Are we still getting Freidel in the transfer window? I wasn't at the match but I've been getting the impression this season that SKD and Gazza aren't quite up to it.
I am afraid I won't rise to the bait - and no it won't stop me from posting discussions on this forum -
Appears it has. You've posted no discussion since I disagreed with all of your points and you got pissed off about it
Bart against Blackpool was the worst goalkeeping display I've ever seen. KD looked vunerable today and made me very nervous, in fact they all made me very scared in the last 20 mins to the point my laptop was voluntarily disconnected to stop me screaming!!!
Bart against Blackpool was the worst goalkeeping display I've ever seen. ________________________________________ Not just the worst, but the strangest. A keeper scared to use his hands. Any other team & I'd still be laughing to this very day. Hows Bart getting on now, anyone hear much of him?
Bart cost us the title with his mistake for the second goal, not only that but winning agaist Blackpool would have given us the post war record of most consecutive home wins instead of being level with Liverpool I believe?
To put something to bed about Puncheon, we often take him off for the simple reason that he isn't as fit as some of our other players. An heirloom from his days of being half arsed.
Second half was difficult. I was shouting at my stream for our midfield to close down the ball higher up the pitch so often in that last half hour it was frustrating. What I thought at the time was that we really needed to just cut off the supply as we knew what was coming, but we didn't seem to make much effort/or were too tired. That said, if we'd pushed up to cut off the supply we'd have won fewer second balls on the few occasions the initial long ball bounced back. It's pretty difficult to call and you're damned either way if it goes wrong. I'd probably still err for more pressing than we did (particularly against 10 men), as we weren't winning enough of the headers for second balls to be falling in the deep areas our midfielders were occupying, but I can see that it is in effect a balance of how much to do each of the two things, and not just do one and not the other. Either way, the equaliser was what it was, an extraordinary goal. Can't blame anyone for that really. I guess that's why when we were all frustrated post game Adkins was still positive, because he knew that on another day that shot misses and 9 times out of 10 we go on to win from there. He's played the percentages pretty much right, and come up only just short. Lat
A lot of fans seem to be banking on us getting the right players in Jan, and to be honest we need to improve our squad desperately but I think it's a false hope. Improving div 1 team by buying good Championship players ie Fonte is one thing, but we are now in the EPL so we need to get players that will improve the first team and can do it quickly - a big ask
True, but every other relegation scrap team is in the same position. We hopefully have a bit more money to spend than they do, and I think that we have a better grasp of what our needs are. For example, Villa has some talent as evidenced by their win at Anfield, but that team is a mess right now and they have no budget. What can they do to improve their side? It is a big ask for Saints to stay up, but then it always was. It is not easy. In my opinion, Saints got promoted too soon and might have been better off with an additional year in Championship but what are they supposed to do... lose on purpose? They just happen to get caught in that no-man's land of being bottom three or four in Premier League but top two or three in the Championship. It's not surprising that a team like that will yo-yo a bit short term.
I found Adkins contentment after the match reassuring. Huge disappointment to lose from 3.1, but this was against a very good side who rarely let goals in. We scored 3 against them demonstrating that we can score against good defences. We all know our defence can be shaky, but their equaliser was a great goal...not a scruffy goal we should have cleared. There were 7 minutes after the equaliser when we could have folded completely....now that would have been a demoraliser. Adkins will have no trouble finding his 5 positives from that game. Some will jump on him for being happy to drop two points from a winning position...doubt that's the case but he knows how hard it is to get one point from Stoke at home. The disappointing game this Xmas was the Sunderland one.
Yes, funny old game. Whole seasons can be transformed by the width of half a crossbar. It's very difficult to know what to do tactically against a team that keeps pumping the ball into the penalty area from every corner of the ground.
We were kings of hitting the crossbar last season. This season the woodwork has been more even-handed.
We would have beaten Newcastle 5-0 if the woodwork had been kinder, but we might have only drawn with Reading.
Adkins was positive after the game because it was a creditable performance Fran. We were playing Stoke City at the Britannia where you only have to look at their record - and a couple of days previous Liverpool folded against that same bombarding attack after being 1-0 up at the start. Saints formation and standard of play in first half was excellent. All of us there knew that the 2nd half was going to be a stern test and so it proved. However it took a worldy strike to prevent us taking 3 points. The conditions with swirling wind and heavy pitch were not good either and this did help either sides goalkeeper and defenders. Easy for those watching it on a laptop to shout at the players when they appear to make a balls up ! Kelvin had a difficult afternoon but so would have most others - for the 2nd goal the ball came through a forest of legs and maybe he should have got it but not quite as easy as it looks. Stoke played very well 2nd half even with 10 men - their player was a bit unlucky to get sent off - they pounded us like only Stoke can and in the end they deserved a point. As you say there was 7 mins added on and it would have easy to lose the game. The general feeling on the way home last night was, bit gutted to lose 2 points when so close to 3, BUT very proud of all the players and the manager and a draw was about a fair result.
I think spending a couple of million on Paul robinsion of Blackburn would be wisr and then loaning gazza for the rest of the season to them would be ideal.
Ok leaving the season long goalkeeping argument for a moment. Fox for Shaw- can't argue with that, tbh I'm suprised he played uour youngest player in such a physical game anyway. Pnchon off? I can only imagine that he was really knackerred, although to me he still looked game. Agree with Davis on though, why take off an attacking midfielder and put on a defender? Surely when a team goes down to 10 men you crowd midfield and control the game? Aree that mayuka or de ridder should have come on- although neither have shown much (so far!) I think a bit of an attacking threat would have stopped them dominating the last 20 mins. Didn't think it was the worst display of keeping, only really saw the first goal and I thought either fonte or maya lost jones.
