Fonte Transfer Rumours

[Heisenberg]

The one and only reason Fonte has stayed at saints for 7 years is that until now he hasn't had a better offer. it really isnt that difficult to understand. Obviously thats my opinion but its fairly clear if we get an offer we buckle and take the cash.

 

As far as i have been told is he wants to go and has been told to stay. he is sulking about it and it remains to be seen whether he will try and force his way out of the club.

 

Part of me understands that like all clubs we are a stepping stone and I don't see us selling our better players to sides on our level (for example WBA, Stoke and Palace)

 

We typically offer players a springboard to the next level of club and right now we are probably at level 4

 

Pierre talks quite openly about using us as a springboard and I think unless we change our philosophy we need to accept that good players will only be here 1 maybe 2 years

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3735792/amp/Pierre-Emile-Hojbjerg-keen-follow-footsteps-Gareth-Bale-Southampton.html?client=safari

[doddisalegend]

personally i think winning the Euros has changed Fonte's outlook and ambition. He has had a taste of the glory of a major trophy and desperately wants more but realises that this will not happen at Saints.

Can't really blame him but it is a real kick in the teeth for us fans who have to stick with the club regardless of ambitions!!

 

errrr except the suggestion is he is upset because he wants to go to Everton......

[doddisalegend]

Thirded

 

http://www.skysports.com/transfer-centre

 

I assume you mean this

 

[Lord Duckhunter]

 

 

 

Pierre talks quite openly about using us as a springboard and I think unless we change our philosophy we need to accept that good players will only be here 1 maybe 2 years

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3735792/amp/Pierre-Emile-Hojbjerg-keen-follow-footsteps-Gareth-Bale-Southampton.html?client=safari

 

It's nothing to do with our " philosophy" and everything to do with the modern game . If you sign and develop good players , bigger clubs will take them , end of . Are you trying to say that if Sadio Mane & Vic played for Stoke or Palace they'd reject Liverpool of Spurs . The only reason clubs don't lose players like we do is because their players aren't wanted as much as ours . If has nothing to do with any business plan or philosophy . WBA have shown us the other way , they've basically had their top asset unsettled and not performing like he should be for months now . Is that what you wanted us to do with Mane , become a bloody circus whilst he tries to get away ?

[wessex saint]

No idea if there's any truth in this or not, but bottom line... Last 3 yrs we've sold our best players when fans thought we were 1 or 2 signings away from really competing with the big boys.

Instead, we've sold our biggest assets and had to rebuild.

By luck rather than judgment we've slightly improved final league position. Let's be honest.. No way will Liverpool and Chelsea finish below us this year...we will definitely finish lower in the league.

And that's the crux. For all the rhetoric, Les et al aren't really aiming for champions league.. They don't dream big enough. Get a manager who will start jwp every wk and he'll tick les's boxes.

 

Teams with ambition keep their best players and bring one or two in. We're not in that bracket.

 

I've renewed my season ticket and will sing all game to get behind the team but be realistic. I'll be happy with avoiding relegation and taking one of the cups seriously.

 

 

 

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[wadesmith]

I think the fact that all our departures follow an almost exact pattern . Sign up , stay 2 years/ 3 years leave, suggest that the club almost agree to this possibility with the player at the point of signing. I feel this is all part of the Southampton plan. It's a shame, but it's something we are going to have to get used to. My concern is the fans will eventually become disillusioned. Part of football being a supporter is having heroes be it Channon, Davies, Le Tissier, Dodd or even Benali. I fear those days are over.

[the saint in winchester]

We may be getting a bid from Arsenal before the month is out.

[wessex saint]

P.s. Just checked the squad for Watford game. 2 academy players in it... Target and jwp. Probably the worst 2 players on the day. #thesouthamptonway

 

 

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[doddisalegend]

I think the fact that all our departures follow an almost exact pattern . Sign up , stay 2 years/ 3 years leave, suggest that the club almost agree to this possibility with the player at the point of signing. I feel this is all part of the Southampton plan. It's a shame, but it's something we are going to have to get used to. My concern is the fans will eventually become disillusioned. Part of football being a supporter is having heroes be it Channon, Davies, Le Tissier, Dodd or even Benali. I fear those days are over.

