Andrew Watson Posted October 4 Posted October 4 I was talking to a close friend back in Southampton recently and he described Still as a computer manager [ has been alluded to by others on here ] , because the players we signed in the transfer window [ Fellows, Scienza,Azaz and Jander ] all came with very good reputations,however they have produced very little on the pitch so far. So how can our beloved club have turned these players into very ordinary players so quickly ? Poor manager and coaches is the obvious answer,what do other fans think ? Or is the shirt to big a burden for some to wear ? We have a much better squad on paper than Coventry,but we are dropping so far behind them after so few games and it is very difficult to see where the wins in this very mediocre division are going to come from.
East Kent Saint Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Perhaps they need to go out on the pitch being told to enjoy themselves !
Dman Posted October 4 Posted October 4 It’s on the manager, for me. Azaz, Armstrong, Archer & Fellows are all proven at this level and all look lost and incredibly poor. No style, no clear patterns on play, no clue. 19
Andrew Watson Posted October 4 Author Posted October 4 That is where I am leaning towards as well Dman.
Badger Posted October 4 Posted October 4 20 minutes ago, Andrew Watson said: I was talking to a close friend back in Southampton recently and he described Still as a computer manager [ has been alluded to by others on here ] , because the players we signed in the transfer window [ Fellows, Scienza,Azaz and Jander ] all came with very good reputations,however they have produced very little on the pitch so far. So how can our beloved club have turned these players into very ordinary players so quickly ? Poor manager and coaches is the obvious answer,what do other fans think ? Or is the shirt to big a burden for some to wear ? We have a much better squad on paper than Coventry,but we are dropping so far behind them after so few games and it is very difficult to see where the wins in this very mediocre division are going to come from. Its concerning how we manage to sign players and coach their skills and even it seems appetite for the game out of them. It's a touch of both though that some players we know won't be up to standard over a season (Bazunu the obvious one). In other cases, like you mention it largely rests with the manager, selection, tactics, motivation - it just isn't there. Thing for me is that we seem to sign players off the back of form and peformance elsewhere then want to play them in a different way. Square pegs and round holes springs to mind. Azaz perfect example, obviously doing great things and standing out in this Division for Plymouth and Middlesbrough, so why isn't he doing it for us, what are we asking him to do differently ? Said it before but to date he has the hallmarks of another Alan McCloughlan signing. Might also add recruitment into this, try buying round pegs for round holes, but once going onto the pitch it is on the manager for me. How much have we spent, and where are we in the league ? Ridiculous. 4
sockeye Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Sport Republic. we are on a year on year decline and they are the only constant 23
AlexLaw76 Posted October 4 Posted October 4 10 minutes ago, sockeye said: Sport Republic. we are on a year on year decline and they are the only constant You mean, this is not the greatest era in our history?
JohnnyShearer2.0 Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Coaching, set up, approach and mentality for me. Could have done with a Moore or someone like Kone (as some posters have said) to get the goals in. 1
Wade Garrett Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Poor coaching and putting the wrong players on the pitch and taking the wrong ones off. All that is on Still and Trollope for me. 1
die Mannyschaft Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Just been in Betfred and put £5 on Saints relegation at 250/1. That way if this EA26 robotic football continues all season and we don't get 2 goal scorers in Jan window then I'm covered. The last relegation all the signs were there early on and I didn't bet.
Sheaf Saint Posted October 4 Posted October 4 20 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said: You mean, this is not the greatest era in our history? Apparently not. If only someone could have predicted this?
