Nigel Adkins or Roberto De Matteo if newspaper reports are to be believed this weekend, have a difficult decision to make over the summer in regard to the goalkeeping position at St Mary's.

Despite my criticism of Kelvin Davis last season, those who look carefully will notice that he attracted very little adverse comments from me in the second half of the season, by the turn of the year he had got in a vein of rich form and although yes there were some areas he could have been stronger in, his second half of the season was as good as he had played at any time during his spell with Saints, this being the case, the question of who should be our number one keeper in the Premier division is not as clear cut as it would have been if asked a year ago, back then I for one would probably have said that we should go for another keeper, now there are several difficult questions to be asked and only the manager can decide what the answer will be.

Nigel Adkins dilemma is whether he should stay loyal to Kelvin or look to improve the goalkeeping area of the team, with Bart gone he has to sign another keeper, but the question is in which cost bracket ? his choices are as follows.

1. Stay loyal to Kelvin as number one and give him his chance at the start of the season, if we do that though, we will be looking to sign a good back up keeper, either an older experienced keeper of a similar age to Kelvin as short term back up or a younger glovesman with a view to the longer term and taking over from Kelvin.

2. Sign a ready made Premier keeper now who can walk straight into the side and given the transfer fee and wages we would be paying would need to, thus relegating Kelvin to the bench, this would be harsh on Davis who has given good service over the past four seasons (I know he has been here six).

Its a big question for the manager and perhaps the most crucial one he will have to ponder over and get right, whatever decision he makes, if he gets it wrong, more than any area in the team this could be the one that is the difference between mid table and a relegation fight.

If we veer towards sentiment then the nod would go to Kelvin, many would say that he deserves his chance after his displays of the last few years and that we should take this route, others would perhaps suggest that we are only postponing the inevitable, Kelvin will be 36 in September and is not a long term option, we cant afford to be sentimental, the goalkeeping position is no place to take a chance, if it goes wrong it could set the tone for the rest of the season.

Those that take the latter view would say now is the time to make a key signing, goalkeepers are the backbone of the team and we have to get it right first time, the chance in the summer is there to get a good keeper in at a good price and build from the back, harsh on Kelvin but football is not a game when sentiment gets you success, yes if we went with Kelvin and it went wrong we could look for a loan signing, but there might not be anyone around that suits and the die is already cast.

A very very difficult decision to take for our manager, not just on a playing front, but on another level and that is having to tell a player that after their heroics of last season that they are not first choice for this.

But this is why managers are paid big money in the premier, they have to make decisions that are the difference between success and failure, whether that succcess be winning trophies or avoiding relegation, its all relative.

Photo: Action Images

slynch added 10:56 - May 21 The other consideration is that any money spent on a better-than-Davis keeper, is money that can't be spent elsewhere.
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Fordy added 11:08 - May 21 Any established Prem keeper is going to be expensive if they aren't very old. If you get an older keeper like Sorensen who is struggling for a first team place you can probably get them on a free. I'd rather keep Davis as number one and go for a young up and coming keeper from the lower leagues.
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ThereIn76 added 11:11 - May 21 Go for a young 'keeper who can challenge and, in time, take over from Kelvin. Evolution not revolution.
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redandwhitedee added 11:46 - May 21 Craig Gordon is avail on a free. He would provide great competition for Davis and at same time still young enough to provide long-term stability. At 36, Davis is nowhere near too old. Look at Brad Friedel, playing at the top of his game still. Adkins was a goalkeeper himself, so if anyone knows what this Saints team need in this department, it will be him. I trust his judgement entirely on that score.

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LondonSaint added 11:57 - May 21 First time poster here, be gentle... The one thing not mentioned in the article is team spirit, a factor not given enough weight in football for my liking. Personally, I think Davis is good enough for the Premiership but behind the scenes he's a big part of the team spirit that was part of our success last year. I can't help but feel that in losing his influence in the team we'd lose a lot more than we could gain with an experienced Premiership keeper. A big decision indeed! Who'd be a manager, eh?! Keep up the great work on the blog, enjoyed reading last season!

