What a disappointing night for Saints as they went out of the Europa League with a whimper not a bang.

For some reason this never felt like it was going to be one of those magical nights, back in the 1990's when we fought some epic relegation battles you sensed that the crowd was completely behind the team and would lift them to great things in certain games.

That feeling wasn't present when we took on Manchester United in the final game of 2005 and were relegated and it was not there last night when we took on Be'er Sheva.

With 20 minutes to go Saints were in command of the tie and heading for the last 32 but you could hear a pin drop in the ground at times, too many of the crowd seemed not to be there to roar the team on, but to pick on certain individuals.

I cant complain about the team that Claude Puel picked, yes I would have preferred to see Fonte in instead of Yoshida, but the Japanese defender did not let us down.

What cost us this European campaign was the sub standard teams that we put out in both Milan and Prague where we lost by a single goal where in both games we deserved at least a point.

If we had gained just one point from those two games then we would be through to the next round now.

Saints did not play well last night, but they did not play badly either, they attacked well but the issue was creating and taking chances and the longer we failed to score and the quieter the crowd go apart from moans and groans you sensed that the visitors were looking for the one decent chance they got.

When it came in the 78th minute they took it and from the reation of the crowd you would have thought that it was fatal, many standing up and leaving and others standing up and abusing.

We have come back from two down before, yes it was disappointing , but at that moment the team needed something to lift them and they did not get that from the crowd, there were 12 minutes of normal time left and you could assume at least 3 of injury time, if the crowd had rose as one and shown that they were behind their team then perhaps things could have been different.

It turned ot that they so nearly where, with half the crowd already out of the ground Virgil Van Dijk fired home, this inspired the die hards remaining who found their voices and Yoshida almost heaed home in the dying seconds to create one of those special nights.

But it was not to be and losing Charlie Austin in the first half did not help, Saints had plenty of opportunities but too rarely did they truly trouble the keeper and too often they got into good positions bt did not find the final ball or cross.

For the fans it was perhaps down to perception as to why we lost, they perceived that Josh Sims is the hero and his swashbuckling styl was driving us forward and they perceived that Nathan Redmond was terrible.

The truth is far different, Sims did not have a good game, too often he lost the ball and created problems for us with Be'er Sheva breaking and in the main he failed to beat his man and put a ball in.

Redmond on the other hand although not having a brilliant game, was good up to the point of delivery, he seemed to be able to take on and beat his man, but too often he too failed to deliver although he did have a decent effort on target in the first half that the keeper had to deal with and push round for a corner.

But the crowd perceived both players differently, Sims of course is very young and with little experience, his time will come and I don't want to make this about him, but it is important to emphasise that if sections of the crowd had perhaps concentrated more on cheering the team on insted of getting on Redmond's back, then it might not have changed the result, but it would have had a better chance of doing so.

This seems like the end of the World, it was hard to take, but we have to look at reality, we are still handily placed in the League, we are n the semi finals for the League Cup and this is as good a start to the season as last year.

There is stil a lot to play for, there is still a lot to be happy about, so do we as supporters want to see the team do well, or do we prefer to get on their backs and see the season peter out.

I know what I want and that is success and I know that supporting the team on the pitch gives us a better chance of achieving it than getting on their backs.

This is a set back, a big disappointing set back, but we still march on and we still have a lot to play for.

Photo: Action Images

St_Guido added 09:41 - Dec 9 Nick, for once I have to disagree with you. The crowd cannot be blamed for prague away & last night's gutless performances/negative tactics, which are 100% down to the team & manager.
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goalie66 added 09:42 - Dec 9 This was a very poor performance that was set up by the manager to be negative. Redmond often had no options available. Midfield made no attempt to support our attack. We played for a 0-0 and it backfired.There was no pressing, no energy and no cohesion. We looked like and played like a team that was disjointed and unsure of what to do. It was a repetion of Saturday at Palace without the glaring individual errors. You cannot blame the crowd. Most of us were just bored with the dreadful sideways possession. I really fear for the rest of the season.

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REEDYREEDOREEDZ added 09:50 - Dec 9 Redmond has no end product and needs to be taken out of the team. We have no clue going forward. The emphasis seems to be getting down the wings and getting crosses in, and there must've been 20 crosses made last night, but what's the point when we don't have a dominant striker in the air. If they're gonna focus on getting crosses in then we need a Lambert/Pelle type player to attack the ball. Saints need to buy a target man to hold the ball up and provide a threat in the air. The system is broken, it makes no sense, we can't score with these players in this system. With Charlie Austin out for a month or two I can't see where the goals are going to come from. Apart from Austin only 3 players have scored more than 1 goal this season in ALL competitions (Redmond 3, Rodriguez 2, Van Dyke 2). He needs to change the system, take Redmond out and try to get Boufal up to speed. Until the January transfer window we'll have to hope that Tadic and Boufal can provide for Long who still hasn't scored for us this season.

