van Hanegem

There are cheap options like Hakim Ziyech from Twente, a left and right footed midfielder who is up for grabs as Twente is in financial problems. 5 or 6 million will do at the moment but Saints would have to hurry...

I guess my trap is that I'm being Dutch and like to see some creativity in order to see some entertaining football... It's no comparison off course but maybe you remember "boring Arsenal?" Most fans like to see their team win and don't care how they do it nowadays, I for one love to see a team playing attractive and attacking football when possible. Surely there are lots of games in the PL when it's better for the Saints to wait for things to happen up front and it will pay off in the Uefa League too but sometimes you need to take the opponent "by the balls" (if you know what I mean...) e.g. when the Saints have to equalise, pushing them back to their own box, keeping the ball in possession and then you'll need a more creative player in midfield to open up the opponents defence (like the game against West Ham last season). You may argue that in this case players like Reed, Davis and Wanyama should deliver the ball to the attackers but it would help when there's some input from a midfielder too. It appears that Koeman believes so too and with the signing of Juanmi (who can play also in midfield and has probably the best technical skills of all the players) he has got more options in midfield. However, it would be a good thing when the Saints sign another creative midfielder but that's just my opinion.

This game was all about the result: keeping a clean sheet and getting preferably two or three goals. Koeman knows Dutch teams well enough to know that they will make some stupid mistakes so the Saints would just have to sit back and wait for their chances and this resulted in the 2-0 and 3-0. So the result is there but I'd expected a little more "spirit" from the Saints. The circumstances were there: a full house, the first European game in ages and playing against a bunch of 18 and 19-year olds... I guess we'll have to wait for the group stages to get more "entertainment". Koeman said that he needs two more signings and it's clear that he needs a better central defender than Yoshida. I would like to see another midfielder with more creativity than Reed, Davis and Wanyama. Clasie does have a great passing skill but he's not the setter the Saints need in my opinion. Besides that, Clasie needs a couple of months to get used to his teammates and the PL while the team clearly needs some creativity in midfield asap. Good to see Stekelenburg play again, he's potentially a better keeper than Forster and it wouldn't surprise me if Koeman wants to buy him from Fulham in the near future.

Nah, we're just not that civilized when it comes to football...

Geez, as everything in the UK does come across the channel it will be a matter of time then before I'm getting drilled when I enter a Dutch stadium... I read in the Dutch Telegraaf (http://www.telegraaf.nl/telesport/voetbal/vitesse/24322143/__Tieners_Vitesse_in_Engeland__.html) that Vitesse is going to play with a team that couldn't look any younger than this except for captain Guram Kashia who says he always liked to play against Pelle in the Eredivisie. The new Chelsea loans Nathan Allan de Souza, Danila Pantic and Isiah Brown should be familiar to Southampton fans as they were part of the youth academy from the Saints. Vitesse's coach Peter Bosz is a bit bluffing:"I never lost playing against a British club in my career as a player with Feyenoord and we did win our preseason game against Manchester City with 4-2..." But he knows better and he's happy that his team gets the chance to play two great matches against Southampton in order to learn.

Yup, and when they finally make it to the stadium they are not allowed to smoke... British football is getting cleaner and cleaner! Being a Feyenoord fan I do not have much sympathy for Vitesse nowadays as they are one of two clubs in Holland who are owned by some rich dude who is clearly not much interested in his club at all. Guess I'm old fashioned as I don't like to see the people's game taken over by rich bast*rds who're just looking for a new toy to show off. In Vitesse's case it's some Russian who is linked to Chelsea's Abramovich and no one knows for sure how the club is being runned financially. In order to get their huge debt in line with the Dutch FA rules they had to sell some players and Feyenoord got lucky to buy Vejinovic as a replacement for Clasie for only 2,5 million pounds while this guy has even more potential than Clasie... However, last year they played the most attractive football in the Eredivisie and they fully deserved a ticket to the Uefa League. They lacked a goalscorer like Wilfried Bony who was sold to Swansea otherwise I believe they could have had a shot at the title. But they lost key players in their defense and midfield this summer so it's hard to say what we can expect from them this season. They got 4 new players from Chelsea but I've never seen these guys play and I even don't know if they're ready yet to add something to the team. Therefore I reckon that the Saints will have an easy win: 4-0.

Thanks for your report Pillock, though it did hurt me a little that Feyenoord was so powerless against the Saints (who were playing at 60 or 70%) it is good to see that you had a nice stay in Rotterdam!

Well, it was no surprise that the Saints were the better team but the defense of Feyenoord was even worse than expected. It's clear where the money from Clasie must be spent on... Hard to say if Vitesse will do better as they lost some key players this summer but they got three new players from Chelsea on loan who seem to be promising. I guess it depends on how fast they blend in and get used to the system their head coach Peter Bosz wants to play. Usually Vitesse plays very offensive football in order to entertain the public but they will be more carefull against the Saints. Though Peter Bosz will also have seen that the defense of the Saints is the weakest link of the team and they do have some creative and fast attackers. Should be a nice game to watch!

