After a slow but steady start to the season some Saints supporters are already beginning to mutter about Mauricio Pellegrino's tactics, but the last few years should have taught us something about patience.

Last season Claude Puel was damned by a section of Saints support almost from the first month of the season and it was something that the French manager never ever recovered from, meaning that come the end of the season even an 8th place finish and a Cup Final at Wembley, arguably one of the top five succesful seasons in the club's history in terms of achievement, was not enough to save his job.

In his first 8 games in charge last season Puel took 12 points a total that suggests that those writing him off so early were premature, that compares favourably with the 9 points Pellegrino has amassed so far this season, but it it is not so far different that a couple of good wins could not change it.

But how does that compare with the first 8 games of other seasons ?

Two years ago in Ronald Koeman's 2nd season he had exactly the same number of points as Puel, 12 and in his first season 16 in what was our best to flight start in many a year.

Mauricio Pochettino's time at Saints is lauded as a great success, but it should be mentioned that in his first 8 games in charge he gained exactly the same number of points as Pellegrino has so far this, a good omen perhaps.

In his only full year in charge Pochettino took 15 points from the first 8 games.

So what these stats tell us is that in the last four seasons we have had two good starts and two distinctly average ones, yet the end result after 38 games has broadly been the same, suggesting that a football season is a marathon not a sprint and that to isolate the first part of a season and use it to write off the rest of it would be wrong.

Each season is very different in terms of points totals and what would not be good enough to get you into any given place one season, might be more than enough in another.

From that point of view the trend in the Premier league seems to be that there are a lot more draws than there used to be, in 2013/14 the Pochettino season, his 15 points had us in 6th place, but this seasons total 9 would have seen us in 15th, yet is now good enough for 11th, as the weekends results showed, the mid table is much of a muchness and there are far more draws.

So whilst it cannot be denied that in terms of points Mauricio Pellegrino has not matched any of his predecessors since our return to the Premier league aside from Nigel Adkins, the fact remains that it is not a disastrous start and one that could easily be turned into a good one with a couple of good wins.

Last season saw Claude Puel hounded despite the fact that right up to the final 10 games or so he was not that far different from most other seasons, the fans perceived that this was the "worst season ever" as I often saw quoted on social media, the reality as mentioned earlier was far different, in terms of League position and achievement in reaching a Cup Final it was right up there with virtually any other season you care to mention, but the supporters did not perceive that due to the lack of entertainment.

One interesting fact that I found was that two years ago when we stormed to 6th our best League position in over 30 years after 28 games we had 40 points, only 6 more than Puel had from the same number of games last season.

Yes but we were entertaining and scoring goals most would say ! Wrong, Koeman's side had scored 35 and let in 28, Puels side at that stage had only scored 2 less with 33, the difference was that we had let in 36.

Again the lesson is to be patient, the fans stayed behind Koeman and we forged forward, whereas last season there were many more issues and Puel was not given the leeway he should have been.

But that is now history and we need to learn from it and be careful what we wish for, if anyone expected Mauricio Pellegrino to come in and wave a magic wand and everything would be all right then they were naive, he has to be given time to impose his ways and get the team playing the way he wants it too.

We do not want to drag ourselves into the situation of last season where some supporters wre proclaiming that they would not go to Wembley for a cup final because they would not be entertained, we need to give Mauricio Pellegrino the time and support that a sizeable portion of our support last season did not give Puel.

Slowly we are starting to find our way forward under the new manager, those that say the squad is not good enough should look again, we have most of the elements in place to score goals and preven them, once we start creating chances the confidence will flow back and we will start picking up points.

But Mauricio Pellegrino has to be given the time that Pochettino was given, the leeway Koeman had in his second season when things weren't going to well and the support that Claude Puel never had, if we do that then the manager has a better chance of succeeding here than Puel had in the toxic atmosphere of last year.

