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25 Aug 2024 20:27:40
St. Marty has written an article entitled, Southampton v Nottingham Forest Review
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28 Aug 2024 22:48:11
Firstly, tonight's performance has done nothing to quell my fears about our defence. RM's style of play put so much pressure on players that just didn't look up to the task. None of the starting defenders looked like they would offer anything at the higher level.
Further up the field, Sam Edozie looks out of his depth. Unfortunately, he hasn't really kicked on and there is little end product with his game.
A few tentative positives on the night.
1. Nothing to do with the game but the imminent signing of Aaron Ramsdale could be the first important missing piece in our defence.
2. I've said it before and I'll say it again now, ABK is potentially the best defender in the club and should start, end of story.
3. Tyler Dibling, Sam Amo-Ameyaw and Mateus Fernandes all look like they have something to offer. While they may not be nailed on starters, they should have a big role to play for the club.
4. While I'm not yet convinced by Cameron Archer and I am concerned that he may well be a Championship standard player, I'm reserving judgement until I see finishes like tonight happening against PL defenders.
Finally, the potential addition of Ramsdale and ABK to our defence would be a big plus, if it happens, but I'd really like to see the addition of some creativity and a clinical finisher to the squad as well. Rumours about the potential arrivals of Filip Kostic and Yuri Alberto may well be the answer. We'll see. COYS.
1.) 29 Aug 2024 11:27:23
I would sell Armstrong icl even if we don't get Yuri if we have enough time I would try poach another attacking player that leads us to goals. I'm surprised we haven't tried tapping into the free agency there's some solid players in there but obv they might not want to play for Southampton but 2 years ago I would've not expected us to sign Ramsdale so it's a worthy try
Like maybe going for depay or something
2.) 29 Aug 2024 16:05:21
Sadly, I this is going to be all of our frustration this year, RM is going to start Stephens somewhere on the pitch. I genuinely feel we have a first 11 that could quite easily stay up. Unfortunately RM won’t be playing it. Sad state really and I genuinely hope I’m proven wrong. My question is why buy a player unless it’s to improve a position. We haven’t got the luxury of building a squad this year. We just need a first team plus a few fringe that can consolidate and then hopefully we can push further in 12 months. So please RM, play the new blood, the returnees from loan and the proven prem quality players we have. Don’t be loyal to our promotion team. The majority would drop us like a stone for a pay rise and a transfer.
26 Aug 2024 07:39:21
{Ed's Note - St. Marty has posted a new article entitled, Southampton v Nottingham Forest Review
16 Aug 2024 08:48:33
Ugochukwu looks like a very good addition to the squad. I saw him a few times last season with Chelsea and he looks like someone that will make a big contribution. I've got to say the pursuit of Cameron Archer worries me. Looks like he could be another Carrillo, Mara, Sulemana etc. I know he's young but it's not what we need right now - a 50/50 (at best) punt that we're more likely to attempt offloading for a massive loss, as turn him into an EPL standout player.
It's a massive risk and with some money coming in from the sales of ABK, Alcaraz and maybe Mara now, I think we could invest in someone with a greater chance of success even if they would cost maybe 10M more - Eddie Nketiah springs to mind. A big few weeks coming up for RM and Saints.
01 Sep 2024 21:15:34
I mostly agree with leslee's article. I've said it in previous posts that I admire RMs philosophy on football and how it should be played. Unfortunately, it will only work - especially at the back - with high quality players which we don't have at the moment. THB and Bednarek took a lot of the blame for the first 2 goals received an awful pass from Jack Stephens that put him under pressure in the first place. For the 2nd goal Stephens nearly ran into Bednarek which caused the turnover.
I've been saying it for some time now, ABK is by far the best defender at the club. For RM to say he is 6th choice CB defies belief. He has stated after this match that while the guys who got us up deserved the opportunity to start, he believes that others may be entitled to an opportunity now. I really hope that he puts aside whatever differences he has with ABK and puts him in for Jack Stephens.
With regards to our situation further up the field, it makes little sense trying to play wing backs/wingers if you've got players with no height up front. Aa I've said before I'm willing to give Cameron Archer some time but I really fear that he is Championship standard at best. Ross Stewart has yet to be seen in any meaningful way but I'd certainly look at him and dare I say maybe even Paul Onuachu in an attempt to get goals.
Finally, I really do hope RMs stubborn approach to style of play and his attitude towards certain out of favour players changes because how long do the club give him before it becomes a problem. If we wait too long then the season is a bust and we're straight back down to the Championship.
28 Aug 2024 22:52:33
Agree 100% with your potential lineup for Saturday. I wouldn't mind see RM eventually having ABK at centre back. He's very strong and very fast and he wins the majority of his individual contests.
18 Aug 2024 16:47:16
3 observations from yesterday and ones that have been mentioned on this forum before:-
1. A Goalkeeper is a must and soon.
We have some good fixtures coming
and cannot afford many more soft
goals being conceded.
2. A proven striker is a must and
soon. Unfortunately, I believe
signing Archer was a huge mistake
as he has a lot to prove yet
before I'd consider him PL
quality. (Can't see it happening)
3. Jack Stephens continues to be a
liability in the PL. It was his
lazy pass back to McCarthy that
put us under pressure. To make
matters worse, RM took off
Sugawara - who looked like he
could be very good - to
accommodate Stephens.
14 Aug 2024 12:00:03
Like your thinking on raising money for new incomings and you could probably add Alcaraz to that list - personally would like to see him stay. That should unlock roughly 60m in transfer funds - ABK 12M, Alcatraz 12M, Sulemana 7M, Onuachu 8M, Mara 7M plus 12M already in the kitty. This also trims our wage bill significantly.
At this point, I would try to simplify our Transfer strategy as follows and in order of necessity:-
1. Goalkeeper (preferably Ramsdale) is top priority. I would propose a loan offer to Arsenal with a clause to buy (as with THB this year) probably somewhere in the Region of 30M. Failing that a straight out approach for Sam Johnstone from Crystal Palace - 15M/20M.
2. Absolutely offer Shea Charles plus 15M for Matt O'Riley. Should be enough to get the job done.
3. The biggest punt of this strategy will be finding a proven striker within the remaining budget of 25M/30M. Our record hasn't been good in recent times. Not since the acquisitions of Pelle and Mane have we found someone who can produce goals to the level required for EPL. AA excellent at C'ship level but at EPL level, he won't get enough goals to keep us up at least. Don't really know who fits that bill - maybe Eddie Nketiah (another punt though) .
4. Finally, I would then consider a loan move for some of the names already mentioned McAtee, Lavia etc. but I don't really think we could pull either of those moves off. So I'm going to suggest something that might be a bit unpopular. For me, Jack Stephens won't cut it at this level and we seriously need to look a better option than him at CB. THB needs an experienced man beside him to progress. Bednarek is a steady option but any first 11 involving Stephens and Manning will left exposed. Last year, while Stephens was out injured we went on a 20+ unbeaten run and when he came back we struggled to get over the line. What really worries is that RM seems to be tied in to both players.
All in all, we are only a few moves away from a team good enough to compete in the EPL but if we don't solve those issues above, I fear it could be a long season. COYS
18 Jul 2024 09:27:06
Getting Ramsdale would be a big upgrade. I agree that neither Jack Stephens nor Ryan Manning are Premier League standard. The signing of Wellington should sort out replacing Manning but I'd like to see the club hierarchy target a quality CB. The addition of a top striker to accompany AA is also a must if we are going to target at least a mid table finish. The addition of an attacking midfielder would be the icing on the cake but all in all, I feel the club have been proactive early in the window this year which is encouraging.