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Russell Martin
at 21:19 24 Nov 2024

I see this was Sky's take on our defensive record.............




.........but that was before we conceded 2 more goals in the 2nd half!
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SFC would be better off if we'd lost 10 nil
at 19:46 24 Nov 2024

At least then it would have forced the board to question what they're doing. As it is, we have no more points and it just prolongs the agony of having RM as manager.

Today showed again that 1 rapid counter attack will create a better chance than 90 mins of turgid possession. Expect that lesson to be ignored by RM, just like he ignores the countless lessons that it's too risky for us to play out from the back against a PL side.

The glimpses of what we could do under a decent manager (and with a centre forward in the team) are actually torture. It just shows the opportunity that's being wasted by RM. It would be better to just play pure RM style and suffer a few heavy defeats, but then quickly get shot of him.
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Liverpool Game Matchday Thread
at 17:08 24 Nov 2024

Maybe he has the same gene as Prince Andrew. That would also explain why he is a useless knobhead.
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Spare Ticket - Itchen Flank - Block 4
at 12:22 24 Nov 2024

Yes, sorry to hear you've had it really rough. Good luck with your recovery.

But in all honesty to help you with your recovery you should carry on watching Saints in the PL because the pain you will experience doing that will make what you've just been through seem like a holiday.
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Could This Be Russell Martin's Last Game ?
at 12:14 24 Nov 2024

Well

- It will not be harder to find a much better manager. Nathan Jones is a much better manager.

- There is no good reason why it would cost us £10m to sack him. Where did this £10m figure come from anyway? It's nothing official just whispers. The whispers are put out to give them an excuse for not sacking him.

- The sooner we get rid of this clown, the sooner we are back on the right track.
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Could This Be Russell Martin's Last Game ?
at 10:45 24 Nov 2024

No chance. We're stuck with this deluded manager and this deluded board.

There is nothing in their track record to suggest that they will suddenly make a good decision.
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Will Saints Be Cast Adrift At The Bottom Before They Kick A Ball This Weekend
at 11:45 23 Nov 2024

Creating decent chances to have a shots would be a start.
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Is Anyone Positive About The Liverpool Game
at 14:28 22 Nov 2024

In other recent games we've at least had the hope that RM would be sacked if we lost. We haven't even got that hope this time.

If anyone thinks we'll win you can get odds of 10-1. It's football so anything can happen in 1 game, but I'd want more like 25-1 to bet on a Saints win.
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Great Southampton V Liverpool Games Of The Past
at 13:45 22 Nov 2024

Not sure it was a classic match but there were 2 classic line ups in 1984(?) for a 1-1 draw at Anfield and I think this was the season after we finished 2nd to them in the league. I always like away games where we score late to get a result - it creates a special celebration knowing it's a kick in the nuts for the home fans. In this one I remember Joe Jordan scored the late goal.

Thought I'd write this down as it seems really weird now to think that we used to be involved in top of the table clashes like this. Nowadays we're reduced to just hoping we don't get walloped 9-0.
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Do Southampton Need To Recall Bella-Kotchap For Liverpool Clash
at 10:37 21 Nov 2024

I don't expect to see ABK. I think the most likely is that "back 5" shape involving Suga, THB, Stephens, KWP and Manning (if they are all fit). It's the same shape we had at Arsenal and overall I expect RM to try and play the same way as in that game. Nathan Wood will probably be on the bench.
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Following Man City 's Style is Fundamentally Flawed and Must stop Now
at 10:23 21 Nov 2024

Blackmore: "I also remind myself sometimes that what Rasmus did alongside Matthew Benham to develop Brentford between 2015-2020 shows he understands plenty about football."

I've spoken about Ankersen's propaganda before. This kind of comment shows how it works. Ankersen's PR puts out the lie that he was involved with the success at Brentford and useful idiots like Blackmore repeat it across the media until it becomes "true". This garbage is in a piece titled "Expert View". What a fckn joke.

Try thinking for a change Adam. If Ankersen was involved in the key football decisions at Brentford then why did he leave and then make the completely opposite decisions at Saints?
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Russell Martin is David Brent times 10
at 09:17 21 Nov 2024

In today's woke world you can't criticise because it's "bullying", unless it's online where people who say the "wrong" thing are mass cancelled by their peers - because apparently that's not bullying, for some reason I don't understand. I think it's all part of the feminisation of the world - different rules to when I was growing up. Maybe there's good and bad in that.

