Being blunt there have been too many mistakes made in the transfer windows since we have returned to the Premier League, will this forthcoming period be better.

Back in November with Saints flying high, Mauricio Pochettino made the bold statement that he didnt feel he would need to spend in the January transfer window, that he had enough in his squad to be able to get through the season without paying any money, perhaps that was just a bit of kidology to make other think that as we didnt need to spend, then we wouldnt be held to ransom by the selling club for inflated prices, however since he made his statement it hs come up and bit him in the behind with a vengeance and after an 8 game run that has seen us pick up only 5 points it is clear that the squad needs strengthening and fast.

But the problem is our past transfer dealings have been hit and miss since we returned to the Premier league and a pattern has emerged which we cannot keep on repeating.

Since the summer of 2012 the incoming players have been

Jay Rodriguez £7.5 million - Success
Steve Davis £1 million estimated - Success value for money
Nathaniel Clyne £2 million estimated - Success
Paulo Gazzaniga £1.5 Million Estimated - Jury's out although this was one for the future
Mayuka £3.5Million - Failure, barely played
Yoshida £2 million - So so odd game but prone to error so not a good signing for the money
Ramirez £12 million - Failure and big money wasted on a player who is worth perhaps half that much
Boruc - Free - great value Success

January 2013

Vegard Forren £3.5 million - failure never played a game and although we got some money back after signing on fees and wages etc this would have cost us a million or two

Summer 2013

Dejan Lovren £8.5 million - Success
Wanyama £12 million - Success although with question marks
Osvaldo £15 million - Jury well and truly out and big big questions at this moment in time

If you look at the signings above then a clear pattern has emerged, when we have gone for British players or those that have played over here at reasonable prices who are hungry to prove themselves we have done well, however when it comes to shopping abroad only Lovren could be said to be a total success.

It seems we have not done our homework enough on certain players and have possibly panic bought after spending too much time talking about "Marque" signings and chasing targets that we cannot hope to get.

In the last 18 months we have spent approximately £68.5 ,million pounds on players, of that outlay £7 million was totally wasted on two players who barely played (Mayuka & Forren) & £27 million has been spent on two players (Ramirez & Osvaldo) who have had sporadic moments of genius but overall havent contributed anything like they should have for the fee's spent out.

That is over half the total outlay and this is something that should ring warning bells, we do our business by transfer committee and i have no problem with this, in fact I welcome it it is a forward way of thinking, however questions have to be asked of that committee when so many players arent up to the standard and so much money is wasted.

The pattern is quite clear here and i dont need to spell it out, too often we have signed unknown quantity's who have not been anywhere near the standard required or we have splashed out big to make a statement on players who to be blunt have eventually only arrived after long negotiations because they have been dangled too big a carrot to say no and that is not a reason to sign a player.

In fairness to Ramirez and Osvaldo I dont think its all their fault, Ramirez was signed as a vanity statement, but whoever was responsible didnt seem to think about whether he would fit into our style of play, Osvaldo again hasnt been played as he should be, we have tried too hard to squeeze him in with Lambert and hedged our bets too much.

So what we need to do in this transfer window is look at those players that we know can do a job in this League rather than take the advice from essentially football estate agents who market players wholesale, Im not saying this is something confined only too us, other clubs do the same, Liverpool perhaps is pertinent to mention as they seem to be linked to the same players as us all the time, Ramirez and Forren we reportably snatched from under their noses, whilst they got Coutinho, is this co incidence or are we just both going to the same agency who are playing both of us off ?

So where do Saints need to strengthen, the recent Daily Echo poll revealed that more than half of Saints fans thought we needed to strengthen up front, this surprised me, we have more than enough attacking options with Lambert, Osvaldo & Rodriguez all able to play in Pochettino's preferred lone striker formation, add to that Gallagher and even Tadanari Lee and on paper we have enough firepower.

What we dont have though is enough options in getting the ball forward to them, too often we pass it around in the centre of midfield but cant get any sort of penetration, this is because we dont have the right balance, Lambert cant run channels so that isnt an option, but we dont have any wingers so we cant play to his real strengths, Osvaldo has not been played enough on his own up front so I cant really tell you who he would be suited to and Rodriguez can run channels but we dont have anyone who can really hit the killer ball apart from JWP who has often found himself out wide too much, its all too much of a mis match and a mis mash.

