SaintTex

Count me as a constant worrier in regards to JRod, as well. I could be reading into it of course, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of joy on his face, even after scoring. A lot of it could be mental, as well. A 25 year old guy who has been in top physical form since he was a teenager, suddenly blows out a leg, on a seemingly harmless play, which causes him to be out 18 months. My confidence in my body and how it reacts would be shaken if that was me. in the back of my head, I might be constantly thinking.. is this the play or is this the slide or is this the jump, where that possibly happens again? It's got to wear on the mind. Plus, every little knock, which before he might blow off and say, no biggie, is now potentially amplified in his mind as something way worse.

anyone have some leads on a streaming option for the one Southampton fan in Texas?

If our LCB is Yoshida, I think we need more defensive midfield cover, so I would go with a 4-2-3-1 ---------------Forster--------------- Soares—Fonte--Yoshida--Bertrand -------Clasie------Wanyama------- ----Mane-------Tadic------JRod---- -----------------Pelle---------------- If our LCB is Van Dijk or equal, I think we have Wanyama as the sole DM, so I would go with a 4-1-3-2 ---------------Forster---------------- Soares—Fonte--Van Dijk--Bertrand --------------Wanyama-------------- --Mane--------Clasie---------Tadic-- ---------Pelle-----------JRod---------

yeah, Lallana should start worrying about how much playing time he is going to get this year. You figure there are some givens in the preferred Starting XI.. ----------Minelot------------- Clyne-Skrtel-Lovren-Moreno ----Milner-----Henderson---- Firmino---Coutinho---??? --------Benteke-------------- Henderson is the captain - he starts. the are paying Milner, Firmino and Benteke big bucks - they start. Coutinho was supposedly their best player last year - he starts. Leaves one slot for Sturridge, Ibe, Can, Lallana, Lucas, Allen, Origi, Markovic, Ings

I agree with this in a purely logical legal way. Why counter offer the Spurs offer to AM if legally/contractually the player is already ours? It's a mess and it really isn't Southampton or Spurs fault, Athletico Madrid screwed the pooch. Are we to believe they couldn't pay the 1.5m without selling Toby first? That isn't our problem. No one forced them to agree to the terms of the loan deal signed last summer. In a way, I can respect Spurs position and try to push through the signing as quickly as possible. The more entangled legally they are with Toby, the better their chances of keeping him are. I don't think Les or Ralph have really done anything wrong here. What were their options? Try to outbid the Spurs before the buy-out clause was cancelled?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3147920/Southampton-Marseille-bid-10m-Idrissa-Gueye-despite-Lille-star-opening-talks-Aston-Villa.html Southampton and Marseille bid £10m for Idrissa Gueye despite Lille star opening talks with Aston Villa Idrissa Gueye was at Aston Villa's training ground for talks on Thursday Villa had a £9m bid accepted for the midfielder but the deal is not complete Southampton and Marseille both hope to beat Villa to the Senegal star Gueye is expected to reject Marseille in favour of a Premier League move published 5 hours ago.

how about a cynical post? Slated to be sold to Liverpool in the summer of 2018 for 30 million.

Guess he does fit into their plans. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/transfers/morgan-schneiderlin-to-manchester-united-louis-van-gaal-makes-southampton-midfielder-his-top-transfer-target-this-summer-10315444.html pros: they'll pay top dollar cons: he leaves

Interesting point. I think the perception that Southampton players sold last summer flopped with the "big clubs" may be giving the big clubs some pause when it comes to Schneiderlin and maybe even Clyne. Maybe thinking they are thinking these players may look better than they are because they are "big fish in a little pond" I am not saying it is necessarily true, but combine the snobby mentality of the "big clubs" with the generally disappointing performances of our summer defectors, and this might be a prevalent sentiment currently of Southampton players.

ah, thanks.. I was mistaken, I thought he had a year left. So the club is in a better position than I thought.

