| News Comment | Why Is Billy Sharp Persona Non Grata At St Mary's ? at 23:00:08
oh ffs. I am no 'apologist' for anyone. "why not just release him". Why the fek do you think? Think a club can just "release" a player? Sharp is on great wages and has a full 2 years on his deal. Cortese can't just waive a magic wand and "release" him unless the player agrees. Which clearly Sharp does not. And who would blame him? It is because Championship clubs are all under strict financial fair-play rules now and almost none could afford to pick him up at the same wages he is on with Saints. The most logical conclusion one can draw is that no champ club wants him at anything near the wages he is currently on so he will just sit tight and cash the Saints cheques or wait until a partial-wage loan deal can be done. |
| News Comment | Why Is Billy Sharp Persona Non Grata At St Mary's ? at 14:26:33
legod - No shit sherlock. So given that he has not been given a squad number we can deduce that he is in no way going to play a part next season. He still has 2 years left on his deal so he is perfectly entitled to kick back, train with the reserves, clock-in and clock-out and get paid. But he, like all footballers would rather be playing. He is only 27 years old and is proven in the lower leagues. So why, we must ask, has he not left? Well, it can't conceivably be because Cortese and MoPo are spiteful people who get sadistic pleasure out of seeing him wallow as a highly-paid toy. They would sooner he was off the books and gone. That should be obvious. Also, NC has shown he is prepared to swallow a small loss (Forren) if the player is just balast. So it can't be that NC is putting too high a price on him. So the only other conclusion is that he is not able to move on at similar wages and that it almost certainly the case as now the championship is under financial fair-play rules. It is a little reported fact that wages in the championship are now severely restricted, but Sharp's contract was written at a time when we were splashing the cash. I would bet that he will be out on loan again to a championship club who will pick up some of his wages but that he is also just sitting back and cashing the cheques in the meantime because they are so much bigger at SFC than else where at the moment. |
| News Comment | Why Is Billy Sharp Persona Non Grata At St Mary's ? at 13:29:54
GoHomeFrancisBenali - indeed. But again, I stress that NO PLAYER deserves to remain in the squad by pure virtue of the work they do the season previous. That is the sort of bollox sentiment which clogs up a squad roster with ageing journeymen. It is not rocket science. Sharp was hired as a professional footballer to play Association Football for Southampton Football Club. He did so. He was paid. Now the manager of the club has decided that he does not need Sharp's services any further. He is informed of such. He is still under contract so he still gets paid. We can debate whether the manager has made the correct decision to leave him out of the plans but we should not ascribe some false notion of 'he earned the right to play'. He didn't. He did a job. If he was a semi-pro in the lower leagues who had used all his paltry match fee on petrol to get to training every week then maybe we could be sentimental. Not in professional mega-wage football we can't. |
| News Comment | Why Is Billy Sharp Persona Non Grata At St Mary's ? at 11:49:50
LeicesterSaint - come on, don't keep on pulling out the 'English players must be given a chance' card! In case it slipped your attention last season we brought a young English Burnley lad into the Premier League, a young English Palace lad into the Premier League, a young Hampshire lad into the Premier League, a young Kingston-upon-Thames lad into the Premier League and our top scorer last season was an old Scouse lad we puled up from league 1 !! This season we have handed full contract to Chambers and Isgrove too, and Chambers particularly looks like he could be ready to step up to the first team on a regular basis. So we don't need to beat our selves up at Southampton because Sharp is English and we aren't giving him the chance to play in the Prem. We are well covered on that one. |
| News Comment | Why Is Billy Sharp Persona Non Grata At St Mary's ? at 11:04:21
I'm a natural goal poacher in Sunday Pub football. Scored a blinder the other day. But I could not step up to County level. Why do people assume that just because someone finds the net in league 1 and the championship he would automatically be in the goals in the Premier League? Makes no sense. Also, one player does not make the goal: his boot might be the last to touch it before it hits the back of the net but the set up of the whole team is also a factor. Plenty of examples in the Prem where world-class strikers sink a ton of goals at one club, then move to another and look like they have no idea where the posts are. The name Torres rings a bell. Extrapolating Sharp's (or anyone's) record in the lower divisions with a predominantly 4-4-2 system into the Premier League with a very-not 4-4-2 system is not a given. There is no conspiracy here. Just that successive managers have decided he doesn't fit. Nor does Tadanari. Big deal. Oh, and he has not been 'badly treated' by the club. He is a professional footballer who has to earn his right to cross the white line the same as anyone. While he is under contract he will still pick up a handsome wage packet regardless. That is precisely all that the club 'owes' him. Nothing more, nothing less. |
| News Comment | Have Saints Used The Transfer Window Well ? at 11:32:07
You need to remember that the signings we have made have all been younguns with their careers in front of them. One decent striker and we are done. I believe we have more than enough talent and squad depth to be able to hold our own in the middle of the table this season. As far as I am concerned European football is a pipe dream and will remain so for a long, long time. |
| News Comment | Saints Right Back Worry at 18:48:43
clyne has played in all but one of the pre-season games. storm, teacup, in |
| News Comment | Get Off The Gravy Train at 15:35:52
yeah. well maybe the non-league season ticket is the way to go. Lewes FC regularly gets 600+ for games, terracing and beer is allowed to be consumed while watching the game. £11 full price, £5 concs and kids under 12 go for absolutely diddly squat zippo zilch. The atmosphere is always excellent and fun and the opposition 'keeper is close enough to have a real wind up / laugh with. And at half time volunteers are asked to be 'fork men' to replace the divits. Proper day out without a single Bentley in the car park or South American kid-wonder on more dosh a week than your mortgage. |
| News Comment | Hurry Up Arry !!! at 14:47:53
the way adkins was sacked was wrong, if not the decision. To not even mention him in the very next programme was brutal. Even just a small paragraph thanking him for all he had done but it was now time for a change etc. |
| News Comment | Goalkeepers Are Being Linked at 00:42:46
all of 'women' come on, FFS. I can accept the odd spelling mistake or typo, but this is just not on. |
| News Comment | J Rod Edges Closer at 15:07:36
Good signing if it gets inked. Still want to see a prem-experience in defense |
| News Comment | Saints In For Ince at 14:22:20
Ince would be a great signing. I'm always amazed at how sure people are about professional footballers contracts and the details therein. Let's just wait and see. If the cheque book comes out in force, who knows? |
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