James Ward-Prowse

[Lord Duckhunter]

I’d have the JWP who played a bit further forward, but keep the other version. The one we saw about 80% of the time. Fucking hell the sideways, backwards, safe football  is bad enough as it is, without the GOAT of walking football back in the building. 

Edited 29 August, 2024 by Lord Duckhunter

[Sunglasses Ron]

2 minutes ago, pingpong said:

Did he get the free kick record yet?

Nope, only scored a corner last season I believe.

[northam soul]

We have signed Fernandes for that role now so a bit pointless bringing him back to be an 8.

Yes Fernandes is still young but looks pretty good to me so far and needs to be given good game time.

 

Edited 29 August, 2024 by northam soul

[Kenilworthy]

Had he left to join a big team I would say yes. He went to West Ham. So no thanks.

[Weston Super Saint]

We have enough midfield ball recyclers. No need for another one.

[Fabrice29]

23 minutes ago, Kenilworthy said:

Had he left to join a big team I would say yes. He went to West Ham. So no thanks.

He left to join a team who had European football. 

He's not coming back but anyone wishing he does but in another thread wanting Dibling to be in the team needs to give their head a wobble.

[gio1saints]

13 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

We have enough midfield ball recyclers. No need for another one.

Yes he does do that when playing as the 6. So We have two others already able for that ( Flynn and Les) .
Question is : You think Will, Joe and Flynn will out-score him from MF this season same games played? I don’t. 
 

Add Adam Lallana and big Les to that list. Mateus is an unknown as is Tyler and I think those two will both score - but over 7/8 goals ? - love that to be true.  
JWP is nailed on for 6/7/8 goals at this level imo - let alone assists and more if he refinds his free kick mojo. Not even including pens. 
 

Don't want to lose Joe or Will but I’m a Saints fan wants goals from this team and he’s got some goals in his boots for sure. Plus who doesn’t want to see him break the free kick record with a Saints shirt on? 

[Lee On Solent Saint]

10 minutes ago, gio1saints said:

Don't want to lose Joe or Will

Can I ask why? Aribo is a nothing player. Smallbone is physical weak at this level. Cannot tackle. I would get rid of those two in an instant if it allowed us to bring back JWP. I know you agree with me that it would a massive improvement to have him back, was just interested in what you see in Aribo and Smallbone at this level.

[ErwinK1961]

The manager has said we’re not interested, we’ve recruited 2 (plus Flynn permanently) in the midfield and have TD breaking through, we have urgent need in the attacking position and have saved a loan spot clearly for that purpose.

It’s not going to happen.

[Saint_clark]

Maybe in a couple of years when he's cheaper and we need another midfielder.

[Guest]

I’d take him if another midfielder was leaving. On the face of it it would appear that’s not the case, in which case we don’t need him

[Weston Super Saint]

44 minutes ago, gio1saints said:

Yes he does do that when playing as the 6. So We have two others already able for that ( Flynn and Les) .
Question is : You think Will, Joe and Flynn will out-score him from MF this season same games played? I don’t. 
 

Add Adam Lallana and big Les to that list. Mateus is an unknown as is Tyler and I think those two will both score - but over 7/8 goals ? - love that to be true.  
JWP is nailed on for 6/7/8 goals at this level imo - let alone assists and more if he refinds his free kick mojo. Not even including pens. 
 

Don't want to lose Joe or Will but I’m a Saints fan wants goals from this team and he’s got some goals in his boots for sure. Plus who doesn’t want to see him break the free kick record with a Saints shirt on? 

The question is, will his handful of goals make up for all the lost opportunities when the ball is recycled over and over with zero threat?

[gio1saints]

1 hour ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Can I ask why? Aribo is a nothing player. Smallbone is physical weak at this level. Cannot tackle. I would get rid of those two in an instant if it allowed us to bring back JWP. I know you agree with me that it would a massive improvement to have him back, was just interested in what you see in Aribo and Smallbone at this level.

Because I’m sentimentally loyal to the players that got us up and just feel it would be tough to ditch Will in particular, before he’s had a fair chance at the EPL - which he has earned imo. You are on the side of making ruthless decisions and it’s probably the more winning way overall. But it’s not all that loving and does not feel Saintsy to me. Respect that pov of course. 

I think JWP starts in our best 11 and certainly is in our best 16. 

Do I think it’s a good idea? Probably on balance not. He can rejoin next year if we are relegated.
Glad I’m not RM. Or am I ?😎

Edited 29 August, 2024 by gio1saints

[Bakovnetski]

35 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

The question is, will his handful of goals make up for all the lost opportunities when the ball is recycled over and over with zero threat?

Surely it can't get any worse than it already is with NO goals?

[gio1saints]

32 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

The question is, will his handful of goals make up for all the lost opportunities when the ball is recycled over and over with zero threat?