 

Those days have been long gone for a while the only players who stay at clubs a long time are ones who don't get a better offer....

[doddisalegend]

We may be getting a bid from Arsenal before the month is out.

 

What for Fonte? Is this like when Arsenal were deffo signing Morgan or when Victor said Arsne was a big a fan...

[nta786]

We will only keep players if we pay the money. No two ways about it.

If we offered Mane 130k a week he would have stayed I reckon, and so too Wanyama etc, and probs Morgan.

[Faz]

I think the fact that all our departures follow an almost exact pattern . Sign up , stay 2 years/ 3 years leave, suggest that the club almost agree to this possibility with the player at the point of signing. I feel this is all part of the Southampton plan. It's a shame, but it's something we are going to have to get used to. My concern is the fans will eventually become disillusioned. Part of football being a supporter is having heroes be it Channon, Davies, Le Tissier, Dodd or even Benali. I fear those days are over.

 

The club have been pretty overt about the plan to buy/develop good young talent, sell them for big bucks and gradually build stronger and stronger foundations so that eventually these players stay with us.

 

We get to see some great players, whilst seeing the club itself develop and build.

 

I'm not hugely against that as a model.

[SO16_Saint]

Stick him in the reserves

[LGTL]

I'd like to see your reaction if the club did that. Mental.

 

I'd admire his ********

[Heisenberg]

It's nothing to do with our " philosophy" and everything to do with the modern game . If you sign and develop good players , bigger clubs will take them , end of . Are you trying to say that if Sadio Mane & Vic played for Stoke or Palace they'd reject Liverpool of Spurs . The only reason clubs don't lose players like we do is because their players aren't wanted as much as ours . If has nothing to do with any business plan or philosophy . WBA have shown us the other way , they've basically had their top asset unsettled and not performing like he should be for months now . Is that what you wanted us to do with Mane , become a bloody circus whilst he tries to get away ?

 

Stoke do seem better at holding decent players than we do and I would make them a borderline level 3 club. We are level 4

 

Players are motivated by money and if you are not a level 1 club (Barcelona, Real) or level 2 (Man U/ C, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool) you can only keep better players by paying high wages (ala WHU, Everton, Spurs possibly now Leicester)

 

We typically sell players to level 2 sides but players are also probably tempted by the level 3 sides too.... Depends on players demand level

 

We are a level 4 side (with Palace, WBA, Swansea, Watford) and will typically not be able to hold onto anyone wanted by the level 1,2 and maybe level 3 sides

 

I would like us to move to level 3 just so we can hold onto players a bit longer

[wadesmith]

The club have been pretty overt about the plan to buy/develop good young talent, sell them for big bucks and gradually build stronger and stronger foundations so that eventually these players stay with us.

 

We get to see some great players, whilst seeing the club itself develop and build.

 

I'm not hugely against that as a model.

 

I'm not either, you could argue the last two years have been two of the most succesfull in our period, but seriously when our we going to be more successful than Man U, Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham for a sustained period? I guess what I was getting at is that if you are a lover of your team, part of the attraction is having heroes/folk heroes whatever you want to call them. If I'm chatting sown the pub about Saints, Benali's name is probably more likely to be mentioned than Keegans despite the fact that Keegan probably edges it as a player!. I suppose it's just sad that the idea of a long term player/hero has passed forever for Saints.

[Plastic]

Surely captain Fonte will be posting on Twitter to reassure us it's all bolloçks. Surely.. Any second now...

[MarkSFC]

I think the fact that all our departures follow an almost exact pattern . Sign up , stay 2 years/ 3 years leave, suggest that the club almost agree to this possibility with the player at the point of signing. I feel this is all part of the Southampton plan. It's a shame, but it's something we are going to have to get used to. My concern is the fans will eventually become disillusioned. Part of football being a supporter is having heroes be it Channon, Davies, Le Tissier, Dodd or even Benali. I fear those days are over.

 

In the days of Channon, Paine, Davies, there very few if any foreign players which meant there were fewer players to go around and therefore fewer moves.