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saintsnutcase added 09:51 - Dec 9 Nick If we had scored one single away goal in the group, we would be through. We did not do so because we do not have any relatable goal scorer except perhaps Austin, and he certainly could not play more matches, as we saw last night. It was absurd to go into this season with the strike force we had at the end of the transfer window. Mane was irreplaceable, and Pelle was useful - we replaced them with nobody. If we do not buy a striker in the Janauary window, I simply do not see where the goals are coming from. I agree with you about Sims - he lost the ball repeatedly last night, though he does have real talent. I also agree about Redmond. He is quick, tries hard but makes very bad decisions. He is certainly no Sadio Mane though!

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SonicBoom added 09:53 - Dec 9 Nick I like your positive attitude and often you bring a sense of perspective in the aftermath of a bad result. But I have no idea what you are on about here. Three quarters of your verdict seems to be aimed at the crowd and you even said "Saints attacked well". Watching the TV commentary back, even they said that Saints were slow, uninspired and had given the crowd nothing to shout about. That was a dreadful negative performance by any standard. I agree that Redmond did at least try and I don't think he should get all the stick. However he kept getting the ball, beating someone then doing nothing with it. Simply turned back and played a ball backwards. Sometimes you can't blame the opposition or the crowd (who filled the place). On this occasion the responsibility for a frankly pathetic performance sits with the players and the managers' tactics. I also think the Fonte situation has been totally mishandled. He wanted to play in the EL, he came out and said so this week yet after six games he never got a minute and we went out. I just don't see that he needed that much protection, he's a CB not a centre midfielder. It's baffling.

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BarnetSaint added 09:53 - Dec 9 So it was our fault we went out last night,? I did wonder. Certainly early on at least the crowd were in good voice but like so many times this season, the painful, stifling style of play we utilise these days is enough to dampen the enthusiasm of the like palace on Saturdsy, it was the negative, slow temp approach which cost us. We should have taken the game to them from the off, time and time again the opposition only need 1 chance, one shot on target and we're done for. The fact of the matter is our forward line is pi££ poor. We badly need a quality forward in January.( as if we didnt know that so spend some effing £) The boro game is massive now.

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LordDZLucan added 09:53 - Dec 9 I don't where you sit Nick but where I was sitting the crowd was very supportive. But we do need something to feed off and last night there was not a lot out there to get us going. I have to agree 100% with the previous comments. The tactics were wrong; it looked like we were going for a 0-0 result. We should have assumed that Hapoel would get one goal which means that we needed to go looking for two. Trying to get two with 10 minutes to go is a big ask. We should have been at them from the off. And to me Hapoel looked a very average side. We were too predictable in all of our attacking intent; build up play was laborious; Redmond got past people but didn't get into the box; the crosses from the right were a long time coming and too easy to defend. I'd rather we hadn't qualified for Europe than perform like we did last night. I'm concerned.

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highfield49 added 09:57 - Dec 9 I have to disagree with you Nick we didn´t attack well. We attacked slowly and predictably. I hate to say it but the difference between winning and going out with a whimper last evening was the pace and finishing of Mane or similar. What is the point of Redmond running down the wing then checking back to look for support? If you attack with pace it either has to be into the area or down the wing and cross for players running into central positions. Tactically bereft and woefully short of firepower and I can't see how it will get any better on Sunday because the whole season is going flat and nobody seems capable of raising their game at present.

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Neilw added 10:05 - Dec 9 Nick, I realise you are trying to put a sense of perspective on the situation, but you are going to get blasted on here if he keep being Puel's apologist. He is entirely to blame for these negative tactics and the worst possible Europa campaign imaginable against three sides who wouldn't look out of place in the Championship. I said I will never forgive Puel if he fails to get us through this group (which was so important to so many fans who have travelled across Europe). I WILL NEVER FORGIVE HIM

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Fordy added 10:05 - Dec 9 Like everyone else on here I agree that we didn't attack well. Other than getting the ball to the full backs to put a cross in we don't seem to have any plan. We move the ball very slowly through midfield and so far Hojbjerg is a huge disappointment. Romeu was at fault for the goal but if Hojbjerg hadn't been sleeping and on his heels he would have got to the ball before their player. Davis doesn't seem to like the system and has been disappointing this season. All in all, very disappointing.

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qnehl1 added 10:13 - Dec 9 I feel as soon as Austin went off we started playing better. Austin though a proven goal scorer is simply not good enough to lead the line for us at the moment, he's slow and doesn't pass the ball well. I for one miss Pelle, as he held the ball up well and brought others into the game. Redmond did well last night, beat his man, but often there was no one offering an easy pass. We need a "number 10" to link between the midfield and attackers, the last few games this area has been vacant. In summary we NEED MORE GOALS, bring in a proven striker and an actual CAM.