If they ALL do that recycling with zero threat we will go down whoever is playing. 

[trousers]

If we were interested in a 10 goal a season PL midfielder who wasn't called 'James Ward-Prowse' I suspect there would be quite a few more "yes please"s on here...

[trousers]

40 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

The question is, will his handful of goals make up for all the lost opportunities when the ball is recycled over and over with zero threat?

Two handfuls...

[Lee On Solent Saint]

56 minutes ago, gio1saints said:

Because I’m sentimentally loyal to the players that got us up and just feel it would be tough to ditch Will in particular, before he’s had a fair chance at the EPL - which he has earned imo. You are on the side of making ruthless decisions and it’s probably the more winning way overall. But it’s not all that loving and does not feel Saintsy to me. Respect that pov of course. 

I think JWP starts in our best 11 and certainly is in our best 16. 

Do I think it’s a good idea? Probably on balance not. He can rejoin next year if we are relegated.
Glad I’m not RM. Or am I ?😎

Fully understand your opinion. I get the impression that RM is loyal to the group, whether that loyalty is folly, time will tell. 

[Weston Super Saint]

1 hour ago, gio1saints said:

If they ALL do that recycling with zero threat we will go down whoever is playing. 

So just save the money then?

[Patches O Houlihan]

Presumably if Cornet is on loan from West Ham any move for JWP would need to be a purchase.

WH want £25m we sold him for £30. Seems a lot. Would they take £18m? Are we even interested in buying him?

[hypochondriac]

Just saw jwp has been linked to forest. I'd be pretty gutted if he goes there to be honest. 

[S-Clarke]

This never felt like something that made any sense, we're already stocked in his area.

Hope he gets a move though.

[Lighthouse]

7 minutes ago, S-Clarke said:

This never felt like something that made any sense, we're already stocked in his area.

Hope he gets a move though.

All seems like wishful thinking (for some) and lazy journalism to me. I can’t see that he’d be a guaranteed starter here and it looks like Cornet is our second loan this year.

[Harry_SFC]

Clearly in the minority but I'm glad we didn't go for him. 

Would have had nightmares of JWP and Smallbone in the same team passing the ball backwards and sideways continuously for 90 minutes.

Edited 29 August, 2024 by Harry_SFC

[Holmes_and_Watson]

As much as I'd like to see Will's development in the PL, JWP is a clear upgrade. It would add plenty of experience, to the youth of of Les and Fernandes too.

Les, Downes, JWP, Will, Fernandes, Aribo, Lallana, Dibling

It would have been nice to have him back.

[SfcPhil]

He should've just stayed with us last season and helped us to promotion. He was never getting in the England team for the Euros, no matter how many freekicks he may have scored in the Premier League.

Looks like the latter stages of his career will be spent bouncing round from club to club as they unearth his limitations from open play.

It's a shame, it could've been so different had he stayed. But then again, we wouldn't have got to see Flynn in a Saints shirt..

[SNSUN]

I liked James when he was here, an academy product with a good engine, always fit and reliable and of course, he had a specific skill, but we've spent the summer building on top of an existing midfield and I feel he wouldn't be the guaranteed starter he used to be, although perhaps he would fit Russ's passing/keep-ball philosophy. He needs to leave West Ham and become a regular starter somewhere but with Downes, Lesley, Fernandes, Lallana, Smallbone, Dibling and Aribo currently all in the squad, I can't see him coming, especially for the money West Ham would want for him. I'd rather spend the money on improving the attack. 

[Fabrice29]

14 minutes ago, SfcPhil said:

He should've just stayed with us last season and helped us to promotion. He was never getting in the England team for the Euros, no matter how many freekicks he may have scored in the Premier League.

Looks like the latter stages of his career will be spent bouncing round from club to club as they unearth his limitations from open play.

It's a shame, it could've been so different had he stayed. But then again, we wouldn't have got to see Flynn in a Saints shirt..

This is nonsense by the way. He actively talked about wanting to play in Europe again and got the opportunity to do so. Telling someone else what they should do with their career is nonsense on it's own but even more so when it involves clipping his ambition all because of some weird notion that staying here would make him a club legend for us and that's something he should aspire to over being successful. 

[franniesTache]

Looks like he's off too Forest, and personally I'm glad the skate isn't coming back to be honest. Not sure he'd have offered that much and he'd make Russball even more turgid than it already is.

I mean our style is slow enough already, adding him to the mix and we'd be playing walking football

[Green]

Based on four PL games for Downes, who still thinks Downes is better than JWP? 

[Andy Hill]

Unfortunately Downes has been pretty average so far. So not me/

[Holmes_and_Watson]

10 minutes ago, Green said:

Based on four PL games for Downes, who still thinks Downes is better than JWP? 

They do lots of different things, so not sure I'd directly compare them. I'd have liked to have had both.

