Saints have had an awful run with only one win in nine games, a sequence that has seen them drop right out of the battle for a top six place, if something doesn't change soon the season might descend into a relegation battle.

The time for excuses is now running out, just over a month ago the internet was full of those declaring that Saints really could earn a Champions League place, some thought that achieving that was merely a case of football by numbers, follow certain rules and it guaranteed success.

Of course football is never quite as simple as that as many teams have found out over the years and sadly too many seemed to be counting their chickens before they were hatched.

So after a nine game run that has seen us drop from potentially going top of the league down to 9th and looking over our shoulders, questions do need to be asked as to why we only garnered 5 points in that run, one of the worst runs we have had in our Premier league career, only perhaps beaten by our four points from the opening 9 games last season.

So now we find ourselves truly at the crossroads for the season, with four games coming up between now and February 1st the pattern for the rest of the season will be truly set, in the last nine it can be said that we had a tough run of fixtures, in the next four we play two sides in the relegation battle, another in West Brom at a similar point to ourselves and an Arsenal side looking to win the league.

The stark reality is that if we lose to West Brom on Saturday we could find four or five sides breathing down our necks including the Baggies themselves who would be only 3 points behind us, for a real reality check, they arrive at St Mary's only four points off the bottom three, this is an important game for them as well make no mistake.

The blunt truth is that if we fail to get at least six points from these four fixtures then we will start to drop down the table and if repeat our points average of those last nine of .55 per game then we could find ourselves on a slippery slope where it is difficult to arrest the decline.

So for Mauricio Pochettino its a key moment of his Saints career, what he does in the next month will be crucial to his long term tenure as manager of this football club.

The root cause of our drop in form is of course the injuries, however its not the loss of key players that have really hurt us but the failure of those stepping into the breach to step up to the plate, the fringe players when called upon where neither match fit due to the same 12 players being played to distraction meaning they never got a look in even off the bench, but the real issue this has caused seems to be a lack of motivation in those fringe players, they seem to come in and play as if they feel whatever they do will only see them back on the fringes again once the player they are deputising for is back.

They are probably right, but if we have made one mistake this season it is effectively creating two squads within one, there is definately a first choice of around 13 players who played week in week out till fairly recently and then the rest of the squad who seem to have become completely de motivated as has been shown by some lacklustre performances from them.

Of course they are not completely to blame and this mood has spread to some of the better players as well who have not been performing as they did in the first part of the season.

So as mentioned Pochettino is now at a crossroads himself, he has to now show that he is truly capable of managing this football club, when a teams performances go from boom to bust, something is clearly not quite right, there are of course reasons ie injuries, but our decline should really have not been so rapid.

This is manifesting itself on the pitch as players themselves become frustrated, as highlighted by the recent Adam Lallana situation and the club's refusal to let it drop.

So we go into this next four game spell knowing that only a positive set of results is acceptable, we have to start getting more points than games played or we will be in trouble, yes i know we will still be ninth whatever happens on Saturday, but the warning signs have been there for a few weeks now and havent been heeded, defeat to the baggies and the writing is definately on the wall.

I do have confidence in Mauricio Pochettino to pull it around and it is testament to the faith that Saints fans have in him that there have been no mutterings calling for his head, in today's game managers have been sacked for a lot less than getting five points from nine games, its good to see that Saints supporters are seeing the long term view.

So far our Chairman has seemed to also have faith in the long term, but how long he will continue to do that is anyones guess, certainly both of Pochettino's predecessors were sacked after faring better than our current run, will the Chairman's patience continue if results dont improve ?

The team definately needs freshening up, the squad isnt strong enough and there needs to be additions, we need to have different options to what we have at the moment , our high tempo pressing game has been sussed out now, there needs to be alternatives, we need to have options off the bench rather than like for like players, the squad looks jaded, understandable they are probably shell shocked, although we dont want to rush into the transfer market due to over inflated prices, we should at least be looking at the loan market and trying to find value in there.

So for me its still about the long term, however there has to come a time when questions are asked and that time is coming near at St Mary's, a win against West Brom will do a lot to stop the rot and if we can follow that up with at least a point at Sunderland then a corner will have been turned, but as i said we need to get at least six points from these four games and Arsenal at home wont be easy, but if we can turn a corner then we can chase our realistic target of a top ten finish, however lose to the Baggies and it could be a tough few months ahead.

So in conclusion something has to change, if we keep doing the same things we will get the same results and that is not something that I look forward to, a year ago when Mauricio Pochettino arrived an article by an Espanyol fan published initially on the QPR website on this network suggested that in every season Pochettino would start well and then it would taper off as other teams worked out how to play against them, although he liked the Argentinian his one criticism was that he was too rigid, that certainly could have been levelled at him in the first quarter of the season, however we were winning games so no one cared or noticed, now we will find out just what Pochettino has learned in his first year in English football.

