Ralph Hasenhuttl

[Convict Colony]

I think if Puels teams played exciting fast tempo football that excited the fans it wouldnt matter if he was mute.

[Turkish]

1 hour ago, Greenridge said:

He went on to do a cracking job at Leicester and more of the same at St.Etienne. Wrong end of the tables and no goals.

what hes done since leaving doesnt change what he did here

[Lord Duckhunter]

1 hour ago, Turkish said:

what hes done since leaving doesnt change what he did here

Can you imagine the comments if Claude’s Leicester got done by 9 twice, and he suffered a record breaking run of defeats. Just imagine the ridicule he’d have gotten if he started blubbing after beating Liverpool in the middle of it. Just think of the fun we’d have had  if Redknapp and the Skates had lost 9-0 twice and then Redknapp started crying after a 1-0 win. Yet, Ralph’s fan club seem to overlook it. 

[Colwinston Saints]

49 minutes ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

Can you imagine the comments if Claude’s Leicester got done by 9 twice, and he suffered a record breaking run of defeats. Just imagine the ridicule he’d have gotten if he started blubbing after beating Liverpool in the middle of it. Just think of the fun we’d have had  if Redknapp and the Skates had lost 9-0 twice and then Redknapp started crying after a 1-0 win. Yet, Ralph’s fan club seem to overlook it. 

I don't think anyone has overlooked it at all.  I think he's been given all the stick in the world for it. 

The distinct difference is that we've also played some wonderful stuff and have an attractive identity with a proven successful manager.

I couldn't give a fuck what anyone thinks of us, certainly not that lot down the road. He cried after a win, not what i would do, but fair play to him for caring enough. Puel isn't a good manager, defensively we were tight but he was the start of the shit we had to endure for years on end. 

We got 8th with 46 points and 41 goals.  Last season we finished 11th with 52 points and 51 goals.  So technically we were better last season, the league was harder. 

If Puel was in charge for 100 games we'd be relegated by now.   

[Lord Duckhunter]

2 hours ago, Colwinston Saints said:

I don't think anyone has overlooked it at all.  I think he's been given all the stick in the world for it. 

The distinct difference is that we've also played some wonderful stuff and have an attractive identity with a proven successful manager.

I couldn't give a fuck what anyone thinks of us, certainly not that lot down the road. He cried after a win, not what i would do, but fair play to him for caring enough. Puel isn't a good manager, defensively we were tight but he was the start of the shit we had to endure for years on end. 

We got 8th with 46 points and 41 goals.  Last season we finished 11th with 52 points and 51 goals.  So technically we were better last season, the league was harder. 

If Puel was in charge for 100 games we'd be relegated by now.   

Pony 

If you’re judging teams by points won, Arsenals team that never lost a game, had a worse season than Liverpool’s runners up 2 seasons ago.
 

Please list his proven success’s. 
  

 

Edited 10 March, 2021 by Lord Duckhunter

[Lord Duckhunter]

As this is the Ralph thread, maybe we should discuss his performance last night.

Let’s discuss what he’s done to what was a pretty decent Centre half pairing. Vesty & Bednarek looked ok, until he started tinkering and messing around. Bednarek is now pretty shot, and there were signs Vesty is regressing back to his previous hopelessness.

What about Salisu, is he really giving the bloke the best grounding in English football, chopping and changing him about. 
 

The goal keeping decisions seem bizarre, unless FF was injured last night. 
 

Was it wise to play an out of sorts Bertrand on the right? 
 

Jack Stephens was hung out to dry, played in a new position against the countries top side. If he wanted to drop Armstrong, then maybe, just maybe it was understandable, but he played Armstrong as well. 
 

Is Djneppo being managed properly, because he sure ain’t getting any better. 
 

When Managers lose the plot, they start playing players in weird positions, and make baffling decisions. If you read the comments on here, most seem to think we have a clear structure and style of play. If that’s the case then a manager of nearly 2.5 years shouldn’t really be playing so many people out of position and making inconsistent selection decisions. We have a back up full back, we have a young central midfielder, we have alternatives to Redmond, and Djneppo really needs to train on. If he’s a top manager, he needs to start showing it and start managing adversity a bit better IMO. 

Edited 11 March, 2021 by Lord Duckhunter

[Billy the Kidd]

12 minutes ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

As this is the Ralph thread, maybe we should discuss his performance last night.

