I dunno. I suspect the club understand well where our position in the pyramid is. With enough of the burgeoning talent in the squad, there's no reason we can't reach some pretty impressive places (which would then filter down into players staying longer). Smart strategy.
Also hopefully interspersed with talent coming through from our own academy again now that RK has gone.
I see two sides of coins for this. One is your succinct and accurate summary of Southampton FC's place in the football world. The other is watching top sides in the Premier League play each and spotting about a dozen players who played for Saints and being a bit depressed knowing that no matter how good any player is the minute he and his 'management' perceive he has reached a certain level he cannot wait to be off and will do anything in his power to ensure this. This would indicate to me, anyway, that Saints will never improve on the position they are in because they can never create a settled and stable squad with incoming players seeing the club only as a way to get to Liverpool/Manchester United/Arsenal or even Tottenham Hotspur. Just being the Devil's advocate.
Fair point. I guess it just depends on how you choose to look at it. That is where our position is though, but I'm kinda cool with that.
Yes you are completley correct, never is too strong a word as not one of us can predict the future - my Prediction League entries prove that conclusively. Perhaps I should have written it would appear 'unlikely' but even that might be a bit too strong really. I must admit my comments were very much coloured by the Arsenal versus Liverpool game where I just looked at the scorers and game got 'football depressed' [as opposed to real-life depressed which is much more serious].
Yes to be honest top flight football in UEFA is a monoply and the little club and clics they belong to prove it - so it probably is the best way to approach the current professional game. Just slightly...annoying...that no matter how good any player is at your club you know at some point in the very near future he cannot wait to leave. When you have players in their late teens, early twenties, behaving like this you know the game is up.
A more positive way to look at it is that we get three seasons (or so) out of players whom we might otherwise never see in the red and white stripes. The quality is definitely improving season by season, so I do see a point when we start to keep them for another season as they wait around to see what happens with us. Then there'll be a virtuous circle as we become a destination club, regularly gain a Champions League spot then go on to win the title so often that we become the team to hate*. Vin * too much?
Agree - I got football depressed by that too - as I've said previously, if everyone stayed, we'd be a consistent top four club, and that's really annoying. But money.
It is a bit depressing to watch so many ex players at other clubs, but then I look at the other side of the coin and remember how much we have improved despite their having moved on - not something most of the quitters can claim to have done. Moving to "bigger" clubs hasn't helped many to improve individually, with some having gone backwards.
We're also extending the contracts to average 5 years, which tends to ensure they're with us for about 3 years minimum before being tapped up & turned. Maybe the next step is to get one of these to stay. I think overall we are raising the bar, albeit inch by inch but nothing wrong with that.
Very little meltind down or bedwetting on here this summer tbf. I think even the most pessimistic are used to it all now.
Plastic FFS! Speak for yourself mine is 2mm thick reinforced rubber with a drain and collection pipe linked to a bucket.
