macca155

That was way too much stress for someone of my advanced age and weight. It was all released when Long scored.... we still can't find the cat All heroes but what a debut for young Stephens, very impressive. I celebrate my 50 anniversary as an emotional slave to Saints this year, what a rollercoaster and a 6th trip to Wembley. Lost 3 won 2 so far, let's see if they can even the score.

He was being pushed by the idiot reporter, what else was he to say, it was handball anyway so worthy of a comment. A rarity amongst managers a touch of class

What an absolutely spot on post. Exactly as I saw it. I thought Stephens looked very cool but I'd like to see him perform under more pressure. I've never seen a goal celebrated with such relief. All of us couldn't face any more of that. I was chucked out of my normal Kingsland seat so had an Itchen seat behind the dugout. The most interesting view was watching Puel, he was as frustrated by our turgid display as the fans. I get the impression he wants a lot more from the players or just more players. Clearly need to do something as JROD and Long certainly don't have goals in them at the moment. I expect free beer from the club at the Arse game for turning out for that game.... desperate. But hey a win is a win so on we go. We've had worse seasons. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

Right........ Being beaten by Spurs is not unusual and I can live with it... again.i thoroughly enjoyed my day at WHL in May so a dose of the same wasn't to be unexpected. What I can't accept is our niave tactics and lack of nous. 1st 20 minutes we charged at them like mad men. It was obvious our team wasn't fit enough and they struggled after 30 mins to match Spurs who train specifically for this. Poch knew we had zilch up front so he pushed his team forward with just three at the back our midfield retreated and bang we were under pressure. Davis had to be subbed as he was out on his feet. I'm a big JWP fan, his talent from set pieces needs to be cultivated but he is a bit of a luxury player.and needs water carriers as cover. However goals and chances a plenty come from his free kicks so it is worth persevering, but he has to make a bigger impact. Redmond kills every attack as he cuts back. Use him as a sub and he might be more effective. Forster really worries me his form has nose dived. I wonder if he is carrying an injury. The sooner Mccarthy is back the better. I like him and he'll put pressure on the big man. Fonte and VVD are superb and are are civic treasures. They need to be retained. I can't bring myself to talk about Tadic..... desperate. Sims Hesketh and McQueen would all have added more to that game. They need to be used at the very least they would have had the legs. I thought Cedric was MOTM for us he had to survive intense pressure but rarely cracked. WBA will come with tactics to beat us so I hope Puel has the answer. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

".....our players ALWAYS look for safe options, if there's a pass there's no movement after it ....Our defence is excellent but without Fonte and VVD that could change very quickly." Very sound points. 0 0 away to Stoke in December isn't a bad result but the circumstances leave a bad taste. This was always a year of consolidation. 6 years of progression was always going to end at some point. Puel has a weak squad in some areas, and I hope his style is a response to that. The use of youngsters is a major plus but boy do we need someone up front who occupies the opposition defences. Oh and pass forward sometimes. Progress yes and that is to be celebrated always, but I fear the Spurs game will show us how empty our tactics bucket really is. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

Soundly beaten by a better team today, it happens but Saints put in a good performance. Puel had to rotate the squad but they still looked tired. I thought Bertrand look leggy and was struggling a bit. Conte put 3 on Tadic and allowed Bertrand the freedom of the left side, he had done his homework. Classie clearly isn't the most effective player but JWP and Holberg cannot play every game. Personally I would have put Reed on as he would have helped Romeo (how good was he today) a lot more. We all know that we need an attacker and a right back but we have what we have and Chelsea will value those three points. This was always going to be a horrible part of the fixture list, Everton and Liverpool will probably help themselves to a few points but after that Saints can take stock and start moving forward again.