Let’s discuss what he’s done to what was a pretty decent Centre half pairing. Vesty & Bednarek looked ok, until he started tinkering and messing around. Bednarek is now pretty shot, and there were signs Vesty is regressing back to his previous hopelessness.

What about Salisu, is he really giving the bloke the best grounding in English football, chopping and changing him about. 
 

The goal keeping decisions seem bizarre, unless FF was injured last night. 
 

Was it wise to play an out of sorts Bertrand on the right? 
 

Jack Stephens was hung out to dry, played in a new position against the countries top side. If he wanted to drop Armstrong, then maybe, just maybe it was understandable, but he played Armstrong as well. 
 

Is Djneppo being managed properly, because he sure ain’t getting any better. 
 

When Managers lose the plot, they start playing players in weird positions, and make baffling decisions. If you read the comments on here, most seem to think we have a clear structure and style of play. If that’s the case then a manager of nearly 2.5 years shouldn’t really be playing so many people out of position and making inconsistent selection decisions. We have a back up full back, we have a young central midfielder, we have alternatives to Redmond, and Djneppo really needs to train on. If he’s a top manager, he needs to start showing it and start managing adversity a bit better IMO. 

What happens when fans lose the plot?

You know, when they dont really appear to account for injuries negating the need to play people out of position?

I know Ralph isnt perfect, but I believe he sure as hell is better than we have had, given the squad at his disposal, injuries, VAR luck, the quick turnaround of games etc. Right now, and I get it may not always feel like this, but he is doing a good job given the circumstances, and I think we are lucky to have him.

I have previously raised Qs on other forums about how long should he get, before the Sheff Utd game, out of interest as I accept we couldnt go on losing.

You mention back ups - perhaps Ralph doesnt rate them - I trust his judgement over anyone on here. It isnt his fault if they are not good enough or not ready yet to be good enough.  Redmond - he is giving him time to perform, rightly or wrongly, and yesterday i think it was right to play him.  I dont rate him as highly as others, but would you be happy had he played Minimino and he was out for a few weeks?

Out of interest - how would you deal with the situation?

Would you sack him?

If so, when?

Who would you replace him with?

What style of play would you like us to play?

[Dusic]

Duckhunter - out of interest, what team would you have picked last night, assuming KWP and Diallo were to be reated which seemed sensible?

I didn't have an issue with the selection aside from the GK part.

I just saw it as a Manager juggling with some optioms severely lacking, like only having one full back and senior CM available (again given we were being rightly careful with KWP and Diallo).

I know people on here having suggested Ramsay and Jankewitz, but after the Utd game its clear he doesn't trust Jankewitz, and IMO Ramsay isn't up to it (yet?) and RH seems to see it the same.

[Lord Duckhunter]

2 minutes ago, Dusic said:

Duckhunter - out of interest, what team would you have picked last night, assuming KWP and Diallo were to be reated which seemed sensible?

I didn't have an issue with the selection aside from the GK part.

I just saw it as a Manager juggling with some optioms severely lacking, like only having one full back and senior CM available (again given we were being rightly careful with KWP and Diallo).

I know people on here having suggested Ramsay and Jankewitz, but after the Utd game its clear he doesn't trust Jankewitz, and IMO Ramsay isn't up to it (yet?) and RH seems to see it the same.

It’s not just last night, it’s the culmination of weeks worth of decisions. 
Bednarek & Vesty were a decent partnership, until he started messing with it. Bednarek hasn’t been the same since he went into full back, even when switched back to Centre half. .So I would have just left that alone weeks ago. If he doesn’t trust Ramsay (I think Poch or Puel would have done), and you need an emergency RB, then play Stephens there. That way you only disrupt one position instead of two.  Armstrong was fine in CM last week, why move him, if you’re going to play him anyway. Why not give the nipper another chance (again Poch would of done imo). The excuses are mounting up and they don’t add up. Koeman drafted in Martina, Puel had Pied. Is it beyond Ralph to insist on a similar cheap stop gap, once he sanctioned the leaving of our full back cover. 
 

I do not want him sacked, and he has a fantastic opportunity in the cup to genuinely reach legendary status. But his record up to now has been pretty average. Had Mark Hughes made the decisions he’s made lately, this forum would be pretty United in its condemnation of those decisions. 

[Convict Colony]

1 hour ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

As this is the Ralph thread, maybe we should discuss his performance last night.