In the days of Dodd, LeTiss and Dodd, our team was perennial bottom half, relegation fighters and so who would take anyone from us? Very few but the better ones went for different reasons, Shearer, Flowers, Kenna, Kachloul, Berkovic. The introduction of the transfer windows I think has had a negative effect particularly for clubs like us because players can literally only move at two times a year. Before these windows, if anything was going wrong or just that another team needed a player a transfer could happen when ever upto the end of March I think it was. The arguement against this was that smaller and lower level players got pillaged during e season and this was seen as bad for he game I think we are in the same position but actually it's intensified because moves happen in shorter time periods.

As much as none of like to lose better players I actually think Saints have got it just about right. They are (internally at least) very aware of their real position within the sport and have modelled the business on that reality. The ambition is clearly to achieve as much as possible - that's the essence of sporting elite performance - forget the business for a minute, and so as long as the intention is to work as well and as smartly as possible to achieve the best you can you will attract athletes to your club. Every footballer worth his salt will know exactly what we can offer and that if they as an individual progresse as well as this club helps you to very very consistently, they will be wanted by bigger and more successful (trophy wise), and wealthier businesses within 2-3 years. For Southampton FC this is our USP and where we cannot compete every year with the big boys we can attract quality players within a certain criteria to sustain our position and reputation and perhaps once in a while have a proper good season.

For me, where we are let down is where we sit right at this point.....we clearly need an attacker of note and CB (or two if Fonte goes)....but it seems like we won't get them. iF that is still the case on September 1 after the window shuts then we will have a dip in performance, both sportingly this year and maybe next year as a knock on, and financially in the next year or two as another result of the knock on effect.

I feel the frustration but I actually like days like today when 5 ex-Saints players scored for Arsenal and Liverpool and 10 played in the two matches today which contained historically 3 of the greatest clubs in the world (whether you like it or not!). Long may that continue because if these clubs don't find their players from us they will get them from somewhere else and that will mean that we are getting worse.

 

 

 

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[CB Fry]

Stoke do seem better at holding decent players than we do and I would make them a borderline level 3 club. We are level 4

 

So, just to confirm, 9th then 9th then 9th is better than 8th then 7th then 6th?

 

Top trolling. Top, top trolling.

[trousers]

Stoke do seem better at holding decent players than we do and I would make them a borderline level 3 club. We are level 4

 

Players are motivated by money and if you are not a level 1 club (Barcelona, Real) or level 2 (Man U/ C, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool) you can only keep better players by paying high wages (ala WHU, Everton, Spurs possibly now Leicester)

 

We typically sell players to level 2 sides but players are also probably tempted by the level 3 sides too.... Depends on players demand level

 

We are a level 4 side (with Palace, WBA, Swansea, Watford) and will typically not be able to hold onto anyone wanted by the level 1,2 and maybe level 3 sides

 

I would like us to move to level 3 just so we can hold onto players a bit longer

Bite prediction: 12 posts

[wadesmith]

In the days of Channon, Paine, Davies, there very few if any foreign players which meant there were fewer players to go around and therefore fewer moves.

In the days of Dodd, LeTiss and Dodd, our team was perennial bottom half, relegation fighters and so who would take anyone from us? Very few but the better ones went for different reasons, Shearer, Flowers, Kenna, Kachloul, Berkovic. The introduction of the transfer windows I think has had a negative effect particularly for clubs like us because players can literally only move at two times a year. Before these windows, if anything was going wrong or just that another team needed a player a transfer could happen when ever upto the end of March I think it was. The arguement against this was that smaller and lower level players got pillaged during e season and this was seen as bad for he game I think we are in the same position but actually it's intensified because moves happen in shorter time periods.

As much as none of like to lose better players I actually think Saints have got it just about right. They are (internally at least) very aware of their real position within the sport and have modelled the business on that reality. The ambition is clearly to achieve as much as possible - that's the essence of sporting elite performance - forget the business for a minute, and so as long as the intention is to work as well and as smartly as possible to achieve the best you can you will attract athletes to your club. Every footballer worth his salt will know exactly what we can offer and that if they as an individual progresse as well as this club helps you to very very consistently, they will be wanted by bigger and more successful (trophy wise), and wealthier businesses within 2-3 years. For Southampton FC this is our USP and where we cannot compete every year with the big boys we can attract quality players within a certain criteria to sustain our position and reputation and perhaps once in a while have a proper good season.

