Match Day Thread Southampton v West Ham Saturday 5:30PM

Oh no they've bleeding done it now,they've only gone and sent my missus a matchday experience questionnaire.
After several 240mile round trips to watch our **** games this year they send it today,the same day our lump of a captain couldn't pass the ball 2yards without losing it.The same day we had to suffer Rowan Atkinson as referee.
She's not being the nice person I know in the very long reply they're getting!
Dont think she will ever get another request!

 

I haven't had one since I was pretty scathing about it ...

 

This is a very valid point I had forgotten about. He said himself loads to go. Adam Blackmore said he’d been told 9-12 to go. Hardly any went.

Ralph must have been pissed with that. A lot of the players were probably pissed with that, knowing he thought a lot of them were crap.

Tough trying to rally and motivate in those circumstances

 

The biggest problems are at the top of the club.

 

Fair assessment. It's quite clear from my posting history that I don't really rate him (the 9-0 for me can never be forgiven) but it appears I'm in the minority, albeit growing at the moment. Ralph comes across as a nice guy, I just wish he could instil a bit of mental resilience in the players, and teach them to bloody defend

 

Just caught up with the thread, didn’t see any of the game, for which I am grateful. This last post by Fats is the most sensible thing so far in the whole post mortem, for the following reasons.
1. We have all been moaning about the poorness of the squad for at least the last 3 seasons, and we have neither shifted much of the dead wood nor significantly strengthened it in the key areas of defence and midfield. Our strike force has marginally improved but is still nowhere near good enough.
2. We have tried a succession of managers following Koeman’s departure, with various degrees of success or lack of it. We might have won a cup under Puel but everyone hated him so he was sacked. No manager since Koeman has had even the core of a good team, including Ralph, who was apparently promised a clear out which didn’t happen.
3. We as fans have no idea of Gao’s intentions, and I’m betting practically no one at the club does either. That uncertainty must be having a devastating effect on morale, from board level down to the Academy.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, whatever your opinion of Ralph’s ability, and I have my doubts myself, it will make ZERO DIFFERENCE to replace him, unless there is stability at the top of the club, a cash injection to improve key positions, and that much-needed removal of the complete passengers and wasters who seem to form the majority of the first team squad. I would be very surprised if any of those things happened while Gao is still the majority owner.

 

No disagree! Redmond had his best time with us after Ralph joined so not sure why he isnt doing it now. I have never been impressed with Hojbjerg. Cant't blame that on Ralph and Bertrand has been suspect before Ralph joined

 

They've sent me one as well but I can't even be bothered to tell them what I think. There's a saying "I'll be glad when I've had enough of this" and I think I'm pretty close to reaching that point. I used to be in a bad mood for a day or so after we lost but now I'm not really that upset, I've come to expect it.
I'm already planning what to do on Saturday afternoons next season.

 

Spot on, Chilcs.

 

This may seem crazy ....but I understand Jeremy Corbyn's available...may be worth a punt?

 

That’s depressing, but I suspect true. Bugger.

 

I think what annoyed me most today - after PEH - was the period either side of HT where we reverted back to sideways and backwards passing. Given how we ditched that in the second half against Watford, and then again against Norwich, I thought we'd learnt our lesson. Obviously not.

Of course it's also what led to the goal. Redmond and then PEH not looking to go forward.

 

I don’t get it. How can we produce such a poor first half.? We were somewhat better in the second half, but here are some other mysteries;
Why when we get a free kick in our own half, do we always pass sideways or back? Ok, if we were 2-0 up, then keeping possession makes sense, but we were not. If we don’t seem to do anything from free play, why not punt it forwards?
Secondly, why do we think that passing around the back more than one time will lead to progress? No options obvious? Then try a long ball forward.
The only positive I could take was that we have finally got the message about trying to play out of trouble from the back against teams which press. I guess I should be grateful for small mercies.
The other small hope is that the teams around us also, Bournemouth excepted, also made no progress.

 

I’ll run a few names past you:
Fonte, Van Dijk, Schneiderlin, Wanyama, Mané, Tadic, Pellè.

We have no one in our squad who comes close in quality to any of those players, at their best. We have zero prospect of signing anyone who comes close in quality to any of those players with the current owner in place.

 

To think two of those started their Saints career in League 1. IMO, that League 1 squad had more PL.quality players than the present squad. The afore-mentioned two, Lambert, Lallana, Kelvin Davis.

 

I only saw the 2nd half, but i thought we were unlucky. Antonio's goal was definitely handball and Ing's goal was extremely unlucky to be disallowed.

I have been saying for awhile that physically we are quite a small team and not physical. Does anyone else agree?

 

How can danso be cast as a good signing when he isn’t anywhere near the match day squad after 6 months?

 

Hughes, 17 points from 22 games, sacked. Hasenhuttl, 17 points from last 22 games...

 

Yawn.

 

Ralph added to the squad in the Summer, and has had a year in charge. Pretty poor if you ask me.