Oh, and Robbie, I was wrong. Fer was exceptional in the second half. Maybe he can boss games like Vieira (sorry, not sure about spelling) used to.
Well played today. You were the better team and deserved the win. I was impressed by some of your passing and link up play and as expected, you were very solid and organised at the back. Good luck for the rest of the season. I'd like it if we could both break into the top half!
It's good to see some gracious comments from Saints fans, you've got a good team, just need the rub of the green! Good luck with the caveat mentioned above!
I thought we were very lucky to get away with Johnson's hand ball and who knows how the game might have gone if the penalty had been given. Anyway, your movement up front looked impressive and I doubt if you will have any problems this season. I could see you breaking into the top ten.
Mate, just to give you the bigger picture, earlier in the week there was more than a few of this lot discussing how long they should give CH before sacking him!
Do we agree too that Elmander is a great signing? Experienced, skillful, and good awareness of those around him.
OK, I also admit that I was underwhelmed by the signing of Elmander, but judging by the two games so far, as you say he has a very mature awareness of the players around him. My problems with CH have never been about his ability to spot a good player.
Deserved win for you guys in a tight game. Redmond is looking a great little buy for you guys and should replace Sterling in the England squad soon. Webb was shocking for both teams.
Just looked at the stats for the game on the BBC website (they get their stats from teh press association) - they claim we had 42% possession and Saints 58. REALLY??? Refreshing to see such an attacking team selection rom CH. Excellent win and I thought we played very well. 8th in the league - WOW!!!!
Webb did miss two blatant penalties, but at least he kept the game going and I thought allowed the advantage whenever possible. I was particularly imprressed with Fer today, who looked solid in breaking up play and then distributing it well. Redmond was very lively throughout in his best match so far and the goal was superb. Great also to see Bassong back and looking confident and I agree that Elmander seems to be a great acquisition. Snodgrass did well enough, but still isn't at his best yet. 8th place looks very fine indeed!
I'm sure his ability to sign players is Hughton's only redeeming feature for some fans. It was a good performance on the whole today, our passing still looked ragged at times but then Southampton's wasn't a huge amount better. Redmond was brilliant. I was getting annoyed at him constantly cutting inside but it worked out well today. Fer is a beat in midfield, it's been a while since we had a player who really got stuck in and I think Johnson picked up on that and got far more involved. All in all, 3 points is the best part of today, hope Ricky gets more involved as the season progresses and having Bassong back is a hugely calming influence. Screw it! I'm gunna do some match ratings: Ruddy 6 - Didn't have a huge amount to do, caught a good number of crosses and saved well from Lambert when the flag went up. His kicking was far better than against Everton, but still not perfect. Whittaker 7 - Supported Snoddy well, always a willing runner down that flank. I do wish he would get rid of the ball quicker sometimes, his desire to play out from the back at all costs is a dangerous game. Turner 6 - Dependable as ever, got stuck in when needed and plenty of old fashioned no nonsense clearing. Can't ask for much more. Bassong 7 - Didn't look like the same player from last season in the first half but grew into the game. By the end he was first to eveything and looked as cool as a cucumber with the ball at his feet. Garrido 7 - I felt our left side in generally was very strong today. I was annoyed that Olsson wasn't at LB but Garrido really stepped it up today. He must have blocked about 10 attempted crosses today and his supporting runs for Redmond were brilliant. Happy to see he is looking more solid. Fer 9 - Tackling. Passing. Composure. Good control. Fast. Strong. Good in the air. Take your pick of things to say about Fer. He had a great game, completely bossed things in the second half. If he keeps this up we might even see the diamond at some point this season! My MotM. Johnson 7 - Over shadowed by Fer, though he definitely grew more into the game. Put in far more tackles than usual and had some very neat touches all over the pitch. Looks like he is getting closer to his form of last season, still needs a little work though. Lucky to not have a pen given against him. Snodgrass 6 - Plenty of work rate but his end product was far below his usual standards. Seemed to be trying to match Redmond with tricks and cutting inside but that's not really his game. Still a solid performance, when he isn't contributing to the attack he always helps out. Great engine. should have gotten a penalty in the last minutes. Elmander 7 - Looks like the mature calming influence our team needed. Seems like a classy player and a willing runner. If him and RvW can form a good partnership it could be very hard for Hooper to get into the team! I wasn't disappointed with his signing but he has impressed far more than I expected! Redmond 8 - Drifted in and out of the game but when he has the ball at his feet and he is running at the opposition it's a majestic sight to behold. A brilliantly talented player and in the second half, the best outlet for our attacks. Fantastic first goal for the club to round off a good performance and seal the win. RvW 6 - Plenty of endeavour and you can always see he has that class but not nearly enough service to him. Poor final balls from the midfield left him feeding on scraps. Hopefully the team starts providing more for him and he can get the goals. Subs: Howson 5 - Not much time to assess. Ran around alot, maybe got pushed off the ball a few too many times. Glad he came on in the CAM position.
Excellent post, cannot really argue with anything you have said, and as for Fer ....................................... **** me I can't believe we've got him, has Patrick Viera been cloned ?
You was one of the foremost Budgies giving it in the how long shall we give him? thread One win and you're a convert to the church of CH! FFS Where's ya mate Carrabuh this evening, laying low till the next defeat?? Have a good evening, lads, it's about time...
I can see there is going to be some serious competition for places in the team this season and as the new playres start to 'gel' better, I'm hopeful that we'll see better performances from the team.
Ahem, 'one swallow and all that', I'm still to be convinced as to whether CH is the right man to take my club forward ..............BUT I am prepared to give credit where it's due. I also stated previously that I WANTED Hughton to succeed so I really don't see your point Welly. Bit quiet as per on the 1p5wich board tonight ??
He certainly plays the part well. Some of his tackling was incredible today. He really throws himself into the game and I can see a lot of our midfield play being built around him. Played some lovely cross field balls as well. Seems like a steal for the reported £5M we paid!
Mate you need to re-read your posts on the subject, you're ****ing schizophrenic you are, if CH took you to the Champion's League the likes of yourself and Carrabuh would still need convincing!