Let’s discuss what he’s done to what was a pretty decent Centre half pairing. Vesty & Bednarek looked ok, until he started tinkering and messing around. Bednarek is now pretty shot, and there were signs Vesty is regressing back to his previous hopelessness.

What about Salisu, is he really giving the bloke the best grounding in English football, chopping and changing him about. 
 

The goal keeping decisions seem bizarre, unless FF was injured last night. 
 

Was it wise to play an out of sorts Bertrand on the right? 
 

Jack Stephens was hung out to dry, played in a new position against the countries top side. If he wanted to drop Armstrong, then maybe, just maybe it was understandable, but he played Armstrong as well. 
 

Is Djneppo being managed properly, because he sure ain’t getting any better. 
 

When Managers lose the plot, they start playing players in weird positions, and make baffling decisions. If you read the comments on here, most seem to think we have a clear structure and style of play. If that’s the case then a manager of nearly 2.5 years shouldn’t really be playing so many people out of position and making inconsistent selection decisions. We have a back up full back, we have a young central midfielder, we have alternatives to Redmond, and Djneppo really needs to train on. If he’s a top manager, he needs to start showing it and start managing adversity a bit better IMO. 

Just a FYI Benders led league for outfield players leading to goals last season and currently is the proud holder of our only OG this season, will be interested to see what the CB plan is next season, assumed it was originally Jannik out and Salisu in but Jannik has been very good this season.

I am also amused how prevalent the dunning-kruger effect is in forums, myself included always over estimate our knowledge and its easy to forget that those we criticise have the complete picture and real time pressures to deal with in this compressed season which in my view has exposed how important player recovery is to make our style work, taking away recovery has led to the increased player burn out (klopp also has this problem) and further injuries which unfortunately for us this season has been critical since Dec.

Get 2 more wins and then plan for next season - also really like what Tella has done in his short stint on the inside left position, lots to build on.

https://www.verywellmind.com/an-overview-of-the-dunning-kruger-effect-4160740

Edited 11 March, 2021 by Convict Colony
Meant Jannik not Jan

[SKD]

34 minutes ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

It’s not just last night, it’s the culmination of weeks worth of decisions. 
Bednarek & Vesty were a decent partnership, until he started messing with it. Bednarek hasn’t been the same since he went into full back, even when switched back to Centre half. .So I would have just left that alone weeks ago. If he doesn’t trust Ramsay (I think Poch or Puel would have done), and you need an emergency RB, then play Stephens there. That way you only disrupt one position instead of two.  Armstrong was fine in CM last week, why move him, if you’re going to play him anyway. Why not give the nipper another chance (again Poch would of done imo). The excuses are mounting up and they don’t add up. Koeman drafted in Martina, Puel had Pied. Is it beyond Ralph to insist on a similar cheap stop gap, once he sanctioned the leaving of our full back cover. 
 

I do not want him sacked, and he has a fantastic opportunity in the cup to genuinely reach legendary status. But his record up to now has been pretty average. Had Mark Hughes made the decisions he’s made lately, this forum would be pretty United in its condemnation of those decisions. 

When you say messing with it, do you mean the time that Vestergarrd was out injured, or the time that Bednerak had to go RB as we had no others (tried Stephens, tried Ramsey, didn’t work)? 
 

im sure in an ideal world Ralph would have kept Vest and bednerak together all season. I’m not sure what else he could have done really. 

Edited 11 March, 2021 by SKD

[SKD]

2 minutes ago, Convict Colony said:

Just a FYI Benders led league for outfield players leading to goals last season and currently is the proud holder of our only OG this season, will be interested to see what the CB plan is next season, assumed it was originally Jan out and Salisu in but Jan has been very good this season.

I am also amused how prevalent the dunning-kruger effect is in forums, myself included always over estimate our knowledge and its easy to forget that those we criticise have the complete picture and real time pressures to deal with in this compressed season which in my view has exposed how important player recovery is to make our style work, taking away recovery has led to the increased player burn out (klopp also has this problem) and further injuries which unfortunately for us this season has been critical since Dec.

Get 2 more wins and then plan for next season - also really like what Tella has done in his short stint on the inside left position, lots to build on.

https://www.verywellmind.com/an-overview-of-the-dunning-kruger-effect-4160740

Bednerak another fans fav who seems to get away with being very, very average. Thought it for a while, highlighted more so this run. 

