SaintLondon

How does the Kool-aid taste?

In other words, we don't know what we're doing and we're hoping for a miracle.

This a hunch based on the murmurs last time or you've heard something? It would be classic SR to be putting the fate of the club in the hands of either Tonda Eckart or Eric Ramsey based on a failed experiment with Will Still. What annoys me is that the likes of Spors are getting linked with clubs such as Juventus, they don't mind taking the risks and making a mess because they know they can wash their hands of it and walk away. We're the ones that are left to deal with the mess they've made with no way of cleaning it up. Any clubs with decent ambitions in the Championship can use us as the case study on what not to do.

Seen a report we might cancel Jelert's loan in Jan - what is happening there? I thought he has looked ok?

What happened to K Billy?

You'd hope the people in the footballing department being paid millions per year can come up with this answer. Don't think chastising someone on here for not knowing the answer to that is all that fair. It's literally not our job but it literally is theirs.

I have been told by a friend who works for the club that we shouldn't expect any news on this any time soon. I'm now convinced that they wanted GON but us pesky fans got in the way of another SR masterclass.

I just don't buy this logic. Yes, he’s two from two, but the underlying numbers suggest that stronger opposition would have punished us. Even if they didn’t, it remains a gamble - and gambles should be informed by track record, not two senior games. If the stakes are as high as suggested - i.e., we’re in a difficult financial position if we don’t go up - why would we risk the season on a coach with virtually no senior résumé? I like TE; he speaks well and carries himself impressively. But we’ve done the hopeful punt before. Rúben Sellés looked a revelation after Chelsea away and it didn’t sustain. That’s a case study we should learn from, not repeat. There’s a better blueprint: decide early, appoint experience, and build momentum over multiple windows. Look at Coventry City. They made the hard call on 7 November 2024, sitting 17th on 15 points, and brought in Frank Lampard.. Performances stabilised, results improved, and they used the following window to add smartly. They fell short that first season, yes but crucially they turned a bounce into a culture. This year they’ve continued the trajectory: recruitment aligned, belief embedded, and a squad that’s been living in a positive atmosphere for the best part of 18 months. That’s how you enter the Premier League with tailwinds rather than turbulence. That is what Southampton are crying out for. Timing matters. We’re not in August; we don’t have the luxury of “a few games to see where we are.” The sensible route is to hire an experienced head coach now, keep TE in a clearly defined supporting role, and make a serious push for the play-offs while laying foundations for the summer. Give the dressing room somebody proven - systems, standards, substitutions and let TE learn under that framework rather than carry it on his back. As for Sport Republic, history doesn’t inspire confidence. It looked like they were pushing Gary O’Neil despite the Pompey problem until the backlash made it untenable, which likely explains slience. And here we are - again - staring at a late decision with no clear plan. If they surprise us with a heavyweight (say Brendan Rodgers or Marco Rose), I’ll happily eat my words. But the fear is we end up with TE or a left-field swing like Johnny Heitinga, and we’re back in the cycle of hope, drift, and reset. Bottom line: if promotion genuinely matters to the club’s financial health, don’t stake it on romance and short samples. Appoint experience, codify the culture, and let momentum do what it did for Coventry.

There isn't any substance in the Rogers rumours, right? Just general gossip?

For anyone still thinking he'd be good...

Telegraph reporting GON is in pole position.. Feels like Nathan Jones appointment all over again. Full scale negativity.

Yeah but Pompey is the only one he came out and spoke of after he retired to say he was now a supporter of.. Also, who is calling for Zidane? We're just saying *not* GON. We know where are in the pecking order and I find it weird that some fans are fine with a Pompey supporting manager in the dugout.

If SR appoint GON, it will confirm what many of us fear: that all the talk about the club being “nothing without the fans” is lip service. Appointing him - despite the Pompey context, which they either don’t understand or choose to dismiss - would be a glaring sign of leadership that is out of its depth and acting in spite of its own supporters. I’ve tried to give Dragan the benefit of the doubt; he has invested heavily and taken losses. But this decision ultimately rests with him. If he allows Spors to proceed with appointing him, it will - judging by feeling on here and my Saints supporting friends - be the final break in any remaining goodwill toward the board and Dragan in particular. I don’t think they grasp quite how monumental a fuck up this would be.

