Saint_John

For the first time ever I put my ST up for the Exchanged Ticket system on Sat (I had a Wedding to attend) It appears my seat was RE SOLD, however when I came to pay for my ST for next year there was NO MENTION of this credit. When I had put it up for exchange the email I received in return contained the following link ( https://southamptonfc.com/tickets/match-tickets/exchange ) which said I questioned this with the Ticket Office and have been told that because ST went on sale early this year there was a cut off date of the Liverpoo game and that my credit will not apply until the 2020/21 season, even though the web site STILL says "... your 2019/20 Season Ticket". So if anyone else used the Exchange System last Sat or is thinking of using it for the Bournemouth or Huddersfield games you will not get your credit until the 2020/21 season. Shame on you Saints for saying one thing on your web site i.e. 2019/20 Season, but doing something different.

When we get throws near the corners (both ends) it is always the full back/wing back who takes them, neither have long throws and the opposition KNOW that and can press us in. We have 2 players in the team who can take a long throw, Jannik V and Jan B. However both are left in the centre of the defence marking no one (marking areas of the pitch, a zone usually) Imo what should happen is that 1 of them should take the throws but the full backs should fill in defence. I am not saying we should become like cardiff and that every throw should be long, but it would be nice for say 1 in 5 was long which would force the oppo not to "press us into the corner flag"

I was sat in the Chapel only a few yards away from his MOANING and MOANING and MOANING. His head was TOTALLY GONE in the last 15 mins, just because their No3 got one over on him and he ended up being booked for it. As I said before we would have been better without him in the last 15mins.

You didn't watch in the last 15 to did NOTHING but argue with everyone, Teammates, Ref, Linesman etc HIS HEAD WAS GONE !

Totally BRAINLESS performance from a number of players today Redmond spend the last 15 mins of the game arguing with everyone, the Chapel, the Ref, the Linesman, his own teammates after their no 3 got one over on him (pull back i think) and he ended up being booked. Totally BRAINLESS from Redmond. He should have been taken off and we would have been better with 10 men, rather than him going around arguing with everyone. After we scored I'm shouting DON'T give away any cheap free kicks because that is their tactics to pump Free kicks into the box (from open play they create very little) and what does Elyounoussi do. Slides into one of their players when he couldn't get the ball. The ball is then pumped into the box from which we fail to clear it. Why, why, why give away a cheap Free Kicks that allow then to bring up all their Defenders !!! Totally BRAINLESS from Elyounoussi These are just 2 of the number of BRAINLESS performances from a number of players today.

I think Jan Bednarek is also out. Four bookings before today and then booked in the 73rd min for a pull back.

Is Hojbjerg suspended ? I thought we only had Lemina and Cedric going into yesterdays game on 4 bookings. I believe Hojbjerg first booking of the season against Leicester was followed by a Red so that doesn't count, his other bookings were chelsea, watford, fulham and yesterday.

Can Bednarek play ? The FA rules on Head Injuries suggests to me he cannot play http://www.thefa.com/get-involved/head-injuries-in-football (A couple of paragraphs)

For me the important change was bringing on Shane Long in the 64th min. Swansea took off their regular left back/wing back (Olsson ) in the 62th min and asked a winger (Clucas) to play that role. Within 2 mins Mark had brought Shane on and we then hit long ball out to the right for him to out jump Clucas every time. This gave us an "out ball" which we did not have until then (Austin was being out jumped by their 3 centre backs until then). He also won the first header in the box for the goal by coming around the back.

I read of an interesting "Stat" in one of the papers today (Torygraph I think) that said we made EIGHT PASSES in those 9 mins when we conceded those 3 goals (and 2 of those 8 passes must have been from kick offs after the first 2 goals). So many players "dropped their heads" and "went missing" after that 1st goal.

Today is the last match for a 2 match suspension, but it is no longer a DATE it is now set by the number of games i.e. 32 PL games or 37 for FL. http://www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/discipline/suspensions then select "One Caution Away and then go down to the rules

They were the top team in the country in the 1970s, winning the FA Cup in 71. 72, 73, 75, 76, 78, 79 (I don't know what went wrong when they got to the finals in 74 &77). I was at school with one of the girls (1964-69 age 11-16) and although she wasn't allowed to play with the boys in sports games she would join in with the boys when we would kick a tennis ball around at lunchtime and after school in the playground (as so many school kids did). She was AS GOOD if not BETTER than most of the boys of her age..... Dot Cassell was an important part of that team as I remember.

Arsenal now have 2 fixtures either side of our game on the 9th, I wonder what side they will put out against us ?:- 16/03/18: Quarter-final draw 05/04/18: Quarter-finals, first leg 12/04/18: Quarter-finals, second leg http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/news/newsid=2435180.html?rss=2435180+2017/18+Europa+League+match+and+draw+calendar#/

For me it would be a perfect opportunity to play 3-5-2. In the league game we were short of height in the team, if I remember correctly Dusan was marking their big centre forward at set plays fortunately none of balls went to him. IMO we will not be able to get away with this a second time (they will review the tape of the 1st game and notice that weakness) So I would bring in Maya as a 3rd centre back, push the full backs up as wing backs. This would allow us to play Gabbi up front with Guido (Gabbi on his own DOESN'T work he needs a "back to goal" centre forward along side him). Will the clueless clown do this ? , probably not he is fascinated with playing wide men who are struck to the touchline and told not to move away. (Redmond in the 1st half of the season, now Boufal etc). He is happy to be weak in central midfield (e.g. Palace) or weak in central defence (e.g. watford 2nd half) but he will always play his wingers stuck to the touchline.