Parking is always a crime so you better come early. Especially now as there are roadworks going on at the "Brienenoord bridge" and delay is expected.

But you were right in your post above expressing your concerns about his fitness. Clasie will need some time to adept to the pace in the PL, in fact, he told Dutch media he was very impressed with the fitness and power/strength of his new teammates and he said that he had to go to the gym much more. As a Feyenoord fan I know the qualities of Clasie but I don't understand that he didn't work more on his fitness while he played for Feyenoord. I guess it's all a bit too easy in the Eredivisie as there are many more players who look like small boys (you will see it tonight in the game against Feyenoord too). There's one exception at Feyenoord: Colin Kazeem Richards. Yup, an Englishman... Too bad he's not much of a footballer though.

Kaartjes graag...

Looking forward to Feyenoord vs. Southampton though it looks like Feyenoord is not ready to be any match for the Saints at this moment. Feyenoord is in desperate need for two defenders (central and leftback) and a versatile striker while the new signings Kuyt, Vejinovic and Gustavson still have to adept to the team (and vice versa...). But the atmosphere will be great and as the ties between the clubs is getting stronger, this friendly game might be the first of more to come. Hopefully next time I won't be on holiday...

Feyenoord doesn't even know what a whopping sell on clause means... However, the only reliable (as far as that goes..) source in Holland (De Telegraaf) says 9,5 million pounds upfront and 1 million pounds extra when Clasie plays a certain amount of games. So 10,5 million pounds in total, still a bargain for Southampton considering the ridiculous fees for other players in the PL and a fairly good deal for Feyenoord. And a happy Clasie off course...

Cukaricki or Rabotnicki sounds just fine with me.

Good question, maybe he can in the future but I guess it depends on the way the team plays. There aren't many teams that can play a position game like Barcelona or Ajax on a good day and that would be necessary for Clasie. Imagine Xavi or Iniesta at West Ham for example, they wouldn't be able to play like they're used to at Barca and therefore wouldn't make much of an impression. Clasie is certainly no Xavi or Iniesta but like them he's very dependent on the abilities of his teammates. For now I'm certain Koeman will use his strengths, especially his vision and passing ability must add something to the Saints and therefore he needs to stay more at the back to have a wide view of the possibilities ahead of him. He will come to the opponents box a few times each game (when the Saints are capable to keep the opponent under pressure) but I suspect his handling speed is not good enough yet to make an impression in the PL when it comes to playing in the opponents box.

Yup, somebody has to pay for Greece... But 52% is the highest tax bracket and starts for all income above 40K in pounds.

Except that Clasie isn't a box-to-box midfielder at all.

Sorry, can't find the right translation of "dubbelslag" in this matter but they mean that Feyenoord gets a lot of money for Clasie and at the same time they get a great Swedish talent for only 10% of the fee they get for Clasie.

Don't believe it Saint Ash, the Dutch De Telegraaf is well connected to Feyenoord as they are mediapartner and are the only one getting information from the board of Feyenoord.

Clasie earns 700K in british pounds before taxes (52% in Holland) at Feyenoord so no, there won't be any stumbling blocks... Clasie really wants to play for Southampton, money is secundary.

The opinions differ, however most do believe that he can but there are some like me who believe he would have been better off in the Spanish or Italian competition careerwise. Football in those competions is more organised than the PL and is easier to adept to coming from the Eredivisie than the PL where there's usually a lot of running going on and less tactics. Look at Stefan de Vrij for example, he went from Feyenoord to Lazio Roma and is now seen as one of the best defenders and that in a country where they "invented" defensive football! I'm sure he would have been slaughtered when he'd moved to England first... But Southampton with Koeman and the way they like to play is the best choice for Clasie when it comes to the PL!

Gustafson will be the replacement for Lex Immers who is believed to also move over to the PL, it seems Watford is after him...

Yep, it's a good deal for the Saints and for Feyenoord. The fee for Clasie is the second highest (after Dirk Kuyt) in the history of the club. Off course there are some among the Feyenoord fans who believe that Clasie should have been sold for more as the Saints got enough money and there were some other clubs interested in Clasie but most of the fans agree that it is a good deal and they're happy for Feyenoord and for Clasie. Besides, Feyenoord already bought a replacement (Vejinovic) for 2,5 million pounds who has even more potential than Clasie in the long run. So, everybody's happy here!

According to the De Telegraaf it is 15 million euros (9,5 million pounds upfront and a million pounds bonus when Clasie plays a certain amount of games). It's said that Clasie will sign his contract today in Southampton.

I agree but a club should be carefull with this. Suppose Koeman would get another three Dutchmen (he won't, rest assured...) and leaves after this season and let's say a Frenchman comes in who wants to get his own players... Not only will it cost a lot of money (players written off, getting new players in) but there won't be any long term consistency and you'll end up like so many other clubs without vision. I hope that the Saints hold on to their policy to try to play attractive and attacking football (I am a Dutchman after all) and chooses the right manager again when Koeman leaves.