Romeu left after Ralph? Romeu played a couple of games under Martin, didn't he? Lost my mind. All the shite has merged into one hellish campaign.

I think it's gonna be Ralph on a deal to end of season and then reassess - win for all parties.

Of all the names mentioned, I’d still try to bring Ralph back - not out of misty-eyed nostalgia, and not because I think he’d necessarily say yes, but because he’s the best of the realistic options and a reminder that the grass isn’t always greener. Under Ralph we were a lower mid-table Premier League side, and he already knows the club, the facilities and the area; there’d be no settling-in period - he could get straight to work. Would he want it? Probably not. But his presence could help tempt leaders back in January - players like Romeu or JWP - to steady the ship. I know bringing back the old guard can look emotion-led, but those three genuinely care about the club and the supporters, and they might be exactly the personalities to grab this dressing room and demand standards. As Glen said on TSP last night, too few in this squad seem to care - they say they do, but it doesn’t show. We need people in that room who can get a tune out of what we have now. We’re not getting promoted (and honestly, that is a blessing). The priority is to stabilise, put together a positive second half of the season, then move players on, reset the culture, and start again with balanced, settled leadership in place.

Anyone know of 2x tickets for sale?

I was prepared to give him more time, but I can’t defend this any longer - we look uncoached and lifeless. No one in their right mind can back what we’re seeing on the pitch. My worry is twofold: first, that SR won’t have the conviction to act; second, that if they do, the replacement will be another soft choice - Lallana, or something equally ill-judged. I don’t have a perfect name, and I fear they’ll chase what they think is “popular” (say, Steven Gerrard). Not long ago I’d have said that would be a terrible appointment - just as I felt about Lampard at Coventry but he’s surprised everyone, so who bloody knows anymore. What we need is simple: someone who can inspire the dressing room, organise us, and restore belief. I watch Will Still and feel nothing - no charisma, no energy. He seems more compelling in French than in English. The bigger issue is cultural. We’re Man United-lite: something is rotten and it’s now visible across the club. The last Championship season papered over cracks; we nearly threw that away too. This decline has been years in the making, and the next few weeks will shape the next few years. I’ve got little confidence the right calls will be made. My fear is we become the next Blackburn Rovers - stuck in the Championship, occasional play-off flutters, the odd relegation scare. What a fall from grace.

Had a dream last night that we lost 21-18. Make of that what you will.

TBF - it was reported initially that he would have the medical in the next 24 - 48 hours. Perhaps contracts are being sorted etc and until that point he is technically still a WBA player. I'm hoping that is the case anyway, really want this one over the line.

Do we think we are waiting to see if Spertsyan can come off before committing to Azaz? £12m for a player that has scored and assisted in double figures in back to back Championship seasons doesn't seem too much to be honest? So if we really wanted to do it, we could and would? Surely the Spertsyan thing is dead now?

Spertsyan was never realistically coming here. I think the Azaz links have been pushed to the local rags because all the other targets are falling through. It’s not looking good right now, and I’m not convinced it’ll end well. Will Still said in an interview recently that the aim is to try for promotion this season, but if not, then next season. Under Martin there was none of that kind of hedging - he and the new signings were all clear that the only goal was going up this year. It makes me wonder if this time around it’s being treated more as a longer-term project: “let’s get there when we’re ready, even if it takes two seasons.” Maybe that means we’ll be in a stronger position once we do arrive, but right now it doesn’t feel like a club throwing everything at going up immediately. Instead, it feels more like they’re trying to stabilise things for a bigger push later on. Which as a fanbase, isn't all that exciting but perhaps I'm giving too much kudos to SR and they're just shite at their jobs.

It's not going well is it?

Yeah, he's not coming. Brentford, Bournemouth or a Leeds will get pick him up next week. Over it.

A pen and a drawing board?