Saints 3-3 Spurs - Match Thread

[saintant]

4 minutes ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

Thing that really gets my goat is that Saints always wait until they're losing and in the last 15 minutes of the game to turn on the style and play out of their skin, score and get a result.  Why can't we do that in the first half - it boils my piss?!?!

Lack of self belief and courage partly due to the way the manager sets us up and asks us to play. Too scared of conceding then, when we are 1 or 2 down we have no choice other than to play how we should play.

[Saint Matty 76]

2 minutes ago, The Cat said:

Great fightback.

Good to see the team putting a shift in.

For someone who has been at the game, what page of this thread is best to look at to see posters making twats out of themselves?

Nobody has made a twat out of themselves. 1 point out of these 2 games was not good enough, and the mistakes he made with the starting 11 had us nearly out of the game.

Great fight to get a deserved point, but let's not start acting like people are in the wrong for being critical.

[Baird of the land]

Just now, qwertyell said:

 

The late penalty was a farce - the ref wouldn't have gotten out of there alive if it'd been the other way around - but I think we earned a bit of luck with the guts we showed.

 

 

I think it is VAR being used according to the rules. There was contact, therefore in no way a clear and obvious error.

[AlexLaw76]

Lets be honest, we would have been furious of VAR never over-ruled that had it been at the other end

However, I do not care

[DT]

Decent point. But it must be over a year since I saw a Saints manager pick a starting eleven and i thought yes, that's our best possible team out there. Always so many weirdnesses and seeming behind the scenes reasons for selection. Also, no belief. Selles seems to have inherited that very conservative latter years Ralph tendancy of doing nothing for ages and hoping for the best and then finally going for it when it's too late, Neat summary of our season, to be honest

[Southner]

6 minutes ago, saintant said:

He should smash all of them like that.

Yeah not many of them getting saved.

Wonder if having Forster between the sticks gave him a bit more enthusiasm? 

[OttawaSaint]

Would have been full of rage had Spurs got that pen. 

So happy to celebrate 3 goals with my son. Next one is a must win though I think. 

[Baird of the land]

Just now, Southner said:

Yeah not many of them getting saved.

Wonder if having Forster between the sticks gave him a bit more enthusiasm? 

According to JWP " I know Fraser [Forster] very well, he used to be my next-door neighbour so I've taken a few penalties against him in my garden with my little boy, so we have something going on there."

[allsa001]

Wow, just wow.

It feels like we haven't scored 3 goals all season, let alone in one game.

Could this be a turning point, or another false dawn?

Really happy with Walcott today, a goal and an assist.

 

Just looking at the table, and thinking we could actually do this, and then remembered we have played an extra game.

The result mid week was so costly

[niceandfriendly]

Get the f*** in. Looking at the table that’s a massive point. Thought Moi did alright in fairness. 
 

Theo, Maitland, Adams all put in a good shift. Alcaraz Sulemana and Mara all made a difference when they came on. 
 

Really expected Frazer to save that pen. Well done Prowsey. 

[Jimmy_D]

Feels like since Selles took over, the players believe they can stay up.

They might just be right.

[Saint Fan CaM]

Ultimately we're still looking like the most likely team to be relegated alongside Bournemouth.  It's not great we now go into an international break, but afterwards we do have some winnable games.  No more excuses as the chances are running down...now is the time to start games with the same tempo and vigour as those last 15 minutes so we effectively put games to bed before half-time.  I'm hoping Selles learns from today and finds a way to make it happen.

[saintant]

2 minutes ago, niceandfriendly said:

Get the f*** in. Looking at the table that’s a massive point. Thought Moi did alright in fairness. 
 

Theo, Maitland, Adams all put in a good shift. Alcaraz Sulemana and Mara all made a difference when they came on. 
 

Really expected Frazer to save that pen. Well done Prowsey. 

The only thing Moi did was give the team a massive lift when he went off.

[The Cat]

54 minutes ago, Saint NL said:

Kane with the winner.

 

Ffs

Must have been watching a different game to me. The one I saw lasted longer than 65 minutes.

[Midfield_General]

16 minutes ago, jimmer42 said:

But when he played for us the whole forum said he was shit

Because he was. Making one good save against us doesn't change that. 

