Vancouver Saint

S'cuse me...did we just win a game of football?! Did we just get a clean sheet?! Have we entered a parallel universe? Unbelievable gritty performance - all credit to Selles and the players. Bazunu was great today. We rode our luck but determined defending from Perraud and AMN. ABK good, great free kick goal, tal Paul really good at hold-up play, him and Suleman look a good combo up front although Suleman a little off today. Stuart Armstrong, we missed you. Still don't understand how Elyounoussi gets a start ahead of others. Where are Caleta-Car and Orsic? Only classic Saints is the second time we win and still don't move off the bottom - not complaining though. Oh...and no credit to the board - they would have had bloomin' Marsch in charge for that - Selles was a default no-decision when clearly he should have had the backing from the outset.

Whilst I believe that everyone at board level made decisions that they thought would bring success, it's been a catalogue of errors. I think Ankersen is the one who's made those mistakes, although I'd have expected Semmens to have the power and authority to say no and provide some counterbalance. Ralph needed a rest, we needed a refresh...but if you were going to back him for as long as you did, why on earth not prioritise the striker replacement for Danny Ings he asked for? If we were more creative in our thinking we'd have given him a sabbatical and hired an interim manager. Ironically, rested and refreshed, I think Ralph is one of maybe only two or three that could keep us up...but are the board willing to swallow their pride and beg him to come back? I doubt it. The NJ appointment has laid bare the inadequacy of the 'excel spreadsheet / algorithm / 'moneyball' left-brain approach of Ankersen. I cannot fathom how even basic due diligence couldn't have uncovered the major flaws in Jones. It was a disastrous hire, and an unnecessarily high-risk gamble given the stakes and position we were in. I'm not being a smart-arse with the benefit of hindsight...most of us were deeply underwhelmed by the appointment of someone we'd never heard of until then, but prepared to give him a chance. It was obvious after three games this guy was a clueless, unlikeable, angry-shouty person with a one-dimensional view of how football should be played and who'd wasted six weeks of the World Cup to lick a team into shape. As has been said above, ultimately , it's this one huge error of judgement that has created a knock-on effect and spiralled us into this next-to-hopeless position. I am so glad we didn't hire Marsch. But that was a lucky break for the board - they were willing to walk into a short-term deal. The Selles arrangement is the fallback null game, so no decision there either. After blowing a sinful amount of money on the Jones appointment (if he were a true Christian he'd give at least half back and Ankersen should chip in something too) - we simply cannot screw the next appointment up looking for a band-aid fix. I would like to hear from Ankersen, the board: "Sorry, it's been a monumental cock-up...meant well but in hindsight a really poor decision. Not going to make that mistake again. Will consult the 'wisdom of crowds' fanbase next time and do proper due diligence. We will find someone who will buy into our philosophy of attractive attacking football and in developing youth...who will manage us at whatever level we find ourselves next season with the aim of an instant return to the PL if we do get relegated." Take all the pressure off the incoming or interim Manager now. Give us all a free hit to play open, attacking football that might just save us, knowing we're probably down already. I haven't lost all hope, but reality has to bite at some point. We are odds-on favourites to go down with Bournemouth. The betting-odds boys don't often get it wrong.

Noooooooooooo! You are a bad Bad Wolf!

Not disappointed that the Marsch deal is off - although wouldn't surprise me if there was another twist in that tale if Marsch U-turns and accepts a short-term deal. Gives me some hope that the board are not just knee-jerk reacting to the situation and realise Marsch is not the ideal candidate if they're prepared to lose him on that basis. BUT it would be a disaster if it's to give it to Gerard, Rooney or Lampard - please, please don't let them be that stupid. Let's do Selles as interim manager with someone to support him. Free hit. If we get a response like Bournemouth did, fantastic. If we stay up give him the job full time. If not, use the time to pursue a really desirable target that can bring us up out of the Championship. Not that difficult board. Get on with it.

OMG - only if by measured you mean overwhelmingly negative and consistent in their outlook. i.e. positive motivator / talker but no substance or tactical nous. Why on earth would we settle for this?