For me, where we are let down is where we sit right at this point.....we clearly need an attacker of note and CB (or two if Fonte goes)....but it seems like we won't get them. iF that is still the case on September 1 after the window shuts then we will have a dip in performance, both sportingly this year and maybe next year as a knock on, and financially in the next year or two as another result of the knock on effect.

I feel the frustration but I actually like days like today when 5 ex-Saints players scored for Arsenal and Liverpool and 10 played in the two matches today which contained historically 3 of the greatest clubs in the world (whether you like it or not!). Long may that continue because if these clubs don't find their players from us they will get them from somewhere else and that will mean that we are getting worse.

 

 

 

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Yeah, can't argue with any of that, but Walcott, Chambers, Ox?.....they could have turned into great players if they stayed with us for a couple more years.. we had them for about half an hour. We even kept Shearer for 4 years. I guess it's the realisation that something I loved about football/Saints appears to have kind of gone forever.

[Heisenberg]

So, just to confirm, 9th then 9th then 9th is better than 8th then 7th then 6th?

 

Top trolling. Top, top trolling.

 

League finish is irrelevant. Stoke hold in demand players better than us as they pay better wages than us (simples)

 

Stoke, WHU, Everton all hold players better than us because they pay that premium premiership wage.

 

We don't - hence level 4

Edited 14 August, 2016 by Heisenberg

[Heisenberg]

Bite prediction: 12 posts

 

What part of my post do you disagree with? Never get much by way of an opinion from you.

 

40,000 posts (lol) saying nothing at all.....

[S-Clarke]

Why has Glasgow been let back on here? Why do people wait in the background and then pounce when there's an ounce of negativity around the club? It's so odd, and I fear for the mental health of some of these morons.

[Batman]

Why has Glasgow been let back on here? Why do people wait in the background and then pounce when there's an ounce of negativity around the club? It's so odd, and I fear for the mental health of some of these morons.

 

I get you but no other prem club sells first team players at the rate we do

Let alone the turnover of coaching staff etc

 

Surely that is a cause for a little concern

[MarkSFC]

Yeah, can't argue with any of that, but Walcott, Chambers, Ox?.....they could have turned into great players if they stayed with us for a couple more years.. we had them for about half an hour. We even kept Shearer for 4 years. I guess it's the realisation that something I loved about football/Saints appears to have kind of gone forever.

 

It has gone/changed.....I loved The Dell but it's gone! Different times, different finances!!

 

Shearer went to a club who at the time were the Man City, bank rolled and it coincided with the launch of the Premier League I think or maybe season 2.

Walcott went when we were in the Championship, the Ox when we were in League 1. Chambers for me seems totally about him and ego. He certainly went 2-3 years too soon as it is becoming fairly obvious to everyone! He'd played just 22 first team games.....was on a very quick peak of performance and could only dip, but he dipped in the wrong environment! Still, his decision, his life. No loss really.

 

 

 

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[trousers]

What part of my post do you disagree with? Never get much by way of an opinion from you.

 

40,000 posts (lol) saying nothing at all.....

Tick

[Wade Garrett]

I get you but no other prem club sells first team players at the rate we do

Let alone the turnover of coaching staff etc

 

Surely that is a cause for a little concern

 

Agreed.

[buctootim]

Wouldnt be surprised if Fonte has a gentleman's agreement he can go if we get a better offer - but the club has an agreement with Everton to not poach any players.

 

I'd let him go for £12m+ if he doesnt want to be here, but not less.

[wessex saint]

Editing issues

Edited 14 August, 2016 by wessex saint

[SuperSAINT]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/southampton-confident-keeping-hold-manchester-8632211?

[Saints foreva]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/southampton-confident-keeping-hold-manchester-8632211?

 

Hahaha, that's that then. He's off.

[Heisenberg]

I get you but no other prem club sells first team players at the rate we do

Let alone the turnover of coaching staff etc

 

Surely that is a cause for a little concern

 

This Fonte rumour is a particular worry as a move to Man United I would understand and wish him well but if we start losing player to Everton (like koeman) it's a move for money not ambition and that's something we could avoid if we wanted to.

