completely disjointed performance Sadly the coaches could not react to the lack of pressure on PNE and did not have a viable plan B Still good performances from Caulker,Nedum and Chery. Also sad to see fickle fans turn on the team so quickly

0

I groaned inwardly when I saw that Lee Mason was the referee. He generally affects every match he officiates at and today was no exception, showing how inconsistent he is throughout the game but Saints didn't deserve to win. After a bright start both Hojbjerg and Romeu faded and we were forced back to defend deeper and deeper. Targett was himself targetted by Sunderland as the weak link and too often he was caught ball-watching or out of position. His reluctance to use his right foot or beat an opponent going forward makes me doubt if he is Premier League class. Most of our attacks were started or spoiled by Steven Davis who was, in turn brilliant, then wasteful. Cedric tried to make dummy runs which nobody saw and we did not have anybody carving out chances. Charlie Austin looked lively but was too slow and won nothing in the air. Jay Rodriguez late cameo may keep him at St Marys but we desperately need a commanding midfielder with an eye for a pass and, unless Jay can do it, a big, tough centre forward. Charlie is a poacher. Redmond ran around a lot but was wasteful and Shane needs through balls to run onto. No sign of any pattern yet and we'll certainly be down among the dead men for a few weeks whilst coming to terms with this new system.

5

The players are clearly confused with this new system and having no width makes us easy to defend against. We are in for a long season if we stick with this system.

5

Total Crap. Need to Buy, Buy, Buy.

3

Total Crap. Need to Buy, Buy, Buy.

2

All is not well aboard HMS Saints, seems to have been torpedoed below the water line. Will the Captain go down with his ship?

2

I don't think the players understand the system, and neither do I! At times they appeared to be totally disorganised and questioning each others performance. I do not think that we have right players to play this diamond, if that is the correct way to play
We must not let Jay Rod go. We must not let Martina go.
We need two centre backs as I fear Fonte will soon be off his A game.
Jay Rod is the player we must try to get back into the team as the star man. He was England quality, whatever that means and has more potential than Austin
I hear many amongst the crowd saying Puel must go, it's a cheapskate appointment. It's a bit early for that he needs at least half a dozen games to educate the players or educate himself on our best method of playing.
Today wasn't all bad but we have to win games. Ugly wins are better than no wins

2

Saints only played 20mins in this game. 10 mins at the start and 10 at the end. The rest was painful to watch.

2

Positive from yesterday: Steven Davis played well. However, I wonder whether he just played the same as he did last season, when he was not one of our better players but the standard of the team around him has plumetted, making him stand out, as we have gone from being a top six team to a bottom six one.

0

I think the diamond isn't working. I'm willing to give it one more go just to see how Bertrand will do. Fonte is becoming reckless. Maybe cause he's waiting for the contract issue to settle down. Cedric's head was in it and I think that is because of the new contract but, he need to up his game. Token did better. I like our starting midfield. Maybe we need a super versatile defensive player like Daley Blind but all is well. Noticed how this game, we were more direct and I think that wasn't a great idea. I think we need to be more patient in our build up play. Our type of play requires really creative players and a finisher so Boufal will be a welcome addition. If the 4-4-2 diamond doest work anymore we need to use 4-3-3 with a false 9 which works for us. I'm not too worried cause we have a lot of games to get the system to tick but I'm confident that once it does we will look like a quality team.

0