[derry]

Lets not let the result mislead us. The selected team at the start was rubbish. Selles tried to justify why Elyonoussie is important but yet again he proved that he is a waste of space. AMN did really well as a stand in centreback. JWP, Lavia and Alcaraz are our best Midfield, Sullemana has to play down the left. The goal aside Walcott was a threat on the right. Mara did well and gave us the momentum. Adams nearly missed his goal but it counted. Walcott took his well and JWP smashed his penalty. The team that finished is more likely to get us points than the one that started.

[jasonbenali]

Wow - did not see that coming after a chanceless 1st half and then going 3-1 down.

So Spursy!

We looked dangerous for periods of that 2nd half in a way I haven’t seen in a while, I don’t know why we can’t play that high energy press more often.

That was the softest of pens to even out our poor defending but I’ll take it and what a finish. Boom.

[Convict Colony]

Yeah maybe the universe's message about Moi was that this is going to be his last game for us so was giving him a big up.

Anyway fucking get in, hate spurs

[Midfield_General]

19 minutes ago, The Cat said:

Great fightback.

Good to see the team putting a shift in.

For someone who has been at the game, what page of this thread is best to look at to see posters making twats out of themselves?

1-12 

[niceandfriendly]

4 minutes ago, saintant said:

The only thing Moi did was give the team a massive lift when he went off.

I’m his biggest critic, but first half he did a few decent turns and made a few good runs. He wasn’t as appalling as he usually is, which is perhaps why he stood out to me. But I’ll be happy if he never plays for us again. 

[Jonnyboy]

30 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

I really wish we had the only keeper to concede three against Southampton for 15 months.

Saints 3- 3 Saints? 

[Jimmy_D]

2 minutes ago, derry said:

Lets not let the result mislead us. The selected team at the start was rubbish. Selles tried to justify why Elyonoussie is important but yet again he proved that he is a waste of space. AMN did really well as a stand in centreback. JWP, Lavia and Alcaraz are our best Midfield, Sullemana has to play down the left. The goal aside Walcott was a threat on the right. Mara did well and gave us the momentum. Adams nearly missed his goal but it counted. Walcott took his well and JWP smashed his penalty. The team that finished is more likely to get us points than the one that started.

The counterpoint being that, if we start with that team, we don’t finish with it.

[AlexLaw76]

10 minutes ago, Jimmy_D said:

Feels like since Selles took over, the players believe they can stay up.

They might just be right.

Did not look like that in the week.

[derry]

2 minutes ago, Jimmy_D said:

The counterpoint being that, if we start with that team, we don’t finish with it.

And maybe we don't go 3-1 down.

[Vancouver Saint]

Came into this game with a resigned numbness bordering on disinterest after the terrible Brentford performance and result - a strange feeling.

A good game to watch as a neutral (which I'm not but have been beaten into disconnecting and strangely felt like one) and given player for player how much worse we are than Spurs, I thought that was a performance with some courage. A draw is not enough but it felt like a win and we deserved something out of the game. 

Like others I just wish we'd start with our best team and throw a bit of caution to the wind to go all out for a win instead of not trying to lose.

 

[Jimmy_D]

Just now, derry said:

And maybe we don't go 3-1 down.

Maybe!

With 5 subs available it’s a slightly different game these days, but ‘what if…’ being the most common question in football hasn’t changed  

[grezz]

2 minutes ago, Jimmy_D said:

The counterpoint being that, if we start with that team, we don’t finish with it.

True, but there's no law saying he has to remove our creative players after 65 mins or so. One can argue about fitness etc etc but to be honest i've never seen Sule, Lavia and Chaz (who, OK, goes into 'give the ball away' mode sometimes) seriously run out of steam. He left a 34 year old Walcott on for 90 mins today, deservedly so, so why not start with your best team and leave them on longer?

[rooney]

Magnificent captain JWP and well done to Che and Theo who worked so hard and looked effective

 

 

 

[redkeith]

Great comeback, the 3 subs all made an impact. 

Soft penalty,  but a stupid challenge and there was contact.

People wanting Selles to be more positive may be disappointed.  Read an article about him where it said he went gung-ho in an early job and learned quickly that you need to concede less than you score. 

Stu slowed us down to much on the ball today, and Elyonousi was marking someone else instead of his man for the first goal. 

The international break will give us a chance to get one of the Cbs fit, but I fear that ABK will be out for weeks.

[LeBizzier69]

I’m not sure there’s a worse set of away fans than Spurs. Terrible, quiet bunch.

even at 3-1 not a peep. 
 

