Charlie Wayman

Yes... but if we keep doing the same old things in the same old way inevitably we will come up with the same old results - compare the last two seasons to see the proof of that - so if we want to improve on what was achieved over the last two year's than we have to do something differently. It could be that Puel's new style is in theory a progression over the standard 4-3-3 mix used by Koeman but he has been put in the unenviable position of having to adapt the players he has at his disposal to his way of doing things and that will take time for some and be impossible for others. so we have to be patient and probably this season will disappoint many or indeed most as he rebuilds and remoulds our team. If Puel is hoping to build a Gunners Mark 2 down here few of us would want to condemn him for that although he should note how often Arsenal try and fail to walk the ball into the net and lose from dominant winning positions. In view of all of this and bearing in mind the realities of life in Small 14 club, there is a perfectly plausible and acceptable argument to fans that says let's settle for what we've got as long as it is sustainable in which case why upset the whole bloody apple cart by bringing in a manager with completely different ideas but who will not be given the tools to do the job he wants to do? The answer to that is probably that Reed has become a megalomaniac, losing sight of reality in his own conceit and belief of always getting things right. No doubt if this whole new venture fails it'll be Puel's fault and not his.

What we are seeing is interesting and begins to make sense of what Puel has been trying to explain. Under Koeman we were predominantly a counter-attacking team staying solid at the back, not being overly aggressive in midfield but waiting for openings, then moving forwards quickly using direct balls through the channels to our fast front runners which suited Long and Tadic and Austin. We conserved our energies by sitting back for long periods probing ready for the lightning attacks so gave the appearance of having bags of stamina right through to the end. Under Puel we seem to want to become a set-attacking side that keeps the ball and moves forward aggressively most of the time using fast wing-backs to get in behind and then working the ball into the box, in effect denying the ball to the opponent. This isn't working well at the moment as our players cannot keep up a high tempo attacking pace for most of the match, they have not been used to this, nor do we have tall target men in the centre to cross to so we have to compromise the wing-back runs and try to work the ball through to feet which is evidently bloody difficult in a packed defence. Hence yesterday we saw as the game progressed that we still had plenty of the ball but our pace slowed and our passing accuracy diminished through fatigue. It was unusual in that for large spells we seem to have forced the home side into the counter-attacking role normally used by away sides. It will be interesting to see how this pans out after a dozen matches when we should be much fitter and faster and more confident on the ball but if this analysis is anywhere near realistic we have to be bringing in a couple of taller strikes more suited to the role, as many have observed most of our attackers are relatively short. It's a shame Pellé left us he might have revelled in this new style but it does leave huge question marks over the roles of Austin, Rodrigues and even Shane Long who never seem to be able to get onto the ball, their roles having been usurped by the wing-backs. If Reed agreed to use Puel's system than surely he knows enough about football to have realised that we need different types of players up front to make it work? Otherwise we are as they say in a bug.gers muddle and only 11 days to sort it. As for yesterday, Fonte was miles off the pace was clearly at fault (with Targett) with the first goal and Clasie just wasn't expecting to come on as early as he was asked to do so his lack of touch early on was understandable. Davis seems more and more bewildered by what is expected of him in the new system but he'll adapt as he always does. No panic yet chaps, you may well see us stay the course better next weekend but still don't expect any more than a 1-0 win as it'll be another afternoon of 75%+ possession but inevitable banging our heads on a nine-man brick wall.

You are becoming more than a tad obsessed with this guy aren't you? Whether you like what he says or not he is entitled to state his point of views as indeed you are. My advice is to forget all about this personality stuff and concentrate on the football. Why should the mods see things your way rather than his?

I am not sure you are right about this, there aren't many smiling faces around the place anymore and in the video of Match Day Uncovered (v Watford) the prevailing mood in and around the dressing room seemed to one of abject misery and 'can't get away from this place quickly enough' body language from virtually all our players even the ones who are normally massively up-beat. It all starts at the top and if Puel cannot invigorate and lift his players it does not bode well.

Ha! Bloody Ha! Who do you like then pal?

Cheeky bug.gers! Jorde is a fantastic player who will shine this season provided that Puel gives him a fair hearing. He is 54 times better in all aspects than JWP so sell JWP to effing Galatasaray! Yep, I'm angry! This whole rumour mill is becoming a sick joke, everyone is taking the pis.s simply because there is no respect in football for Reed & Rogers who no doubt are considered by them to be gullible idiots. If Reed can't manage this increasingly hostile PR then why the hell is he in post. We need our team and our players protected from all this buullshiit but the way Reed is playing it anybody can say and do anything they like about Saints unchallenged. Can you imagine Mourinho putting up with this. Come on Reed, do your job or clear off!

Your instincts are not wrong, we are being conned left, right and centre by Reed no doubt in full accord with the owner and her board. Your analysis of Redmond's acquisition seems spot on. No way would we have got hold of him had the reality matched the hype, playing for England U21's clearly means nothing at all these days. As a footnote, how come we are so good at all the Olympic sports but crap at football?

Good hypothesis and Ronald Koeman would have had none of it so it'll interesting to see if Puel is dancing to the Special One's tune. You may have hit the nail bang on the flat! Let's hope that this is all there is to it.

