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Southampton At Brentford The Verdict

Nine months ago we thought things could not get any worse after a 3-0 debacle at Brentford, here we were again and it was a case of deja vu as Saints crashed to another defeat, so why has nothing changed ?

Their was not much celebration pre match when the team line ups were announced, it was good to see the two deadline day signings on the list, but why were they not in the starting line up ?

At the back it was another strange one, Bednarek a player who wanted nothing to do with the club 6 months ago walked straight back into the side and was paired with Salisu whilst Caleta-Car who had been playing well up to his red card and one game suspension and Bella Kotchap joined Orsic & Djenepo playing in the B team on Friday, either of the latter two would have been a better option off the bench than Theo Walcott.

Likewise why were the likes of Alcaraz and even Adam Armstrong left on the bench, whilst underachievers such as Elyounoussi & Edozie started the game

The stats showed Saints competed, even if the performance didn't and for much of the first half we stayed in it, albeit hanging on, Brentford are always going to get chances on the break and set pieces we just had to weather them, as we did at Everton

With 4 minutes to the break it looked like we would get into the dressing room on equal terms and be able to regroup in the 2nd half with some timely substitutions, but as at Goodison Park we failed to mark our men and gave away a free header and we were a goal down, that in itself was frustrating but to give away another goal only minutes later was unforgivable.

The game was all but over now and it was going to take a comeback of epic proportions to drag things back.

The two new boys came on at half time and showed some good touches, but ultimately we struggled to get them into the game.

For the first 20 minutes of the second we showed more industry, but on 65 minutes came the moment the fans turned on the manager, off went Lavia and the chants of you don't know what you're doing sparked up.

Jones excused his decision by saying that the player wasn't exactly bossing the midfield, that again is unforgivable you don't throw a youngster under the bus like that as a manager, what the fane were complaining about though was the Welshman's management of Lavia's game time, playing him against Blackpool and then leaving him out at Newcastle.

Theo Walcott coming on at the same time only served to rile the fans up more, nothing against Theo, but his form this season doesn't merit a place on the bench let alone coming off it.

The goal on 80 minutes saw a mass exodus and like last season unrest in the away section, but who can blame the fans.

Abuse in the first half was not called for but was there long before the goals went in, a singing "we are going down" etc is showing a lack of pride in the club and is embarrassing, other club's laugh at us, you don't get that at many other places.

No one can dress this up in any other way than as a debacle, it was a team with no organisation and no leader in the back four and that is where it has to start, just how many free headers do we have to give sides, teams know how to exploit us, stick a cross from a dead ball situation into out box just outside the six yard box and it's a free header.

I truly do not see how anything other than Jones leaving will save the situation now, his comments after the game were bizarre, he blamed everyone including himself, he showed that there is no unity in the team and what little there may have been and it did look like he had turned it round a few weeks back, will now have dissipated, throwing Lavia under the bus was deplorable.

In the meantime we have to do as Everton fans are doing, they are focusing on protesting before and after games, but getting behind their team during the game, this should be nothing new to older Saints fans, it is what we did 29 years ago when we protested against Ian Branfoot.

We should not descend into the scenes that we saw at Brentford both this and last season, we should back the team, even if we do not back the manager, if an individual cannot do that, then they should stay away or better still protest outside the ground for the duration of the match, that would make a point to the board.

The season is not over yet, there is a long way to go, Saturday made it a lot tougher, but if we get the right team out there all things are possible, but as was shown on Saturday, we have a manager who by his own admittance does not know what his best team is and is not in control.

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