Christophenburg

This is a joke surely?

A higher profile name doesn't guarantee success, and he's not any more of a gamble then Marcelo Gallardo, indeed Jones knows English football which is a distinct advantage to someone who has never managed outside of South America. There's a huge amount of snobbery behind some of the reluctance, and I'm not convinced Saints fans wouldn't be more enthusiastic if Jones' name was Nuno Jiménez or something. SR want him, they wouldn't be willing to pay compensation if they didn't. They must have a clear picture that he's the right fit for the vision, so ultimately it comes down to whether you trust them or not

It's precisely because they have had months to think about who's going to replace Ralph that this overreaction needs tempering a little. SR aren't doing this on a whim, they wouldn't be paying compensation to Luton if they were, so they have to see something

Regardless of you personal opinions on Jones, the fact that we're going for someone that we have to pay compensation to bring to the club suggests it's not an 'unambitious, anyone will do, yes man' but a well thought out and targeted appointment. Argue the merits of Jones all you want, but he's clearly someone the club wants, not someone who just happens to be available and is good enough

...what?

Lets be honest, he won't be sacked off the back of a win against Newcastle or Liverpool regardless of whether his overall record in the short or long term warrants a sacking - that's just the reality

I don't buy Ralph leaving during the WC being set in stone, we'll have to lose two of the next three games to do that (or a terrible result against Wednesday). Get anything against Newcastle and I'd be surprised if he was sacked. That said, a nice month-long break with the majority of the squad and then Brighton, Fulham and Forest would be a dream start for a new manager

Tete is the new Promes - we'd all love it, will be linked in every window, but will never happen He might be 28 come January but if he wants to rekindle his international career he'll probably need to move to a bigger club then Celtic

Yeah the weird rivalry needs to be nipped in the bud pretty quickly. I get that they're primarily talking to their fans and trying to communicate that they're not second fiddle to us, but it'd be better to talk about how it benefits both clubs etc. etc. not sour the group dynamics

He's 46! Completely off topic but surely Julian Nagelsmann, Rúben Amorim and Matthias Jaissle are the most highly rated young managers - all under 40 and with great records in competitive leagues

I thought it was odd as some had played minutes on Saturday, both Maitland-Niles and Diallo played 45 minutes on Saturday and on Sunday, Djenepo and Edozie both played 25-ish minutes on Saturday and again on Sunday (Djenepo 73 minutes and Edozie half an hour until his injury). Even Mara played minutes in both games (though only a pointless cameo on Saturday). I've never seen that with the B-team before. And if it's simply just a run-out for fringe-y players then there's a cup game on Wednesday

Ha ha ha, what?

In Richarlison's first season at Fluminense he had 4 goals in 31 appearances - does lightening strike twice?

In Adam's defence his tone has changed a lot recently too - I get the feeling he's sensed Ralph is probably on his last throw of the dice

Exactly this - we'd have bought these players regardless of Ralph, as they fit the club model and ethos, and our playing philosophy to a lesser or greater extent

Reckon it'll be a very Saints-y game - we'll score first, probably go into half-time 1-nill up, then completely fold in the second half and lose 2-1

This would be a strange end...

I think that's very, very unlikely, not least because we were terrible in the last half of last season and slightly better initially this season

I was pretty animated about this news when it first broke yesterday but after listening and reflecting I'm more indifferent now, even a little pleased. Seems Shields is a pretty toxic - unprofessional interactions on social media, leaking like a sieve, and the fact that he told the press about the Chelsea offer before the club, says all you need to know. Even if it looks a little embarrassing that our head of recruitment is leaving after just 4 months despite being sold a project, I think it could end up being a blessing in disguise

Zak Ralph kind of works, but anything with Hasenhuttl feels a bit obvious, like Zak Enhuttl. Brenda Nout made me chuckle.

He tweeted "regardless of what happens next it's been the best window" so absolutely not Yeah there seems to be a huge amount of revisionism going on around the window. We've strengthened in every department bar striker and I firmly believe there is no-one who left last season who would be starting ahead of any of the new signings (Broja excluded). We have a young, talented and raw squad - the right manager could do wonders with it

He doesn't seem fit enough, and doesn't seem to be up to speed with how Ralph wants to play (though most of the squad don't seem to be either). I think Ralph specifically singled AMN out as not being ready for Ralphball yet

Quite, in fact there's probably only two signings - AMN and Mara - who might need more time to find their feet. Everyone else is either a first name on the team sheet or making an impact from the bench, even Edozie and Larios

Staggered anyone is criticising Bazunu