It is now three days since the worst performance in the history of Southampton FC, I am no nearer recovering from it !

Unfortunately the following morning after the debacle against Leicester City i had to go on The Ugly Inside radio show on Voice 103fm and spend the best part of two hours talking about it.

But when I walked out of the studio that was the start of a self imposed exile from football and here on Monday morning I have still not read a report of this game nor have i watched any football on TV and I have no idea of any other result over the weekend in any division.

There was a lot of temptation to try and cheer myself up by checking the odd result or two, but the fact is it might well have taken me even further down so apart from a quick trip to the supermarket I have sat in a darkened room for 48 hours.

That is not quite true I have used my time productively, at least a lot more productively than the likes of Maya Yoshida and Vestergaard used theirs on Friday evening, having watched the entire first series of Only Fools & Horses, a few back episodes of Blue Bloods and read Louis Theroux's autobiography cover to cover, but even Louis has never had a Weird Weekend such as I have just endured.

The real thing that kept coming back to me though was that Friday night was a culmination of failing to replace Virgil Van Dijk and Jose Fonte, we have had 6 transfer windows yet we have not signed a capable replacement and also relied on those who 3 years ago were 4th & 5th choices in the side.

People accused me of having something against "Yoshi" and Jack Stephens, I have repeatably said that I judge them only on their footballing ability and I have nothing against them.

But there aren't many arguing me now !!!

The problem on Friday evening is that it showed that our central defenders would not get into a Championship side, I would even state this, I would rather have had Wesley Hoedt in the side than any of the defenders who played on Friday, but of course he did that Cruyff Turn at Bournemouth two years ago.

The other sad fact was there was a complete lack of leadership on the pitch, yes we were in trouble after 10 minutes when we were a goal down and reduced to 10 men, but there was no leader, no Alan Ball, no Jimmy Case who calmed the side down and kept them focused, 3 minutes and 2 goals later and it still never happened even after that.

We were a bunch of Schoolkids either too inexperienced or otherwise to do the job.

For three years I have been pointing this out, sometimes you have to bring in a player like Ball or Case to do a job and bring your team on, we have not done this, we have relied on the experience of Yoshida but age does not make you a leader, that is not Yoshida's fault, not everyone is a born leader.

So we have to try and take positives from this of which there is only one and that is surely those in charge of the club have to sit up and take notice of what has slowly happened.

Ralph Krueger and Les Reed were hounded out by the supporters, but at least they were sporting men who knew what was needed, they were not perfect but Reed knew about football and Krueger's experience as an Ice Hockey coach was vital in helping him run the club in the Chairman's role, he might not known much about football, but he knew a lot about sport and he knew what was needed to be done, but unfortunately for the social media keyboard warriors four straight top 8 finishes and a major cup final were not good enough.

I'm not sure we can yet say we are at rock bottom, two games against Manchester City might well prove to be that point, but once they are over we can move on.

In January we have to do what I have been saying for three years, we have to get in a central defender who can dominate not just in terms of quality of play, but in leading the team.

I think the rest of the team aside from the defence is solid, but it is disheartening for them to constantly see good work going forward undone by the same people making the same mistakes.

Yes you have read this all before, yes it has been almost three years of me seemingly being a broken record, but on Friday everything came home to roost, call me repetitive, but you can't say I called it wrongly.

Photo: Action Images

saintmark1976 added 13:53 - Oct 28 What happened on Friday was a classic example of the players deciding that they no longer wished to play for a manager who's recent team selection, tactics and substitutions had become completely incomprehensible. I suspect that before the match a collective decision was made not to put a shift in and perhaps lose by four or five goals. Unfortunately they didn't reckon with Leicester wanting to really " rub it in". I posted on Saturday that Ralph had to go and nothing that has happened in the meantime changes my opinion. You can't be a manager who wins two out of the last fifteen Premiership matches and be allowed to stay

5

warrens76 added 13:56 - Oct 28 This is NOT about a 8loody central defender,it is about a rotten and emotionally dysfunctional daughter selling us (after promising not to) out KNOWINGLY to a Chinaman whose 'grassing' against former partners sentenced to them to death. So an uncaring mercenary Liar and a grass State informer who borrowed every penny and embargoed player purchases on day one...and you Nick think it's about a central defender or two...god help us.