Photo: Action Images

SonicBoom added 10:35 - Oct 17 Absolutely agree he should be given time. Are we still going on about Puel? He was picked on by the fans from the start so he never recovered? Pul-ease.... No one could understand him and footballers are mainly simple lads like us. Don't you think if we found him unintelligble and uninspiring that the the players did too? So many games of endless possession and no end product drove us all mad. He got to a cup final but it wasn't the champions league. We played lower league opposition until the 1/4's. Yes we did well to beat Arsenal and Liverpool but that was it. Many of us were unconvinced from the start but he had time to prove us wrong . We all want our manager to do well, he just needed to show he was at least learning but he actually got worse as it went on. Tactics were odd, substitutions and team selection worse and some performances in big games that were simply pathetic. Let's not look back with rose coloured glasses already. Pellegrino "may" not be the answer, but that doesn't mean Puel was.

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saintpp added 10:56 - Oct 17 Havent been impressed with MP so far but hoping he will get it right sooner rather than later.My reason for not sacking Puel was that he knew the players and what was needed where any new guy has had to start from scratch. Boufal deserves to start next match Gabbi also of course its a mystery to me why he hasnt been starting.could it be down MPs safety first tactics,i hope not as that not what the fans expect.

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wessexman added 10:58 - Oct 17 Well argued article. It does gloss over the fact we go through too many managers. Every time we appoint a manager(foreign), he needs time to bed in. Yes, MP played and semi managed here but, it is a big problem. Also, losing key players every season does hamper us. The Fonte and van Dijk sagas also undermine the cause. Stability is needed. Until we get this, results will stay patchy.

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montecristo added 11:00 - Oct 17 this is not about points league placings or success.. but about playing style, just as it was with Puel. Saints have become boring to watch. its just not the Southampton way. I also get the feeling that Pellegrino is not going to give academy players a chance, he even sent Gallagher out on loan again..its also about team selection. Long over Austin and Gabbiadini ? come on..

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helpineedsomebody added 11:13 - Oct 17 THE PLAYING SYSTEM IS DREADFUL AT LONG LAST WE HAVE REAL BUSINESS PEOPLE OWNING THE CLUB NOW ALL THE DIRECTORS ARE AT LONG LAST ACCOUNTABLE NO MORE HAVING FUN WITH THE CLUB AND TO ALL THE FANS + NICK WHO MOANED ABOUT THE LAST MANAGER ARE WE PLAYING BETTER YOUR CALL
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SaintPaulVW added 11:18 - Oct 17 At the moment it appears that we should have got our act in gear and recruited Marco Silva. However, I hope things will pick up. MP has shown a bit of flexibility and deserves a bit of time to get things right.
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pete_boggs added 11:25 - Oct 17 Obviously, Reed's policy of upsetting the manager and replacing him annually at a cost of £9M is a failure if it takes months for the new manager to work out what players to play and how. Pellegrino will be planning his swift and lucrative exit at the end of this season.
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patred added 11:32 - Oct 17 Puel and Pelligrino are so alike in the way they want us to play it's as if we have had no change at all. Surely Pelligrino was savvy enough to find out why Puel got the chop before taking the job on? Seems not by the way he selects and sets the team up. He surely knows what that means? He will go unless he changes. And the person who employed him ? He should go too.
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SaintNick added 12:05 - Oct 17 I cant see much difference between how Pellegrino sets the team up from Puel, Koeman or Pochettino to be honest all use a central striker with two wide men whose job it is to get up and down the line. The only difference now is that we are not using a big English style centre forward, which seems to be the case with most teams these days as we follow the lead of the continentals

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Sanguin added 12:05 - Oct 17 Great article. I think the fact that we’re facing the same problems now that we faced at the end of last season is either a hangover from Puel or shows that replacing the manager is not the answer. I think the football we are playing now is more exciting; the increase in draws suggests that Premier League football as a whole is getting more boring. I do not think any fans are calling for MP to be replaced. Over the summer, I was happy with our transfer business and didn’t think we needed a striker given the formation we played and the potential of Long/Austin/Gabbi to get 10 goals each. Now, I’m not sure that any of our strikers fit the system that MP wants to play. I hope we invest some money in a striker in January. The problem we have is that our expectation is so much higher than it ever has been. After Pochettino we expect to finish in the top 10, after Koeman we expect to finish in a European place, after Puel we expect to challenge for the Cups. We must give Pellegrino time and shouldn’t burden him and the squad with our expectations. I hope for a surge in the second half of the season and a great season in 2018/19.

