http://www.foxsportsasia.com/home/news/detail/item960698/ Interesting stuff from Jos. He's a good character and I can't help but like him. Although I do admit if we have ambition to push on much further, his role to play im that will be questioned. DTLW
Hate to point it out, but he did have some pretty poor performances. I'm glad he's back to his best now, but I do think his best is perhaps not good enough for what we're hoping to achieve. I hope he remains in the squad for some time, but I also hope there'll be one or two better centre-backs for him to compete with.
He is the ideal CB for games against the like of WHU and Stoke where you can expect a real battle as he really relishes that type of game and is prepared to stand toe to toe with anyone
At the beginning, we were scoring but also conceding. Mistakes by the defence, especially Jos, made our goalkeepers appear worse. Then we began to get used to the PL and the team as a whole defended better and a final decision was made about the GK. I don't think the fans got on Jos's back at the matches...he had earnt some time from previous performances. He has replaced Fonte for the moment because he brings something to the game that MP likes. Has Jos done well for Saints...yes. Is he a great guy...yes. Is he the real answer to our CB problem...probably not.
Probably sums the situation up with Jos Fran......He is probably a good centre back but not outstanding.......Same could be said in regards to Yoshida. They both do a job with out being outstanding.
I must admit I have always liked Hoover and was a bit miffed at the way things seem to conspire against him early season, it is typical of some Saints fans, born out by many posts on this site and others, that they have to have a fall guy to pick on, they have had plenty of victims so far, Foxy, Guly, and Hoover have all come under intense fire at times, some of course, seemingly justified, but never positive or helpful in the circumstances. There is certainly a tendency of some to post without engaging their brains at times, yet not one would be justified in saying that Hoover has never given less than 100% at any time, Vincent Kompany he is not, but he has been pretty good for us recently.
The only thing I ever object to is not giving a 100%...all the team are working to the best of their ability. We must all remember that we all make mistakes...but we aren't being watched by 32,000 people (who can all play better or manage better than we can).
That is a good point. No-one can be blamed for not being good enough. So you can only judge the person by the effort they put in (unless you are blessed with ability like Tiss). Take someone like Francis Benali. Not the most gifted of footballers but one of our most popular ever. You know he loved Southampton and would give everything for the cause.
He was unlucky to be fair, apart from the freak own goals and penalties his overall performances weren't that bad. I think he's been very good lately and is deservedly keeping Fonte out of the team.
LFF, stop posting stuff I really agree with; you're ruining the fun One of the big parts of Franny's game I loved, was that he was not a very good full back. I loved the fact he could slice a ball 4o yards into touch. I knew what was coming. He was red and white through and through. If you were in a war or a relegation battle, he'd be the first man you'd want in your team. A player who made the most of what he had and was in the right era for his talents.
I don't think any of the current squad can be accused of not giving 100%. Even the flair players like Gaston and Adam really put a shift in. We are blessed with having a team of battlrs with some good quality in there too.
I don't rate him too highly and don't think he is a good defender, at the start of the season he wasn't doing the basics right like being goalside and actually marking an attacker. I haven't really noticed him too much under pochettino which is definitely because he is playing better football, he has had a lot less pressure on him though so it's hard to judge how much he has improved. I doubt he expects to be first choice next year, he would be useful backup as he has shown he can play well enough. One thing about him from last season was that he is a goalscorer, hopefully he can pick up a goal or two in the last few games, I remember him hitting an absolute pile driver from 40 yards straight at the keeper anywhere else and there was a fair chance it was in.