Downes better defensively and working through the midfield. JWP linking and with a bit of freedom to move forward, plus the set pieces.

Depending on the game, you could add in Les or a Fernandes/Aribo/Dibling depending on how defensive or attacking you want it.

[Saint Pete]

I would have had JWP back in a heartbeat if it was possible to do, he is genuine proven premier league quality and pretty much all the other midfielders we have are not that currently. I agree though that there is not really a direct comparison to be made between him and Downes, they share some qualities in terms of keeping possession, but in other ways they have different strengths and weaknesses. I think they could have both been accommodated in the same team potentially, but not to be so we move on.

[Charlie Wayman]

42 minutes ago, Green said:

Based on four PL games for Downes, who still thinks Downes is better than JWP? 

Me.

[pingpong]

2 hours ago, Green said:

Based on four PL games for Downes, who still thinks Downes is better than JWP? 

In 2024? Me, by a long stretch.

[HKsaint]

If JWP were here, we would not have lost four consecutive PL games. It was a bad decision to take comet over JWP on loan. 

[Ralph Fastenbüttl]

40 minutes ago, HKsaint said:

If JWP were here, we would not have lost four consecutive PL games. It was a bad decision to take comet over JWP on loan. 

How do you come to that conclusion? Because of his rich history captaining the team through an almost historically poor top flight campaign? I'm not saying JWP wouldn't do a job for us, but let's not pretend he's shown any sort of ability to help our team grind out results when all around him are poor.

[CB Fry]

5 hours ago, HKsaint said:

If JWP were here, we would not have lost four consecutive PL games. It was a bad decision to take comet over JWP on loan. 

There's nothing anywhere to suggest such a "decision" was made.

A loan fee for JWP would have been much higher, and as WHU are likely still paying us for him, it would have had other complications.

 

[HKsaint]

6 hours ago, Ralph Fastenbüttl said:

How do you come to that conclusion? Because of his rich history captaining the team through an almost historically poor top flight campaign? I'm not saying JWP wouldn't do a job for us, but let's not pretend he's shown any sort of ability to help our team grind out results when all around him are poor.

At least he is a proven goalscorer in PL that we don’t have right now. Anyone in our team has scored more than 7 goals in a season in PL?

[SotonianWill]

9 hours ago, HKsaint said:

If JWP were here, we would not have lost four consecutive PL games. It was a bad decision to take comet over JWP on loan. 

We ended our last Premier League season on a 13 game winless streak with him as captain. He may well have done better in an attacking position in our current team - his safe passing in any defensive position is enough to bore anyone to death - but he isn’t a massive change. 

[LeG]

James will come back next year if we stay up. 

[sfc4prem]

1 minute ago, LeG said:

James will come back next year if we stay up. 

Rather unlikely, then. Will there be three teams worse than us?

[Danbert]

Is he injured? Not even on the subs bench for West Ham today.

[M271]

4 minutes ago, Danbert said:

Is he injured? Not even on the subs bench for West Ham today.

He’s now at Nottingham Forest on loan.

[East Kent Saint]

I think we saw peak JWP a season or 2 before he left , the club wanted the money and he didn't mind playing in Europe ! He has moved on now ....

[Guest]

11 hours ago, CB Fry said:

There's nothing anywhere to suggest such a "decision" was made.

A loan fee for JWP would have been much higher, and as WHU are likely still paying us for him, it would have had other complications.

 

This entirely.

We were never in for him. Mad that people think it was the case 😂

[Chewy]

11 hours ago, FarehamSaintJames said:

This entirely.

We were never in for him. Mad that people think it was the case 😂

Almost as mad as people thinking he would stay with us in the championship.  When he’d already put his house on the market and told various people he was off. And yet there were still people idiotic enough to tell a forum ad infinitum how he was staying.

Properly mad, that was.

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Chewy said:

Almost as mad as people thinking he would stay with us in the championship.  When he’d already put his house on the market and told various people he was off. And yet there were still people idiotic enough to tell a forum ad infinitum how he was staying.

Properly mad, that was.

Funny how you remember that but seem to erase the Ramsdale and Fraser signings I called six weeks before it happened. Just saying 

[Lord Duckhunter]

Substituted at half time for Forest. 
 

The ones who thought he’s over rated on here, and is actually bang average are being proved right again. 
 

 

[Fabrice29]

5 hours ago, FarehamSaintJames said:

Funny how you remember that but seem to erase the Ramsdale and Fraser signings I called six weeks before it happened. Just saying 

State of you  Neither of those were massive calls ffs. One was obvious from about a week into LAST season and the other was a last minute deal after other deals on both sides didn't work out. Love your recent Dibling new contract post too. Really insightful stuff that. 18 year old kid who starts getting into the first team triggers a new contract shock. Look forward to you dining out on that one in the next week or two.