[Convict Colony]

ignore edited original post

Edited 11 March, 2021 by Convict Colony

[saintwbu]

If Stephens had made half the errors that Bednarek has made since Christmas, he’d be hanging from the SaintsWeb banner. The guy gets such a free ride, good at times but is as prone to mistakes as any of our players if not more so.

[Christophenburg]

2 hours ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

As this is the Ralph thread, maybe we should discuss his performance last night.

Let’s discuss what he’s done to what was a pretty decent Centre half pairing. Vesty & Bednarek looked ok, until he started tinkering and messing around. Bednarek is now pretty shot, and there were signs Vesty is regressing back to his previous hopelessness.

What about Salisu, is he really giving the bloke the best grounding in English football, chopping and changing him about. 
 

The goal keeping decisions seem bizarre, unless FF was injured last night. 
 

Was it wise to play an out of sorts Bertrand on the right? 
 

Jack Stephens was hung out to dry, played in a new position against the countries top side. If he wanted to drop Armstrong, then maybe, just maybe it was understandable, but he played Armstrong as well. 
 

Is Djneppo being managed properly, because he sure ain’t getting any better. 
 

When Managers lose the plot, they start playing players in weird positions, and make baffling decisions. If you read the comments on here, most seem to think we have a clear structure and style of play. If that’s the case then a manager of nearly 2.5 years shouldn’t really be playing so many people out of position and making inconsistent selection decisions. We have a back up full back, we have a young central midfielder, we have alternatives to Redmond, and Djneppo really needs to train on. If he’s a top manager, he needs to start showing it and start managing adversity a bit better IMO. 

Not sure this is the hot take you think it is, even if I agree more generally with some of your points. Ralph made tactical decisions which I think actually paid off yesterday, and his decision not to play Bednarek at RB even when resting KWP was reassuring. I'd have preferred Ramsay to play, but I like that he's experimenting and mixing things up, and it certainly wasn't a disaster. We played well, there well spells of greatness, and importantly we didn't completely cave when under pressure, and actually kept fighting, which is a reassuring change from the past few weeks. We fell foul of individual errors which is always our undoing and you can't get away with much when playing against City.

All in all, I actually found yesterday somewhat reassuring, and Ralph deserves credit when it's due, particularly if you expect others to accept criticism of him when it's equally due. Brighton will be the test as to whether it was worth it however

[Teddeer]

Pep was very complimentary about Ralph and the way we played last night.

[Lord Duckhunter]

2 hours ago, SKD said:

When you say messing with it, do you mean the time that Vestergarrd was out injured, or the time that Bednerak had to go RB as we had no others (tried Stephens, tried Ramsey, didn’t work)? 
 

im sure in an ideal world Ralph would have kept Vest and bednerak together all season. I’m not sure what else he could have done really. 

Stephens did ok there last season, and Ramsay can’t be judged on the 9-0. He should have kept Bednarek at centre half and then filled the right back position. By shifting Bednarek he not only weakened the centre of defence, he was woeful at full back and it also seems to have affected the lad. It’s been a lose lose situation, and the manager has to be held to account for that decision.
 

It’s all well and good bemoaning our lack of options, but it’s only one right  back missing, one. You can’t tell me the manager has no responsibility for that situation. No doubt the Ralph lovers will blame the board, but I don’t believe for one minute he didn’t have some influence on decisions made in regard to that area of the pitch. 

[SKD]

1 hour ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

Stephens did ok there last season, and Ramsay can’t be judged on the 9-0. He should have kept Bednarek at centre half and then filled the right back position. By shifting Bednarek he not only weakened the centre of defence, he was woeful at full back and it also seems to have affected the lad. It’s been a lose lose situation, and the manager has to be held to account for that decision.
 

It’s all well and good bemoaning our lack of options, but it’s only one right  back missing, one. You can’t tell me the manager has no responsibility for that situation. No doubt the Ralph lovers will blame the board, but I don’t believe for one minute he didn’t have some influence on decisions made in regard to that area of the pitch. 

Personally, I don’t think Ramsey is good enough just yet. Stephens would be my choice probably as well, but he was shocking against Newcastle when RB. Easy to suggest in hindsight, I guess. 
 

i don’t agree just a RB missing though. We lost our (imo best) CM, who would also offer us some flexibility and allow us to shuffle someone like JWP to RB. 

I agree that moving Bednerak from CB seems to have wrecked his confidence though. Looks a shadow of the player he was before hand. Needs some time out the squad. 