Photo: Action Images

mgprobert added 11:15 - Jan 6 If someone had said at the start of the season that at the half way stage we would have just finished a run of really difficult games, with injuries, and would be sat in 9th place, with 3 players having turned out for England, and into the 4th round of the FA cup, I think I'd have taken that. We're only 3 - 4 high quality players from being a top 6 side, but I don't expect them to arrive until the Summer. If we could also get non cash payments sorted out in the catering areas by then the sky's the limit!

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arthurfane added 11:22 - Jan 6 Woah, calm down Nick. I know you're trying to be a realist, but I agree with mgprobert - we're currently sitting pretty in 9th and things are going well. It's not just a brutal spate of injuries, but a VERY difficult run of games: Man Utd, Man City, Chelsea twice, Tottenham, Everton. That's a hell of a run - one thing I have noticed is that Liverpool aside, Saints have started getting less PLUCKY victories against the top sides, and more SOLID results against teams we should be beating. I'm quite happy about this - obviously in time I'd hope we can get more points against what is rapidly turning into the BIG 6, but this proves we are becoming more accustomed to the big time. I do think we need to strengthen at the back in January - a solid CB (maybe wait until the summer) and a back up GK are vital, I'd also like us to replace any outgoings (Ramirez, Osvaldo, Lambert?? Hopefully none leave though!) Our next games are far easier (Arsenal aside), and I fully expect us to get back to solid winning ways. In the meantime, Pochettino has my full support - I am just SO excited about the youthful, talented squad he is building (also think Cortese will be lenient, as he took a risk in appointing him and will want the gamble to pay off - he is HIS man!) COYS

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SaintNick added 11:34 - Jan 6 Im just being pragmatic and looking at what might happen, I made it quite clear I wasnt advocating sacking the manager or anything like that, but things do have to change, the worrying thing here is that if we look at our results in the last year its been pretty much up and down, we either get a lot of points or we get very few, it happened last season and it has now happened this. mgprobert is right, but that is another story how we have built ourselves up and now reality is hitting home, however as said something has to change, if we win a few games then all is ok, but god forbid lose to west brom & sunderland then we are in trouble. I want to see us identify the problems before they arise, we clearly didnt do that during our good start

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IanRC added 12:01 - Jan 6 For me still to be convinced that MoPo is a step up from Nigel Atkins. He too was criticised for the absence of a plan B and as you point out was sacked after a much better run than this. Perhaps the main difference is that MoPo was given funds to spend whereas Nigel wasn't. There are clearly good signs but we need to strengthen. With Fonte and Louvren fit we are fine but the other centre backs are just not up to the standard we need to push on, likewise we need to strengthen in the goalkeeping department. Departure of Lambert would be a disaster. Think Cork more than holds his own against Wanyama and I do not understand why he is often the first substituted. Very much a mixed scorecard for the manager for me.

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halftimeorange added 13:06 - Jan 6 It's not just about the centre-backs. Shaw seems to have forgotten that he's a defender rather than a pacey winger. It's okay when Louvren is there to cover his absences but we have nobody else that can do it. Maybe playing Chambers at left-back and Shaw in front of him would sort out the left-side defensive and attacking problems however, we desperately need another partner for Louvren. Wanyama's presence is badly missed. As for dropping Steve Davis to the bench the suggestion is ludicrous. He is arguably our most consistent (and injury-free) performer. I do not think that Rodrigues will ever be a great striker in the PL. Too many wild shots and poor choices. So, a centre-back and a centre-forward (perhaps young Gallagher) for me or we could slip - but not as far as relegation.

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TreeHugger added 13:50 - Jan 6 very miserable write up. What poch is doing is creating a system that players can slot in and out as and when. Right from the youth team to the first team. Its about consistency and a way of playing. The results may not have been great lately but the important thing is the performance and effort from the players. We are not a top 6 side yet and our squad is still pretty weak. However, our first 11 is efficient and has some real quality to challenge the top teams on its day. A few injuries can be quite damaging as we have seen but over the next two seasons we will have added quality from both outside the club and through the internal development. this a long term project so lets enjoy it. The second half of the season was always going to be tough. AL is playing amazing at the moment by the way. Think you need to give him some praise at some point

