Transfer Rumours Saints January Transfer Window Rumour Thread

I nearly put that, but didn't

 

I assume you are alluding to the possibility that the Southampton board would not have considered how Puel envisaged the game of football being played.

Amazed that this is the only place where there are actually fans who are not wholly negative about the Frenchman.

 

I like to give people a chance Ian, as do most on here.

I think he needs to learn to adapt, and quickly, and my ire is more at the banking of money which has ultimately led to this situation, not the manager.

That said, the Board have my trust to find the right investor and are not seemingly trying to find the highest bidder.

For many reasons, this season was always likely to be like this, and we have no divine right to continually improve.

Just try to get fully behind the team consistently, you never know you may like it so much you may be able to drop those blue pills...

 

Really Ian? That's very sad if true. A ad indictment on the modern football fan. The man has been here 6 months. I find the apparent desire of people like yourself to continue to beat the drum so loud until you get what you want, a little distasteful. There aren't many Saints fans who are very happy right now, if any. There are several of us though who see things in bigger pictures. I get ridiculed for my "defence" of all things Southampton, but truth be told it is probably just that I may be a little more level headed (well apart from when I'm throwing a hissy fit ) and am prepared to take a longer term view. I've spent the last three years saying that the shot will hit the fan (from the fans) the first season we don't show an improvement. We were always going to have one like his season. Maybe two. I'm just prepared to be patient and give management and the club time. If we were 6 points adrift of safety then I wouldn't be so patient.

I may even suggest this could be the only place there are actual fans.

 

I also find a nasty, bitterness in your use of "The Frenchman." That may not be your intent.

 

And no one is a bigger fan than u, Fats

 

Good point, next we will refer to people by their colour.

Doubt it will catch on though...

 

I feel sorry for Shane Long, after a wonderful second half of last season, he appears to have imploded.
From my point of view there are some clear reasons for this:
1. Played best as a second striker
2. Plays best on the shoulder of the CB and picking up quickly played through balls or over the top balls to run onto
This season we play with a single isolated striker. Our build up is very slow and relies on slow progression down the wings and so defences drop deep not giving SL the space. Added to that when he comes on as a substitute, like he did on Saturday he replaces the likes of Tadic and is asked to play as a winger rather than playing down the middle alongside JRod.
He can't score when he is tracking back to provide cover for our under pressure Right back. Puel needs to give him a chance to score by playing him alongside JRod and speeding up the delivery through the centre of midfield otherwise nothing will improve for hi,

 

Cheeky!!! It's my bones!

 

I thought it was water retention...

 

3. He just isn't very good.

 

Yes. In my bones. They're holllow...

 

Excellent post in my opinion by Luke Osman on readsouthampton.com , think it's a passionate piece that most saints fans probably relate to, not all but a large majority.

 

Have to agree. 24pts from 20 games, semi final of league cup, beating inter once, unlucky not twice, smashing Sparta, it's not all bad.

Yes there are games we should have done better in and we all want faster more exciting football. Puel has had half a season and can see no reason not to give him the whole season at least.

Ian, you could be completely right in your early judgement and we get worse. In which case it would have been best to change now and I will apologise on your 'I told you so thread'

 

These are the same arguments that were trotted out when Portliveet was in charge. You are correct that we have no divine right to expect continued improvement and, as you imply, we are currently at little risk of being relegated albeit this is still mathematically possible. The problem for me is that Puel is not learning from his mistakes and, as I stated last week, the football he is produced is far from entertaining. It is certainly not "in the Southampton spirit" of playing football.

I have no axe to grind with the French as France is a country I love. There are elements about it which I don't like such as the racism but, by and large, France is a country I look up to and nothing would give me more pleasure to tell my friends abroad that Southamtpon have a French coach who is doing a wonderful job at my football club. If he was unlucky, I could sympathise with Puel yet I find him totally without appeal as a coach. I don't like the style of football and I think his rotation system may have had some validity when we were in the Europa League yet the chopping and changing constantly fails to bring the anticipated results and has unsettled the players who seemingly can't understand exactly what kind of system he is trying to play.

Sometimes I think managers can be unfortunate and I would like to think that Southampton would give such a manager the benefit of the doubt. The Saints fans I encounter socially and through work all say the same thing about Puel as I have summarised above. Most fans were open-minded yet Puel seems to continue to rotate the squad and play a laboured and ineffectual style of football which will ultimately bring harm to the club. In the current circumstances, Puel has been unlucky in games like the Inter Milan away match yet, for the most part, the misfortune has been brought upon himself. Whilst he does not deserve the axe at the current moment in time ( and you will recall I have not advocated this if you re-read my threads) , I cannot see the club ultimately persisting with him.

It is funny reading the comments on these threads are there are some wide-ranging opinions, many of which seem perverse such as the criticism of Steven Davis. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. However, the fact that the same comments about the style of football we are playing, the dissatisfaction amongst players and the failure to convert possession in to goals are things where there appears to be a general consensus amongst fans and the media alike. I accept that there are varying degrees of opinion and recognise that this forum is probably one of the few areas where Saints fans might not necessarily be as negative as you might have expected in the circumstances. For most people, it is clear that what Puel has been trying to implement is not working. I have tried to be diplomatic in respecting the opinions of others and have not labelled my fellow bordees as "prima donnas" like some. You are welcome to you opinion and I respect that. However,don't acuse me of being "bitter" or "nasty" simply because I do not share your rose-tinted perception of the dross we have been served up this season.

 

Well put Ian, this is after all, a forum for discussions about a club that we all love, and we are all entitled to our opinions.

 

This is a frankly ridiculous comment. What would you prefer me to call him ?

 

Ian, read my post again. It's not as long as yours son no real excuse for not reading the last line. I said: "that may not be your intent." So stand down.

Clearly all you had to say was that was not your intent. I wrote a massive caveat there for you. You chose to ignore it. It was only two lines.

Ps. Don't pussyfoot around when talking to me. It was me who said "primadonnas" we both know that.

It is funny that you suggest I make comments just because your view is different to mine and yet you throw in "rose tinted perception" at me.... is this because my view is different to yours??? Silly really Ian. Works both ways fella.

All I have done is politely point out that I have taken a long term view and am more patient than you. That is all. You've decided to get a little upset by that. You shouldn't. You should either continue to debate or ignore it. It really would appear that you are the one who doesn't like an opposing view.

Finally and I urge you to read this as I don't think you read well, you say that for most people it is clear that what Puel is doing isn't working.... where have I said it isn't. I have said I am not particularly happy too, but just that I am prepared to wait and be more patient than others, not expecting greatness so quickly.

You chose not to read that, clearly.

 

It isn't really Ian. That is two people who interpreted your term in a similar way. You've now told us that you didn't mean it in any bad way. That's fine. Move on.

 

So I've just read 4 pages on the Transfer Rumour Thread and there are no rumours or signings.

To summarise: the Manager, after 5 months in a new country, club and league is crap and should be sacked and Shane Long one of our 3 strikers should be sold.

Nice to see we are all being calm about things. How have you all survived this long as Saints fans?

PS Is there anyway to stop all my English words being underlined in red because they are not the US spelling? It's really annoying!