Miltonaggro Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Poor coaching and worse senior management for me, you only have to see how likes of Bree and Brereton are performing in this league weeks after leaving SFC to substantiate that! All due to the SR wankers below the cashpoint that is Solak not wanting anyone who actually knows english football to have a say and expose the grift! 4
saintant Posted October 4 Posted October 4 2 hours ago, Andrew Watson said: I was talking to a close friend back in Southampton recently and he described Still as a computer manager [ has been alluded to by others on here ] , because the players we signed in the transfer window [ Fellows, Scienza,Azaz and Jander ] all came with very good reputations,however they have produced very little on the pitch so far. So how can our beloved club have turned these players into very ordinary players so quickly ? Poor manager and coaches is the obvious answer,what do other fans think ? Or is the shirt to big a burden for some to wear ? We have a much better squad on paper than Coventry,but we are dropping so far behind them after so few games and it is very difficult to see where the wins in this very mediocre division are going to come from. We don't. They are banging in 4-5 goals every game. They have a brute of centre forward who scores goals and when he gets tired they bring on another brute of a centre forward who scores goals. Their squad and coaching set up is light years ahead of us. 4
Convict Colony Posted October 4 Posted October 4 2 hours ago, Andrew Watson said: I was talking to a close friend back in Southampton recently and he described Still as a computer manager [ has been alluded to by others on here ] , because the players we signed in the transfer window [ Fellows, Scienza,Azaz and Jander ] all came with very good reputations,however they have produced very little on the pitch so far. So how can our beloved club have turned these players into very ordinary players so quickly ? Poor manager and coaches is the obvious answer,what do other fans think ? Or is the shirt to big a burden for some to wear ? We have a much better squad on paper than Coventry,but we are dropping so far behind them after so few games and it is very difficult to see where the wins in this very mediocre division are going to come from. I'm assuming you made good points but as soon as I saw the lazy trope about being a computer game manager I gave up. Hes managed 2 Ligue 1 clubs and people are still recycling that shit. 3
Lighthouse Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Coaching for me. It’s October and Still doesn’t seem to know either his best team or his best formation. He’ll say that he’s adaptable, not wedded to one specific system and that the door is open for every play to prove themself but I think it’s a bit of a mask for not really knowing what to do. Even the subs are baffling, taking off players who are doing well in a kind of scattergun approach to mixing things up. When Stewart was injured, putting Archer or Downs on, like for like, was the obvious approach in a game where the system was working but no; Adam Armstrong as a centre-forward again, where everyone knows he doesn’t work. 10
OttawaSaint Posted October 4 Posted October 4 I think a better manager could get a tune out of what we've got. Team selection is getting slightly better, some of our play is nice. Formation seems wrong, tactics often too naive, subs (timing and who for who) still very poor. Perhaps with time he'll improve from here or stumble on something that works. Right now it's not working particularly well. 4
CSA96 Posted October 4 Posted October 4 (edited) It’s soon to be 2026 and we’ve still got Alex McCarthy in goal and our two options for leading the line are Ross Stewart and Damion Downs I’m putting more of the blame on the execs than the manager but he of course isn’t without blame Still was very clear about how he wanted us to play and the profile of striker he needed and we’ve not provided it Edited October 4 by CSA96 3
Ambsaint Posted October 4 Posted October 4 Poor coaching, some poor recruitment, a lot of the players need to step up too. Was hoping this year to at least finally stop conceding goals almost every game (which we've been doing for years now) but we are no better. I'd like to see us stop pushing the full backs up all the time, play a solid back 4 probably with the two new recruits, and stop pretending Manning can defend so drop him for now. Roerslev looked ok to me last time I saw him (I know he isn't yet popular), but him and Jelert on either side would be strongest choices if told to defend. McCarthy has been ok/occasionally great so will do at this level if we really refuse to look at other options. We still lack a decent DM or two, we just seem to ignore that position, which is also killing us (and ofc affects the defense/keeper). The rest of midfield should be amongst the best in the division, they seriously need to step up. Stewart injury may mean we see the cheque book, in the about 3 games I've seen him was very impressed. Rest of the strike force as per midfield. Given the above, the fact we look absolutely dreadful attacking and even worse defending points to very poor coaching and tactics. We don't look dangerous in any situation and we look very vulnerable to every team I've seen us play against. Be lovely to play against us in other words. 2
