SonicBoom

Let's be fair Hughes is going to face far easier questions than Les and Ralph.

I'm pretty sure the club would love to have academy players flooding into the first team again. The academy no doubt scrutinises every aspect of a players development - but maybe we have to face facts that they simply are not good enough. If Hughes thought Sims would make more impact than whoever was currently playing, then he'd be in. If Gallagher was likely to score more goals than our current forwards, he would be in the team by now. Players like Shaw and Lallana were good enough to be selected in preference to whoever was in the 1st team before them. This lot...aren't. It's a hard life for these lads. Once you get to 23/24 at a club like Saints and haven't progressed from the development squad then you might as well up sticks and leave - at least on loan. Otherwise you are condemned to this half-life of occasional bench time, and the odd U23 game in front of 20 people and 300 internet fans.

I think we'll end up around 13th. There are a lot of comments that other than the top 6 everyone else is dross. I disagree. I think now days in the premier league everyone else are of similar quality. The gap between the PL and the championship is bigger than ever.

Sideways passing again. People seem to like Hoj, but frankly I've seen nothing from him since he arrived. He's honest and hard working but no quality with the ball. He can't shoot or pick a forward pass. To me he's symptomatic of many of the squad. Good players, but not quite Premier League.

Maybe he's seen all the criticism he gets for appearing with players when they sign and so has decided to step back. Anyway he's judged on what he actually does - if you believe all ins and outs are decided by him. Hughes in seems to be well received. Tadic out seems to be a good move. Most of us are excited about Elyounoussi it seems. We appear to be looking for a CB and a striker. So he's doing ok at the moment.

Surely Gao's business and his personal wealth are two entirely different things? He has his own money that he's made from the business, and then there is the current value of that business. So the current value of the business has dropped (for now, these things go up and down) but that doesn't mean he's lost all his own money. Secondly yes we had a bad season but to say the club is a total mess in nonsense. We have been in far worse shape than this. Only last week we bid 22 million quid for a player and hopefully will sign Gibson for a similar fee. I remember when Rory Delap was our record signing for years at 4 million. For god's sake I remember when Jermaine Wright played for us!! Last season was not great but I think some people need to keep a sense of perspective.

Its easy to be cynical about modern football. There is plenty I don't like. But think about it. Was it ever that great or are we longing for a time that never actually existed? I think we are a lot more sophisticated as fans now. We have way more coverage and analysis and we all have the ability to air our opinions. Twenty years ago we were just glad to see any football at all on telly. I started in the chocolate boxes, then graduated to the Archers via the family centre and East stand benches. Most of that time was spent watching a team of very ordinary players hoofing the ball around a pudding of a pitch. We were for the most part utter crap. But we loved the last few games because it was exciting and we'd stay up. There were of course high points home and away and some of my greatest memories in life revolve around certain games for one reason or another. People moan now about the food or the quality of the beer. Well for many years you could get a cold pie and a bovril from a shed and stand in the rain to drink it. There was also that added risk that you could get your head kicked in. Fans moaned of course but that was confined to the pub after the game and during tea breaks at work. I think things appear worse now as we can all sound off 24 hours a day so the same gripes go on and on until they become the accepted wisdom. My point being that we remember these things with slightly rose tinted glasses. There is a lot wrong with modern football, but the football years ago was pretty bad too. We just remember it more fondly. Even over the last 2 years there have been high points !

Loftus Cheek would be fantastic. Good with the ball, creative and athletic. However I'm sure Palace know what they've got there, and if he has a good World Cup then Chelsea might even decide to keep him.

Some good points Minsk. Made me smile that you said maybe you want us to go for Moyes, or Big Sam? Well let's face it a few months ago Hughes would be right in that bracket. In fact maybe even a poor mans Big Sam. I'm not that happy with him. Frankly the one and only reason we stayed up was the fact that Swansea lost their last ten games. That said he's here, the players seem to like him and a lot of the fanbase seem to want him. I'm pretty sure he would keep us away from the bottom 3 next season so it's a low risk appointment for everyone. Anyway like any manager he wont' be here long. If he's great he'll be off. If he's rubbish he'll be sacked. If he's just ok fans usually get bored with a manager after three years and want "progress".

