Saints Stuff

https://southamptonfc.com/news/2017...od-campus-wednesday-pre-southampton-tottenham

According to this the team prepare for next weekend's game.....should we tell them it is the weekend after next.

 

Just seen a headline that we are waiting on a stopper return....going to have a whinge now. A stopper is a GK...please stop using it to refer to a defender (in this case, Virgil). Are we American? No, we are not!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

It's just another trendy word the pundits will adopt readily. As you say, a stopper [if we have to use that term] is a goalkeeper. Yes, the bloke who keeps the goal. Actually, to be honest, goalkeeper is little odd, but there you go.

The pet one that has annoyed me over the last couple of years is that strikers play 'up top'. No they don't. They play 'up front'. They don't play the game on a vertical tactics board, where diagrammatically their name is on top of a group of players in their positions. Strikers play on a horizontal pitch, closest to the opposition goal, at the front of the formation. So no more of this stupid up top please. Up front it should return to being.

I blame Ron Atkinson. In fact, it's probably a safe thing to blame Ron Atkinson for everything. And not just in football either.

 

I remember reading somewhere about a reporter that asked Ron how he communicated with the players at a time he was coaching in Spain and he said "I just add an O to words, like youo have to passo the ballo to himo"

 

I do hope he was joking. That's the standard English effort.

 

The recent Game of Two Halves raised 7K for the Saints Foundation. Well done.

 

And another thing ... we all used to know what players were meant to be like. Wingers were small and nippy, for example. The centre half was meant to be huge and eat children for breakfast. That Bobby Moore guy buggered all that. All golden boy, smoother than a baby's bum and could actually play football. What was he doing in the centre of defence?

Terminology moves on, but does it improve the language or our understanding of concepts? Philosophical debate of the day

 

I used to play inside left.

 

Are you sure you don't mean....you were left inside.....the dressing room.......

 

http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/saints/news/15145893.Matt_s_comeback_Targett/?ref=rss

Echo suggesting that Targett hopes to play for the U23 before the end of the season. Really feel for Matt....nailed on behind Bertrand, but now has to fight his way back into contention. Must have been some hamstring injury.

 

Wylan Cyprien who we are/were apparently interested in has done his ACL.

 

In all honesty, I think I prefer McQueen - and this is no slight on Targett, who I also think is a very good player, but McQueen offers a little more going forward

 

That's what happens when injuries occur. Targett was back up, so played when Bertrand was out. His injury meant that McQueen got a look in. The same thing has happened with Jack following Virgil's 'accident.' If a team has real competition and is willing to give youngsters a chance, a career can have a total turnaround.

 

I'd probably look to loan Targett out in the Summer tbh.

 

Not sure I would, but if you did would have to be with a recall clause. A team may be one Vardy from disaster.

 

We don't need 3 LB's though, and I'd have McQueen ahead of him now. Would be better for his development imo.

Remember Pied can play both FB positions too.

 

Pied is a bit of an unknown though.

 

True, but the same could be said of any player who's yet to have a run of games. Either way we don't need 3 LB's.