So in midfield I think we truly need a wide man to offer us a plan B and different options, go to Man Utd and get either one time Saints target Alexander Buttner who would offer either a wide left solution as well as cover to Shaw or Wilfred Saha who has genuine pace.

But perhaps the place we truly need to get in a quality signing is at centre back, Fonte is having an ok season but the truth is if we hanker after a top ten place and higher he should really be the back up pushing for a place rather than the unarguable first choice.

So in some respects Mauricio Pochettino is quite right, we dont need to go out and spend in the transfer window, the January one is always overpriced, what I would hope that we have done though is identify certain targets who we can get and look to try and sign them at a reasonable price, any squad should be about improvement, but not improvement for improvements sake.

The pattern from the last three windows is clear, there are plenty of players available at reasonable prices if we do our homework and they can improve the squad, however when we start to try and prove points by splashing the cash, we seem to do so without real regard as to where the squad really needs that improvement.

The last window back in the summer did see us only make 3 signings, one of which Lovren was not only needed but has turned out to be a great buy, however Wanyama as good as he has been was perhaps not needed as much as we paid and Osvaldo who cost nearly as much as both put together has not been a success for the reasons already mentioned.

This window is crucial in that if we make a good signing it could put our faltering top 7 bid back on course, if we make a bad signing or indeed none at all then we could see ourselves drop out of the top 10 altogether.

But perhaps the main problem is going to be that the Club has set Saints fans expectations too high, all the recent talk about top four finishes etc has turned some peoples heads, a good start to the season has blurred the actual situation, good squads are not built over night, essentially we are just last seasons squad with two additions, take out Wanyama who is long term injured as well as Boruc and it could be said that we are in no stronger position in putting out a team than we were a year ago, certainly the team at Cardiff with Lovren joining the injury list saw us perhaps weaker than this time last year.

So we need to refocus, we have the leeway to do so in that we are nudging 30 points, however we would not be the first team to slide down the table from a great start and what we do in the next month is going to be crucial to where we end up this season.

Photo: Action Images

mayfairsaint1 added 11:34 - Dec 31 I agree with some of your points Nick but It's easy to be right in hindsight. Unfortunately, you never know how a new recruit will work out until they start playing for you. I can't think of one prem. club that has not made terrible costly mistakes in the transfer market. You can do all the homework and research you like. It works both ways, Lovren is probably worth 20 million now and how much is Clyne worth now? Some of the others may still come good, you never know. The club were entitled to believe that Oswaldo would score more goals than he has, he's a current Italy international. How many goals did he score for Roma last year, 16?. This is why our belief in the academy is so vital, your own players coming through are a known quantity. This is the future and will in time, give us an edge.

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SaintNick added 11:48 - Dec 31 It is easy to be right in hindsight, but clubs in our position cannot afford to be getting it wrong so often and wasting so much money Your right about Osvaldo the club should be entitled to more goals, but If I was Osvaldo I would feel i was entitled to be played in the position I was signed for ie the lone central striker, this has been to the detriment of both him and lambert as Pochettino cant seem to make a decision , Osvaldo's failure is as much the clubs fault as his The belief in the academy is vital, but it should be remembered that you have to have the right balance and in the short term we cant rely on them too much

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mayfairsaint1 added 12:01 - Dec 31 Very few clubs can afford to waste money but most do. if you want to buy a sure fire winner a la Van Persie or Suarez then you're talking mega bucks and they ain't going to come to you anyway. That's why clubs like us have to take a punt. Take Mayuka, didn't he win the golden boot at the African cup of Nations? He has pace to burn, just what we needed. Unfortunately, it hasn't worked out so far and maybe it never will. All I'm saying is, it's not easy.

