Match Day Thread Southampton v Liverpool 4/1/2021 8pm Sky Sports

No I said anyone or not many

Like I say I agree he needs more time but I'm far from convinced by him and don't see the potential that Sadio had at all. Though half the player of Sadio would be a pretty good player for us still.

I'd say this is a big period for him from now to the end of the season.

 

He’s a very frustrating player - had the ability and skill but he’s very lightweight and can go missing for long stages of the game. I don’t understand how people who screamed for Boufal to be dropped can support Moussa. I think, on his day, Boufal was a better player. Still, that’s history now - Moussa needs to shape up (a la Sadio) and show us something or, I suspect, Ralph will be looking for a replacement.

 

I'll just trust Ralph on that, all I was saying is that he must see something in training or he wouldn't still be here.

 

Do you think if he plays the same as now, for the rest of the season, will Ralph upgrade in the summer, or show patience?

 

For Moussa to even approach Mané’s shadow he first needs to put on a stone or two of solid muscle, and start occasionally trying to run round defenders instead of straight at them or tying himself in knots all the time.

 

I think he'll persevere a bit tbh. Not sure how much game time he'll get though as I'd have him 4th in line of our current 'wide' players.

So he'll probably start and score tomorrow

 

Yeah, i think he sees him as coming good in the end, and he must be doing stuff in training. I hope that CB for Pool, the one with a beard plays, as I think even Vestergaard could out sprint him, and having Theo, Armstrong and Moussa running at them could be interesting. It may make Pool think of their tactics for this game

 

Don’t forget our main criticism of Moussa a while back was that he did not support the defence. Ralph has worked his magic and that side of his game has vastly improved. So yes, I see a young player listening and learning and will only get better.

 

This is a concern, Moussa seem even more slight and delicate than when he joined. After 18 months and what is a patent issue, you would think he would be a bit more robust for the needs of this league. When goes on a run but seems at the point of collapse by the end of it, which as you say, is usually by running straight into a defender.

 

Really? Mane looked absolute quality the day he arrived. His pace, ball control and quickness of thought. He looked a little selfish at times, but that seemed more to do with him trying too hard to impress.

 

Agree about Antonio. He seems to have bulked up alot from when he played for us. Whatever he did, Moussa could do with some of that!

 

A coaching issue then

 

My understanding is that in an ideal world, Ralph would have happily given Ely a second chance. But firstly, Celtic wanted an immediate answer - so much of their season boils down to the CL qualifiers, that they couldn't afford to wait. And so to avoid regretting turning Celtic down, we didn't. And secondly, a shorter pre-season than normal this year would have reduced Ralph's ability to have a look at Ely (outside of actual PL matches).

Vestergaard was written off by almost every single Saints fan (way more so than Djenepo), and look at him now.

 

I've suggest Ely as possible next year for Ralph to look at. You think he could still have a future here?

 

Boufal never looked up, that's what I found so frustrating about him. In terms of technical ability, he clearly had that in spades. But you can't influence a game if you're trying to play it on your own, which always seemed to be the case with Boufal.

I was willing to give him a chance though btw.

Maybe not 6 chances

 

He needs to improve. But so would any player with something to prove at this level.

 

Well partly, I guess, though I'd say it's more a confidence/football intelligence issue than that.

 

Redmond ruled out tomorrow.......maybe until mid January.

 

Sorry I see nothing of Mane in Djenepo. They both come from Africa, there the similarity ends.

Too early to write him off but I don’t see him surpassing Redmond or Theo’s level. He may well play a part but I don’t see us selling him in 3 years for 100m.

 

I would replace with Tella