As far as Schneiderlin, reading the tea leaves, his odds of him leaving get less and less with each passing day. 01) The pool of teams which meets his apparent criteria to leave is very small. -------a. he wants to play Champions League -------b. he wants to stay in England (English girlfriend apparently) so, that leaves Chelsea, City, United, and Arsenal. 02) Of those 4 teams that have shown interest, Arsenal has choked on the price and ManU, while certainly can afford the price, seem to have their pick of the football player litter. Maybe Schneiderlin fits into their plans, maybe he doesn't. I suppose if Champions League is that important he can widen his options beyond England, which certainly might happen. if he/we can't find a proper suitor this summer, the question becomes: a) would he sign a new contract here and are we willing to pay much higher wages or b) play one more year, and then we get nothing for him next summer when he leaves. I tend to believe b) would happen if he doesn't transfer this summer.

wouldn't Tadic be that type of player? ------------Forster------------- Clyne--Fonte--Toby--Bertrand ---Wanyama---Schniederlin--- -------------Tadic--------------- ---Long---Mane---Rodriguez---

4-2-3-1 It was a shame JRod was hurt all last season. This lineup would have been a beast. -------------Forster------------ Clyne--Fonte--Toby--Bertrand ----Wanyama----Morgan------ ---Tadic---Mane--Rodriquez-- --------------Pelle-------------- We'll probably never know exactly how that lineup would have performed. And although I agree with those that have noted that Tadic seems more comfortable on the left, I still rate him and think he is quality wherever he is on the pitch.

I'd say Stekelenburg is a pretty good option to start the season with Forster out. Who else is realistically on our radar? Maarten Stekelenburg started in the 2010 World Cup finals. He is certainly qualified. If he has any ambition at all : 01) He should consider the chance to start for a top 7 Premier League team as an opportunity to impress not only Koeman, but potentially other suitors down the line [especially if he drops back to 2nd choice upon Forster's return]. 02) He should look at this as an opportunity to impress and take away Forster's starting spot. I am not saying he could, but this should be his mindset.

So, where do we rank? 7th in popularity at this point? 8th? 10th?

no Ivanović? that guy is a mauler.

completely agree... without Forster - 9 matches (if you include Burnley) during that time: **only 2 clean sheets (Burnley & Hull - relegation teams) **no clean sheets in the last 6 matches **allowed at least 2 goals in 5 matches. (if we had given up only 1 goal in those 5 matches - we would have 4 more points, and 5th place) **but as it stands.... only 13 points out of a possible 27 in our last 9 matches without Forster. going back to that stat in regard to goals allowed per match: without Forester - 2 goals or more allowed in 5 out of 9 matches played. with Forster - 2 goals or more allowed in 4 out of 29 matches played.

well, here are our chances... http://www.sportsclubstats.com/England/Southampton.html if we lose... we know that one if we draw... 5th - 0% | 6th - 46% | 7th - 54% if we win... 5th - 40% | 6th - 47% | 7th - 13% overall chances for final table place 5th - 11% | 6th - 22% | 7th - 67%

I want to finish above Liverpool so badly. All those summer quotes from Brenda will have 100% weight if we do. No Scouser can come back and say: "but we still finished above you."

Clyne vs Arsenal (league cup) - most eye-popping Pelle vs Stoke (league cup) - most sublime Tadic vs ManU - most dramatic Pelle vs Newcastle - best team goal (1st goal) see link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xdke8dgJR4o

Starting 11 is fine. The bench needs work. Add Djuricic and Elia. Lose Gardos and either Reed/Morgan depending on Morgan's true fitness.

For U.S. viewers, NBCSN will be showing all 10 games on 10 different channels Sunday. I am going to flipping back and forth between 3 channels like a mad man.

maybe it is because I don't seek it out, but other clubs doing this kind of thing? Southampton has been killing it in the marketing department this season. Really cultivating a culture, theme, a story - doing it's part to create a clear identity for this club. I got to believe this effort, combined with winning, is really broadening Southampton's appeal worldwide. It has been brilliant.