Does anyone really miss the Prem?

[washsaint]

I don;t - watching the snoozefest that is West ham vs Everton and the quality is non-existent and teams play not to lose rather than to win.

This year we have won more games already than we managed all of last season.

We have already nearly scored as many goals as we did last season.

We go into games knowing that we have a chance of winning in every game.

Proper fans and proper stadiums.

Yes, we know the money implications of not being in the Prem are significant (as is holding on to the better players)  but I do feel the Championship is far more fun and interesting.  The Premiership is over-hyped and only a handful of sides can truly be competitive because of the financial advantage they have.

[Saint_clark]

Easy to forget how crap this league is when you're not doing well. Ask Sheffield Wednesday fans how fun they're finding it with 1 win and 7 goals scored.

[AlexLaw76]

3 minutes ago, washsaint said:

I don;t - watching the snoozefest that is West ham vs Everton and the quality is non-existent and teams play not to lose rather than to win.

This year we have won more games already than we managed all of last season.

We have already nearly scored as many goals as we did last season.

We go into games knowing that we have a chance of winning in every game.

Proper fans and proper stadiums.

Yes, we know the money implications of not being in the Prem are significant (as is holding on to the better players)  but I do feel the Championship is far more fun and interesting.  The Premiership is over-hyped and only a handful of sides can truly be competitive because of the financial advantage they have.

Wait till we well KwP, Downes has gone and THB, along with Bednarek are no longer here.

 

essentially, just wait until we are Stoke city

[hypochondriac]

No I don't miss the last few years of the prem. I certainly miss playing there under poch and koeman. I miss the European campaigns they were amazing. Watching my team in Vitesse, Prague and even Milan was incredible and is not something I'll forget in a hurry. I enjoy doing well in the league like this year but I know if we don't go up that we will lose most of our good players and get worse and worse. I'll certainly be missing the prem if we lose Downes, THB, KWP and Sulemana and end up mid table next year. 

[SNSUN]

"Do you miss the Premier League" is a slightly vague question - do I miss last season and being beaten most weeks? No. Do I miss the Koeman days where we were actually run well and put together a good team that got into Europe. Most definitely yes. Any League is fun when you're doing well and crap when you're doing badly. I bet Villa and Brighton fans for instance are loving life right now - I bet they don't miss their recent Championship stint for a second.

I'm enjoying the Championship this season, to a point, but if you offered me Championship or Premier League next season I know which I'd choose.

[Kenilworthy]

I miss the Premier League because we have to be in it to stand any hope of winning the FA or League Cup.

[spyinthesky]

Question is, if we do get back to the Prem via the Play Offs how much money (and decent recruitment) will be required to stay there?

Something north of £100m will be the minimum

[whelk]

9 minutes ago, spyinthesky said:

Question is, if we do get back to the Prem via the Play Offs how much money (and decent recruitment) will be required to stay there?

Something north of £100m will be the minimum

By then everyone will know RM’s system

[Saint_clark]

41 minutes ago, Kenilworthy said:

I miss the Premier League because we have to be in it to stand any hope of winning the FA or League Cup.

I'd say we have more chance with a confident winning side in the Championship than we did last season (note - almost no bloody chance).

[gio1saints]

Much better enjoyment this season. Don’t understand why so many here are angry and think we are superior to everyone else based on FM thinking. Why be so upset when it’s actually enjoyable for once? 
 

One explanation is they Real life is not an online soccer game or fantasy football selection. You don’t just put 11 players together with a new manager and boom it delivers exactly as per their “stats”. And because that’s not happened it’s got some upset. 

The concept of “ it takes time” is conveniently disregarded and us actually a matter of derision by the “we have the best squad” brigade.
 

We may well have the best or one of the best on paper - but it does NOT mean we win every game and there is always a gradient of performance improvement to ascend. We don’t just turn up one day and it’s 5-0 wins every match thereafter. Even six unbeaten is inadequate for some here. But try explaining that and you get random abuse and irrational comments masquerading as facts. 

[Maggie May]

3 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Wait till we well KwP, Downes has gone and THB, along with Bednarek are no longer here.

 

essentially, just wait until we are Stoke city

Exactly this. Dread to think how insufferable this place may be if we regress to Championship mid-table mediocrity season after season. 