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slynch added 12:05 - May 21 London Saint: Good post. I believe Davis is off-field team captain for that very reason.
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BlackRod added 12:29 - May 21 therein76: Go for a young 'keeper who can challenge and, in time, take over from Kelvin. Agree - but of course that's what Bart was supposed to be. Can't immediately think of any stars of the lower leagues who might be available.
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SaintNick added 12:38 - May 21 I think Londonsaint has a good point there sometimes its about the unseen things, with regards to dkins being a keeper himself, in a lot of situations managers who had been certain types of player get it wrong or do differently from the type they were, how many silky smooth players become long ball merchants as managers etc
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legod7 added 12:54 - May 21 Isn't Joe Lewis of Peterborough available on a free
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bstokesaint added 13:00 - May 21 Surely by selling Kelvin we will need two keepers coming in next season because presumably we'd need three in the Premier League? I genuinely feel for Bart, but he'll bounce back with someone else. Footballers and managers are paid a lot of money for what would be the career choice of millions! I think being the ultimate professional that Kelvin is he knows he should never be a shoe-in and should compete for his place like everyone else. I'd like to see a highly rated youngster come in. A keeper that hasn't spend 6 years in the wings waiting and blown a good opportunity when it presented itself.

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hortonsaint added 13:19 - May 21 I've always backed Kelvin on the basis that he was a capable keeper at lg 1 and championship level but am not sure on this one. Whilst his main perceived weakness of not commanding his box aerially is less likely to be a problem in the prem, the standard of shooting will be on a different level to what he's used to and I wonder if he is mobile enough to deal with this. Ideal scenario would be to sign a young keeper who could take over if Kelvin is struggling as I think he deserves the chance to at least start the season. Re Nick's point, I agree to a point that ex-players may not always seem to be expert but goalkeeping is such a specialist position that I'd back Adkins as an ex keeper to get this decision right .

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JimmySteal added 13:24 - May 21 An experienced keeper isn't going to come and play second fiddle and I can't believe NA wouldn't give Kelvin until at least Christmas. So, it looks like a young up and coming keeper but he needs to be real quality as he could be called on sooner than he thinks. The Peterborough lad is good. Is he on a free?
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hortonsaint added 13:26 - May 21 Joe Lewis has signed for Cardiff I believe
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ExiledSupporter added 17:17 - May 21 While I don't wish to make things seem overly simple, it seems to me that we should seek to get a promising, youngish keeper experienced in the lower leagues who is a sufficiently credible challenger to KD to make the latter focus on keeping his top spot, but able to step in without causing us all nervous breakdowns. Of course this is what Bart was supposed to be about, but perhaps insufficiently experienced. On the other hand let's establish that few players have a guaranteed place in the team at the beginning of the season and KD has to compete with whoever is brought in right from the start and may the best performer get the call

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thingummy added 22:23 - May 21 Nigel will make the decision (RdiM will not take over our club). I think Kelvin will get a season to prove he is ok - 36 is not too old. He is part of the lifeblood of the club. I am sure he will do us proud. Not a priority right now IMO
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simmo400 added 06:15 - May 22 Bart sealed his fate with the Blackpool game. He just crumbled under the pressure. Not all his fault though as lack of practise in real games is something that needs to be addressed i think. Youngish hungry keeper will do fine.
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Whatsforpud added 10:07 - May 22 Agree with simmo400. Perhaps this stems from us not having enough competitive matches as we opted out of the reserves league. Davis at 36 is the equivalent of an outfield player of 30/31. Continuity of the team spirit is an important factor, as he does have a certain presence about him. We need a younger keeper to blood in - someone with a bit of self-belief.
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BlackRod added 11:13 - May 22 I agree that a goalkeeper is not a priority. If Michael Owen is available he's exactly the sort of player we need.
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Kiwifiedpom1 added 21:54 - May 22 I'd prefer that we opted for a young and upkeeping Keeper is the way to go. One of the advantages of being a Premiership Club is that you become a more attractive proposition when persuading player to move. That being so, I favour Schmichel Jnr.
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