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JDawg added 10:17 - Dec 9 Like all the other comments I have to disagree with you Nick. The team seems to lack urgency. There is barely any pressure when defending, the team just backs off and lets them come. The few times someone took the initiative and defended in the Happoel's half they won the ball back. Half way through the 2nd half Happoel were looking exhausted but still we sat back. When Saints attack the build up is great but as soon as a player gets to the 18 yard box they stop look around and pass backwards or give the ball away. Where is the 1st time cross? The through balls? The imagination? By the end of the game everyone in the ground was reading the attacks like a book. None of our players are bad, none of them need dropping and we don't need Mane or Wanyama. We miss Pelle, not for his goals but for his hold up play and his layoffs to the runners that's where most of our goals came from. I'm not sure the way we're playing these days are Puel's tactics, we didn't start the season like this we've just kind of evolved into it. I'm still unsure about Peul, but I want him to succeed. He now needs to show how good he is and turn this around. The first thing he can do is starting pressing all over the pitch. The second is buy a target man.

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steve73 added 10:20 - Dec 9 And so the propaganda machine trundles on, contradicting what it spat out only a few days ago. The must win, season defining game has now just become a setback. And we lost because of....the crowd being too quiet?!?! This has to be some kind of joke. Firstly I thought the crowd was fine, I've certainly heard it quieter on several occasions. Secondly the team really did not play well imo, didn't seem to know whether to stick or twist. A result of indecisive management. And bashing Sims while defending Redmond...shouldn't be surprised. But I can't even talk about Redmond anymore; I'm sick to death of seeing him in a Saints shirt but I guess it's tough. Sims has a raw exuberance which the crowd enjoy even when he makes mistakes which he admittedly did. As for Fonte, I guess that's that then. 2 new centre halves in January? Frankly a scary thought. All to play for, yes, but optimism is falling away fast.

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REEDYREEDOREEDZ added 10:20 - Dec 9 I agree with qnelh1 about the lack of an attacking central midfielder. Puel always plays one holding mifielder and 2 central midfielders, but the 2 CM's rarely get forward, they just sit 30 yards out and look for a sideways pass out to the flanks for us to cross to nobody. Our central midfielders need to get into the box more and look to get goals, we don't need both of them sat too far from goal to make anything happen. I can only imagine that Puel tells them not to get into the box in case we get hit on the break and this is really negative. We need a Lampard style midfielder who can make an intelligent run and get on the end of something or find the bottom corner from the edge of the area. Maybe if Swansea go down we could get Sigurdsson but really we need a powerful striker and an attacking midfielder in January or we'll continue to struggle for goals.

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ThereIn76 added 10:26 - Dec 9 I agree with Nick. Puel cannot be blamed for his team selection, nor for Austin's injury, nor for one of our outstanding performers this season making the mistake that led to HBS' goal. I don't believe the team was sent out onto the pitch to play for a 0-0. They simply failed to perform to the standards of which they are capable. For example Bertrand's crossing - normally among our best attacking options - was way off. And the crowd did not do enough to help. Had they truly got behind the team, I'm sure they players would have been less nervy. The stick given to Redmond was ridiculous. His pace and willingness to run at defenders was worrying them and with a spot of encouragement he would have kept at it and maybe just once got the final ball right and we'd all be happy this morning. As it was he lost confidence in got to the stage where he almost didn't want the ball. But in truth last night is not where we got eliminated, it was in the away matches, each of which we dominated but left with nothing to show for it. And before declaring open season on Puel, remember last season when we tamely went out to Midtjylland. For me that hurt more than this. But we recovered. We have an EFL Cup semi final to look forward to, let's stop waiting for the players to get the crowd going, it should be the other way round, w should be making it happen.

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schatfield added 10:35 - Dec 9 the crowd were probably quiet because we played similar to how we have done in other games recently, lots of midfield play but then doing nothing with it in the final third....it was such boring game to watch. In truth we deserved to be out of the Europa (and you saw how much it meant to their players to go through!)
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Archersclose added 10:48 - Dec 9 We were so negative last night. Make no mistake Puel is going to come under increasing pressure in the coming weeks as i just can't see where the goals are going to come from to enable us to pick up results. Many of us felt that we would need more firepower and we are being proved correct. If we do not sign a couple of strikers in January we are going to struggle to stay up and that is not an OTT statement WE ARE GOING BACKWARDS. People like Nick are burying their heads in the sand pretending that everything is ok when it bloody well isn't. WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE.