The stadium itself is fabulous and those TV screens are massive. However as others have said it wasn't built for football and it is a terrible venue for a Premier League team. It is a massive stadium but it isn't high and completely different to Twickenham or Wembley and the fans are a long long way from the pitch. Outside there were loads of decent catering outlets and easy access beer tents. They had drink only queues which I wish Saints would do. The DLR offered an easy route back to Waterloo so for everything other than the footie it was a good experience. West ham have made a huge mistake here and are going to have a serious problem. We were halfway up the upper tier and the view was worse than Newcastle. There wasn't a chance of making out anything from the other end. For a different sport it would be perfect. Their PA is worse than ours which I didn't think was possible. I just can't see how West ham supporters are going to create any sort of atmosphere. A previous poster was right even the Saints fans who were winning away in style were struggling. A few big OWTS but the chants died pretty quickly and in the end we had to leave it to the lower tier to dance around a little. Upton Park was a gruesome experience and a horrible place to go. Never an easy game and to have let that go is criminal in my opinion. I'm a child of the 60s and have fond memories of the hammers, they have always struck me as a decent club, fragile and unstable they may be but I've always loved games against them. Yesterday was sterile it was like playing a poor man's Arsenal. I wouldn't wish their current predicament on any football supporter not even Pompey. They'll be 'focus group' reporting right now followed by an army of experts who will start messing with the 'experience' to artificially create an atmosphere. Watch out for flags cheerleaders, piped music, crowd 'generators', and probably a lot more pop corn. It is an extremely rare event for one set of supporters to feel any sympathy for another set of fans but it might just be justified on this occasion. Macca

Wonderful event stadium very comfortable. As a football stadium it will be a noose around their neck. The fans are so far away and disjointed that it's impossible to get an atmosphere going. Saints fans were split in two and frankly we had the same problem. Three goals helped us overcome that though. I suspect they'll regret this move for ever.

These extensions are good news. Tie down the talent you have and keep the club stable. It's good news for Shane he has been unappreciated by the clubs (and fans) he's played for and it's good to see him so at ease. He has secured his family 's future with that contract which for footballers of his age is vital. Like Davis he is a consummate pro who is a role model for the youngsters coming through. Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

It's a dark place but we've got to go there [emoji53]

everyone should go dressed as Frank Saul! My dad still hasn't forgiven them for it . Your Dad was spot on, that transfer remains the most outrageous swindle ever. Like swapping Kane for Ali Dia. I've hated Spurs ever since. And no I won't let it go

Koeman always has an eye on the squad so he'll make a few changes to keep players match fit. Wanyama will be rested and Mane is out. I doubt he'll make any other changes other than the usual Davis / JWP interchange. Classie and Bertrand need game time. I reckon Stek Cedric Fonte VVD Bertrand Romeo JWP Classie Tadic Juanmi Pelle I'd prefer Gaston to Juanmi but he'll be off at Christmas so no point in investing time. Hopefully he'll get a good subs appearance though.

West Brom is always a hospitable place to go. Easy journey, good pubs, hilariously miserable but friendly fans. So other than the game it was a great day out. 0 0 away is ok. Saints have always been rubbish against the Pulls style and nothing changes. JWP worked hard, but he was pushed further forward, and was way less effective than last week. He simply doesn't have the composure to score from tight positions. However before we slag him too much I bet his pass completion beats everybody. Van Dyke looked awesome, what a buy. JRod is clearly not fit and shouldn't be starting. RK is desperately trying to give him game time but it is costing us. Send him on loan to Burnley. Let him recuperate there. Long is fit and deserves to play. The defence and midfield played well but Pelle had a poor game (he's allowed them) and as such Saints were never going to score. We all said 0 0 going up in the car and we were right. Should have put a bet on but that would require some level belief.

Urgh M25 again!

Just back from the match after getting lost in the car park from hell. I suspect some Saints fans are still in it! Anyway 0 0 is never a good result but neither are they a disaster. The team at present is barely up to Premiership standard. Ron went for damage limitation as another poster said and it worked. Their keeper made a good save from Pelle and that was about it. If you play with five defenders and 2 defensive midfielders on the pitch then you are asking a lot of the remaining players, so it was no surprise that Saints failed to score or create much. A clean sheet one point job done move on. Until the club puts some points on the board we are in relegation mode, and we stopped Watford taking 3 points out of us today and that was enough. They are probably at their peak Saints will only get better so I'm happy enough with that. It wasn't pretty but it was what was needed. a 2 hour drive for a 0 0 draw is desperate but you have to take the rough with the smooth in this game. On to Europe