Get in a tactically aware no 2, somebody who reads the game very well. Somebody like Edwin Koeman who has worked with some of the players already and knows their strengths and weaknesses and is a good reader of the game. (Even if he only came in on match days would be better than we currently have). Somebody who will tell MP2 to ABANDONED this fascination with putting players wide on the touchlines (early in the season he played 433 with redmond stuck to the left touchline blocking the full backs overlapping and not getting close to the main striker. Even yesterday we often had 2 players on the left touchline and another 2 stuck on the right touchline at the same time leaving the oppo with 10 outfield to our 6 in the centre ). We need to return to a system that served us well over the last few years - tight 3 in the midfield to WIN THE CENTRE OF THE PARK and let the full backs use the wide areas for overlapping when necessary.

They have an away game in the CL 3 days after our game (v FC Porto), so they will probably travel out there the next day. I wonder if that will be on their minds at all..... If not a few good kicks on the ankles should remind them.

Does anybody know what his brother is doing or going to do ? If I remember correctly they hadn't worked together before us and I was impressed with Edwin's tactical knowledge of the game when he was here. For example the liverpoo game a couple of years ago when when Klippity had just arrived and they were 2-0 up at h/t and should have been 4 or 5 up as we tried to play though their midfield (I call it their "venus fly trap", because they sucker sides into playing through midfield and then win the ball and counter at pace). Anyhow at h/t we changed our tactics and I was told it was Edwin that came up with the plan. We moved Pelle 10 yrds deeper and then surrounded him with 3 or 4 players (jwp,tadic,mane etc) and then played long balls up to Pelle' chest bypassing the "venus fly trap" and playing in the area between their defence and midfield. IMO We have some good players at Saints they are just badly organised at the moment and Edwin has good football knowledge.

I think MP2 got it CORRECT today. I had a go at him when he didn't change things against burnley, hull and other sides when the opposition changed their tactics. Even 2 weeks ago against watford he should have gone to 3 at the back in the 2nd half when they went route 1 with deeney. He made a mistake that day by not doing that.If any Saints fans were watching today, watford had just brought on okaka and pereyna and were playing 3 LUMPS up front against out 2 CBs. He learnt from his mistake he made 2 weeks by not going to 3 at the back. Give credit to MP2 today he saw the opposition had changed their tactics and REACTED.

At first glance he reminded me a lot of when BT first started playing for Saints as a kid, the same high running action. He looked a bit unsure of the slippy playing surface which was cut up by the time he came on, of course he may have been wearing the wrong studs for those conditions.

I think MP2 got it CORRECT today. I had a go at him when he didn't change things against burnley, hull and other sides when the opposition changed their tactics. Even 2 weeks ago against watford he should have gone to 3 at the back in the 2nd half when they went route 1 with deeney. He made a mistake that day by not doing that. If any Saints was watching today, watford had just brought on okaka and pereyna and were playing 3 LUMPS up front against out 2 CBs. He learnt from his mistake he made 2 weeks by not going to 3 at the back. Give credit to MP2 today he saw the opposition had changed their tactics and REACTED.

IMO it would be a good idea for the Club to ask Rickie to come in one day a week to work with him because I have concerns about MP2's tactical knowledge on how to coach a "english type centre forward". Rickie can work on :- - "Hold up" play. - Using his Chest to control ball (Both Rickie and Pelle were good at that). - Pass on information about defenders he is likely to play against what are their strengths and weaknesses etc. - When to pull out beyond the far post and attack the cross against the full back, (most of the goals he has scored in the Youtube were headers from central positions.)

I would rest Romeu, I think he went to 8 bookings today, which is too close to a 2 match ban and there are 2 very important games the following week.

The tactically inept clown will go with his usual 4-4-1-1 with Tadic behind Long, and the back4 will be cut apart by their movement. However, I would like him to try going with Jack S as a man for man marker on Kane and play a back 4 behind him (Cedric, Maya, Wesley & Ryan). Jack should follow Kane around the pitch and never be more than a yard away from him, exactly the way that Lawrie would use Manny A in certain games, try to make the game 10 v 10. If he pushes on to the back 4 then the FBs should push wide on the overlapping FBs, if he drops into the midfield follow him and Maya & Wesley job is to pick up the runners (son and dele). No side has ever tried man-marker Kane and he is such an important player in their system, his movement allows the runners the space to play in. Try to make the game 10 v 10.

Was he at that Danish club we played a couple of years ago ?? ; Captain & CB when we only scored 1 goal in 2 games (1-1 & 0-1) and that was a soft pen. Looked a GOOD leader on the pitch from what I can remember.

Is that true ? We can offer him a guaranteed starting position, whereas at liverpoo second team he has Bolasie / Lookman as the free wide player with pace and Roo / Sigurosson who both want t play No10 roles (When he was here as a kid he played 10 behind Fuller)