Carrillo is invisible but then so was Gabbi when he played alone up front. Maybe it's not the players!!? MP Just seems unable to fire up the players and his cautious approach spreads nervousness to the team.

The players don't seem to know how to hurt Liverpool. Then again we simply don't have the weapons. They have pace to cut through us. We have no pace at all. It looks to me like we had one plan that was to get crosses in from Bertrand and Cedric to Carillo. That was literally it.

I'm not guessing in case I win.

Hoedt having a mare. This time Salah takes the ball in front of him. Plays the ball sideways and Hoedt follows the ball not the man. Firmino returns the pass and Salah is on his own. Schoolboy stuff.

Long is the worst finisher in the PL bar none.

I agree. You can't keep or sack a manager on the basis of one game at a time. I'm pretty sure they know he's gotta go,but when is the tricky bit. Are we better off with no manager right now? Could Davis step up? Who could come in? All has to be considered I suppose. If we get someone in would it be the person we want long term, if not how do we get rid of them. We are perilously close to the time when it won't make any difference though. Our only saving grace is that we are not adrift. A win or two and the pressure is on someone else.

Let's also not forget that this team is more than good enough to pull away from trouble without any signings. We have some very good players capable of some really good performances. We're not doing well right now, but if we do go down, I honestly don't think it will be because we didn't sign people in January.

Redmond certainly doesn't seem to have progressed much since he's been here. He's not a regular in the side - although to be fair there are very few players who are regulars under Pellegrino. Then again I saw Antonio play for us. Seemed quick but pretty brainless and just ran the ball out of play constantly. He went to Forest etc and ended up at West Ham where he became one of their best players and got into the England squad. I suppose that shows that players develop at different rates and so you don't want to give up on them too quickly.

Fair enough. You do sound like you have seen more of him than me. Let's hope he does develop and he comes back ready to play for us.

3. He is expensive and I doubt any better than Gallagher who we should have stuck with I've never understood the fixation with Gallagher. No manager picked him regularly. He went to MK Dons and didn't score a goal in 15 games. Then he went to Blackburn and was better. 12 goals in 47 games. Pretty good. Then he went to Birmingham and has 6 in 22 games. He may well return as we have given him a contract but the club definitely don't see him as being ready yet - and the stats support that.

MP left and went to Spurs. He's won..ummm nothing. He also won nothing with us. But he has more resources and better players now - so really he's more of a failure now than he was with us.

Atmosphere has died second half

Defensively we look half asleep.

You do fear that any changes we make will be to hang on, not to push them back.

It's a murky world that's for sure. I've heard stories that clubs want to keep one kid but will also keep another player or two on because they are his friend and he'll be happier. Great for the player who is wanted but seems cruel to give false expectations to other lads who believe they are in with a shot. From the clubs point of view they are looking for those nuggets. Find one and he could be worth tens of millions which will fund the academy for the next ten years. The local kids are also the victims of the clubs success. The higher we go the better those kids have to be. That's why kids at Chelsea and City etc never get to the first team. They are just seen as a revenue stream. Local lads had a far greater chance of getting through when we were in League 1. We could afford to take a risk. Now they have to be ready for the PL straight away. There's no development. I'd say to any kid that wherever you are , make sure you are playing games. You'll have more fun and if you are good enough then you'll always float to the top. Lots of excellent players never went through an academy system. Then again those players today are getting stupid money. Witness the lad they discussed on the radio today. He's at City I think and he just bought a house for 2.2 million and he's 20. He's never played for the first team.

Well everything I heard and read pointed to the fact that Cortese was the opposite of an excellent leader. He ruled by fear and many people at the club were treated with utter contempt - including good guys like MLT and Benali which was disgraceful. He was certainly ambitious but on a personal basis. Most of what he did was to big himself up and raise his own profile. He actually seemed like a bitter spiteful man beset with small man syndrome. If he was this excellent leader then he would have been snapped up by a champions league club. Wasn't he going to Milan? Or even another PL club? OK what about championship? Nope. No one took him.