Asset stripping they said, relegation they said, sold all our best players and replaced them on the cheap they said... Well a big middle finger up to everyone in the media who wrote us off. What an inspired appointment Koemam was as well, love the man, his style of play and his interviews. We now sit second after nearly 1/4 of the season gone to a Chelsea side who are probably up there with the best in Europe this year. Yes I know it's early days, and I don't believe for a minute we'll be anywhere near 2nd come May. But what a season it has been so far proving many pundits and fans (myself included) so very wrong. I for one, am going to keep enjoying the ride. Up the Saints
That comes from being a Saints fan though. Lost count of the times last year where we dominated, didn't take chances and not win. That was under a different manager admittedly, though I can't remember his name right now...
Unbelievable. Magical. Strong. Disciplined. Powerful. Creative. Exciting. Koeman is a genius, our scouting team incredible. I honestly can't believe how good we are, from what looked like such a troubling summer on the face of it. The sky is the limit this season. We can genuinely beat anyone. We need to keep grinding out as many wins as we can, and then see how we fare against the big boys.
Then stop being like an old Saints fan then. Saints are only 5 years old, so why think they are going to have the characteristics of a Saints team that existed before that..? I don't know how many times I have to say it, but that has all gone. Yes, occasionally we will get beaten, perhaps when we don't deserve to, but this isn't the plucky little local club of old. Pochypoo and Koeman didn't come to Southampton FC because we're cute. They came because exciting things are happening and ambition is very high indeed. And Saints are doing it with a combination of being smart and spending money where it is required. It's difficult to find a moment in the last 5 years where they've made a significant error.
I'm not referring to you specifically, but your reaction is typical of certain Saints fans. We get itchy if we are winning 1-0. There was a time when that sort of thing transferred itself to the team because they were fundamentally weak. But this Saints team [and ones from the last 5 years - hence the reference] is one that doesn't really buckle. They've been getting better and better, and their own expectations and ambitions have been getting higher and higher, while many Saints fans have been worried about it all coming to an end. Stop worrying is all I'm saying. This is becoming a great football club that only resembles the one from different eras in that the team plays in stripes.
Exactly. This isn't anything like the Saints I grew up with. Even Lawrie's great era was done on a relative shoestring, so it was always going to end sometime. This is properly funded, so Saints can become a long lasting bigger club.
Yeah I'm aware of the point you are making (and completely agree) but what I'm saying is there were many games LAST season where we dominated, didn't take our chances and then not win. I don't think you can have a go at me for being nervous. It's part and parcel of being a football fan. I bet even Chelsea fans under Mourinho get nervous when entering the latter stages. It's human nature, I wouldn't have it any other way though. Anyway we're kinda going a bit off topic from the thread here...
I wasn't exactly having a go. Just making the observation. Back in the old days [let's call it], I used to be nervously on the edge of my seat, even if Saints had been two up with twenty minutes to go. It was sometimes so bad I had to look away. Since the Liebherr era I can't honestly remember being edgy in that way again. It's just not the same nervousness. For example, today whenever Stoke pressed us up the field I don't think my heartbeat barely raised itself off rest. On the other hand, whenever Saints went up the other end I got really excited. It's great to feel like that when you've had much of your supporting life feeling edgy. I'm suggesting other Saints fans join in. I think it's healthier.
Moving into a bigger stadium in 2000 has certainly helped the mindset of the club, even pre-Liebherr. It put the club on a higher pedestal for starters. Now the club is reaping the benefit aided by the tremendous professionalism of the board, staff, players and supporters. The next challenge is to widen the fan base. How can we get youngsters in our own region to support the Saints rather than owe an "allegiance" to Chelsea or Manchester United? If we were to get a kind FA Cup draw against lower league opposition at home, that would be an ideal opportunity to blitz the schools in South Hampshire and get the kids and their parents along for the match by offering a nice package.
Good point. The catchment area is enormous. The potential fanbase is enormous, as Cortese identified a few years back, but kids are attracted by clubs 70 miles up the M3, simply because there hasn't been too much glory in this direction. Well, maybe there will be, and hopefully the club will realise that they need to give young fans something to support because tradition is nothing if success is now.
I know it's very expensive, so not thinking we will enlarge the stadium any time soon, but the advantage of a bigger stadium is that it would be possible to offer seriously cheap kids tickets. Combined with success on the pitch, it would make it easy to build up the next generation of fans. These new fans (bless them) would be completely unaware that sometimes supporting Saints isn't all beer and skittles, but sometimes involves pain.