Toussaint Posted October 5 Posted October 5 EVERY team we come up against looks far better coached, drilled, organised and physically better equipped than us. I don’t dislike Still but I never for one second thought he was the man for the job. I largely kept my opinions to myself because there seemed to be a lot of excitement amongst the, what I would assume to be, the younger fans and perhaps more data driven and over complicated tactics type. Me, I’m a dinosaur, I like a dominant spine to the team, which includes a robust, physical “back to goal” 9 and a combative driving central midfielder. Really, it’s all on SR, they have bought a succession of dud players and employed a succession of dud managers. 11
AlexLaw76 Posted October 5 Posted October 5 I thought we were supposed to be the fittest side in the league (or one of). We look no different to others, to be fair. Still is just terrible at Saints 2
Badger Posted October 5 Posted October 5 (edited) 18 hours ago, Convict Colony said: I'm assuming you made good points but as soon as I saw the lazy trope about being a computer game manager I gave up. Hes managed 2 Ligue 1 clubs and people are still recycling that shit. Based on what you’ve seen here to date what does he seem like to you? A young manager with a decent track record elsewhere with potential, or one who is really struggling to impose himself and make an impression? Like it or not, whilst our form and performances continue as they are, his backstory will continue to be trotted out as someone who has left the comfortable world of managing from a keyboard to struggling to do it in the cut and thrust of Championship real world. The ‘laptop’ comment is - rightly or wrongly - the one that many fans especially of other clubs see. And at the moment little is being seen to dispel the implied criticisms. Edited October 5 by Badger
Badger Posted October 5 Posted October 5 3 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said: I thought we were supposed to be the fittest side in the league (or one of). We look no different to others, to be fair. Still is just terrible at Saints If anything we don’t look as good in terms of physicality and fitness 2
Tommy Mulgrew Posted October 5 Posted October 5 13 hours ago, Ambsaint said: Given the above, the fact we look absolutely dreadful attacking and even worse defending points to very poor coaching and tactics. We don't look dangerous in any situation and we look very vulnerable to every team I've seen us play against. Be lovely to play against us in other words 5 hours ago, Toussaint said: EVERY team we come up against looks far better coached, drilled, organised and physically better equipped than us 5 hours ago, Toussaint said: I like a dominant spine to the team, which includes a robust, physical “back to goal” 9 and a combative driving central midfielder. Agree with all that. Except for a proper CF and a decent back-up to Macca, our squad is totally acceptable for getting promoted from this league. What is missing is how we play effectively most of the time. When we progress forward at pace, either by passing to unmarked players or willing runners or by running directly into the danger zone with the ball, as Leo did yesterday, we look as though we could score loads of goals. But we don’t do enough of that. Look at our crab football on Saturday. I’ll say it again. Look at our crap football on Saturday. Always gives enough time for getting 10 players behind the ball to defend against us. And seldom draws opponents out-of-shape. At least, with Still, it occurs mainly in the middle third of the pitch and not in our defensive third, which it seemed to under Martin. But it slows the game down to walking pace and we find it difficult to up the pace again. I find it impossible to believe that every other Championship side can impose an effective block on our forward passes whereas we struggle to do the same to them. But that is exactly what my eyes tell me. Where are our unmarked midfielders and unmarked attackers? Where are our attackers making runs to receive the ball? When they do run into unmarked space, why do they rarely receive the ball? Crappy crab football sets in yet again. It is a really depressing watch. Almost as bad as when Martin was our manager. And, when they receive the ball, our wide players are immediately closed down whereas we almost always give theirs (especially on our left) plenty of time to cross into our penalty area. Closing down opponents is a basic part of the game. We do it (most of the time) in the middle of the pitch; why not out wide? Our main on-pitch failings are coaching-related. Still and his coaching team have not yet worked out how to win and win again and again in this division. Until they do, us fans will remain disappointed and frustrated. It’s the SR Saints way, unfortunately. 8
Killers Knee Posted October 5 Posted October 5 The change required to get this once great club on a decent footing is too large to complete in one transfer window. We need to replace every member of backroom staff, and every player who was with us for the relegation season. These are the vectors by which our growing mediocrity has spread. Again we shouldn't rush promotion, we were not ready for it last season, I think 27/8 will be the year of our resurrection, this should give us enough time to offload the unwanted, build a decent spine and have a squad capable of staying up after promotion.
