Really? Carroll’s injury record is much worse than Austin’s. Last season was only the third time in his career that Austin’s played fewer than 30 games in a season. Carroll (who’s basically the same age) has only played 20 games in a season a few times.
Doubt the club would say anything like that....not really the way Saints work. Easy or informed guesswork I would say.
I would think they would. He's their go to journo for all things Saints related. He had the same info and other snippets about Puel before he left.
I don't think him being 'undermined' will have any impact on results. He's not exactly proved himself capable while being supported by the board. That line was obviously for the fans who have had enough of him.
You’d be surprised how often football clubs brief against their own players and staff. This club in particular seem to make a habit of saying a lot of stupid things to their preferred outlets. Just look at all the hullabaloo over Walcott - a deal that was never, ever going to happen.
Wilson is a local lad, used to work at The Daily Echo, and obviously has a major contact at the club. MP is rightly under scrutiny, but the news of this is probably trying to deflect the excellent transfer window LR is having, and coinciding with Walcott to Everton, after The Telegraph reported that Saints were relaxed about the link of Everton in for Walcott a few days ago?
I am so pleased that I support a financial model rather than an exciting, entertaining and successful football club.
Since Austin joined us their injury records are pretty similar. He's only going to decline physically from here. Outside of scoring goals (from a few yards out) Austin just doesn't offer enough for me. He isn't strong or physical enough to win headers or hold the ball up, he's not quick enough to run the channels, he doesn't contribute to build up play. There's a reason we were competing with the likes of West Ham, West Brom & Sunderland for his signature, and not someone like Liverpool or Spurs.
I don't think Carroll offers much aside from his aerial ability. His passing is poor, I don't think he keeps the ball any better than Austin and he picks up too many cards. I like Austin (I might actually put him ahead of Pelle as our best striker since Lambert) but he's not the perfect striker or anything. It just seems odd that a fan of a team that struggles to score goals would say they'd swap our top scorer for someone who's got two goals this season and hasn't had much more than half a good season in his whole career.
Being as strong as Carroll is in the air is a huge asset, especially with our obsession of crossing the ball. Neither would be my main striker, because neither are good enough for that, I'd rather have Carroll as an option off the bench over Austin though. B: That's a pretty low bar, since Rickie left we've had a broken Rodriguez, Osvaldo - who is/was arguably more talented than Austin and Shane Long. Pelle contributed a lot more to the team and if you took out Austins penalties he'd have a much better goal record too. nb - Gabbiadini is not an out-and-out striker, he never has been.
That part of the attributed quote that got me was he thought Big Sam could reignite his career meaning MP2 could not...
This sounds likely. I cannot imagine many players in top leagues uk or abroad look at saints as an attractive option at the moment. Saints and MP2s stock is very low. Don't want it to be true but it is.
Yeah, I mean it literally has nothing to do with money or Everton being by a much bigger club. I’m surprised Theo never came out and said “I did really want go go back to saints where my heart is, but Everton gave me tonnes more than I can ever spend in my oversized piggy bank, that and I didn’t fancy a relegation scrap and playing for some ****er I’d never heard of. Instead I will reignite my career with Sam, even though he overlooked me in his one game as England manager, he assured me when he illegally tapped me up prior to joining I’d have had then entire squad built around my one dimension, non footballing brain talents had he himself not squirrelled away mischievously”.
