Throughout all the press speculation about the future of Saints manager Mauriccio Pochettino and apparently half of his squad, Pochettino himself has always remained consistent in what he says.
Saints will run out at St Mary's on Sunday afternoon with many supporters as well as members of the media looking for every little wave or gesture or sentence to mean something, if Adam Lallana for instance appears to clap the fans some will say this was his parting farewell gesture and thanks.
But the truth of the matter is that firstly nothing has so far changed, no one has been sold and all that Sunday is, is the same as every year, the last game of the season and the chance to thank the fans for their support.
Secondly once the dust has settled as Pochettino himself has kept saying, that is the time when discussions will start.
The manager has talked of one five year plan ending and another about to start, in that respect he is right, it has been five seasons since Markus Liebherr took over with that much mentioned five year plan and now it has been succesfully completed its time to put the next one in place.
Pochettino speaks of the fans not fearing the future and he is right, hopefully in the summer he will hear what he needs to and he will be a part of that future, i he does he will know more than most that thereis a good chance that he will become one of the five longest serving managers in the Premier League, but if he is not then life goes on at Saints and indeed any football club, as have always said, the key to the future these days is not keeping your manager, but in making the right appointment to replace him.
Most Saints supporters are desperate for Poch to stay and continue our progress, hopefully he will, but whatever happens we should not fear change, it has to happen both on and off the field.
But what wedo have now at the club now is consistency, in many ways we can see the future now a lot more clearly than we have been able to do at any time in the past five years, 12 months ago many thought the club was at its most stable, a Chairman who was was speaking of Champions League qualification and of ambition that we now know was not in line with how the actual owner saw things.
So a year on we are actually a lot more stable, the people in charge are transparent and telling the supporters how they plan to move forward, some will not like this, they prefer to hear talk of reaching for the sky and getting the stars, despite the fact that they are not being told how it will be obtained.
Now though the talk is of sustainability and building the club in the right manner, again not what some prefer, but for the long term of Southampton Football Club it is the best way forward, would we prefer the last five years of a club not far from here who five years ago thought they were about to break into the big time and this season almost fell into the conference.
What I want over the next five years is a club that will build on the foundations that we have, that the next five years see us as a top ten finisher year in year out and that perhaps we can add to that with a cup.
That is a realistic five year plan and if we achieve that then perhaps we will be in the position to challenge for that fabled Champions League spot.
Mauriccio Pochettino says don't fear the future, I agree with him, many people will come and go from the club over the next five years, what will remain are the club and its supporters, that is the heart of the club and what we can now build on.