Lighthouse Posted October 5 Posted October 5 20 minutes ago, Killers Knee said: The change required to get this once great club on a decent footing is too large to complete in one transfer window. We need to replace every member of backroom staff, and every player who was with us for the relegation season. These are the vectors by which our growing mediocrity has spread. Again we shouldn't rush promotion, we were not ready for it last season, I think 27/8 will be the year of our resurrection, this should give us enough time to offload the unwanted, build a decent spine and have a squad capable of staying up after promotion. Our club was relegated, they didn’t spend ten years in a Soviet, Siberian labour camp. They’re quite capable of ‘recovering’ to the point of playing Championship football. 1
AlexLaw76 Posted October 5 Posted October 5 1 minute ago, Lighthouse said: Our club was relegated, they didn’t spend ten years in a Soviet, Siberian labour camp. They’re quite capable of ‘recovering’ to the point of playing Championship football. Some of our fans live in fantasy land, expecting this season to be preparation for the title charge in the next few years. Every season we stay down, the worse it will get. I joking used to say SR were going to turn us into Stoke. Right now, that would be an achievement. Half the team were good enough to get promoted last time, some of the players we brought in are top top championship players, and others are clearly good enough for the top in this league (and then there is Downs). 2
Challenger Posted October 5 Posted October 5 SR have put together a " team" that lacks skill, pace, strength, guile and nous. Better coaching / tactics might achieve a top half finish, nothing more IMO. 2
Charlie Wayman Posted October 5 Posted October 5 (edited) 1 hour ago, AlexLaw76 said: Some of our fans live in fantasy land, expecting this season to be preparation for the title charge in the next few years. Every season we stay down, the worse it will get. I joking used to say SR were going to turn us into Stoke. Right now, that would be an achievement. Half the team were good enough to get promoted last time, some of the players we brought in are top top championship players, and others are clearly good enough for the top in this league (and then there is Downs). Other opinions are available. What is your yardstick? Did you see the Ipswich v Norwich match on TV? Every palyer on the field looked better than any we have. Even so, I'm 100% with you on Still's self evident limitations. Maybe he gets October from SR but it's only kicking the can down the road, if the outcome is obvious do it quickly and get it over with now. The guillotine or the rack? Edited October 5 by Charlie Wayman
sockeye Posted October 5 Posted October 5 1 hour ago, Killers Knee said: We need to replace every member of backroom staff +1 on this. Easy to focus on the guy we see on the touch line but helping him with the day to day is - Paul Trollope, most recently seen getting Luton relegated back-to-back - Lallana (in his FIRST EVER coaching role) seemingly hired because he played for us 20 years ago - Carl Martin who has overseen two woeful relegations with Saints and kept his job throughout And that's not even getting into the guys upstairs or the kid analysts on work experience. There is a rot and it is caused by mediocrity permeating the club on every level. 9
Osvaldorama Posted October 5 Posted October 5 Coaching & squad strategy for me Strategy is absolutely baffling. What sort of club signs wingers but gives them no one to cross to except a bloke that was obviously going to be injured after five minutes? We have a collection of solid championship players (plus damion downs who is a solid Sunday league player), not a well built 11 And it’s all just dumb and depressing really 3
Saint Fan CaM Posted October 5 Posted October 5 A chain is as strong as its weakest link. There are a number of weak links in our club (ignoring the obvious - SR). Let’s start at the back and work forward. GK: how we started with Bazunu and McCarthy in goal is a major miss from Spors and co. Neither are good enough, however thankfully McCarthy has some basic competency as shown by the saves that have kept us games. Baz is a busted flush as shown by the worst stats of any Saints keeper I believe. Defence: Manning is the biggest weak link - doesn’t know how to close down and wipe out a winger. Plus watch him - often seen just stood in no-man’s land doing fuck all and watching the game pass him by. This in turn unbalances the entire defence and it may be the reason Still can’t move to a back four. Midfield: since Jander and Charles have been together things have been much better - BUT - once Downes is called on because one of the others is knackered or on a yellow, everything goes tits up. Why? Because he is a completely different player who can’t play forward or turn - he HAS to pass backwards. Aribo would do a better job. Attack: the lack of a really great no.9 is still a massive weak link and the insistence on putting AA in the middle to compensate is insanity. Now Stewart is likely out for weeks we’ve got a huge problem because Downs is not fit for league 1 let alone lead the line for a Championship promotion hopeful. Again Spors has to take responsibility for this position. So if we’re looking to place blame it’s a combo of Spors and Still / Trollope / Lallana. Other than the key weak link players mentioned above, there is a team there which should be doing better than we are, however most of the weak links are importantly in the spine of the team, Manning aside. 3