4

the_saint added 15:19 - Oct 28 Firstly I think you cannot lay the blame on any individual player be it gunn yoshi or vesta they are a team and all are accountable. Secondly Ralph's assistant ronny left he was the tactician and ralph was the front man and they worked well together but now ralph is left with inexperience coaches so bound to fail. Thirdly les reed was sacked and rightly so and ross took over now he has gone we have nobody in place and fourthly Krueger goes and Chinese owner who then takes over as chairman which is ok as it is his club but now you have to communicate

1

Block8 added 16:17 - Oct 28 All we can hope for is that this is the kick up the arse they all needed! When Bertie went they all stood looking at each other, with absolutely no idea what to do! That was almost as embarrassing as the result. Ralph needs to pick a system that suits the players he has & I'm hoping he chooses to play a flat back four, with the full backs defending first & foremost. We have some pretty decent forward thinking players and he can still use two defensive midfielders in a midfield five. That allows for two wide players and an attacking central midfielder (Armstrong is the only one we have) & a lone striker. This would maybe allow us to move forward faster rather than have to go backwards every time we reach the halfway line. As I said in an earlier post I don't see us getting any thoroughbreds until we shift some of the donkeys we have, both out on loan and unfortunately part of the first team squad!

5

saintlee added 16:35 - Oct 28 THE PLAYERS Absolute dogsh*t performance. Not one of those players on the pitch deserves to wear the shirt ever again. They dont know theyre born living in their little bubbles. PEH is captain and his comments after the match just rubbed salt into the wounds. I quote ' Nothing like this can ever happen again' Really? No sh*t Sherlock. Talk about state the bloody obvious.The words Im sorry dont cut it mate. Weve heard it all before. I'd have preferred it if he'd have said nothing at all. THE MANAGER Well, not turning out that well after all is it Ralph. Youre team selections are baffling to say the least. No Boufal, the most talented player we have. No McCarthy, best keeper we have. No Armstrong, more creativity in his big toe than JWP has in his whole body. No Danso, surely worth a go at CB ahead of Vestergaard or Maya. Everyone can see it except you. Go get yourself an experienced assistant manager to bounce your weird and wonderful team selections and tactics off. If they are any good at their job, they would tell you to wind your neck and stop being ridiculous. THE HIERACHY You are the main problem. The Chinese owners are not a good fit for our club. The TV money is the only thing they are interested in. They are here to asset strip - nothing else. Our chairman has already told us no money is available for the team. Self sufficency is only possible if you have a decent squad of players which we dont currently have. Plainly speaking we are not good enough to survive in this league without major investment in the team. So Mr Chairman get you hand in your deep pockets and give the manager the tools he needs to do his job or your investment in our football club is heading south into the Championship. Everyone at this club needs ro get their head out of the sand and realise that our club is being badly run inspired by greed and delusions of granduer. Frankly, the supporters are tired if your bullsh*t and if you cant run it properly then get out and find aomeone who can.

5

darkangelv2 added 16:44 - Oct 28 Is it not becoming clearer why the team selections were so bizarre for so long? ie. Hassenhutl can see the attitudes in training etc. and wants to show that no one is safe from being dropped (Bertrand despite being our only viable Left Back. Valery despite seemingly being first choice when we sent Cedric out last season). This by no means excuses Friday's performance (for want of a better word!) or the previous team selections. If anything, it questions Ralph's ability to correct those attitudes and performances in order to get those players playing again. I agree, the quality in this squad is far below what we have grown accustomed to - but i'd argue more strongly, it is the attitudes and entitlement that stinks far more.

3

SanMarco added 17:38 - Oct 28 Yes pintsized - catastrophic as it was it doesn't mean automatic relegation, it is still only October. I agree with what you say when you say: "My view is that Ralph’s tactical style is simply too complex for the majority of these players. That’s not his fault", apart from the last sentence - yes it is his fault. He ought to know that and plan his tactics accordingly. Not his fault the players are sh!te but he needs to work with what he has got...

4

TeamCortese added 18:57 - Oct 28 We need change imminently. This has to start with our owners. Gao and Katerina have to go! Furthermore, Hasenhuttl should hand in his resignation. Look at Jaap Stam FFS! https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/50214732
0

miltonroader added 19:01 - Oct 28 I agree with all who’ve suggested the 0-9 performance was possibly the worst in living memory. The second worst? Probably the 8-0 defeat inflicted on us by Everton in November 1971. (I was there) And our manager that day? I believe there is a statue outside St Mary’s in his memory. Let’s give RH at least until the January transfer window.
3

Ali_Diarea added 20:00 - Oct 28 “The rest of the team aside from the defence is solid” 🤣🤣🤣 nearly as good as your “we have a great manager” comment a few weeks ago!!!
3