If this story has legs then expect him to start and play out of his skin on Friday to impress. Others of course will argue that if he does not start it will be a sign also of keeping him intact physically so as not to kill a move. Not satisfactory either way for us. On the other hand if we get tonked 4 or 5 Nil, then maybe United will say Jose WHO?

Agree totally Nick.

A dose of realism following the summer of bulls.hit. As was plain to see we are a work still very much in progress. First half we looked totally bewildered, clearly having learned nothing from Puel's teachings of a new system this summer. Matters weren't helped by Long & Davis still being away on holiday. What was glaringly obvious is how badly we need two decent strikers. Bright sparks? Hojberg looked the real deal and his arrival change dour fortunes and Pied looked half decent and bloody quick when he took over from Cedric and actually looked to me like he was a much more effective raider

Man U surely would want him only for cover as a squad player. With the likes of Pogba on board realistically could he expect to start many/any matches? Schneiderlin is far younger and when here together a much better player and look where he spends most match day afternoons. If it's a "dream" for him to play for Man U his dream might we'll turn out to be Nightmare. Be careful what you wish for laddie!

Top Bloke, top news! In five years alas none of them will be here and few remembered. Dusan may be the exception. As for Jose, just lock the door Les. If he is reluctant to stay but stays anywa presumably he will not keep the captaincy

Can see us winning this one 5-0 unless we get too complacent at the back and let the odd one in. We'll probably beat ManUre as well next Friday as well but that's for a different thread and time.

Absolutely zero chance of that happening, last time we were relegated our finances were dire, the only squad players we could afford were raw kids from the Academy or over-the-hills-and-faraway journeymen and we were up to our necks in debt. Clubs built on the solid foundations and principles we have here and financially secure do not get relegated. Who will? Good bets on Watford (new manager & dodgy owner), Hull (continuing turmoil behind the scenes) & Bournemouth (limited mean, small gates and second season syndrome).

I remember our first pre-season back in the Championship when many on hear were predicting we'd go straight back down. I remember our first pre-season back in the Premiership when many on hear were predicting we'd be annihilated and go straight back down. I remember when Shaw, Lallana, Lambert, Lovren left in the pre-season many on hear were predicting we'd be annihilated and go straight back down. I remember when Schneiderlin and Clyne left in the pre-season when many on hear were predicting we'd be annihilated and go straight back down. I remember when Wanyama, Mane and Pelle left in the pre-season many on hear were predicting we'd be annihilated and struggle and probably lucky to stay up. Saints fans eh!, the lesson is do not make the mistake of under-estimating our own team

Providing wise guys like you with a lead-in line. You should be pleased that you didn't have to think of something original to say in response to the OP.

In a new system anything is possible and Tadic has excelled so far by being given the roving 10 position with anew found excellence at tracking back and breaking top opponents play. Looks likely he'll have his best season ever under Puel. He'd be wasted on the wing with raiding full backs especially if Ryan ever plays again which seems doubtful according to the self-style ITK's on here

Trying to answer the question "What am I doing here?"?

The point being?

The starting XI did very well with the mid-field trio being simply outstanding Romeu is a man possessed, sure it was his old club so he was up for it. Clasie & JWP were tireless workers and notched up an impressive number of tackles to break up their play and with Tadic linking well at times we over ran their midfield. This looks like the starting XI against Watford. The mystery of Bertrand's absence grows and is worrying - presumably a training ground injury? - as this is a carbon copy of what happened to him last season. With Targett hobbled as well surely we cannot expect MacQueen to be our main left back? He was hopelessly off the pace all night. Good goalkeeping from them kept us out but we need to sharpen up in the final third. Redmond? Mostly anonymous with occasional individual spurts but a long way to go before he is Henry. Who else noticed in the pre-match warm up how easily he was distracted and could not keep his attention focussed on what the coach was saying or asking him to do? Even his physical looseners were half-heartedly executed and minimal. If this is his attitude at a new club where he ought to be trying to impress then no wonder other clubs have not snapped him up before, he looks for all the world like a lazy lad with attitude and that's not good. Hope Black is a toughie. All is not lost even if we are not the best we will be far from being the worst intros division.

Not long ago only the winners of the Premier League were worth a mention and the other 21 & then 19 clubs were also rans. Now in these days of foreign billionaire owners and millionaire players it is perfectly respectable as an ambition to aim for a Top Ten finish. Times change. We are not immune from this new reality as fans, many on here seem to have accepted as fact that we cannot hope to be top six again simply on the basis of our wealth or lack of it as a club. Maybe that's the thinking upstairs as well so they are planning accordingly. Who knows maybe they believe the top ten will get European places before too long as FIFA and UEFA seek ever greater expansion of their competitions?

You don't need to repeat yourself every five minutes, we get the picture. You're a miserable sod! Hard to believe you support Saints?

Probably need to set up a Review Committee to debate all the issues involved before taking such a hugely important step into the unknown. 2 to 3 years work should be about right so just be patient. First meeting will set the agenda for future meetings and appointment of officials and could be called directly after the summer recess. ITK's suggest they'll be down to business in October at the latest.......

With this one we need to believe that Dave Watson had more than a helping hand in picking out the lad, why would we not trust Dave Watson the only one of our last season's coaches to stick around and commit to a new deal. He knows he'll be judged by how our keepers perform first and foremost rather than for anything he does for England. Wouldn't it be a wonderful surprise if he eventually grabbed Fraser's place in the first team.