[dellboysaint]

The first year in the Championship is vaguely refreshing. I am not sure Norwich, Stoke and QPR would be thinking this way now. If we become a yo yo club like Sheff U then fair enough... there is some excitement. 

[Turkish]

1 hour ago, Kenilworthy said:

I miss the Premier League because we have to be in it to stand any hope of winning the FA or League Cup.

Which we are highly unlikely too anyway so might as well not be in it

[Sergei Gotsmanov]

Yesterday was the first game I have seen Southampton win for around 18 months - as a season ticket holder that was a pretty tedious run especially as I don't miss that many games.

[Turkish]

39 minutes ago, whelk said:

By then everyone will know RM’s system

If we go up we’ll need to sign a whole load of new players to stay up so will need to learn RM system

if we don’t go up we’ll lose a whole load of players so we’ll need to sign replacements who will need to learn RMs system

 

[Give it to Ron]

After 10 games look at bottom of Prem including Burnley who walked this league.

Do I miss var not one bit play flows fans can celebrate goals without wasting 10 mins then ruled out by a pubic hair

[Toussaint]

Yes, I do.  I don’t mind the championship , I’m actually enjoying it here and there, but we need to get back up  asap,  there is a fine line between enjoying comparative success in the championship,   bolstered a sprinkling of premier league quality players, a few loans who will probably be destined for a premier league return and the benefit of the parachute payment,  and the footballing oblivion that could be not too far away.

[Osvaldorama]

1 hour ago, gio1saints said:

Much better enjoyment this season. Don’t understand why so many here are angry and think we are superior to everyone else based on FM thinking. Why be so upset when it’s actually enjoyable for once? 
 

One explanation is they Real life is not an online soccer game or fantasy football selection. You don’t just put 11 players together with a new manager and boom it delivers exactly as per their “stats”. And because that’s not happened it’s got some upset. 

The concept of “ it takes time” is conveniently disregarded and us actually a matter of derision by the “we have the best squad” brigade.
 

We may well have the best or one of the best on paper - but it does NOT mean we win every game and there is always a gradient of performance improvement to ascend. We don’t just turn up one day and it’s 5-0 wins every match thereafter. Even six unbeaten is inadequate for some here. But try explaining that and you get random abuse and irrational comments masquerading as facts. 

Absolute gaslighting tosh. 
 

Everyone is happy at the recent results, it’s the playing style people were rightly questioning plus the ridiculously leaky defence. 
 

Martin has had a good couple of weeks, but stop pretending it has been an amazing season so far.

If he can keep these performance levels up then he will earn the fans trust. But not before. 

[Holmes_and_Watson]

Not missing it in the slightest.

I'm interested in the league we're in, so not much bothered about anywhere else.
We've got more resources than nearly everyone in the league we're in, which of course helps the enjoyment massivly, since we should be doing well in it. 
If we were losing though, I doubt I'd be any more interested in the Premier League.

I caught the last 30mins of the Manchester derby. And it was interesting enough to watch (Full Flavour MartinBall from City at times 🙂 ). I'm not knocking the quality of it. We're not in it, so I don't really care what they're up to. 

[SotonianWill]

I don't miss VAR, but the championship is sh*t in my opinion and to get back to the prem would be nice.

[OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint]

One of my most depressing football memories was League 1 Saints losing 4:1 to Premiership Portsmouth in the FA Cup around 2010. Like Toussaint has said, we've had some great thrills this year, but the novelty will die off if we stay in the Championship. I'd always prefer to be bottom of the top class and look for improvement than be top of the second class. 

[Miltonaggro]

Enjoying seeing my side win games, but the stated target of the Board this year was promotion, so that’s what this momentum needs to build towards. Miss that and next season will be a struggle as others have said. When Sport Republic took over from Gao in January 2022 we were around twelfth place ten points clear of the bottom three, an established premier league side, albeit one in decline. If they get us back to that they will have trodden water. Better than that over a season, which is Wilcox stated ambition (top ten),  and we will be likely be enjoying supporting SFC in the top flight again. 

[OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint]

And as a Saints Plus member living near London, I could get tickets to Chelsea when they allocated 3,000 for away fans, but I can't get tickets to Millwall when they allocate 3,000 seats to away fans.