LordDZLucan added 20:23 - Oct 28 Losing nine nil can't simply be down to the quality of the centre backs. It has to be about the whole team. Quite simply the level of performance of the team has fallen off a cliff starting with the Chelsea game a few weeks ago. I know yellow cards are no measure of performance but you expect a few in a game. We had none against Chelsea and none against Leicester (ignoring Bertrand's dubious red card). The players are clearly not giving their all and that must mean there are problems in the dressing room. As other clubs have found, including Leicester a couple of seasons ago when they sacked Ranieri, when the relationship between manager and players breaks down then, rightly or wrongly, the only way to sort the problem out quickly is to get rid of the manager because you can't change the team overnight. Changing the manager would give us a good chance of staying up. However. instead the board has backed Hassenhutl and made thinly veiled threats against the players. This suggests to me that they are are happy for us to drop down to the Championship.

1

underweststand added 21:58 - Oct 28 The token gesture of Saints staff giving a day's wages to charity is the least that can be expected as they try to make amends for last Friday's " bad day at the office ". I suspect that Reed (and subsequently Wilson) bear the burden of signing up so sub standard foreign players who might have looked good in their own leagues, but obviously couldn't cut it in" the toughest league in the World". How many of the current squad will we see put out on loan to join; Hoedt, Carrillo, Lemina and Elyounoussi in the upcoming January window.? IMHO - we ought to be concentrating on British / Irish players who we can see week in and week out and be able to make favourable comparisons, as Euro football looks highly unlikley in the near future. Saints need to concentrate on survival in this league, and not think about Euro League. The need for "experienced heads" in the back line and midfield is so obvious to us all that we should scarcely need to keep repeating it, but not one has been considered, as we wait for the next Bale, Shaw or Lallana to emerge from the Academy. It won't happen - at least not in the short term, and we have no guarantees for next season. "You win nothing with kids" is a much quoted phrase from the 1970's that still rings true today - but in our case ..."you can't stave off relegation with kids ". You need older heads. For those who maintain "the Gary Cahill's of the World" are too old should ponder the thought that giving Jose Fonte another 3 year contract wouldn't have been such a daft move at the time - instead of selling him at a stupid price, and then paying out 4 times as much on a couple of misfits who aren't even good enough to be first-choice anymore. There are probably a lot of people on this site who hammered Adam Lallana after his move to Liverpool, when he only did the same as mnay others who moved North, but in the light of recent developments, we could do worse than have him back in our midfield and buy him relatively cheaply now - as his Liverpool contract runs out in the summer. (If we don't - I could pretty well guarantee that Bournemouth would - with joy). Few fans expect any positive results to come out of the two forthcoming games against Man. City, but I would at least like to see some fight (and even a few yellow cards) to show some sort of positive intent - instead of lamely surrendering after we concede the first goal..

3

davidargyll added 08:12 - Oct 29 Much interesting comment. However I do find it slightly odd that the weight of opinion seems to be (slightly) more that it was the players’ fault not the managers’. I cannot agree. The manager is there to manage. The players clearly either did not know what to do it were unable to understand and carry out their instructions given to them by RH. When RH said he took 100% responsibility that is absolutely correct. He has been trying to get players to do things they simply cannot do. I simply don’t believe they are as bad as they have been portrayed. However I do think that Hasenhuttl is trying to manage the squad in an unrealistic way, is massively overrated and must go.

2

BoondockSaint added 14:54 - Oct 29 Glad you are back to your Yoshi bashing self, Nick. We were worried about you! Although, I thought maybe the absence of your verdict post was due to you finally seeing the light and lacing into the owners and board since Koeman left, using such language that your post was banned! But apparently not.... Les & Ralph we not "hounded out" rather, they hounded Fonte out and the team has been leaderless since then. The VAR is there to make the right call-which it did. Remember, if not for VAR, we would be the bottom of the league. The entire team is crap. To blame just the defenders is wrong. When you have a game like this, EVERYONE on the pitch has to get into survival mode, booting the ball clear every chance they get to keep the score down. But that takes, leadership, character and pride, unfortunately, three qualities our players are sadly lacking..... (four if you count ability to play at the top professional level).......but if the owner(s) don't care, why should the employees??

0

KriSaint added 09:57 - Nov 4 For the first time in 40 years I missed out on the fact that Saints played on that friday night. And we lose 0-9 at home. My 18 year old son gave me a call late on that friday night and asked if I was ok. I thought he was joking when he told me what happened. Still can´t believe it. Still love my club, though. Changes, please and lets hope we recover <3
0

Blogs 31 bloggers

Blackburn Rovers Polls