leeham_69 Posted October 5 Posted October 5 3 hours ago, Lighthouse said: Our club was relegated, they didn’t spend ten years in a Soviet, Siberian labour camp. They’re quite capable of ‘recovering’ to the point of playing Championship football. I would like large portions of our squad to spend ten years in a Siberian labour camp. Is that an option? 1 2
rooney Posted October 6 Posted October 6 7 hours ago, Charlie Wayman said: Did you see the Ipswich v Norwich match on TV? Every palyer on the field looked better than any we have. I do not know about that but certainly they had more energy. No walking football in sight.
Crab Lungs Posted October 6 Posted October 6 I’m still wondering what our style is because I see a lot of talented players monging around in 3rd gear, waiting for something to happen. I said to a mate last month this league is there for the taking, the only team I’ve been wowed by is Coventry. 3
AlexLaw76 Posted October 6 Posted October 6 Now we have regressed so much that we simply have no chance unless we have a huge lump up front. Still has a group of players that almost every other club outside of the premier league would kill for, and he has wingers at Wing Back, lumping balls into the box and leaving the middle of the park wide open. 2
Killers Knee Posted October 6 Posted October 6 30 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said: Now we have regressed so much that we simply have no chance unless we have a huge lump up front. But this is the Saints problem, we can coach the talent out of anyone, reducing their value down to their physical attributes Look at all the players that improve as soon as they leave Saints, and we can all recall talented players who totally bombed on arrival here. 5
Dman Posted October 6 Posted October 6 2 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said: Now we have regressed so much that we simply have no chance unless we have a huge lump up front. Still has a group of players that almost every other club outside of the premier league would kill for, and he has wingers at Wing Back, lumping balls into the box and leaving the middle of the park wide open. This is what I really don't understand. We were promised, high intensty pressing, direct attacking football. 9 (leauge games) in and we look more like a russel martin side (just somehow worse) than we do something that would resemble what we were told we'd get. We have players like Fellows and Scienza look like they could beat anyone 1vs1 in this leauge. Azaz who is proven quality in the 10, playing between the defence and midfield and archer / amstrong who are best playing off the shoulder in the channels. In theory, if teams sit deep, we have the quality to unpick them by getting our wingers 1vs1 or getting Azaz some space. If they play a high-line, we have people like Archer or Armstrong who can play inbehind. Our problem is that our plan is clearly to get down the wings and get balls into the box, the problem is that we have no clear pattern of how we will do that, so have resorted to hit a big man and play off him. You can't even blame the players / Russell Martin legacy, as almost all of our midfield who've started the past few games didn't play under him. 3
leesaint88 Posted October 6 Posted October 6 Personally, I think the fact that Still couldn't bring his coaching team from France is part of the problem. He's at a new club, which has a lot of new players along with a new coaching set up he has to learn to trust. 2
Miltonaggro Posted October 6 Posted October 6 1 hour ago, Dman said: This is what I really don't understand. We were promised, high intensty pressing, direct attacking football. 9 (leauge games) in and we look more like a russel martin side (just somehow worse) than we do something that would resemble what we were told we'd get. We have players like Fellows and Scienza look like they could beat anyone 1vs1 in this leauge. Azaz who is proven quality in the 10, playing between the defence and midfield and archer / amstrong who are best playing off the shoulder in the channels. In theory, if teams sit deep, we have the quality to unpick them by getting our wingers 1vs1 or getting Azaz some space. If they play a high-line, we have people like Archer or Armstrong who can play inbehind. Our problem is that our plan is clearly to get down the wings and get balls into the box, the problem is that we have no clear pattern of how we will do that, so have resorted to hit a big man and play off him. You can't even blame the players / Russell Martin legacy, as almost all of our midfield who've started the past few games didn't play under him. Good post, and this is the worry. In the Martin playoff season in many games we seemed to have an extra gear to use as a get out of jail card due to having better players. Leicester seem to have rediscovered this in their play last few weeks. I think that the quality and intensity of this league has likely shocked Still and Spors & Co., but having the likes of Trollope, Azaz, Fellows, Armstrong etc. on board should negate that to a large extent. Watching games from the stands it does seem particularly flat and disjointed at the moment, but one thing Sport Republic is very good at doing is fiddling whilst Rome burns so expect groundhog day until the January window closes at least.
