Match Day Thread Southampton home 22/11/2025

So we were just out-played by a more expensive team?

That might hold some water if Saints were top 6 right now.
But they're 13th even after three straight wins.

There can be no justification for shipping five first half goals at the Valley.
Not sure we ever did that even under Karel Fraeye.

 

A full on meltdown elsewhere

Newly promoted sides with 10 injuries are always going to struggle ….fact.

 

Five goals shipped in the first half, at home. The first four in 22 minutes.
That's a new low when it comes to struggling.

I'm not surprised that a lot of fans are very unhappy this evening.

 

We are still 10th in the table, with a 13 point cushion to the cheap seats.

 

We were found out pure and simple. Southampton were excellent and showed us how the game should be played. Short quick passing movement and excellent finishing. We were totally disjointed defensively and the players didn’t know what the management wanted from them. I would give the squad players like Rankin-Costello, Anderson, Oloafe, Berry a run out in the next game. The midfield today were awful. Docherty, Coventry atrocious. Apter didn’t look like he wanted to be there. We have Stoke and Coventry coming up. I fear the worst.

 

Granted.
And I've not mentioned any prospect of relegation issues.
Just expressing the understandable opinion that shipping four goals in the opening 22 minutes at home is not excusable.

The team needs to bounce back pretty quickly.
None of us want to see back to back defeats become a three, four or five game losing streak.

 

I am afraid I can’t see us bouncing back against Stoke or Coventry.

 

It's hoping against hope, but you never know. Football can be cruelly - or upliftingly - unpredictable...

 

Ain’t that the truth. Up and down like a fiddlers elbow.

 

It’s been a terrible day to watch sport . Stayed up most of the night to watch the England surrender monkeys in the Cricket. Then sitting in the freezing cold to watch a ****show. Why do I do it? I think it is a form of masochism.

 

I didn’t go today. I had Ashes lag.

My pal who is out in Perth spent a very considerable sum of money expecting to see a 5 Day Test. He is absolutely livid. You don’t mind losing, but not that way, in only 2 days. He said there are up to 30,000 England fans in Perth this weekend, they have all been royally bummed.

Back to us, we should heed the lessons of the last time we were in the Championship, in 19/20 under Bowyer. We ran out of steam at Xmas, and went down. You’d hope people at the club are looking at plans to strengthen in January.

I know not everyone agrees, but we are absolutely woeful up front.

Campbell & Leaburn couldn’t score in the Downham brass house, with a fistful of £20 notes in their hands.

 

Could not agree more.

 

Utter garbage from us. The players should be docked wages for that 'effort'. No fight whatsoever. It's time to use the squad. Give Tanto and Fullah a go.

And to think I stayed away from home an extra night to attend that mess.

 

I am cream crackered after staying up watching the Cricket and then hauling myself to watch Charlton. But things aren’t all bad I have poured myself a drink and tucking into a nice greasy kebab.

 

Home now. Got a Chinese on the way. Only Fools is playing.

Lovely.

 

Some puzzling post match comments from NJ.

“I’m standing there on the touch line getting the brunt of everything, same as Wrexham”.’

What is he talking about ?

The obvious criticism (s) would be playing attackers in defensive positions today, and recruiting quite a few players with chequered fitness records - it’s biting us on the arse now.