Saints vs Sheff Weds - Saturday 3pm

[Greedyfly]

11 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

I know some people love a good conspiracy but that’s quite obviously not what’s going on. Five at the back is a legit formation, used by a lot of managers, Bazunu is being picked ahead of Alex McCarthy, not Lev Yashin.

Still would not have accepted the job under those stipulations, which he’s spent half the season ‘ignoring’ anyway.

I said this on the match thread in midweek - But Still FREQUENTLY played the 3 at the back at Lens - in fact almost always so no idea where his love for 4231 came from because he barely ever played it.

 

Thus it was a WS thing; not a SR thing for anyone believing otherwise.

 

But Eckert needs to drop it - its an awful watch especially at home to Wednesday.

[die Mannyschaft]

5 hours ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

They may be bottom but Wednesday are a good team - i.e. they’re utilising their small squad to very good effect and are picking up points. This is not going to be some easy pushover like some seem to be thinking especially with us not having a decent target man - they will press us hard and capatilise on mistakes at the back (inevitable).

A win is possible but I’m going 1-1.

There are no bad teams the bottom 10 are all the same.

[Mboto Gorge]

Would be very surprised if we won this, can see a draw at best. Wednesday aren’t as bad as their position suggests. They’ve had some very decent resilient away performances: would not be surprised at a 1-1 draw, and if we’re as bad we were against Preston , we will almost certainly lose again.

[saintant]

31 minutes ago, Toadhall Saint said:

You would have thought that Still would say something akin to that.

He'll have been made to sign an NDA in return for payment of his contract meaning he can't say anything.

[coalman]

I sincerely hope we're not about "keeping things ticking over". We got lucky playing badly against QPR. Playing as badly again is unlikely to continue yielding the same results. The last thing we need is continuity.

[OttawaSaint]

4 hours ago, trousers said:

Press conference at 2pm today 

(Players training at St Mary's today btw)

Our players train? Wow! Doesn't seem like it...

[Jack]

1 hour ago, saintant said:

Are you suggesting the players are picking the side and choosing to play 3 centre backs? Maybe you're onto something because if we don't play 3 centre backs they'd have to leave out one of their pals.

We were talking about this yesterday. If Jack Stephens was to pick his starting XI, I think it’d have looked very much like what we saw on Wednesday. Wouldn’t shock me if Eckert is just appeasing a popularity contest with his selections, because it’s clearly shit in a tactical sense. 
 

It’s why we need a no shit, respected manager to come in and break up what’s left of Martin’s sideways/backwards banter club, so we can progress as a football club. 

[stevematthews635]

1 minute ago, Jack said:

We were talking about this yesterday. If Jack Stephens was to pick his starting XI, I think it’d have looked very much like what we saw on Wednesday. Wouldn’t shock me if Eckert is just appeasing a popularity contest with his selections, because it’s clearly shit in a tactical sense. 
 

It’s why we need a no shit, respected manager to come in and break up what’s left of Martin’s sideways/backwards banter club, so we can progress as a football club. 

There really are some right plums on here and seeing 'reds under the beds' at every opportunity.

The manager picked the team not the players.

Give it a bloody rest!

[Toadhall Saint]

52 minutes ago, saintant said:

He'll have been made to sign an NDA in return for payment of his contract meaning he can't say anything.

That would have need to be agreed pre contract not as part of the post contract.

[Jack]

42 minutes ago, stevematthews635 said:

There really are some right plums on here and seeing 'reds under the beds' at every opportunity.

The manager picked the team not the players.

Give it a bloody rest!

I didn’t say the players picked the team, you plum, I’m questioning whether the stand in manager is heavily influenced by the clique of uncommitted, shit players who’ve been here too long and clearly have too much influence around the place. 
 

The manager certainly didn’t pick a team to play that way based on it being any good. 

[saintant]

56 minutes ago, stevematthews635 said:

There really are some right plums on here and seeing 'reds under the beds' at every opportunity.

The manager picked the team not the players.

Give it a bloody rest!

He's young and inexperienced. He'll have discussed team selection with Captain Jack - no doubt about that.

[saintant]

36 minutes ago, Toadhall Saint said:

That would have need to be agreed pre contract not as part of the post contract.

Whenever but it's always done because you never hear a sacked manager giving his views.

[Fabrice29]

1 hour ago, Jack said:

We were talking about this yesterday. If Jack Stephens was to pick his starting XI, I think it’d have looked very much like what we saw on Wednesday. Wouldn’t shock me if Eckert is just appeasing a popularity contest with his selections, because it’s clearly shit in a tactical sense. 