[LuckyNumber7]

1 hour ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

Stephens did ok there last season, and Ramsay can’t be judged on the 9-0. He should have kept Bednarek at centre half and then filled the right back position. By shifting Bednarek he not only weakened the centre of defence, he was woeful at full back and it also seems to have affected the lad. It’s been a lose lose situation, and the manager has to be held to account for that decision.
 

It’s all well and good bemoaning our lack of options, but it’s only one right  back missing, one. You can’t tell me the manager has no responsibility for that situation. No doubt the Ralph lovers will blame the board, but I don’t believe for one minute he didn’t have some influence on decisions made in regard to that area of the pitch. 

You talk as if Bednarek has been brilliant up until he played at rb and that has destroyed his confidence, last night was a typical Jan performance really, he is average at best. Does have some good games but makes too many mistakes and quite frankly when the going gets tough he looks like a rabbit caught in the headlights and really lacks composure. I don't agree that Stephens has been ok at right back, he equally looks like a fish out of water and all over the place positionally. Personally I would give Ramsay another try but I can understand Ralph's reluctance given he was part of the 9-0 and in all likelihood just isn't good enough, but we've not seen enough of him to properly judge.

Where I do agree with you is that we shouldn't even be in this position of only having one viable right back and Ralph must be partly responsible for that. If we couldn't bring anyone in then fair enough but we should never have let Valery go in that case. Whilst not brilliant he would still have been a far better option than what we have been left with.

[miserableoldgit]

4 hours ago, SKD said:

Bednerak another fans fav who seems to get away with being very, very average. Thought it for a while, highlighted more so this run. 

During the early "successful" part of the season we had a good settled back four of RB, JV, JB and KWP. When the injuries hit us, JB hardly played in a settled back four or position and of course was wrongly sent off at OT. I am not suggesting that he is World class but I think we need to cut a bit of slack. He is certainly not as bad as some on here make out.

[Chapel End]

2 hours ago, Teddeer said:

Pep was very complimentary about Ralph and the way we played last night.

What does he know😉

The experts expert view is on here

I know whose view I respect 

[SKD]

13 minutes ago, Chapel End said:

What does he know😉

The experts expert view is on here

I know whose view I respect 

Of course he was complimentary about Ralph. 
 

Ralph came, played a weakened team and tried to beat City at their own game and took a pasting in the process. I bet Pep was rubbing his hands together.  

[Chapel End]

11 minutes ago, SKD said:

Of course he was complimentary about Ralph. 
 

Ralph came, played a weakened team and tried to beat City at their own game and took a pasting in the process. I bet Pep was rubbing his hands together.  

I guess Pep was lying then... 

[WALK DMC]

1 hour ago, miserableoldgit said:

During the early "successful" part of the season we had a good settled back four of RB, JV, JB and KWP. When the injuries hit us, JB hardly played in a settled back four or position and of course was wrongly sent off at OT. I am not suggesting that he is World class but I think we need to cut a bit of slack. He is certainly not as bad as some on here make out.

I agree. He isn't the greatest player in the world and has a horrible lack of pace, but he is (or has been) sound and dependable. As we cannot compete with other teams on finance, we need a few members in our team that are not world beaters but can do a job in the premiership and stick with Saints for the longer term. The young up & coming youth (or even Danny Ings) may be sold off, but it is important that our core nucleus remains.  We have a few of those such as JWP, Romeu and Bednarek, I'd even include the likes of Redmond and Stephens who are decent squad players and ok to call on in a crisis. 

Not everyone can be a star and with our budget we need to get the balance right with the dependables (Bednarek), promoted from the B team (Tella), future stars (Diallo) and some that might not make premiership grade but give them time (Salisu). Add a couple of players like Ings and Vestergaard who we can sell to generate cash and it isn't a bad blend (even though our squad is too small in overall). 

[SKD]

2 hours ago, Chapel End said:

I guess Pep was lying then... 

all I’m saying is it’s easy to compliment the other team after you give them a hiding. 

[nta786]

Wasn't sure where to post this but it is something that shows a stark contrast to last season. It shows teams with the fewest (and most) attempts after winning the ball in our own half. 

I wonder why that is - does this show we no longer counter attack at lightning speed but prefer a safer option backwards when we win the ball back? 

 

 

[S-Clarke]

7 minutes ago, nta786 said:

Wasn't sure where to post this but it is something that shows a stark contrast to last season. It shows teams with the fewest (and most) attempts after winning the ball in our own half. 