Seriously? Did you watch the same game as me. JWP had a great game his set pieces are improving every game and they add a massive additional element to our game. What we can all see is that he is struggling to cover the ground quick enough and we have to hope that he adapts his game. However he certainly wasn't a passenger and was involved in most attacks. Way better than Tadic but opinions appear to be divided here on these two. Romeu had a good game but faded towards the end, he has to stop getting early cards as that is killing his game. Mane was mane, he isn't a headless chicken and I bet he is a nightmare to defend against but for me he is playing too deep. Anyway we need him to play rubbish for a while so that Utd go away. He can turn into Ronaldo in September. The problem tonight was that JRod is still a passenger as he isn't match fit. He is improving every game but he is really only effective in the final quarter. For the rest of the match he couldn't get near the ball. He is creating massive gaps behind him and occupies the same place on the field as Pelle. Several times tonight they were standing next to one another. The problem is we have to go through this pain to get him match fit and then we will have a 20 million player on our hands. I thought Saints were ok tonight (no more than that). The team is definitely weaker than last year but losing Clyne and Morgan was always going to be critical and it is going to take time to rebuild. We need that CB in pronto as Caulker is definitely only ever going to be cover. I also think we need a decent right back. If Cedric isn't up to it then play him further forward as he is a real attacking threat. I enjoyed the match and I don't have too many worries about next week. Saints should be able to win quite comfortably as they weren't that good a side.

What can you do! There doesn't seem to be any way the club can hold on to decent players. If we keep losing players like this then eventually we are going to struggle in the Prem. Mane is a great player and likely to unlock the defences of the top 5. He scares them which is why he is being targeted. However if Utd come in with a 25 Million bid he's gone, and frankly I can't really argue against it. Every player has a price and Mane is no Suarez, he certainly isn't worth 25 Million. I guess Saints just have to take the money buy someone else (better) and move on. Better still take the money promote Seager, watch him bang in 20 goals and laugh all the way to the bank. Oh how I wish that would happen. Nurse my pills....

Careful what you wish for. Our CC team will probably be uber weak and inexperienced.

Fair enough my stream was dodgy as so I couldn't really tell

I'll take 2 -2 with the way our defence was pulled all over the place in the first half. Terrible formation to start with JRod was a passenger and exposed the left hand side of the defence. Completely different team once he was replaced. He is a fantastic player and needs to be an impact player for a while. I thought Cuco looked ok when he came on but I just don't get the 'Tadic played well' comments. I thought he was weak but its all about opinions.

I think that's a tad unfair. I found myself jumping on the Tadic 'water of space' bandwagon on Thursday. However he puts a defensive shift in and moves around the park. Above all else he is Premier League fit physically and mentally. I think the team is obvious. Steks Cedric Fonte Yoshida Target Tadic Wanyama Davis JWP Mane Pelle Bench Gazza Caulker Reed JRod Juanmi Long Martina I guess the only debate will be whether Juanmi starts instead of JWP but I doubt it as he is even easier to knock off the ball. Not the strongest team it has to be said. I'll be happy with a point.

Spot on and I guess they are just the usual wind up merchants. I find it very hard to ignore them. We have to change our attitude in this country and let our players develop without this instant criticism. The boy is 20 let him develop and enjoy watching him. It was his assist that led to the goal on Thursday. He makes things happen which is a rare gift. Fortunately more enlightened views are in charge of his development, so he stands a chance.

They really were a credit to European football. That is how it should be. An amazing few days. Just completing a 300 mile plus drive home.... next time I'm flying

Err who is then?

Fair point but Tadic is half the player Lallana is. I really don't see him imposing himself on games. He and JWP are essentially competing for the same place (not position) and for me JWP brings more to the team. However neither replace Lallana who we miss. You can tell by the number of players who have tried the No 10 position. Shame Gaston didn't make it his own as we needed a 12 million player there.