[HarvSFC]

I think we get fewer Saturday 3pm kick offs down here.

[gammon cheeks]

The prem is the place to be.........not this shit league !

[gio1saints]

2 hours ago, Osvaldorama said:

Absolute gaslighting tosh. 
 

Everyone is happy at the recent results, it’s the playing style people were rightly questioning plus the ridiculously leaky defence. 
 

Martin has had a good couple of weeks, but stop pretending it has been an amazing season so far.

If he can keep these performance levels up then he will earn the fans trust. But not before. 

Up until this Saturday afternoon I was still online trying to debate why RM was, essentially not a C u n t with people like yourself.
I’ve never said was an amazing season - but I have said that the numbers of people going ott on RM here is ridiculous. 
 

Far from being happy with the last couple of weeks many people are insistent on seeing the dark side of everything. You should try reading the match threads and see the reality. It’s populated by irrational hatred ignorance and anger towards RM in particular. 
 

You wanna try single me out as some strange guy pretending he enjoyed was great watching Gillingham away or getting beat sunderland ( I was not at that one admittedly but watched it live in tv) and foxes go ahead fill yer boots. But you are making it up. And it’s a pathetic criticism. 
 

I give credit where it’s due and will criticise same. A bunch of people here seemingly get off slagging other posters RM and the team, catastrophising at every opportunity like it’s some kind of therapy for them. 
We won a game I’m happy. We unbeaten in six, I’m happy. People want to find fault go ahead but I’m not apologising to anyone for being positive about SFC - least of all to people whose support seems conditional upon results like you infer in your last line. 

 

 

[Dr Who?]

As a football club and fans of a football club, you always want to do the best you can. This season so far I want us to go back up, and that is what it is all about, but I do not miss the premier league and I do not miss VAR. I would not mind this for a while, but then I want us to celebrate going up. It’s really strange but natural. 

[Badger]

I despise many things about the Premier League, from some of the club ownership models, the prima donna players, to the sycophantic media circus.

But you want to see your team compete as high as possible, certainly not seeing the side depleted every season if you miss out on promotion.  It’s one thing players going to a Big Six for mega £, it’s another seeing them leave for the likes of Brentford, or this season say Burnley or Sheff Utd in a higher division. 
 

We won’t challenge the top 4, but I still think we could, if properly run and managed,  be a mid-table Premier league side maybe occasionally pushing into Europa or Conference Leagues contention. 

[cambsaint]

I'll ask my cousin a Burnley supporter, At the moment I'm enjoying the Championship but when I watch City today I realise that our realistic ambition is to remain in position 10 to 15 if we were promoted. I'll leave the call to those fortunate to be able to attend regularly, although I must admit I'm considering trying to get a home game in this year which I haven't thought worth the considerable expense and effort at my age for many years.

[Kenilworthy]

14 hours ago, Turkish said:

Which we are highly unlikely too anyway so might as well not be in it

League Cup Final 2017, FA Cup Semi 2018 and 2021 shows that winning a cup is possible even for Saints.

[SW11_Saint]

I really don’t miss it - and have surprised myself by how quickly I’ve detached from it (used to watch MOTD religiously but now really haven’t bothered watching). If a Sky game is on at home I may watch while doing something else but rarely sit down to properly watch a match. 

All of that said - and despite enjoying the Championship - we’re all desperate to get promoted and be a PL bottom-feeder again! 

[Tamesaint]

14 hours ago, Sergei Gotsmanov said:

Yesterday was the first game I have seen Southampton win for around 18 months - as a season ticket holder that was a pretty tedious run especially as I don't miss that many games.

Snap.

I went from Chelsea last season to Leeds this season without seeing us win. I am a season ticket holder who misses few games an who attends the odd smattering of away games.

Add in a few cricket matches where I saw Hampshire lose and even England in the Lord's Test and I really began to believe that I was a jinx. I am just hoping now that the trend will reverse and it is non stop wins.😁😁

 

[LGTL]

Let's see how everyone celebrates promotion at the end of the season if we get it, and then we'll ask the question again. 

This league is alright as a novelty factor, going away to some grounds we haven't been for a while, even a couple of new ones for me like Blackburn and Rotherham thrown in for good measure. It's great if you're doing well and winning, but I don't remember it being much fun during the days of the Dutch duo. 