You're thinking about John Herdman, currently Head Coach of the Canadian men's team - that disappointed in the last World Cup. But he's good. Super positive, enthusiastic - got the women's team and the men's team playing well. No PL experience and possibly too nice? Will have learnt about handling the media after the Croatia gaff at the World Cup. We could do worse...and of course he would have been 1000% better than Nathan Jones (but then so would a pot plant have been). I think, swallow your pride and bring Ralph back, or Poch. But super long-shot. Please no to any of Gerard, Rooney or Lampard...and I simply cannot believe anyone would think Allardyce-crook is the solution to anything other than dodgy deals and park 10-men on the goal-line. I don't think Marsch is the solution either...a bit reactive...and there must be a reason why Leeds didn't want him despite the spirit his teams clearly show (something to do with not winning football games I think).

So I've finally cracked the thing that's been puzzling me - where did that performance against Man City come from? It's the one anomaly in the otherwise predictable Jones clueless shit-show. Then the answer came to me. The players weren't playing for Jones - they were playing for Pep. A chance to impress in front of a true manager. What is concerning me now is Ankerson's lack of courage to admit he made a horrendous mistake in hiring this angry little man. I really cannot believe they gave him that sort of contract without doing their homework. Did they talk to anyone at Stoke? Oh, and the Wolves game. I'm so tired of wanting us to win but also to lose heavily so we can rectify this mistake and, hopefully, begin the turnaround. Crazy thought or lateral thinking? - Bring back Ralph as interim manager until the end of the season (if we can persuade him). He's rested after his sabbatical. Knows the team and the players. Still has the respect of most of the fans. Has some new material to work with. Could be one of the very few that could hit the ground running and pull off one of those remarkable string of performances we know he has in his locker. (Oh, and I was in the 'time to go now Ralph' crowd too, so no need to play the hypocrite card).

Before I've read any comments - I knew we'd lost that game before a ball was kicked when I saw Ely, Diallo and Bednarek starting. In fairness, I thought Bednarek did ok, but ELy and Diallo were predictably woeful. I'd really like to know just what is Jones's thinking when that was the most important game of his managerial career with us? Why would you not want to start your best players in the best team you can put out? Thought Suleman looked good. Bree worked hard. Salisu played well. Our new giraffe guy - well, doesn't matter if you're 6'7" tall, if you don't jump you'll be beaten in the air by a 5'10 defender who jumps. Looks a lump. Hopefully will get up to speed with the physicality and speed of the PL fast. Che...ha,ha,ha,ha,ha, errr not!...stopped being funny now. Think the guy is trying to create his own entire blooper reel of missed sitters. Contrast between his conviction and Mee's there for all to see. Bazunu did what Bazunu does best, picking the ball out of the net. We are so down with this joker it's not funny. After the uplift and hope of our closing day transfer window, he managed to suck all the air out of the room - genius.

Serious question: If SR tried to hire a manager to sabotage any chance of us staying in the Premier League, could they have done any better than Nathan Jones?

8 for me. SR have given us the best possible chance to stay up we could expect. But still some major doubts about their most important signing of all - Nathan Jones. Jury is still very much out for me. I think the players we've brought in are exciting - Alacaraz, Orsic, and now Onuacho and Sulemana - but they're young and will likely need time to settle in as human beings into a totally new culture (if that's a word we can associate with Southampton!)...let alone hit the ground running in the PL. Add the unproven Nathan Jones equation (genius in disguise or useless shouty-prat) and we will need a lot of luck to get the points we need. I'm not counting the points but rather thinking are there three worse teams than us going into the last 18 games? Everton and Bournemouth most likely... then Forest? Leeds if they get injuries, Wolves if the new manager honeymoon ends abruptly, Palace even? Leicester and West Ham will get out of it I think. When none of the TotalSaintsFC punters think we can win against Brentford on Saturday it's a reality check. We all know what the most Saintsy thing of all to do is. That is find our form one game and one point too late...end the season with five wins in a row and miss 17th on goal difference. I so hope I'm wrong.

Also. Why aren't we looking at the J-League. Celtic killing it with their Japanese imports. Brighton's Mitoma has already repaid his £2m (yes) fee ten times over. We've had nothing but great value from Yoshida and we know the culture of hard work and respect goes with rising talent/skill levels. Why can't we look further than bloody Lige 1 (or 2) and La liga? Scandinavian market with Rasmus's connections would be another obvious hunting ground you would have thought. Cannot believe we are headed into the final day of the transfer window with no striker signed already... mind-boggling.

Yup. I live in eternal hope that we magically sign two really promising goal-scorers by the deadline tomorrow and pull off a miracle Man City-esque performance tomorrow to make it to the Carabao Cup final. In reality, I think that's like throwing double zero at roulette twice in a row. Not sure what those odds are, some mathematician will tell us...but let's just say it's as close to zero as my little brain can process. Still, as the dumber of the dumb says- "You're saying there's a chance!"