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SaintNick added 12:31 - Dec 31 I agree all clubs waste money but its all about relativity, a club of our size cant afford to waste 50% of all our transfer funds over a long period, what we do next is crucial Mayuka did win the golden boot at the african cup of nations but It was a joint share with 6 other players getting 3 goals, he was a gamble and one which ordinarily perhaps would not be seen as out of the ordinary, but when added to the other poor signings it all adds up, pace often flatters to deceive hence why for instance Bradley Wright Phillips was adored by the northam end more than Kenwyne Jones who is still playing in the Premier league now

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mayfairsaint1 added 13:31 - Dec 31 Good points Nick but look at this way. If we were to sell all the players (good and bad) bought since promotion, I'm willing to bet that we would be in credit. Just think how much Lovren, Rodriguez and Clyne alone must be worth now. Wanyama and Steve Davis are worth more than we paid form them IMO too. I know that we don't want to sell these players but if we had to buy them now, having shown what they can do playing for Saints we would be up against stiff competition from most of the top clubs and they wouldn't be ours. Anyway you run a great site. Best wishes for the New Year and COYR.

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Santos added 13:33 - Dec 31 Interesting piece now we are getting near the transfer window. I think your right in your ideas of where we need to strengthen. Defence, another Lovren yes please with Fonte as cover. Attack as you say is fine we have options even if the jury is out on Osvaldo but I still think his time will come. So for me it is the creativity of getting the ball to the forwards which is key. Yes Lallana we have but without him I see no alternative, I have rather given up with Ramirez. So a GR swap deal for a creative in the hole type or /and spend on a winger is this too much to ask. only 3 players. Happy New year everyone.

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schatfield added 14:21 - Dec 31 Interesting points from Nick and all readers. My thoughts are as follows: In the door Need another GK to challenge Boruc. Clear now that Gazza isnt trusted 100% hence being dropped and Davies remains a liability. Need another central defender to rival Lovren. Wont come cheap though... Wide player, someone like the former Palace boy at Man Utd now (name escapes me) on loan with view to perm. Man Utd are looking to send him out. Perfect, come to Saints! Jordan Rhodes. Yep, i know what your all thinking....but after we lose Osvaldo (see my exit list), he would be perfect back up for SRL and would have the hunger and desire to succeed. Out the door Hooiveld Gazza (champo on loan) Yoshida Davies (but kept as coach or something) Sharp Forte (yep still being paid by us) Barnard (ditto) Ramirez Osvaldo

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montecristo added 14:49 - Dec 31 I would like to think that Ramirez is well on the way to recovery in the sense of acquiring the strength to play 90 minutes the Pochettino way. The signs were very positive in his last game for us and I hope he plays against Chelsea and has a great game to silence the doubters. No way will he be leaving in this window, there is next to no speculation about him pre window so Im guessing hes decided to knuckle down and show what he is worth, If so he may yet prove to be a sensational aquisition.Other than that I just hope we buy Dettori, the Cagoliari player we keep getting linked with what a back four we would then have. here is also Kristiansen think thats how you spell it, who would be a great alternative to the italian.

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richardmdcooper added 15:22 - Dec 31 Good article. I actually think Nigel Adkins deserves a lot of credit for moat of our best signings- cork, clyne, j-rod, Davis etc (i'm assuming gaston and mayuka were not his decisions) Does anyone think poch would make those types of signings now? Apart from lovren and wanyama, our foreign signings have all been terrible
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abingdonsaint added 15:34 - Dec 31 Just reading this Nick, still open mouthed from yesterday's suggestion that Poch was 'damaging our young players confidence' !!!! Anyway, I know that I have to make this pion every transfer window, but we will NOT be bringing in players that 'can do a job'. I agree that not all our recent signings have been unqualified successes, but there a few knee-jerk reactions on here, and certainly we have still not seen the best of Osvaldo or even Gaston. English football is very different from other top leagues, and it is not easy to adapt immediately. The fact is though that the philosophy of the club is to bring through academy talent, and any from outside that must be significantly better than an academy prospect. As I presume Rooney and Barkley etc are out of our reach, then abroad is the option. I would also add that as we have gone from bottom of League One in 2009 to the top half of the Prem, perhaps our transfer business has not been too disastrous! I have a mate who is a Spurs season ticket holder, and if you think we have wasted money.....

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