When Oxlaid -Chamberlain left us I don't remember too much wailing and gnashing of teeth, mainly because although we recognised that he was a decent player he wasn't critical to us at that time. Had it been Lallana who was leaving I think we'd have felt differently because he was probably our most important player at that time. Now Chamberlain is an England regular and Lallana appears to be nowhere near the England set-up. So, has Chamberlain improved drastically, has Lallana gone backwards or is it because Ox plays for one of the 'big' clubs?
Anybody got any odds on lambert to score at anytime tonight? looking around but can;t find nothing that stands out, want to put a cheeky fiver on him
Not sure it's as simple as that. Oxo has shown he can perform at the top level and Adam partly down to injuries hasn't shown he can do it consistently.
Both of the latter two. Chamberlain hasn't been very good for Arsenal, I live with an Arsenal fan who particularly doesn't rate him right now. But, he's definitely got the potential to be better than Lallana, and Lallana's not exactly played up to International standard anyway.
Could be a little of all of that. I would say that if Oxlade-Chamberlain had stayed, he would have quite quickly vied for being the best player at Saints. Now none of them have any need to disappear.
Chambo has more potential but he's a better player for England right now; he has real pace, scores goals and has played in the champions league. This "bigger club" argument is getting kind of tired, especially considering Lambert's call-up. If Lallana has the season we all hope he will I'm sure he'll be in the frame as well, but he's not done much to justify that yet.
Would you believe that the TV in this villa/gite that hasn't worked all holiday, suddenly seems to work via free sat to get ITV.... That's handy!!!
Chamberlain, for me, has improved very little since he left us. If he had been with us in the Championship, not only would we have ripped it apart but he'd have been a vastly improved player because of it. Lallana had a really good first 1/3 in the Championship but for the last 2/3 he was inconsistent for me. He was shortlisted for the top 3 players in the Championship, but I think that there were three better Saints players that season alone! Adam was really good for the first month or two in the PL, and then his form dipped, he got injured and when he returned he wasn't consistent. I do expect better from Adam as he was the best player in League One, and we really relied on him and, oddly, we found our best form when Chamberlain was injured - him wanting a move/getting big interest may have disrupted the team a little. Despite Lallana's criticism, I do think that last season he was England's best LM which shows how poor England are in that area!
Talksport debating Lambert now. Albion Martin says he is not good enoh to deserve international appearances.
Chamberlain was called up to England early because of his potential, not his form. I think he's being called up in the hope that he'll become a top player and when he's 21/22 he'll be very experienced internationally. I think there are a few wingers that have had better seasons than his (Dyer, for example) that would warrant a place on form more than Chamberlain, but he's in there to improve his experience for the future. The same goes for plays like Welbeck, who may not be in form, but is included for the future. As Lallana wouldn't been seen as a 'future' prospect due to his age, I don't think it's fair to compare him and Chamberlain in this way. I think if Lallana has a really good season, and there's an injury to someone like Young or Walcott or Cleverly, he's got a shot at getting in the world cup squad.
Saints academy lads seem to be heading to Wembley, the Saints media team are also all on their way to Wembley. Lallana and a group of our first team lads are also going.
I forgot about Welbeck's goal scoring qualities, Rooney overshadowing Van Persie and Defoe's consistent season...