That game in three words? Average. Unconvincing. Disjointed. Glad we won, but man we are a poor, bang average team lacking identity, form or any hint of class. What did we learn? Peraud is worth his paycheck. Caballero is a true pro. Lyanco works hard regardless of the opposition. AMN is a total waste of a shirt - enough, no more chances, get rid. Aribo failed to impress. Mara is flaky, a 'luxury' player who gives the ball up too much and doesn't work back. Lavia can have a poor game. Still look like a team who doesn't know what tune to play or how.

Any better livestreams anyone? Thank you in advance.

Was tongue-in-cheek S-Clarke! But I'm serious about not being interested in winning the cup competitions this season. Not a competition, but I've been a Saints fan for 53 years (you'll relate to my warped sense of reality). I will willingly sacrifice the short-term thrill of a Cup run this year to be able to have another shot at them next year, the year after and so on. That will depend on whether we stay in the PL or not. It we go down, we could be a long time down...and the thrill will be winning the Johnstone Paint Trophy. It's all about PL status for me.

Well I watched it from the last 5 mins of the first half through a patchy stream with no commentary. The bundled AA non-goal looked like a goal to me without the benefit of VAR slo-mo replays. What has happened to the unwritten rule about not re-referreeing games FFS?...oh yes, forgot, that only applies when it's not disadvantaging the bigger clubs, where it's based on an instant dial-in vote from the bigger club's fan-base. But I see others saying it was a fair call, so I'm taking it I missed something. To be fair we should have been 0-1 down by then anyway with Joelinton skying a sitter over the bar. It was like watching us! Thought we had some bright spots...Adam Armstrong played well I thought, Mara nice touches, Edozie pulled a great save from Pope, Alcaraz looks good but playe in too defensive a position (switch him and JWP's roles I agree). Downsides...Orsic invisible, DCC's lack of pace hugely exposed (and why he's not the greatest IMHO...don't rate him as highly as many on here do) no real shape or identity...just lots of energy...pashun...as if guile and composure (and a decent finish!) was banned. Missed the Adams miss, no surprises. Stupid red card from DCC but good that he'll miss the return game so we can expose just how crap Bednerak is again. Don't understand the interest in staying in this competition. I just see it as a huge distracting side-show with the ability to pick up more injuries and exhaust a weak squad before more important league games. Was hoping we'd concede a second at the end to make the return trip even more futile than it is already. If Saints pull off an amazing turnaround at St James's to win the tie I'll be delighted to eat my words, but seriously, what a waste of time. Let's focus on the league.

Seriously, why does the club think this is a good move or an exciting one for the fans in any way? Never go back is generally a good rule. We dodged a bullet with Danny Ings. Theo just shouldn't have. Bednarek returns with low expectations from the fanbase who know his limitations and a ton of negative goodwill - what could possibly go wrong? As always, delighted to be proven wrong. Why don't we bring Tella back if we're going to recall anyone?

No FA Cup or League Cup and stay up much better for me. Given we can't buy a win at home in the league I doubt we can stay up now. If this Villa game is anything to go by and was the most important of the three this week - as it was for me - then we will be out of both Cups and set firm for relegation. Villa were the better team, more crisp in their passing and greater control - but in typical Saints fashion we fail to get the point we probably just about deserved and that would have given us some upward momentum. Didn't you just know they were going to over-rule our goal - and that they'd score shortly after and get a close call go their way. You need a bit of luck to stay up and get something out of games even when you don't play well - we got absolutely none. That said, we were crap - lots of individual errors, Dialo better than Alcaraz? Mara cost us the game. Ely, Mara, Perraud triple substitution before bringing Orsic on? Edozie should be someone we bring on with 30 minutes to go to run tired defences ragged, not a hold-up player. DCC poor today. JWP taken out of the game. Bazunu really needs a rest - the difference between the keepers was apparent for all to see. Bazunu doesn't command six-feet in front of him, Martinez commanded their defensive third of the pitch! I think (and honestly don't mind much) that we get knocked out of the Cup competitions this week - Newcastle way too good for us over two legs. Then there is no excuse about training schedules, injuries, distractions etc. Knowing us, we'll play a blinder and win in the competitions I don't really care about at this juncture.

Am I the only one who is happy Ings didn't come back to us?