It would be the most depressing league to get stuck in, and we'll head that way if we fuck up the next couple of years. Look at Birmingham City, they must have been down here for 10 years, ditto Blackburn. 

Edited 30 October, 2023 by LGTL

[east-stand-nic]

18 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Wait till we well KwP, Downes has gone and THB, along with Bednarek are no longer here.

 

essentially, just wait until we are Stoke city

Yep, this is the problem in a nutshell. It is great when you are up challenging for promotion. But if you keep failing to go up you become Stoke, Blackburn or worse....Derby and Bolton. But then being promoted will suck big time also as we will have to buy a fair few quality players just to stay up and we will be back to where we were for the previous 6 years scraping the barrel. This is Sky Sports football. You are either a big player or you are Saints. Best to just enjoy these times when we are competing and accept the down times when we are bottom 6 all the time. 

[fez]

I miss almost everything about the Prem except VAR.

Above all seeing better opposition players at St Mary's than we're seeing in the Champ this season.

And I miss being part of the Prem's "media circus" as someone called it. I liked being on MoTD even if we were the last game in a 0-1 defeat 😬

 

Edited 30 October, 2023 by fez

[rallyboy]

If we did manage to drag ourselves up through the playoffs, while it would be fantastic, we are no longer the plucky established Premier League club defying the odds, we are now the next Burnley, Luton or Sheffield United in waiting, and I'm not sure those guys are enjoying the bigboy experience.

As a business we need to be at the top table, but from an enjoyment point of view, we're actually winning some football matches and it's fun.

[gio1saints]

I’m sure Sheff Utd, Luton and Burnley fans were delighted to get promoted last year.
 

They had really enjoyable dominant seasons last year. This year its already a grind with high chance all three going straight back down with record low numbers of points. Getting bashed up every week in the EPL has got to be dispiriting. 
 

I wonder how our supporters here would react if we essentially became Sheff Utd or Luton in the EPL getting beat most weeks quite easily. Is it fun to watch us last on MOTD as we get some pitying comments ? Would it be obvious when our best players all want to leave? Would we only be able to recruit Hail Mary players on big fees who then leave if we go down? Will we get handed a bunch of humiliating defeats? Will getting a season ticket mean watching us lose 80% of our home matches? 
 

All this emphasises why it’s important NOT only that we get promoted to the EPL, BUT we do so setting up the club and playing in a way that is sustainable and gives us a chance to not just survive  but thrive. 
 

Rightly or wrongly ( I believe rightly) SR JW and RM see that set up as the ball dominating “ possession-based” game we see now. But it’s more than just that. Include the cultural shift to include the entire club plus our intake of specific characteristics young players and back room staff. 
 

It’s a brave call ( or foolish if you choose) and there are and will be plenty demanding compromises and diversion from that path. It will be easy to deflect and dilute the identity to become a reactive rather than proactive football phenomenon. Crowd pleasing dancing monkey style.

But that’s what we are trying to do. Not just muddle along changing the Manager, changing the tactics, changing the style, changing the philosophy with every change in wind direction. 
 

There’s a saying “ if you don’t stand for something you can fall for anything” . 

Im excited that we are planning for a return to the EPL in the way we are. It’s evident it’s a planned approach and it’s evident that it requires discipline great technical capacity and intelligence from our players, great patience great tenacity and bags of courage for the times when it does not go as wished for ( and that’s football btw). 
 

I look forward to next season and thereafter thriving not just surviving or worse getting turned over easily each week in the EPL. 
PS. And if it’s not next season but the one after. So be it. 
 

 

[bangkoksaint]

Mostly cheaper tickets - check

More games - check

Seeing more goals x check

Easier to get tickets - check

Win more games - check

No VAR - check

Genuine chance this season of achieving something- check

 

Yep FWIW I’m enjoying it more. Yes the EPL is the promised land but TBF if I was offered 5 seasons in The Championship finishing top 6 with a couple of Wembley appearances I’d take that. I do however get that we may fall into mid table mediocrity if we don’t go up. But if we do we do because for me I just don’t enjoy what the EPL has to offer. 

