Sorry Cardiff, he may well be off, but I think that's a little too much like a conspiracy theory. Mane has had an indifferent season form wise, but I don't think that is anything to do with the teams we are playing or his attitude. It pretty much mirrors most the Saints players who have had some good spells and some poor patches. VVD and Ryan apart. The time we may see an attitude change will be if we start rejecting offers from now until the start of next season.
This is stupendous news; places a strong statement with the other players and other clubs about retention of key players and if other clubs come in to buy our players then the asking fee is going to be higher. But most importantly it fosters a belief of longevity at the Saints. As for all this tosh regarding RK and Everton; why would he want to take arguably a backward step or, at best, a sideways step and sign for Everton?
Very good news, particularly Forster as he'd have been a very popular transfer target if his contract entered its late stages. If we're being proactive to maintain squad continuity, Tadic might be a good bet as the next (beyond Wanyama) to see a new deal offered...has two years remaining after this season, but adding a couple to that wouldn't hurt.
you saying we're Nandos? I prefer to think that if he stays with us, Ron can have his lardy cake and eat it.
This is awesome. Forster and VVD were the two players I thought would be the litmus test. Both are young, but good enough to potentially draw interest even though they still have time on their contracts. If they had wanted to leave, we would have still been stuck in "stepping stone" territory. Wanyama, Pelle, and even Koeman are typical end-of-contract shenanigans to me. It's always a hard decision whether to sell, extend, or take the last year. But it's will always happen. It SHOULD happen. If the decision ISN'T a hard one, it means someone screwed up and either signed someone to way too short term a deal, or we overpaid someone and it's a no-brainer to get them off the books ASAP. I'm glad that JWP signed as well. He seems like a good guy, and maybe a potential captain down the line. I'm a little worried that his game seems to have stalled out, however. I really thought he would break out this year. He needs to either improve his defense, in which case he will be similar to Davis. Or he needs to develop some dribbling/crazy creative skills to emerge as a true AMC. Right now, he's a guy who is good at ball movement and taking set pieces. Those are two nice tools, but by themselves are not enough. But if the club went out and signed JWP, it must be because they see a long term future for him here. I trust their judgment.
Agree with all of this - great post. A lot of people (Saintsweb) are ridiculously harsh on JWP. He is already better than Tom cleverly for example, and he got called up for England! I have wondered if a loan deal to the championship would be a good move, to get him playing week in, week out, for 90 minutes. If Gaston can shine, I'm sure JWP would look a more complete player too. However, he is probably too valuable to us towards the end of matches.
These extensions are great. Fraser Forster signing is ok however I'm looking forward to Fraser Foster signing a long term deal too. From the last couple of tv commentaries Foster has looked very good in goal and made some top class saves.
Yes, I don't know how many times I've shouted FORSTER at the TV screen. Even Whispering Dave on Radio Solent says Foster. You'd think he'd know.
Ron admitted in the interview that he is coming to that stage where minutes are becoming crucial. Davis seems the player he is most likely to replace long term. As for people being harsh on him, I think it's easy to forget that 21 is still young for a footballer, especially a young man with no early physical development or advantage e.g. great pace or bulk/height. I've seen gain and improvement from him every year. I think he has added some aggression to his game this season. When he's coming off the bench he is effecting play more off the ball. His pressing created the winner against Liverpool for example