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compello added 14:26 - Jan 6 Good article. I enjoy your commentary and I think you have a very good point; MoPo should be feeling the pressure and this is the turning point. Simple fact is that a good run puts us straight back into contention, whereas a further bad spell pushes us down and we're suddenly talking about next season. I always wonder how shrewd Nicola is and whether he would pull the plug on MoPo - but surely he believes in the bigger picture more than any and sees that we need consistency. How quick we've seen our fortunes change and suddenly find ourselves getting nervous. Its clear that our problems lie with our defense and there is no doubt that we are still vulnerable in depth - a few games without the lovren/fonte master centre backs and we find ourselves with a similar back four to the one we started with last season. Its clear that we need a solution. Putting pressure on Luke is not wise as he is young and perhaps shouldn't be playing every game. So I'd like to see an intelligent loan signing or even a few quid spent on a perm cover for the 2 centre backs. Astori is back in some of the rumours and, although we're a little stayed on bringing in serie a players, I can't see that kind of signing doing us any harm. We must also remember that our manager lives and breathes a defensive system that is universally brilliant. You'd be hard pushed to question whether it works - so it's therefore down to the players he has in that system and Jos and Yosh aren't good enough. Lets bring in some cover and we'll see the machine start to work again. The rest of the squad has enough depth.

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SingaporeSaint added 14:29 - Jan 6 It is fair to say that defending due to selections are worrying me and it needs to change. Performances, ball retention etc haven't been too different - defending has! We know our first 11 is a very good side, strong, athletic but some of our squad defenders are league one at best. Any side who selects Hooi, Fox or Kelvin Davis will concede goals and any combination of them together you likely need to score 4 to get a result as we found out on Sat. I am surprised that Poch has played these 3 who are so clearly nowhere near the standard required at this level and get so easily exposed and I hope he has learned now. Keeping Lovren and Shaw fit (and the latter at the club) is key and I'd have Gazza in goal before Boruc is back fit. 'A mistake waiting to happen' is better than one or two which happen every week. Eliminate the weak links and we'll be fine as we have lots of quality. I also hope we strengthen at least one defender and a keeper this month and we'll be comfortably top half. Agree with above that Lallana is superb at present and is a joy to watch.

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davepid added 14:44 - Jan 6 We spend our time saying what's wrong. Let's remind ourselves we have 3 internationals, we stuffed Fulham, Hull and Cardiff. We've beaten Liverpool at Anfield. We have three from the academy who can play in the premiership. In JRod we have a future talent . We've just been in an old fashioned 7 goal FA cup thriller which saw Clyne score not only a goal but a great one. In the run up to west brom instead of bemoaning our keepers, our back 4 ,our hopeless signature signings - which we know about, let's run a competition about the best goal scored at st Mary's ( by us). I reckon it was David Connolly finishing off that 25 pass move against Middlesbrough or Birmingham in autumn of 2011

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Whatsforpud added 19:24 - Jan 6 In theory, the strongest part of our defence is at right back, where both Clyne and Chambers show consistency at defending and attacking, and are seemingly interchangeable. Of all our established youngsters, Chambers seems to have largely slipped under the radar of other clubs. Shaw has attracted the most attention, but he is arguably less consistent.
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SaintlyTim added 23:36 - Jan 6 Davepld, I remember Ivan Golac's goal which was very similar to Nathan's. MLT scored some crackers but my top team goal was Mick Channon's against Liverpool, the build-up including Keegan, Armstrong, Ball etc. Sorry Nick, slightly off topic!
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Sango123 added 03:17 - Jan 7 It is easy to blame on injuries, a tough run of fixture etc but do remember that MoPo has a summer to change or add in to the squad. We have all seen how Fox, Hooiveld, Gazza, Kelvin Davis perform last season. None of us was convinced that they were Premier League standard and yet they are still here, so the problem with the depth of the squad was never solved. MoPo still believes the squad is fine and this is my biggest fear. I hope he is right although results recently have proven him wrong. Reasons why Newcastle & Everton are above us is because they handle the tough fixtures better than us. Their results against the top 6 teams are better than ours, so we are behind them. Our tactics require the fullbacks to become more like wingbacks and overlap once we have possession. Chambers is not as good as Clyne or Shaw in the attacking aspect.

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131153 added 08:03 - Jan 7 Sango 123. It is all very well saying we all knew Fox Hooiveld etc were not Premier League class, however if they had well paid contracts and have decided they are happy to be fringe players this will tie up the budget for alternative players. The area where Mo Po can fairly be criticized is the players who were acquired in Summer '13. Lovren No, Wanyama probably No, Osvaldo probably Yes.

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Sango123 added 08:59 - Jan 7 131153, I understand your point. The biggest problem is that MoPo thinks the squad is fine and does not need reinforcement.I hope he is just saying for the sake of news reporting but all the comments in the past month says he is happy with the squad. That is the worrying part for me. I actually find it a surprise that he did not add some players from Spainish La Liga in the last transfer window. I would have thought we would have a few Spanish player like what Swansea has done.

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ExiledSupporter added 09:26 - Jan 7 Competing with Saintly Tim in the 'slightly off topic' scale of things, can anyone tell me whether the little guy to the left of Pochettino (don't know his name) actually wearing a seat belt...is he that excitable that he needs to be restrained!
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