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RogerToye added 10:49 - Dec 9 we are too quiet there is no song in the saints, bar one slagging of our neighbours and When the saints go marching in The away support was way better as is ours when we go away !! Fonte would not have made a difference, Tadic and Ward prowse crossed better when they came on. however I was disappointed with full back crosses sometimes not getting off the ground in cedric's Case leaving him outta a position when there defense cut it out .. however the away team was a threat only once and took it. That is fast becoming european football The CB pairing is good to go in my opinion, our passing needs to be better and Redmond must learn to release the ball a lot sooner instead of getting drawn into crowded defences and getting rid when he cant get past them and failing to weight his pass properly that team was good enough unfortunately the performance not Steve Davies worth a mention he worked very hard unfortunately more in defence than in attack Romeu hold your hands up for sloppy give away Move on !!

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law101 added 10:59 - Dec 9 Blaming the fans, many of whom have spent hundreds of pounds travelling across Europe to support is stupid. Redmond is clearly a good technical player in terms of touch, close control etc... but he has absolutely zero impact on the game in terms of shots on target, creating chances and it is time Puel takes him out of the team for a period of time. Our frustration comes from watching our team sit back and defend far to deep and not take the game to sides we should be dominating and getting on top of. We don't press in the oppositions half and we knock the ball around sideways and backwards without testing the goalkeeper. The majority of our games this season have passed by without any real action or excitement which the crowd feeds off. Are we the new West Brom?

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SaintBrock added 11:13 - Dec 9 A new low in the recent history of our once proud football club. The myth and hyperbole have been exposed for what they are and we see that the new emperor Puel is wearing no clothes. Aimless kick-a-ball like that will achieve only one thing, ignominy.
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Whiteknight added 11:16 - Dec 9 Nick. Normally I admire your posts but this one is as embarrassing as last night's performance. To blame the fans many of whom SPEND a significant amount to watch Saints whilst not blaming the people who GET PAID ridiculous amounts to "represent" Saints is actually offensive and you should be ashamed. The atmosphere was ok for about 20 minutes but the game sucked the energy out of both sets of supporters. Everyone is entitled to an opinion and I respect you for sharing yours. I often agree with your intentions, if not all of the detail. However, having read the post above, I'm not even sure that you watched the game because it is way of the reality of last night. It's not getting knocked out that hurts - it's the manner of the exit (especially following on from Saturday's woeful performance). There was a complete lack of passion and quality across the board. Puel and the players bottled it - there's no other way of putting it. The set up was negative and the number of wasted passes, set piece opportunities etc. would have shamed a Sunday league team. If this was a one-off then fine, but it's not. How many times have we bossed possession and had a good number of set pieces only to lose - often to the only shots on target from the opposition? I think Saints need to apologise to the fans for the attitude last night, Puel needs to apologise for his tactics - and you need to apologise for the post above.

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Consigliere added 11:36 - Dec 9 Oh the pain and pleasure of being a Saints supporter! The elation of the Inter Milan game and the match at the Emirates. The despair of Hull and Palace. And the mind-numbing boredom of watching a team play for a nil-nil outcome last night. And in a sense why wouldn't they, with no obvious striker on the pitch? I have an off the wall idea whilst Austin is out - play Fonte and Yoshida in defence and put Van Dyke up front as a centre forward. Well why not?

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TygerUppercut added 11:42 - Dec 9 How predictable from saints pr machine + spindoctor saint nik. Are you actually on kathrines payroll nik or are you so grateful to be allowed back in theground youre blind to see where this sell everything that moves policy is taking us. Those of us who watch with fair analysis have been saying since the summer pelle + mane havent been replaced + we are reaping what has been sown. Where i sit we tried backing the team but ita hard when the team gives nothing back. + I will air my frustrations at redmond especially when he feels he has the right to wave his arms around blaming everyone else for his own mjstakes + shouting down senior players (Bertrand) Redmonds attitude stinks, how can any saints fan be expected to get behind such a brat

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saintsnutcase added 11:43 - Dec 9 I agree with Fordy about Hojbjerg. Yes it was a bad error by Romeu, but Hojbjerg could have done better. In general I like the way he breaks forward from midfield, but his final ball/shot carries little threat. Apparently he has always been like that -- hopefully he will improve with experience.
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saintstowin added 11:46 - Dec 9 It's the pace that frustrates me and the slow build up which for me is a sign of a team lacking confidence. Time and time again we had the ball in decent areas but no one made a run and the man with the ball appeared clueless or fearful as to what to do next. It's easy to keep the ball and pass this way and that, especially with inferior opposition, and then give responsibility to someone else when you realise you don't know what to do next. I've no answers how to solve that issue but in terms of this European campaign I'm afraid we've brought about our own downfall up to and including last night. Most of us accept rotation but the selections in Europe have led directly to our exit. We coasted after Prague at home and assumed qualification was ours right up until last night and the stark realisation we'd messed it up. I often look on 'lesser' teams and think we're much classier including their more basic but pacey attackers who on a good day for Saints would not get in our team, but sometimes you need a bit of urgency and directness and we've got so little right now it hurts.

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