The fact there's no news about players coming in doesn't worry me even slightly. There never is until they're pretty much through the door - we're kinda good at that.
I am agreeing with you on defending the board. The board can't do anything about this. Some on here want us to do a Berahino and stick our wantaways on the bench for a season or 2 but that is just crazy. Not just because we are continually improving a better overall squad than West Brom but because it is false economy and will not stop others from doing the same. It will merely mean we can't attract those better potential players because they don't want to get stuck here. We would then end up with players like Mane, Wanyama and Tadic etc not signing for us because they don't want to be stuck here forever and we would then be having to overpay players at the end of their careers or settle for journeymen that aren't so good. The board are doing all they can and Southampton fans have to wake up to the fact that we have lost no players to smaller clubs than us and the players that have gone have all gone to clubs that "on paper" have a much better chance of success than us at the moment. Yes we have ambition but reality to most people without the rosy glasses is that it will take time for us to build ourselves into a big team whereas clubs like Liverpool no matter how badly they have done in recent times are seen as much more likely to regularly challenge than we are. That is just how it is.
Top post. I don't think there's anything more that the club can do, personally. It's sickening, but that's football.
I am just amalgamating a general vibe across this thread from many Saints posters talking about he owes us loyalty when the reality is these players got us where we are so it is even stevens. I was merely replying to your post r.e. greed or ambition when in all the cases of our players leaving it has been to a bigger club and most players will think that they can make the first team and not be a bench player. I think Fonte will be first choice. Just to answer your second post below the one I am replying to I agree this is not the board's fault at all and some people have gotten carried away with Saints' rise meaning we are somehow vastly more attractive than a Liverpool or Tottenham. Most players and fans will still think that both of those 2 and quite probably Everton as well have more chance of winning something in the near future than Saints. Doesn't matter about Leicesters and Wigans. Reality is that if you had to lay money as a neutral on who will finish higher average or win the most cups over the next few seasons the neutral would probably be putting your bet on 1-Liverpool, 2-Everton, 3-Southampton, 4-Leicester and 5-Wigan. We might even find Leicester are ahead of us in those stakes. Some people on here go crazy when someone wants to leave the beloved Saints and immediately those players turn from gods to greedy bench warmers. The only one that went that was likely to be a bench warmer was Lambert and he is still revered quite rightly. All of the others (including Fonte if he goes) will be first teamers for bigger teams. That is ambition. Greedy for success yes but they aren't going anywhere for the bench warming duties.
This may have already been stated in a previous comment but I stopped paying too much interest to this thread when the bickering started... ... Apologies if I'm covering old ground. Does anyone think the "interest" from United may miraculously cool by Saturday morning? A big part of me thinks this is just mind games from Mourinho.
I don't think I have a problem in selling our players (often our best ones) each summer. What I am starting to become annoyed with is the quantity. Obviously Fonte may well stay, but if he goes we will have lost the spine of our team - again - in one summer. If we were to have a policy of selling just two each year then it may be easier to take. I appreciate sometimes we may be in a situation where we have no choice (Wanyama/Clyne).
I stopped watching and was barely following football in the early noughties as the Premiership ruined any of the old romance of lots of teams having a chance and big boys quite often finishing low down. Then I read that bloody Saints were about to go out of business and it was all rekindled again and I followed with fervour until about half way through Koeman's first season when I just got tired of watching mostly scrappy games hailed as masterful and artful and the constant hype of the Premier League. Last season I watched about half the games on stream and only when Lincoln City were away the second half of the season. I didn't watch the game against Watford and went to City instead with the kids but I will probably watch the Man U game on Friday but the re-energised interest that admin and then recovery stirred up are quickly disappearing now we are back in the Prem which is strange seeing as we are doing quite well.
Lovren was "strides ahead of him" but it was Fonte's leadership that was key. Even for Portugal once Fonte came on you could see him leading the line, pointing directing.
You seem to believe that Fonte leaving is about money. When it's about money, there is always a simple solution: Pay them. We have tons of money right now. I have no doubt we could beat Man U's. offer. I don't like giving players in their decline years extensions or increases. And it seems to me whenever you make the exception for the guy who is loyal, or who supposedly lives and dies for the shirt.... something like this happens and it turns out they are just players like all other players. I wouldn't cave to Fonte's demands for the same reason I wouldn't have extended Davis. So no. I'm perfectly fine with Fonte leaving. As I said earlier, I wouldn't even be offering him a pay increase anymore. I don't think he's worthy of being team captain/veteran leader right now, and that's why we were trying to keep him the highest paid player. But my saying that I don't think it's wise for the board to do something is entirely different than saying the board CAN'T do something. The need for someone to be a hero and the other side villains is annoying. Especially when for you, the hero is always the club. It's a business. Get used to it. The board can make good business decisions or bad ones. And the decisions are hard, so they make mistakes. Probably a lot more than the ones we even know about. It's fair to disagree with them or question them without being accused of being a bedwetter, etc.
I really think you're talking to the wrong person by saying "get used to it" with the club making decisions.
Great post Impsaint and loads in there I wanted to say last night. I actually get more annoyed by fan reaction than what causes the fan reaction, most times.
That's just it, we have given JF everything. He is our captain, he should be putting fires out, not starting them. So so disappointed in him. The board have done everything I would have expected from them. No blame.
Looks like I need to extend my summer holidays from just the closed season to the period ending 31st August instead. Does discussing all this make anyone on here even one iota happier? I suspect whether you're generally optimistic or generally pessimistic, this conversation is just depressing you. Vin
Yeh but some people watch Eastenders,coronation st.and others,**** knows why they do that either. Oh and don't delay any longer your first (I think) post back made me laugh,that's what is needed on here.
Anytime I'm talking to you, I'm talking to the wrong person. Your insistence on personally attacking anyone who has something not-positive to say about the club, and the twisted logic you use to defend it is ****ing tiresome. You've already single-handedly hounded and driven out just about every doom monger on the board... so congratulations? Now how about cutting some slack for those who are still sticking around?