You wouldn't believe he's made 1 selection and won the game would you  

[Lighthouse]

1 hour ago, saintant said:

He'll have been made to sign an NDA in return for payment of his contract meaning he can't say anything.

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall for the absolutely mental conversation that some of you seem to think took place when we hired Still.

Spors: "So, Will, you're a promising young manager with a decent record in French football, we think you're the right man to take us forward in the Championship."

Still: "Okay, I'm interested, tell me more."

Spors: "Well first of all, we're going to decide what formation the team plays, not you."

Still: "Errrr.... why."

Spors: "Well, even though we got promoted two years ago playing a back four for the majority of the season, including our longest unbeaten run for a century, we absolutely insist on playing a back five this time."

Still: "Well, if you say so."

Spors: "Also, even though we signed Amo-Ameyaw, Lis, Bella-Kotchap, Mara, Caleta-Car, Edozie, Larios, Orsic, Alcaraz, Bree, Onuachu, Sulemana, Taylor, Sugawara and Brereton Diaz, then binned them off when they were deemed not good enough, for some reason we're going to insist that you absolutely must play the worst goalkeeper in Championship history at all times."

Still: "Why?"

Spors: "Because profits. Once every scout in Europe has seen that he's the worst goalkeeper in England, clubs will be queueing up to sign him for £30m."

Still: "Anything else?"

Spors: "Yes, we're going to sign some of the leagues best and most expensive AM players from last year. You're going to say they suit your prefered formation, then hardly play them, just to troll the fans."

Still: "Okay, that sounds sane and reasonable, sign me up."

Spors: "Great, also sign this NDA saying that when it all goes tits up, we sack you and everyone thinks you're useless, you have to stay completely silent and pretend it was all your fault the whole time."

Still; "Ah, awesome, this sounds like a great idea and definitely wont be the end of my managerial career at the age of 33.

....

....

Still: "BTW FU, I'm sometimes going to play McCarthy and a 4-2-3-1, just for teh lolz!!"

[Verbal]

11 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall for the absolutely mental conversation that some of you seem to think took place when we hired Still.

Spors: "So, Will, you're a promising young manager with a decent record in French football, we think you're the right man to take us forward in the Championship."

Still: "Okay, I'm interested, tell me more."

Spors: "Well first of all, we're going to decide what formation the team plays, not you."

Still: "Errrr.... why."

Spors: "Well, even though we got promoted two years ago playing a back four for the majority of the season, including our longest unbeaten run for a century, we absolutely insist on playing a back five this time."

Still: "Well, if you say so."

Spors: "Also, even though we signed Amo-Ameyaw, Lis, Bella-Kotchap, Mara, Caleta-Car, Edozie, Larios, Orsic, Alcaraz, Bree, Onuachu, Sulemana, Taylor, Sugawara and Brereton Diaz, then binned them off when they were deemed not good enough, for some reason we're going to insist that you absolutely must play the worst goalkeeper in Championship history at all times."

Still: "Why?"

Spors: "Because profits. Once every scout in Europe has seen that he's the worst goalkeeper in England, clubs will be queueing up to sign him for £30m."

Still: "Anything else?"

Spors: "Yes, we're going to sign some of the leagues best and most expensive AM players from last year. You're going to say they suit your prefered formation, then hardly play them, just to troll the fans."

Still: "Okay, that sounds sane and reasonable, sign me up."

Spors: "Great, also sign this NDA saying that when it all goes tits up, we sack you and everyone thinks you're useless, you have to stay completely silent and pretend it was all your fault the whole time."

Still; "Ah, awesome, this sounds like a great idea and definitely wont be the end of my managerial career at the age of 33.

....

....

Still: "BTW FU, I'm sometimes going to play McCarthy and a 4-2-3-1, just for teh lolz!!"

This is frightening. I'm sending this recording transcript straight to Henry Winter. People have to know. 

[saintant]

1 hour ago, Lighthouse said:

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall for the absolutely mental conversation that some of you seem to think took place when we hired Still.

Spors: "So, Will, you're a promising young manager with a decent record in French football, we think you're the right man to take us forward in the Championship."

Still: "Okay, I'm interested, tell me more."

Spors: "Well first of all, we're going to decide what formation the team plays, not you."

Still: "Errrr.... why."

Spors: "Well, even though we got promoted two years ago playing a back four for the majority of the season, including our longest unbeaten run for a century, we absolutely insist on playing a back five this time."

Still: "Well, if you say so."