 

Most of our departures last few years have gone to level 2 sides (teams with a realistic chance of medals and winning the league + of course pay the big wages) once we start seeing players moving simply for wages we have to be concerned as why can't/won't we compete with Everton, WHU, Leicester on wages?

[buctootim]

Hahaha, that's that then. He's off.

 

Looks like it. They tried to tie down Cedric, Tadic and Fonte. The other two have signed a week or more ago so Fonte is obviously refusing.

[angelman]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/southampton-confident-keeping-hold-manchester-8632211?

 

I'm way past caring who says what. I can't affect it, so just take it when it comes. Jorges Mendes will do his work, and Saints really are rather irrelevant to him I would have thought, as there are far bigger players who pay him more.

[Webby]

Did cedric sign?

[redsaints106]

Have to say this is too much for me, I was already struggling to get excited about this season with another new manager and more players departing. All about the money! Bring back league one and the championship!

 

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[Shance]

Why do we always sell to teams in our league? It's really frustrating.

[CB Fry]

League finish is irrelevant. Stoke hold in demand players better than us as they pay better wages than us (simples)

 

Stoke, WHU, Everton all hold players better than us because they pay that premium premiership wage.

 

We don't - hence level 4

Top, top trolling.

[angelman]

Have to say this is too much for me, I was already struggling to get excited about this season with another new manager and more players departing. All about the money! Bring back league one and the championship!

 

You know what, while I would hate to go through relegation again, there is a certain attraction to what you say. However, when you get the likes of Wolves bidding £21m for a player, and parachute payments as they are, then the Championship is going the same way.

[Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd]

Have to say this is too much for me, I was already struggling to get excited about this season with another new manager and more players departing. All about the money! Bring back league one and the championship!

 

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Exactly! I miss the lower leagues. They were great days weren't they? Jumpers for goal posts.

[redsaints106]

Exactly! I miss the lower leagues. They were great days weren't they? Jumpers for goal posts.

Loved every minute, well apart from nearly going out of existence!

 

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[buctootim]

Did cedric sign?

 

Did he not? I thought he had. Makes it worse then if his performance on Saturday was anything to go by he wants out too.

[Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd]

You know what, while I would hate to go through relegation again, there is a certain attraction to what you say. However, when you get the likes of Wolves bidding £21m for a player, and parachute payments as they are, then the Championship is going the same way.

 

The Premiership is a farce. Best league in the world? They're having a laugh. Highest wages and most hype, but that's all. I've enjoyed watching the lower leagues for the last couple of seasons. It just feels more realistic and down to earth. There's certainly less players acting like they've been machine gunned every time they're tackled.

[Heisenberg]

Why do we always sell to teams in our league? It's really frustrating.

 

Wages!!! Only clubs that compete with top prem clubs on wages is Real and Barcelona and our recent departures are not quite that level

[redsaints106]

The Premiership is a farce. Best league in the world? They're having a laugh. Highest wages and most hype, but that's all. I've enjoyed watching the lower leagues for the last couple of seasons. It just feels more realistic and down to earth. There's certainly less players acting like they've been machine gunned every time they're tackled.

Spot on that man!

 

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[Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd]

Did he not? I thought he had. Makes it worse then if his performance on Saturday was anything to go by he wants out too.

 

He does. He's one of a group of players who think Puel is a knob.

[Heisenberg]

We were the Man City of league 1.... That's why we enjoyed it

 

Of we returned to league one and tried to compete like Crewe we would hate it

[Antrimsaint]

Have to say this is too much for me, I was already struggling to get excited about this season with another new manager and more players departing. All about the money! Bring back league one and the championship!

 

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Actually with you there. I loved going to away games. As I'm up north went to a lot of new grounds up this way and had a great laugh, loved it. I don't get so much enjoyment out of the premier league.

 

Strange isn't it we have had the best years probably ever in the premier but I put my enjoyment with Adkins at the top.

 

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[Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd]

Loved every minute, well apart from nearly going out of existence!

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

Me too. The Championship was great. Was gutted when we dropped to L1 but looking back that was far more entertaining than the Premiership, the club selling half the team at the end of each season and lying to the fans that it's all part of a 'bigger plan'. I don't buy into that at all.