[AlexLaw76]

33 minutes ago, bangkoksaint said:

Mostly cheaper tickets - check

More games - check

Seeing more goals x check

Easier to get tickets - check

Win more games - check

No VAR - check

Genuine chance this season of achieving something- check

 

Yep FWIW I’m enjoying it more. Yes the EPL is the promised land but TBF if I was offered 5 seasons in The Championship finishing top 6 with a couple of Wembley appearances I’d take that. I do however get that we may fall into mid table mediocrity if we don’t go up. But if we do we do because for me I just don’t enjoy what the EPL has to offer. 

Not sure that is on offer....for anyone

 

[Totton Saint]

I like the increased times saints are on TV.

[gecko]

I think everyone enjoys winning more than they lose. So yeah, this season's been more enjoyable (so far) than the last few in the prem. Getting our arse handed to us every week sucked.

It was great being there when we actually competed well (Poch, Koeman, Puel, the beginning of Hassenhuttl) and the club as a whole seemed to have generally good plan for the future; and before we sold all our best players, and replaced them with garbage.

VAR I don't miss even slightly - it's been a breath of fresh air to simply complain about a referee's decision and that be the end of it. I absolutely don't miss arguing millimetres on an offside, or whether something is "clear and obvious", or whether 4 professionals watching on 8 different screens have still somehow ballsed up an offside decision after waiting for 5 minutes make it.

I'll be glad if we go back up, as that would implicitly mean that RM has these lads playing well and we may have a chance to push on with some extra finances. (jury's out for now)

[Professor]

The Championship is more like proper footbal.  The prize on winning should be the right to refuse promotion. Ii#s ironic, watching players of the team that wins the Play-off Final celebrate at the end of the match yet only a few of them are likely to play for the club in the followimg season.

[Charlie Wayman]

On 29/10/2023 at 14:03, washsaint said:

I don;t - watching the snoozefest that is West ham vs Everton and the quality is non-existent and teams play not to lose rather than to win.

This year we have won more games already than we managed all of last season.

We have already nearly scored as many goals as we did last season.

We go into games knowing that we have a chance of winning in every game.

Proper fans and proper stadiums.

Yes, we know the money implications of not being in the Prem are significant (as is holding on to the better players)  but I do feel the Championship is far more fun and interesting.  The Premiership is over-hyped and only a handful of sides can truly be competitive because of the financial advantage they have.

Utterly bizarre. Of course most people want us back in the PL otherwise why would we be getting the reactions on here that we do every time a point is dropped.

[LeBizzier69]

16 minutes ago, Charlie Wayman said:

Utterly bizarre. Of course most people want us back in the PL otherwise why would we be getting the reactions on here that we do every time a point is dropped.

It's weird. Having been back in the Championship and seeing us compete/win for the first time in years, i'm not sure if the reason i want us back in the Prem is more for the financial and long term stability and health of the football club itself, and to be able to see us sign exciting top level players (or try at least).

I've not got to a single matchday (yet) and thought "if only we were playing Liverpool today.." 

So, after all that, i think i'm keener on us being in the Prem' for the good of the club itself and not so much for my own personal viewing pleasure.

An added bonus is not getting wound up about being last on MOTD week in, week out - haven't watched a single minute of it this season.

[wild-saint]

On 29/10/2023 at 17:36, Turkish said:

Which we are highly unlikely too anyway so might as well not be in it

Id like to get a lower prem team at home to see how we get on with our new style. 

[once_bitterne]

I miss the PL yellow winter ball.

[skintsaint]

On 29/10/2023 at 17:17, Maggie May said:

Exactly this. Dread to think how insufferable this place may be if we regress to Championship mid-table mediocrity season after season. 

It was pretty horrible on here under both the Poortvliet and Wotte regimes. 

[east-stand-nic]

32 minutes ago, wild-saint said:

Id like to get a lower prem team at home to see how we get on with our new style. 

This would probably be the best draw for us. Go up against one of the real bottom 6 side and see how well we fair. We would probably do better if we got an away draw. Bournemouth would be a good draw.

[Cabrone]

It's all about winning and scoring goals. I enjoyed league 1 because we were winning. I'm enjoying the champ again because we are winning and I'd enjoy the prem if we could get our fair share of wins and decent football.

The league isn't actually that important TBH.

[OldNick]

I just like to actually enjoy some weekends again. The last 3 years of losing more often than not is not good for mental health