Spors: "Also, even though we signed Amo-Ameyaw, Lis, Bella-Kotchap, Mara, Caleta-Car, Edozie, Larios, Orsic, Alcaraz, Bree, Onuachu, Sulemana, Taylor, Sugawara and Brereton Diaz, then binned them off when they were deemed not good enough, for some reason we're going to insist that you absolutely must play the worst goalkeeper in Championship history at all times."

Still: "Why?"

Spors: "Because profits. Once every scout in Europe has seen that he's the worst goalkeeper in England, clubs will be queueing up to sign him for £30m."

Still: "Anything else?"

Spors: "Yes, we're going to sign some of the leagues best and most expensive AM players from last year. You're going to say they suit your prefered formation, then hardly play them, just to troll the fans."

Still: "Okay, that sounds sane and reasonable, sign me up."

Spors: "Great, also sign this NDA saying that when it all goes tits up, we sack you and everyone thinks you're useless, you have to stay completely silent and pretend it was all your fault the whole time."

Still; "Ah, awesome, this sounds like a great idea and definitely wont be the end of my managerial career at the age of 33.

....

....

Still: "BTW FU, I'm sometimes going to play McCarthy and a 4-2-3-1, just for teh lolz!!"

What I posted was factually correct and did not need this diatribe in reply 🙂

[saintant]

1 hour ago, Fabrice29 said:

You wouldn't believe he's made 1 selection and won the game would you  

Wonder if he'd win many more games setting the side up like that and then retreating to our own penalty box for 20 minutes when leading 2-1 🙂

[Willo of Whiteley]

I don’t buy the “he’s interim manager, he’s hardly going to change tactics”.

It’s not difficult to say to the players we’re setting up in this formation, you have license to get forward, you need to cover these areas etc.

Give the players some freedom.

We might win 6-0 by playing players in the right position and in an attacking formation, but we don’t know because we’re to bloody scared to try.

Edited 2 hours ago by Willo of Whiteley

[Baird of the land]

Is it Desperate still fanatics trying to imagine a scenario where he’s not an awful manager by imagining club forcing him to play his favourite formation. Guess those French clubs were also in on it too. 
 

 

[OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint]

13 hours ago, Willo of Whiteley said:

Wishing for: McCarthy; Jelert, Wood, Quarshie, Wellington; Downes, Jander, Azaz; Fellows, Armstrong, Scienza

Expecting: Bazunu; Fellows, THB, Stephens, Wood, Manning; Downes, Jander, Robinson, Armstrong, Downs

I just see the line up tombola being rolled out for this one.

I'm expecting Scienza to be fit and Downs only to come on as sub - though preferably not come on at all!

Also, not convinced yet by Jander. Not too sure what he adds to midfield though Downes is starting to look good again. 

2-0 Saints. 

[Give it to Ron]

15 minutes ago, OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint said:

I'm expecting Scienza to be fit and Downs only to come on as sub - though preferably not come on at all!

Also, not convinced yet by Jander. Not too sure what he adds to midfield though Downes is starting to look good again. 

2-0 Saints. 

Christ I think totally the opposite I think jander has been decent. Reads it and nullifies attacks keeps it simple and ticking over. Whereas Downes is nowhere near his level before but I wonder if that’s caused by illnesses and injuries. 
opinions 🙂

[OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint]

13 minutes ago, Give it to Ron said:

Christ I think totally the opposite I think jander has been decent. Reads it and nullifies attacks keeps it simple and ticking over. Whereas Downes is nowhere near his level before but I wonder if that’s caused by illnesses and injuries. 
opinions 🙂

Likely that both will play tomorrow and also likely that our interim manager will stick with five at the back, so the two midfielders will have a lot to do - I'll be watching especially to see who has the most impact.

That stated, here's hoping they both have great games!

[saintant]

16 minutes ago, OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint said:

Likely that both will play tomorrow and also likely that our interim manager will stick with five at the back, so the two midfielders will have a lot to do - I'll be watching especially to see who has the most impact.

That stated, here's hoping they both have great games!

8 defensive players then with 3 isolated attackers. Goalkeeper, 3 centre backs, 2 'wing backs' who will mainly operate as full backs and 2 defensive midfielders - against Sheffield Wednesday! What a complete farce. Hope nobody expects to see many chances created.

[bpsaint]

Sounds like we’re setting up to be defensive, and we know crisp packet wrists has a mistake in him so this will not be an enjoyable watch. Wednesday have a bit of fight about them despite everything going on, and I fully expect them to bring us back down to earth with a bump tomorrow.

1-2 away win.