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DorsetIan added 12:08 - Oct 17 More time definitely needed, and can't underestimate how much all the VVD nonsense has hampered MP in his start. Even now a half-ready VVD is keeping Hoedt out, when the latter really impressed and could be building a solid p/ship with Yoshida. For me, there have been too many games now when we have disappointed in the final third to suggest anything other than a fundamental problem with quality. But it is in midfield, not upfront. On Saturday, swapping a forward centre midfielder for another forward, left those at the back constantly looking for someone to pass to, and Redmond and Tadic on the wings just aren't delivering what they need to. Despite all the evidence, I still hold out great hopes for Boufal. He at least is trying to take on defenders. When WBA park their three double deckers on Saturday, we are going to need a bit of magic to get through...

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Bettwsresident added 12:34 - Oct 17 This season we had/have an amazing run of winnable fixtures. I even put £10 on us for the title looking at the fixture list (with a view to laying off) in November. There are still 3 more and we really need 7 points from them, or after Xmas we will be looking down rather than up and teh pressure really will be on MP. My only concern is MP's obsession with control 71% possesion away at stoke and we hardly threatened until Yosh's wonderstrike. This creates dull football, much better the pushing pressing of Mopo or the thundering counterattcks of RK. In order to do this you need to risk the oppistion having the ball, pushing forward and then you can hit them back.

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skiptonsaint added 13:00 - Oct 17 Good article Nick. I think we now have the joint 8th highest wage bill now though and not sure that was the case with all those previous examples. With that comes expectation With our set up it is not really a managers position anymore more of a head coach and therefore it seems we generally get a lesser known, lesser respected name in the game. That's what worries me with our set up as my gut says the players are not buying in or respecting MP and as someone pointed out throw in the VVD poison and there could be trouble and because of our set up no easy solution . IF we get in trouble and sack MP At that point we would need a big experienced manager (or Marco Silva !) and Who would want to come and work under Reed ? So I still support him and hope and agree we are a couple of wins Away from a big confidence boost and a good season.

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SaintBrock added 14:41 - Oct 17 OK, so for how long Nick? So far he has presided over a shambles of both team selection and on-pitch antics - performance is too strong a word for what we are doing out there at the moment. Trouble is if we stick with him through January and end up in the bottom three, what happens next when it may be to late to save our season? Stick or Twist? I don't see him as a strong character at all, more a consensus guy and certainly not the sort who would get us through a nasty relegation scrap or back up at the first attempt if the worst happened. He is no Benitez despite their many earlier associations.

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halftimeorange added 19:54 - Oct 17 One can read anything from historical statistics, they can be made to fit anyone's arguments. The plain fact is that we (the fans) generally feel uneasy about what we are seeing, whether it's from the Saints or other teams. Even most of those clubs below us this season are showing more creativity and harmony than we do on the pitch. We certainly do not look in good shape for a dogfight. There is little spark because too many areas patently require addressing by the coaching staff. To those who suggest that Les Reed constantly upsets our head coaches well, that is unsupported speculation. As to why the youngsters aren't getting a chance, surely that is because managers outside the top six can't take too many risks with the fear of relegation and the attendant prospect of losing millions of pounds. A player such as Raheem Sterling looks good for his club partly because he has world beaters in DeBryne and DaSilva alongside him. We don't have that. I can't see Redmond or Tadic wiping Josh Sims nether regions if he is pressured into mistakes. Make no mistake, we were very rocky against Newcastle and got away with a point.

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allsaint54 added 22:03 - Oct 17 Style of play has't changed in over 12 months, common factor are the coaches namely Ian Black. Time for MP to have his own coaches , then we can truly assess is capabilities. It's the slow ponderous play that is upsetting the fans which will ultimately drive the fans away. We need to be more direct & be prepared to on opponents, if Red & Tadic can't or won't ditch them. Anyone know when Josh Sims is going to be fit? Could do with his enthusiasm as opposed to the petulance of our wide players.

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