A point better than none.

[The Cat]

Both teams were poor in defence although that's more understandable with us considering as we only had 1 proper CB on the pitch for an hour.

Thought their fans were as crap as their defence. Barely sang apart from about us going down with West Ham. Saying that we still have muppets booing Bednarek when his name is announced. 

Plenty of Spurs in home ends. Did anyone get a slap?

[OttawaSaint]

3 minutes ago, redkeith said:

The international break will give us a chance to get one of the Cbs fit, but I fear that ABK will be out for weeks.

Broken ribs for Bednarek so he'll be out for a while too.

[gammon cheeks]

Reminded me of the game against Blackburn at the Dell....3  1  down and looking relegated  ..came back to 3 3 ..changed the rest of season ! We managed to stay up !  Its the hope that kills you .

[Super Carlton]

I haven't seen a win match this season. Not even a draw match.

Seen all of those games we lost.

 

Fuck me.

 

 

[captainchris]

26 minutes ago, derry said:

Lets not let the result mislead us. The selected team at the start was rubbish. Selles tried to justify why Elyonoussie is important but yet again he proved that he is a waste of space. AMN did really well as a stand in centreback. JWP, Lavia and Alcaraz are our best Midfield, Sullemana has to play down the left. The goal aside Walcott was a threat on the right. Mara did well and gave us the momentum. Adams nearly missed his goal but it counted. Walcott took his well and JWP smashed his penalty. The team that finished is more likely to get us points than the one that started.

Selles won’t pick that team though will he which is why he is not up to this job.

First name on the team sheet is consistently our worst player week in week out …. Yes Elyounoussi- Just WHY!!!!! 

[macca155]

Lose two centre halves and still manage to draw 3 3 . Good day at the office.

Still in the fight .... just.

[BARCELONASAINT]

The last 18 months i have become somewhat numb when it comes to watching Saints. I used to get pissed off when we lost, it would ruin the weekend and i would bemoan how shit we have become.

However i can now watch Saints without getting royally pissed off when we lose, i accepted relegation was inevitable before Christmas and nothing i have seen since has convinced me otherwise.

Really enjoyed last weeks performance against United. Thought we were just not brave enough against Brentford. Really enjoyed todays performance against a side i absolutely hate. We showed fight and character today and it was good to watch.

It doesn't change a thing in my opinion, we are relegated because our board/owners screwed around and did not provide RH with a quality striker and then took an acid trip and appointed Mr Bean to replace him.

I just want to see the players give their all in the remaining games.

[Crab Lungs]

It’s like he set up for 0-0 til about 60 then the plan was to throw on the energy of Kameldeen, Alcaraz. 
 

turns out, there’s still a game of football being played between those minutes and we had to throw caution to the wind at 3-1 down anyway.

Would have been over the moon with a point if we were on 25-27 points but at this very moment the overriding feeling for me is irritation - feels like I’m not allowed to let go of the dying embers of hope.

[Baird of the land]

I can see what selles was trying to do with his lineup. A compact midfield, the problem wasn't for me S.Armstrong who was ok, it was Moi who was shockingly bad.

The use of Sulemana as an impact sub was decent too. Saints have too often been reulctant to do that, last season i was bemused why we barely used Tella in that manner.

 

[S-Clarke]

I thought we played really well today, competed and worried Spurs on a few occasions. The 2nd goal (from Kane) was a little against the run of play, and I thought 1-3 flattered them to be honest.

Great comeback, great spirit. We benefited massively from the worst VAR call ever, but I'm not complaining.

Doesn't really change anything in terms of our outlook, it's all but done in that sense. This is our best spell of the season in respect of form and results, yet we're still rooted to the bottom.

It's nice to see game with us scoring goals in for a change though.

Edited 18 March, 2023 by S-Clarke

[Wade Garrett]

49 minutes ago, derry said:

Lets not let the result mislead us. The selected team at the start was rubbish. Selles tried to justify why Elyonoussie is important but yet again he proved that he is a waste of space. AMN did really well as a stand in centreback. JWP, Lavia and Alcaraz are our best Midfield, Sullemana has to play down the left. The goal aside Walcott was a threat on the right. Mara did well and gave us the momentum. Adams nearly missed his goal but it counted. Walcott took his well and JWP smashed his penalty. The team that finished is more likely to get us points than the one that started.