I'm a regular listener and enjoy the podcast - quite far away in vancouver and it brings it closer...talks of Hampshire cricket, son's football team, dull weekends. It's a refreshing touch of reality and I find it often reflects my read of things - not always. It's a refreshing contrast to the 'positive spin only' sponsored crap we get from the Whitecaps media...who I swear could talk-up even the Forest game! I like the fact they have an opinion and aren't afraid to say it...or admit if they were wrong. I was underwhelmed by Jone's appointment...then read a bit and listened to him (especially the bit about Saints fans in the family...thinking they'll tell him what's what)...was definitely prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt and give him a chance...saw the first four games...OMG Lincoln and Forest have to be the worst games ever....seriously thought he was clueless and had gone backwards at a rate of knots after 6 weeks to get his thoughts across...NOW, am delighted to be offered the chance to eat humble pie every week if we keep winning. Palace we were a bit lucky but showed some grit, Man City was unbelievable, not just the result but the manner of the win - couldn't believe what I was watching...Everton, we had a bit of luck for once and two bits of class and some determination and decent defending for once got us the win. So now, I am hoping like the rest of us that we beat Villa and keep the momentum going. And I'm in the...okay NJ, you've got my attention and I'm ready to admit I was premature in judging you...if the results and performances keep coming. I'm rooting for him! Thanks for the podcast and keep up the good work.

So, now we've all calmed down a bit... A fantastic win - fairly even teams (Everton really not great)...good game...for once, we rode our luck and the result was just what we needed (and fair to cancel out the result at home). Honestly, could have gone the other way if the one that hit the bar went in - that was when I just felt the the luck could run our way today. Onana was a beast for them in midfield - he'd have been the story if things had gone Everton's way. Fair play to NJ and the team - I have been heavily critical before this week and confess I was in the 'fix this mistake quickly camp'. Now I'm in the ...'wow, take it back, would be delighted to eat humble pie every week for the rest of the season if it keeps us up' camp. Certainly looks like he has the team behind him. We could and probably should have won by a bigger margin in the end - our lack of ruthless breakaway killer instinct/composure/finisher showed. My observations FWIW: JWP - two brilliant bits of skill made all the difference...like him playing further forward...that said, hink he can play better than he did today, looked tired KWP - not at his best today, looked tired CC - very solid...better in defensive role than creative move it forward quickly...but we need defenders that can defend! Lyanco - another good performance, positive, aggressive but controlled Edozie - obviously talented, think he's better as an impact sub against a tired defense Che - did well as hold-up and lay-off master...always better when he has someone to play off him in close support...two good assists, could have been more Alcaraz - didn't think he was as bad as everyone else seems to think...showed he's going to be good I think...fast, aggressive, foot-forward. Literally just off the plane so surprised he played Dialo - really not up to it I don't think Ely - please will someone explain to me why he continues to hold down a starting place? I just don't get him. Think he's slow and lacks courage, flair or finish. Not terrible, but bang average. Bazunu - looks very nervous...needs to build up confidence...command his box, come for crosses - punch or catch corners near the six-yard box...will get better as we win games and hopefully keep some clean sheets Salisu - hmm...blows hot and cold...not great first half, very good second half Adam Armstrong - thought he was really good in the new 'Shane Long' role (harry opposition defences and run everywhere even if you're not likely to score...get occasional bonus goal or two! Lavia - obviously talented but early yellow card took the edge off his superpower No S. Armstrong on the bench even - is he injured? You can see NJ's strategy is to keep high energy and is not afraid to bring fresh legs on, so we will need good options from the bench to mix things up... Now to beat Villa at home. Just watched the highlights from their Leeds game and they were super lucky to win that - Martinez made a couple of incredible saves.

Thanks for the link 31 cc. Well that was a pleasant surprise - wow! We actually played with heart and passion and scored two great goals - amazing. Hopefully we can hold on to a win and avoid a replay and injuries.

Any streaming links?

Well I'm old enough to remember listening to radio commentary live as we won the Cup in 1976! A special day indeed (and the only time the Queen presented the FA Cup I learnt later - one for the Southampton record books). But honestly, I'd take staying in the Premier League any day over the League Cup (especially) or the FA Cup. Play the youngsters and reserves. No injuries. Don't start unfit new signings and risk injuring before they're ready for nothing. Would I like us to win - of course!

Don't really care about this at all - care more about us winning our league game against Everton. Play reserves and youngsters. No injuries and anything other than a drubbing is a bonus.