit lame, but arguably, the damage has already been done given his previous 'confidence' in getting the deal done. I really hopes he justifies his enthusiasm over the coming weeks, but I still find it frustrating how opaque he is about things. When asked about whether we have actually spoken to anyone, he could have quite easily said 'no' or 'not yet' but he went around the houses explaining the scouting structure before revealing that the long-list is yet to be narrowed down to a short-list. Basically a 'no' but with a bit of bluster thrown in about how many scouts we have on the job - what all 20 are out looking at potential new managers?

Yes all these questions need to be asked. I'd also question why was he so relaxed about the situation and why contract talks were supposedly put to the end of season, when it was obvious to anyone outside the club that Poch was stalling on a deal. If this was just to save face as they suspected he might be off, then when did the start for a new manager commence? On next seasons targets if he starts talking in vague terms about 'maximising potential' again then Blackmore should pin him down on what exactly he means by that. Would like Cortese's recent comments put to Ralphy as well, i.e. 'The former Chairman, Nicola Cortese, has said recently that he would be able to keep onto Poch and key players, do you have the confidence that you can do the same given that Poch has now left?' Might cause a bit of a stir, but would make for interesting copy.

Yeah its all a big agenda from our local rag. A successful Saints is surely better for their own livelihoods than an unsuccessful one, no? You keep asking me about what information I would have wanted from the board, and I have explained it now several times so please refer to my previous posts. Letting fans know that the offer was on the table would have 1) clarified their own stance towards keeping him; 2) put pressure on Poch to make his mind up either way and allowed him less wriggle-room in his pressers. As it stands we had a lot of hokum about waiting until the end of the season and being 'relaxed' and 'comfortable' with things, and also that talks were progressing behind the scenes. Turns out Poch was stalling all along and the board lacked the plans to convince him to stay. It has made them look pretty foolish as they have just not been in control of the situation, with Poch dictating terms. That is not a great perception to cultivate, especially when we are now looking to recruit a new manager and keep onto our best players.

Quite clearly billed as a comment piece:

It's a comment piece guys, usually what happens in these type of features. He is offering an opinion on the situation as he perceives it and I tend to agree with him. If you wanted it grounded it in 'fact' then maybe the board should have given a bit more information about how the situation unfolded and what terms were offered to Poch. Given that they didn't, the journalist just has to rely on sources at the club, which of course, he has used in this article.

Jack Cork appeared quite disgruntled at the start of last season and was quoted as saying he doesn't really speak to Poch. His tone obviously changed when he became more involved in the first-team as the season wore on. Will be a big challenge for him at Spurs, managing that bloated squad and all of the supposed ego's while maintaining harmony - not that I particularly care.

You clearly didn't actually read what I wrote did you?

Whoever we appoint as manager is unlikely to be as good as, or an improvement on Poch. It is not hysteria being expressed but an incredible amount of frustration about not being able to realise an ambition of breaking the top 6 that I felt was almost in our grasp. Whether they meant to or not, the new board have managed to burst a lot of the optimism that has been building around the club over the past few years. There is absolutely no evidence to go upon to suggest that they have any experience of dealing with this sort of situation so I'm not sure why so many persist with blind faith. It is in their hands to reverse that concern and I sincerely hope that they do.

Surprisingly good piece by the Echo boys, and I'm pleased there is a public vent for the frustrations of many Southampton fans besides those flying around social media. Will be a sobering read for Ralph (if it finds him in Canada) who is probably still convinced he is worshiped for his success at Sochi and the 51 stitches he has had in his face. Time for them to accept they have failed and convince us that they have the nous and originality of vision to take us forward. Comparing how Swansea chairman, Huw Jenkins, responded to the uncertainty surrounding Laudrup's future is notable. I'm not suggesting for one moment that the board should have sacked Poch once he started dithering over his future, but as the article suggests, a public declaration that we had offered him the contract would have put a lot more pressure on him to make up his mind. More importantly, it would have set out the boards intentions clearly and not made them look so bloody weak. At Swansea, despite the initial brouhaha over Laudrup's sacking, it is clear that the board are responsible for driving the vision of the club and will not accept that being compromised by a manager touting himself around for other jobs. With this new board I just feel that they have been riding the coat-tails of Cortese's plans without actually having an idea or original vision in place that they will carry out regardless of who occupies the manager's position. Cortese could afford to call Poch a 'department head' as he was so secure with the fundamental direction of the club. I'm not convinced that this new board - who are yet to articulate anything resembling a coherent vision to players or fans - would be as confident to say as such.

Good news at last.

Just my personal opinion on the candidates discussed. Moyes probably unfairly discredited after failure at Man Utd but not sure he'd be a perfect fit with us. Rosler plays a more progressive style of football and would bring less baggage than Moyes. Acceptable bracket would be more 'begrudging acceptance' as I'd hope we'd choose a candidate from the top two lists. It's all subjective and I'm not representing this as a definitive list, merely my own take on the situation.

Dream: F. De Boer, Jorge Sampaoli Good: Yakin, Tuchel, Laudrup, Rosler Acceptable: Moyes, Lambert, Poyet, Mackay Poor: McLaren, Howe God awful: Hughton, Petrescu

Don't think so as Alex Crook's news agency were hassling agents on twitter throughout the day before getting the quotes out of him. May not even be in the thoughts of the board.

Couldn't care less for sentimental appointments.

Fear not. This is Ralph's moment. He wanted us to have an uncomfortable summer as it proves we are doing things the right way, remember? A statement might not be forthcoming, but electricity is in the air, the tension palpable, and there are new leadership models to be formulated. Trust in Ralph!

Bury head in sand.

I am glad you think so well of yourself. What 'mistakes' have I made? I have some serious misgivings about the direction of the board and their ability to communicate ambition effectively with players, fans, and management staff. The loss of Poch is a material consequence of that and not some folly I have invented. You only have to look at the opinions of journalists closest to the club - who perceive the current set-up to be something of a 'rudderless ship' - to sense that there is a serious void at the club right now and a lack of public leadership. Almost every first-team player (Clyne, JWP, Fonte, Wanyama, Schneiderlin, Shaw, Lallana, Lambert, J-Rod) has come out and openly talked of the uncertainty at the club to journalists. In order to shift that negative perception and turn the players onside, Ralph and co. need to take decisive action (not helped if he is not in the country) and appoint a new manager swiftly while demonstrating some ambition in the transfer window. This will be a massive challenge for the board and I'm more than happy to eat my words and be proved wrong, but currently, I don't have much faith in them sorting it out.

Some dates? Well what about September 1st onwards, once the transfer window has 'slammed shut' and the situation with managers and players has been resolved. He has only been in the job just over two months so not sure why he has to be away now. Shurlock's post (above) explains very well just how significant this period is for us as a club. I'm surprised that you are so relaxed about our Chairman not being around to make the most important strategic decisions, given how apoplectic you were about us not having signed a striker in time for pre-season training camp last year (after we had spent £20m!)? You seem to walk a rather perilous tightrope in defining what is hysterical and what is not.

When it is convenient and best for the club, which is evidently not now.

Duncan told us he was away in Canada yesterday. Somebody mentioned that it might be due to some sort of celebrations for the Winter Olympics. I'm assuming as Chairman he must have been kept abreast of latest developments so just seems an absolutely absurd time to be out of the country, especially as he is missing out on most of the 'electricity' surging through the Southampton Saints right now.