Great post.  Agree 100% with it.

It was nice to see us playing proper football today and much less of the tippy tappy rubbish we’ve had to endure this season.   
Thought all the subs played their part.  Salisu was solid and AMN was decent.

Best performance I’ve seen from Theo since he came back.  Adams put a shift in but I get so frustrated that he doesn’t make any near post runs when we’re crossing.

I was the other end, but it looked from where I was that Bazunu should have come for the cross that Kane scored from rather than staying on his line.

[Toadhall Saint]

Really pleased with my team today - we may not stay up but at least you showed it means something

[saintwbu]

You can tell who wasn’t at the game and was watching off a dodgy stream because they’re slating Moi, who was probably our best player in the first half, and was still decent in the second. Theo was brilliant, great movement and always a threat. AMN did well dropping into unfamiliar territory, albeit sounds like he wasn’t great for the goal. The fight back is more important than the point, 3 goals in one game is a big moment for us potentially. Also people saying ‘this is why Sulemana should start’ are probably the same ones slating the kid after the Brentford game, today he had his best appearance for us imo and it was off the bench - having genuine quality on the bench made a big difference to us. Very pleased with the result after losing both CB’s in the first half against Kane/Son/Kulusevski. JWP’s balls are the size of Hampshire, what a man. 

[badgerx16]

1 hour ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

Ultimately we're still looking like the most likely team to be relegated alongside Bournemouth.  It's not great we now go into an international break, but afterwards we do have some winnable games.  No more excuses as the chances are running down...now is the time to start games with the same tempo and vigour as those last 15 minutes so we effectively put games to bed before half-time.  I'm hoping Selles learns from today and finds a way to make it happen.

How have we got on so far with "winnable games" ?

[saintant]

Still get the feeling we are being coached too negatively. I get the sense that they are having drummed into them the importance of not making mistakes and the players are too scared to try anything risky but that changed today when we had two goals to claw back. It was like a switch had been flicked as we threw caution to the wind and went for it. Do that from the first whistle and we'll give ourselves more chance of winning games.

[Ed Rooney]

4 minutes ago, saintwbu said:

You can tell who wasn’t at the game and was watching off a dodgy stream because they’re slating Moi, who was probably our best player in the first half, and was still decent in the second. Theo was brilliant, great movement and always a threat. AMN did well dropping into unfamiliar territory, albeit sounds like he wasn’t great for the goal. The fight back is more important than the point, 3 goals in one game is a big moment for us potentially. Also people saying ‘this is why Sulemana should start’ are probably the same ones slating the kid after the Brentford game, today he had his best appearance for us imo and it was off the bench - having genuine quality on the bench made a big difference to us. Very pleased with the result after losing both CB’s in the first half against Kane/Son/Kulusevski. JWP’s balls are the size of Hampshire, what a man. 

Not a chance in hell was Ely our best player… consistently makes the wrong choices, dwells on the ball for too long, passes lack conviction, zero awareness of surroundings and not sure if he jogs or that is as quick as he can run 

[Badger]

1 hour ago, Jimmy_D said:

Feels like since Selles took over, the players believe they can stay up.

They might just be right.

Did you post similar after Wednesday ?

Not sure they took to the field with the belief they could beat Brentford.

[Saint Fan CaM]

9 minutes ago, badgerx16 said:

How have we got on so far with "winnable games" ?

Yeah, good point. I let hope run away with me there. Having looked at the remaining games and the possible points I can’t see us doing it.

[saintwbu]

6 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said:

Not a chance in hell was Ely our best player… consistently makes the wrong choices, dwells on the ball for too long, passes lack conviction, zero awareness of surroundings and not sure if he jogs or that is as quick as he can run 

Everything positive we did in the first half came through Elyounoussi, often he’s the one that receives it from JWP/Lavia then moves it on to Perrraud/KWP or another attacker to deliver the final ball. He was popping up in good positions, he was moving the ball well, keeping possession well. Anyone watching him today, and slating him, had made their mind up before kick off. 

[Charlie Wayman]

1 hour ago, saintant said:

The only thing Moi did was give the team a massive lift when he went off.

Stupid bloody comment. Were you even at the match? Moi was excellent in the first half, holding up the ball, ghosting past opponents players and finding gaps between the lines for team mates to run onto. Despite idiots like you carping all the time, he actually does make a difference.