It takes quite a bit of discipline to play a high press. Especially the way Pochettino does it. You don't just run around chasing players willy-nilly. The closest man to the ball immediately attacks. That leaves a space in the defense where the attacking player has left his man or a passing lane open. So the next closest players have to scramble to cover the vacated man/gap. If the pressing defender doesn't win the ball within a certain amount of time/space he has to abandon and drop back into his position. At which point the new nearest man attacks the ball and everyone reorganizes to cover the passing lanes again. If anything, the problem with Pochettino's press is the lack of organization on attack. Not defense. Because the player might win the ball, but he's been pulled out of position to press, and the supporting players have run to covering areas. Can't have a Ramirez type who without the ball just drifts around in open space to be an outlet when the ball is won, he has to follow the action and do his defensive duties instead. The trade-off is, it's a surprise attack. Your offense is not in super-great attacking shape, but because the opposition wasn't planning on turning the ball over, they are in equally poor defensive shape. You need like a Vardy type who is both really quick and has awesome goal scoring instincts who can immediately get into poaching position. That's why we sometimes had problems scoring when MP was managing. If we didn't catch them on the press then teams had time to organize their defense, and his philosophy meant we sacrificed some creative attacking types in favor of players with higher workrates and better defensive discipline.
http://www.fansnetwork.co.uk/football/southampton/news/43046/ From Saints web saying that the Sevilla boss resigned yesterday. I would have though unlikely he'd come here if he turned Everton down...we can offer Europe but we can't offer the silly money that the Blues can. Looks like he is off to PSG.
On the spin of a coin isn't it? If MU had got fourth, LVG would have stayed. Mourinho would have gone to PSG. We could have got Emery. It looks rather unlikely now (it would be enormously funny though).
The one thing that this whole sorry affair will have done, is to make it a lot harder for any new appointment to win the hearts and minds of the fan base, although battle hardened by a series of set backs, we now have the additional problem about who we can trust. I hope that we are patient and give our full backing and support to whoever it is, that would be in both of our interests.
