Can I just get in and say, please god no one cite form. It's across two seasons. In this one stat, there's actually two. Last Season: W - 1 D - 4 L - 2 This Season: W - 1 D - 2 L - 1 So what can we conclude...? Last season, we spluttered over the line and weren't performing very well. This season, not a bad start, especially considering this being the 'second season'. I've seen enough from us defensively to suggest when that attack clicks, we'll start climbing even more. Dani and Rickie looked close to 'clicking', today.
Happy enough today as, lets be honest, it was down to the keeper we didn't come away comfortably winning today. Yes we need to start scoring with the number of chances being made, but at least we are making them. You can see this is a team ready to move up a gear...
Not a good start either. More bad than good. Don't understand what "second season" has got to do with anything. We supposedly have a much better team/squad now and we've had a really easy (by prem standards) fixture list for first 4 games.
Setting aside the aesthetic drop-off, would I rather have the problems that we've experienced in the latter half of last season and the first four games of this one, or the problems we had in the first half of last season? Easy call.
We have gone from being unable to even draw last season, to being unable to turn solid draws into wins. If you think we have started poorly you have a very very short memory. In my opinion, there is a lot of work to be done and some decisions to be made, but there is also a lot of potential in this team.
The quality of the opposition in the first 6 games of last season did have something to do with it. Wigan aside from last season, we've played teams this season that I believe will be in the bottom half most of season. Its folly if fans think we will suddenly up our game and be amazing against top 6 sides. Its also folly to think our defence won't be stretched MUCH more against those better sides. To be honest, the forwards we've faced in the last 4 games have been pretty ordinary (and thats being kind).
So we've lost only 3 out of last 11 games...not bad. That is something a team can build on. I too hoped we would have a better start, especially since we are playing lower teams, but I am not going to get apoplectic about it. How will that influence the team or results?
Posting facts on the internet doesn't influence the team one way or another. I'm not getting down on the team, they probably will improve, but it's not all sweetness and light. It's the players & manager's job to be positive. They set the tone for the games. Is it any wonder the atmosphere at St Mary's has been woeful these two games? The tempo of the team is too slow to get any pressure or excitement going.
Absolutely. The reverse is that those teams may provide us more room in which to operate, as well. Under Poch, we played six games against the top seven sides...we won three, drew one, and lost two. It has been the teams that played on the back foot that gave us the most trouble; we simply do not break down organized defenses well enough.
We were in league one, not so long ago, starting even more poorly... Saints concede twice in first four games shocker! Good players not shining yet shocker. Fans want more shocker. We all wanted to win. I know the old saints would have lost that. Did Osvaldo lose his rag? Did we fail to make chances? Did JWP suddenly lose the deadball magic? No.
Maybe, but wouldn't say that West Brom, Norwich or Sunderland played us on the back foot as much as West Ham did. We won't get more space to play at Anfield next week, I'm damn sure of that. Maybe a bad example as I expect Poch will probably go with a "defensive" set-up.
Personally, I want to be entertained first & foremost. If we win, then great, but if his brand of football is the "Southampton way" then it will lose more fans than it gains.
Yep, I sort of agree with that. And it's not the old European style of slow either, ie to put one's foot on the ball and ponder, before providing the killer pass. It's the jogging nature of it all. Mind you, the last time we seemed to consistently play at speed was in the Championship. I know that's not quite accurate, but that's what it feels like at times. Blimey, I'm having a whinge. Got to be more positive. The team will get themselves together. The quality players we have in the squad will gel, and then watch out. Can they gel for next week..?
That's what puzzles me the most at the moment, how we have dropped the pressing game, or at least, scaled it back. Has it been the introduction of Wanyama, who uses muscle more than speed to close down? Is Morgan unsure of how to play with Victor than he did Corky? Just feels painfully slow at times, but mostly when we attack. It's not the "red arrows" going forward, its more like "red snails".
Really? I must have been at a different game from you today. I was very well entertained indeed, thanks. Very frustrated by the end result but more than happy with the quality of the game. We put enormous pressure on them for long periods (which I enjoyed), we put five shots in on target (which I enjoyed), we saw a great goalkeeping performance (which I enjoyed, bizarrely), I watched SRL hit the post (which was heart-stoppingly enjoyable) and I watched a pretty solid defence (which I enjoyed watching stopping Wet Spam's attacks very nicely bar one arrestingly exciting moment). It was 0-0, but that was the only dull thing about it. The game was packed with incident, despite being on a wet and windy day, which normally takes all the fun out of football. So, you're not with me on this one. Which is odd, because it's so unlike you to be negative. Vin
Your inability to separate the result from the entertainment value of the game is my problem, it seems. The Sunderland game was dull. Today's wasn't.
I thought our performance today was poor. We lacked any real conviction to win the game jrod and lallana very ineffective for me. Gaston should be starting; currently we lack people capable of creating chances. Players still gelling so not overly worried but we look pretty dull at the minute - a far cry from the forward play we saw at times last season