I wonder why that is - does this show we no longer counter attack at lightning speed but prefer a safer option backwards when we win the ball back? 

 

 

It's probably a combination - you also have to factor in that we weren't going to have it all our own way for ever. Teams will become cute to our approach and will have ways to try and counteract it. I think Tella is someone who is breaking through that can stretch games on the break, but I'd potentially go out and replace Redmond/Moussa next year with someone consistent and with an end product. I don't think we have players who can deliver that end product consistently enough when we get into those positions.

So if you consider that teams have probably got more cute to our approach, add it together with the injuries and lack of squad cohesion and it's created a mess of a season really.

[Lord Duckhunter]

28 minutes ago, nta786 said:

Wasn't sure where to post this but it is something that shows a stark contrast to last season. It shows teams with the fewest (and most) attempts after winning the ball in our own half. 

I wonder why that is - does this show we no longer counter attack at lightning speed but prefer a safer option backwards when we win the ball back? 

 

 

That’s interesting. One of the biggest tactical  changes I’ve seen in the game over 45 years, is the role of the strikers without the ball. They used to just cut the full backs off and then pretty much “rest” whilst the other 8 or 9 defended. Nowadays they’re working harder off the ball, constantly on the move and closing down, and periods of “rest” seem to happen when their side have the ball and are knocking it around the back 4, midfield etc. As it’s impossible to play at 100% all game, strikers now take a brief breather when we get the ball. I wonder if they’re working so hard defensively, that they’re not making runs when we first win the ball back. Because of this, we cant pass it early, and then get into our sideways, backwards rhythm. The obsession with not giving the ball away too soon after wining it back and the lack of a Tadic type, mean once the opposition are set defensively, our constant pendulum of sideways/backwards/sideways rarely leads to anything.

It’s no surprise that Spurs feature high on the list, for all his defensive mindset, Jose has a couple of forward thinking quick players that just fill spaces defensively and don’t charge around like lunatics pressing and closing down. Therefore, once the ball is won  back, they’re fresh and also in a maximum position to exploit an early pass. In our case, Ings would probably be knackered from just running 10 doggies pressing but also be in the wrong place to mount an effective counter. 

 

[Teddeer]

This is certainly something Ralph needs to look at because that is a pretty damning statistic. We need to mix it up more and be prepared to hit some longer balls forward.  We are currently far too predictable.

[Dusic]

Hojbjerg was statistically excellent at recovering the ball and passing forward, perhaps his departure is related to that, as its either pointing to a lack of creativity (don't see that has drastically changed from last season this) or a lack of ball wins followed by a forward pass within our own half (Hojberg the clear difference personnel wise here).

[Whitey Grandad]

34 minutes ago, Dusic said:

Hojbjerg was statistically excellent at recovering the ball and passing forward, perhaps his departure is related to that, as its either pointing to a lack of creativity (don't see that has drastically changed from last season this) or a lack of ball wins followed by a forward pass within our own half (Hojberg the clear difference personnel wise here).

I was with you up until then. I’m struggling to remember him ever looking for a penetrating forward pass.

[S-Clarke]

40 minutes ago, Dusic said:

Hojbjerg was statistically excellent at recovering the ball and passing forward, perhaps his departure is related to that, as its either pointing to a lack of creativity (don't see that has drastically changed from last season this) or a lack of ball wins followed by a forward pass within our own half (Hojberg the clear difference personnel wise here).

He didn't really pass forward, he recycled the ball sideways and back.

I think another contributing factor is Ings drop off, combination of injuries/fitness have lead to him being in and out of the side this year. I think most feared what would happen to us if Ings was missing/not firing, and I think this has showed the result a missing Ings has on us. He's our only consistent source of goals and due to him having a pretty terrible season, truth be told, we are struggling big style to score goals or create meaningful chances over a consistent period.

Edited 13 March, 2021 by S-Clarke

[Dusic]

I'm just going with the stats, from last season.

They show he was:

1st in the PL for no of possessions won in the middle third.

14th in the PL for no of possessions won in the defensive third.

11th in the PL for no of final third entries.

Seeing as the stat in question was relating to the drop off in producing a goalscoring chance soon after winning the ball in your own half then maybe the guy with excellent stats for winning the ball in his own half and passing it into the final third who was at the club when we did this and is no longer at the club when we don't, might be a factor in that drop off?

£15m for him was a nice deal for Spurs.