Lighthouse Posted October 6 Posted October 6 3 hours ago, Killers Knee said: But this is the Saints problem, we can coach the talent out of anyone, reducing their value down to their physical attributes Look at all the players that improve as soon as they leave Saints, and we can all recall talented players who totally bombed on arrival here. Like who?
saintant Posted October 6 Posted October 6 4 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said: Now we have regressed so much that we simply have no chance unless we have a huge lump up front. Still has a group of players that almost every other club outside of the premier league would kill for, and he has wingers at Wing Back, lumping balls into the box and leaving the middle of the park wide open. Have you not been keeping up - even a lot of the good sides are now introducing big, powerful centre forwards. It's in vogue along with the long throw and more long balls rather than tippy tappy at the back.
Killers Knee Posted October 6 Posted October 6 5 hours ago, Lighthouse said: Like who? Sulemana Tall Paul BBD the latest three but this trend goes back years.
Lighthouse Posted October 6 Posted October 6 17 minutes ago, Killers Knee said: Sulemana Tall Paul BBD the latest three but this trend goes back years. Nope. They’ve just gone to worse leagues. 1
Lee On Solent Saint Posted October 6 Posted October 6 5 minutes ago, Lighthouse said: Nope. They’ve just gone to worse leagues. Am not sure the Italian league is worse than the Championship. 1
Lighthouse Posted October 6 Posted October 6 33 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said: Am not sure the Italian league is worse than the Championship. It's worse than the PL, which is what we're judging them on last season.
benjii Posted October 6 Posted October 6 6 hours ago, Lighthouse said: Like who? Shearer Bale Livramento Stan Cribb George Harkus
Nordic Saint Posted October 6 Posted October 6 On 04/10/2025 at 19:05, sockeye said: Sport Republic. we are on a year on year decline and they are the only constant They certainly are. A new manager would be the 8th different one under Sport Republic. It's incredible the rate at which we're getting through them.
Lee On Solent Saint Posted October 6 Posted October 6 21 minutes ago, Lighthouse said: It's worse than the PL, which is what we're judging them on last season. Thanks for clearing that up
OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint Posted October 6 Posted October 6 On 04/10/2025 at 21:22, Lighthouse said: Even the subs are baffling, taking off players who are doing well in a kind of scattergun approach to mixing things up This is my main concern about Will Still. His set up with five at the back, I think, sets out the wrong signal to the opposition. It says we're being negative but I can handle it if the wing backs attack, but these subs are all wrong. He either throws every attacker on the bench on at the end and they all run around like madmen bumping in to each other, or like on Saturday, when Ross Stewart gets injured, he gets rid of a plan that was working and puts AA in the middle....which anyone can tell him doesn't work. Can't blame SR for effectively cherry picking and giving Will Still the best of the championship talent (ok, he hasn't been given a striker) - which suggests the coaching is to blame. Work on one touch progressive football and hey up, having lumps for attackers seems to be a trend, and we've got Aribo... 2
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