I used to think that football was immune to this and a manager could still bollock a player but I'm beginning to wonder. I don't think the likes of Brian Clough would have fitted in today.

Not sure this namby pamby approach really develops the kind of fighting spirit we need though.
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Following Man City 's Style is Fundamentally Flawed and Must stop Now
at 14:34 20 Nov 2024

As said at the top, we copy Man City (well, we try to). We don't just play possession football, we try to play the Man City version of it. That's clearly shown by the diagram titled "Team Style Comparison" which is towards the end of this article (it's a stat heavy article, but this thread is about stats and you don't have to read the article to see the diagram):

https://theanalyst.com/eu/2024/10/southampton-struggles-should-promoted-teams-pl

The diagram contrasts the "fast and direct" teams with the "slow and intricate" teams. SFC and Man City are the 2 total outliers at the slow and intricate end. SFC are the slowest of all and my bet is that we would have more "passes per sequence" than Man City too, if our passes were as successful as theirs are.

So, when people say "Russ is just playing the modern way, everyone plays possession football", you can point to this diagram and show that's false. We play an extreme version of possession football that requires extremely talented players to make it work - players that we will never have.

If we have to be at one extreme of this diagram, we should be at the other extreme along with B'mouth, Forest and Everton. You don't need so many expensive technical players to play that way.
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Does Shea Charles Prove That Russell Martin's Player Judgement is Flawed
at 13:02 20 Nov 2024

I wouldn't say there are lots of instances where the manager wasn't consulted. There are some but all the evidence says that SR give the manager a big say in recruitment (e.g. Tall Paul is only here because Nathan Jones said he wanted that style of player).

When RM spoke in the summer about signings, it was obvious he was heavily involved, if not directing the operation. If you look at the individual signings too it is obvious - which other club would have prioritised signing Ryan Manning, or this summer Nathan Wood and Ryan Fraser? The evidence suggests that our signings reflected RM's priorities e.g. no centre forward.
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Bollocks…..
at 10:51 20 Nov 2024

RM may do OK with City's players but he would be a severe downgrade on Pep. He is Pep lite at best. The biggest difference between them is that Pep is an innovative thinker who finds solutions. RM is just a blind follower who can't fit ideas that he's copied from Pep to the practical realities staring him in the face on the pitch.

If Pep were manager of Saints (ha ha), I doubt he would be playing these tactics, even though they are "his". Pep is not afraid to get the ball forward quickly or put crosses in to a big centre forward. If he was here he'd be adapting his tactics to the players he has available.

City probably have the nouse to understand that the next "Pep" will probably not be someone who plays exactly the same way as Pep. He will be his own man and capable of thinking for himself. If they understand that then they won't recruit RM.
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Central Defensive Injury Blow For Southampton
at 19:42 18 Nov 2024

He's in the PL squad - his number is 37
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Central Defensive Injury Blow For Southampton
at 17:37 18 Nov 2024

ABK is available but he's behind Nathan Wood in the queue. Wood was on the bench against Wolves.

But knowing RM, we could easily see Cornet playing as an inverted centre back and ABK on the wing against Liverpool.
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England
at 16:07 15 Nov 2024

He was and he's the best of those 3 (with Foden and Palmer). My point was that only 1 of them should be on the pitch at any time. They are all no 10s and if they play together England get very one dimensional. If all 3 are available, pick Bellingham, have Palmer on the bench and leave Foden at home because he rarely delivers for England.
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Is The Journey Better Than The Prize
at 16:01 15 Nov 2024

That's the key point. To play the RM way, or Pep lite, you need players who are technically good enough to pass it round comfortably at the back and play a killer pass through a packed defence to create chances. You need seriously good players and we will never be able to afford a team full. Through our history we normally have 1 or 2 top level players at any one time, not 8.

So, it shouldn't take a feckin genius to work out that there is no future for us in playing Pep lite - and so no future in having RM as manager of SFC. Why can certain people not understand this???
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England
at 22:19 14 Nov 2024

They did that at the start, but then got a bit RMish later on in the 1st half. Roy Keane said at half time that he didn't like it when England "get a bit tippy tappy".His future son in law will have to explain to him that modern football is all about maximum possession and minimum chances created. Fortunately in the second half they went for it again, played well and created more chances.

As far as I'm concerned, England are a lot better when they aren't trying to shoehorn Bellingham, Foden and Palmer into the same side. Tonight's side had a lot better balance. Sometimes you have to leave out Jimmy Greaves to win the world cup.
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