A few weeks ago Cedric Soares looked to be the real deal, during our unbeaten run he seemed to be laying to rest the ghost of Nathaniel Clyne, yet he has been overlooked for the past three games.

Cedric Soares has been an unused substitute in the last three games and suddenly seems o be out of favour with Roanld Koeman, the big question is why ? up till our three match blip recently he had been one of the best players in the side and was seemingly coming to terms with the physical side of the English game and making Saints fans forget about Nathaniel Clyne.

Soares was not only showing he could defend but he was becoming invaluable going forward, he had a turn of pace on him and he could get down to the byeline and put in a decent cross.

Ronald Koeman rightly felt he had to mix things up after the defeat to Bournemouth, but putting in Cuco Martina for Soares was not the answer.

Against Sunderland we struggled badly, but we did not lack for possession nor opportunities to get the ball into the Mackems box, what we lacked was people who could do that, with respect to Martina although he has a turn of pace, going forward he lacks the guile and positional play of Soares and to be perfectly blunt his crossing is not of Premier League standard.

We missed Soares against Sunderland although I could understand why Martina was retained at Stoke City as he offered a more physical presence in the back four that was lacking height with Jose Fonte out suspended.

But against Liverpool I could not understand why Soares was not returned to the team, Liverpool play on the break and have no height going forward except at set pieces when they bring the central defenders up.

Martina probably had his worst game for the club, as Match of the Day highlighted, he kept charging forward and getting caught out of position leaving his team mates in the back four exposed, for the first goal he was too far forward when they broke and for the second was trying to make a tackle in the centre of the midfield, on both occasions Liverpool broke and exposed our back four.

But it wasn't just that going forward Martina cannot cross a ball, his pace gets him into good positions but rarely does he deliver a ball into a space that causes problems.

That is where we needed Soares on Sunday and indeed against Sunderland, with Pelle up front he needs a decent ball into him that he can control and lay off or get in an attempt at goal, against Sunderland he did not have any of that till the final minute when he finally got ball into him he could lay off, similarly against Liverpool he rarely had a cross he could attack, certainly not for the first 65 minutes.

I don't often find myself questioning Ronald Koeman or his selections, but in the last few games I have in regard to the dropping of Cedric Soares, I don't mean to be harsh on Martina, but he is a stop gap player who should be used in emergencies rather than in the starting line up unless injury or suspension makes it neccessary.

Perhaps Soares is carrying a knock, but if that was the case then why was he on the bench for all of the last three games ?

It will be interesting whether Soares is restored to the starting line up against Leicester City after the International break, perhaps Ronald Koeman will feel that with Leicester sitting dep on going on the break Martina is the best option, that could be the case, but if he keeps going walkabout as he did against Liverpool, Leicester will murder us.

Im for putting square pegs in square holes, Cedric Soares was excellent in that six game unbeaten run, he has not become a bad player overnight, yes there will be times when perhaps a more physical presence is needed at the back, but tat should be few and far between in most games Soares is the best player we have for the right back position, he should be played.

Photo: Action Images

SanMarco added 10:31 - Mar 22 I agree with every word of that. Martina won a place in our hearts vs Arsenal but he's not good enough to be more than a reserve/bit part player, if that. Koeman seems to have been iffy over Soares from the start, perhaps he knows something we don't??
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insanesaint added 10:37 - Mar 22 i agree with part of what you say but if tadic had released the ball to him instead of holding and trying to beat the same player 2/3 times he would not have been out of positiion for there second. for the first it was his poor control that caught him out. i feel he is a good quality player (better than yosh.) yosh is a great squad player but then football is about the squad now not just 15 players...

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dirk_doone added 12:14 - Mar 22 It will be interesting to see how Cedric performs for Portugal at Wembley. He has steadily improved since he's been here.
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DPeps added 12:19 - Mar 22 I think Koeman is justified to be tinkering around at this stage of the season. I'd love to be proved wrong but frankly I'd be surprised if we got Europa League (look at who we're up against for those places!), and I think RK probably realises this. Regardless, how is the club going to know if players can hack it if they're not played? I think Martina is getting a run out to see whether Cedric or Martina (or both) should be retained next season. Personally I don't think there's much between them. Both have faults, but maybe Cedric just shades it on potential. I find it interesting how we get fixated on particular players being poor, while other players can have a bad game but not get criticised. Martina didn't play badly on Sunday and in fact for the second goal was only 'caught out of position' if we assume he was playing as a typical RB, which he wasn't. Tadic was far more to blame for that goal. By contrast, Romeu (who I like and has generally been ok) was awful in the first half but seemed to escape criticism, whereas Clasie got pilloried. Truth is that Romeu and Clasie were poor and it was Vic that sorted things out!

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bstokesaint added 12:54 - Mar 22 I think you're right Peps. Every player is entitled to have a bad game or two without being told they're not Premiership quality. To be fair Yoshida's lapses have shown that unless he can sort them out, he is a squad player at best. Martina and Clasie are still relatively new and the latter has definitely improved as the season has gone on. I do agree it seems strange to drop Cedric who seemed to be on the up. However Ron is probably one of the most experienced players/managers we have so I'd still back him to make the right choice, however strange it seems. There's definitely some work to be done behind the scenes next season with the likes of Wanyama, Mane, Pelle and Juanmi. We seem to have a few players whose future with the club is uncertain and that can't be great for morale. It'd be nice to think all of our players were wanted by the manager and 100% committed to the club.

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saintsnutcase added 13:20 - Mar 22 I am not hugely impressed by either of our right backs. It has been our weakest position all season. Meanwhile what happened to Targett last weekend?
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IWOZTHERE added 14:33 - Mar 22 Surely Ron's formed an opinion by now? They've all had pretty good runs over a long season (and I include Targett in this). They all offer things going forward but I don't think there's a solid 'out and out' full back amongst them. If Ron's not thinking of getting someone in, I think he should stick with the potential of Cedric on the right.
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IWOZTHERE added 14:50 - Mar 22 Personally I'm more worried about Clasie. A lot of mixed opinions about him. He looked as though he was 'coming up to speed' after his injury then in the last couple of games he's been largely anonymous.He works hard but I'm having doubts'. He was supposed to add another dimension to midfield. Still hope he makes it but how long is it going to take to find out?
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aceofthebase added 15:26 - Mar 22 Cedric is no defender and contrary to what you say Nick has not been very impressive as a defender, Martina a better defender but not so good as an attacker. Caught out of position in the first half because of others losing the ball. Classie has certainly improved and looks like in a few years maybe up to championship standard. Tadic is a big worry as he looks very much like a small part player. VW was a tower of strength, Pelle turned up in the second half and Mane shows how he can rip a defense apart. VVD has been brilliant all season and Romeu allowed a poorish game after some good performances. Long got a battering, as usual, and slowed down. Forster was unsighted for the first goal and a couple of defenders could have stuck out a leg and diverted it. Between them they should have stopped it. But what the hell it was a great victory and one helluva watch. Chaple end supporters found their voices

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halftimeorange added 09:57 - Mar 23 We seem to have diverted to whether Clasie is up to the job. Personally speaking, I don't think so simply because of his build and weight. Too easily brushed aside despite increasingly tigerish displays. Cedric, however, is of similar height to Clasie but much stockier making him much more difficult to dispossess. He is, I also suggest, naturally more aggressive than Clasie. In comparison to Martina, I think Martina is a useful utility player but, he doesn't have half the talent of Cedric. Sorry, Ron - Cedric's omission is baffling.

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