Source: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11675/12046253/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-complete-signing-of-southampton-midfielder

[saintwbu]

31 minutes ago, Dusic said:

I'm just going with the stats, from last season.

They show he was:

1st in the PL for no of possessions won in the middle third.

14th in the PL for no of possessions won in the defensive third.

11th in the PL for no of final third entries.

Seeing as the stat in question was relating to the drop off in producing a goalscoring chance soon after winning the ball in your own half then maybe the guy with excellent stats for winning the ball in his own half and passing it into the final third who was at the club when we did this and is no longer at the club when we don't, might be a factor in that drop off?

£15m for him was a nice deal for Spurs.

Source: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11675/12046253/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-complete-signing-of-southampton-midfielder

I guess the consequence of having a midfielder who gave the ball to the opposition a lot, is that said midfielder has plenty of opportunities to win it back from them. There has been absolutely no point this season where I have watched us and thought ‘we really missed Hojbjerg today’. 

[Matthew Le God]

7 hours ago, saintwbu said:

There has been absolutely no point this season where I have watched us and thought ‘we really missed Hojbjerg today’. 

How about Man Utd away when Diallo and Romeu were not available to play in central midfield?

[saintwbu]

1 hour ago, Matthew Le God said:

How about Man Utd away when Diallo and Romeu were not available to play in central midfield?

I was excited to see Jankewitz play 🤣 so no, albeit maybe after 80 seconds I was thinking we could’ve done with him on the bench 😅

[Chapel End]

Good team selection by Ralf  today 

Edited 14 March, 2021 by Chapel End

[AlexLaw76]

What ever the score, this is another - in a long line of - shit shows, served up by our greatest ever manager(tm).

Ponderous, lacking in conviction, woeful defensively - but not his fault though! 

Ultimately, it appears the manager has taken us as far as he can.  

Edited 14 March, 2021 by AlexLaw76

[SKD]

Go on then, I’ll start it. 
 

FA cup game next week could save him, for a few weeks, but we’re sleep walking to relegation next season (if not this one). 

I like Ralph, I want him to turn it around, I really do, but I can’t see it happening. We’ve regressed so much in all areas. 

the worrying thing is we probably can’t afford to sack him and we’ve build to club around him. 

[Chapel End]

4 minutes ago, SKD said:

Go on then, I’ll start it. 
 

FA cup game next week could save him, for a few weeks, but we’re sleep walking to relegation next season (if not this one). 

I like Ralph, I want him to turn it around, I really do, but I can’t see it happening. We’ve regressed so much in all areas. 

the worrying thing is we probably can’t afford to sack him and we’ve build to club around him. 

Ok, I will indulge you.

For who

[JRM]

Unfortunately I think you're right, he's done here. 

[Jeremy Corbyn]

Really struggling to defend him now, some fundamental issues he just refuses to fix.

[jemanson]

There's not much he can do when so many of the team play so badly. Some of the passing and control - or lack of it - has been shocking.

[SKD]

2 minutes ago, Chapel End said:

Ok, I will indulge you.

For who

Not my job to pick, however, are you suggesting there isn’t anyone who could do a better job than Ralph at the minute? 
 

players aren’t great, but neither is picking the same side and system every week.

I’d have potter if we’re going to throw out names. 

[Archers Road Stand]

Two 9-0 defeats. Record breaking run of defeats and now deservedly losing at home to a shite Brighton team. 

There cant be many who want to defend that. 

[SKD]

2 minutes ago, jemanson said:

There's not much he can do when so many of the team play so badly. Some of the passing and control - or lack of it - has been shocking.

Rubbish. Try changing the system? Just trying the same thing over and over again is stupid

[jemanson]

1 minute ago, SKD said:

Rubbish. Try changing the system? Just trying the same thing over and over again is stupid

Nice reply. It's my opinion and I disagree with yours but don't call it rubbish. Ralph isn't coaching them to be incapable of doing the basics.

[JustinSFC]

That was fucking grim.

Jokanovic?

[JRM]

I think even Ralph knows it. Just got to hope we can stagger over the line to safety. 

[SKD]

1 minute ago, jemanson said:

Nice reply. It's my opinion and I disagree with yours but don't call it rubbish. Ralph isn't coaching them to be incapable of doing the basics.

You said there not much he can do. That’s rubbish. 
 

he’s not even trying to change things. Even at 4-0 down against United with 10 men and no midfield, he continued to try the same thing.