After two soft goals conceded at Liverpool, Saints still need to strengthen the squad in the middle of the back four.

Ronald Koeman intimated pre Liverpool game that he was not in the market for another central defender that he felt Florin Gardos completed the picture, Im not sure i agree after witnessing a display at Liverpool that although was in the main highly acceptable for most of the game, ultimately fell down due to our inability to defend on two occasions when we really should have.

The problem is in the centre of that defence is that we truly only have one proven Premier League level player and that is Jose Fonte, obviously Ronald Koeman rates Gardos, but the truth is at this moment we don't know whetehr he will be another Dejan Lovren or whether it will be another Vegard Forren, if it is the former than things will be fine, it is the latter then we are in big trouble !

I suspect that it may be somewhere in between, that Gardos will be pretty decent and will be OK, but even if that is the case we still have no one truly putting pressure on either him or Fonte once they are ensconced in the back four.

Yoshida showed on Sunday that although for long periods he can look good, too often he will get caught napping and although you can get away with it sometimes, you do not want to rely on Yoshida too often.

Jos Hooiveld just isnt up to it im afraid and Jack Stephens completely untried, although I would like to see him given a run out against Millwall or in the league off the bench if the situation allows it.

But even after the arrival of Gardos it is quite clear we still need that extra bit of strength in central defence should there be an injury to either Fonte or Gardos.

Photo: Action Images

halftimeorange added 17:02 - Aug 18 This doesn't seem to be a priority. It's glaringly obvious to all regular supporters of Saints that we do not have any proven class centre backs, never mind needing just one more but this has been the case since the Svensson-Lundekvam partnership. Jose and Maya are genuine triers but not top-class. My only gripe although I'd also like to see an out-and-out winger.

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Accountant added 17:15 - Aug 18 Agree a winger could make a difference. Why not put a cheeky bid in for Nathan Dyer. A player we know. Plenty of Premiership Experience, gets a goal every ten games, and would slot back in. We only sold him because we needed money to pay the wages.
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Stafford_Saint added 17:44 - Aug 18 I suppose the obvious but essentially pointless remark is - Calum Chambers could fill in at centre back!
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Fordy added 17:45 - Aug 18 I know Yoshida isn't perfect but if RK sees Fonte and Gardos as being first choice are we really going to be able to find a back-up better than Yoshida? Neither of the goals on Sunday were his fault. The first was Clyne's and maybe Morgan's for letting Henderson get past him. The second was everyones fault! Wanyama's header was weak and then noboday attacked the ball that Sterling headered and then Clyne fell asleep again. If anything I think the second was mostly Davis' fault with him just standing there watching Sterling go for the header. I am not sure I have ever seen Davis head the ball!

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WestSussexSaint added 17:51 - Aug 18 Apparently Arsenal have a new young centre back who looks promising - goes by the name of Chambers!
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slynch added 17:54 - Aug 18 The dilemma is; can you get someone better than Fonte or Florin, or can you get someone who is better than Yosh/ Hooi and wants to sit and watch?
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SanMarco added 18:02 - Aug 18 Gardos may be out for weeks and if Fonte gets injured at any stage then we are left with 2 CBs who are not up to it. We need to sign one as an absolute priority and as soon as possible. I agree a winger may well be needed but it is the CB position that will make or break us.
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Saintstridey81 added 18:20 - Aug 18 Totally agree with you Nick... At the end of last season,i looked at the team before the exodus and thought where do we need to strentghen? In my opinion although a good player himself,i thought to go to that extra level,jose was the obvious choice,someone top class to partner Lovren.. Clearly the situation has changed somewhat,but that doesnt mean we shouldnt still be looking,Gardos is obviously a straight replacement it would seem for Lovren,but 1) it sounds like he's not going to be fit for at least another 2-3 weeks and 2) Like Nick said we dont even know how good he will be or if he'll adapt.. I mean (abeit more experience now) this is basically the central defence we had when we came up,and we all know how many goals we shipped in that season!! I personally think its a slight lack of knowledge on Koemans behalf. But you cant help but think it could be a costly mistake, that will be corrected expensively in january no doubt,just hope it doesnt cost us too much,and not in the money way!!

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Nicolacomeback added 19:20 - Aug 18 agree one hundred percent!!! who is going to listen to us though. It is so obvious that lack of another good central defender is going to cost us very dearly. I dont think RK knows how Maya and Jos have performed in the past. Big big risk he is taking. i hope he can pull it off.
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leighsaint added 21:06 - Aug 18 Although he's not very tall I would try Wanyma as a Cental Defender
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bstokesaint added 21:53 - Aug 18 Although I agree we need another centre-back, and did before Lovren left I'd be very surprised if this was an oversight by RK. He sees the team in training every day and will have seen videos of the team last season and the goals we conceded. He knows. Maybe it's a bluff and the club are still looking with a bit of the pressure off and hoping not to be held to ransom on a last minute signing. Or do we have any youngsters ready to take the step as you suggest Nick? I'd very surprised if RI thinks we're genuinely strong enough in this area.

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Whatsforpud added 22:35 - Aug 18 We have signed Gardos, and we need to see how he plays with Fonte, before thinking about getting another one in. We are getting to the point (or have gone past it) when there are too many new faces to bed in. Other teams have struggled with this in the recent past.
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Zambucco added 22:58 - Aug 18 I think when Koeman said we are not looking at another CB it is because they already know which one they're bringing in. This is possibly a smoke screen to keep the media quiet. The other possibility is that he thinks that he has members of the squad who can do a good job and possibly not Yoshida? The little I have seen of Jack Stevens has impressed me enough to think he can make the step up. Remember how Aaron Martin took his chance and rose to the occasion. There is also as mentioned above Wanyama, who I believe is taller than Yoshida, I'm also sure that Jack Cork can slot in there. In RoKo we trust? COYR!

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welhamdowed added 00:04 - Aug 19 José is very dependable and maybe yosh could too with a run of games. The spine of the team are the hardest positions to fill and replacing with quality a must. I see jrod and Morgan possibly leaving in the next window or 2 so expect we might have more money to spend to fill those positions.
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ExiledSupporter added 11:43 - Aug 19 I think the logical solution to this dilemma is to look for a quality young defender who would be interested in a year's loan with an option to buy...wasn't there a recent suggestion that there was someone who met this criteria and had two German caps with a Bundeslinga side who Koeman might be interested in. Was his name something like Wollsheim...?
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