derry

You both are right on the money. Maybe centre back isn't his position. I think he has the makings of a holding midfielder in front of proper centre backs, Neither JWP or PEH actually fill that roll but roam all over the place. Really only Bednarek can be considered as Danso hasn't showed, Vestergaard is a cluster****. If we are going to improve we need a couple of uncompromising, ruthless good in the air centre backs, ball playing optional.

I looked at Newcastle's goal on Sky news I couldn't believe that we had eight players picking up three opponents. It looked like we were 3-3-2 with Valery on the right and two centre backs in the middle the ball was launched and Maxima was still in the centre circle, Initially Valery was under no pressure but tried to control the ball, Maxima and the two other kept moving, Valery was dispossessed and Stephens was too late in making a challenge. What really annoyed me was Stephens standing like a statue ball watching and leaving Valery uncovered and still failed to move until Valery had lost the ball. Any decent centre back should immediately the ball was played towards Valery have moved right and behind Valery to cover him whilst the others picked up the runners. Had he done this instead of a desperate late lunge he would have probably cleared the danger at least forcing Maxima away from goal. He regularly gets caught ball watching, cosmetically pretty on the ball but a **** poor defender.

Utopia is great but even the players you mention regularly get caught out. Change the players for ones that can play that way but we can't afford to do that. We are short at the back in skill terms and particularly in pace and power both on the ground and in the air. We've had the money but wasted north of £100m on donkeys. We certainly aren't either smart enough or ruthless enough. I don't want to come out of SMS feeling the way I have after winning very few matches over the last four seasons watching inflated meaningless possession passing going nowhere and being mugged. I don't want victims like Valery losing games, I'd sooner see it in the back of the stand. Your last sentence sums it up for me and that isn't the back four interpassing sideways and backwards pulling us out of shape. It's how we get results away, win the ball quick pass to midfield or forward, quick movement to break the lines and create chances. Stephens 40yd chip to Ings against Spurs in the league was what I'm looking for. He had the time, but closed down smash it out of danger. A couple of seasons ago we were desperate at Everton for a win 1-0 up seconds left. Bertrand gets caught on the ball and rolls it upfield, pass to Davies who scored end of game, back of the stand, game over, a good win. Last week against WHU, McCarthy passes it short to JWP out right, quickly closed down so passes it down the line WH pick it up maybe three passes and we're one down. McCarthy kicks long no problem, or JWP puts his foot through it no danger. We've done similar things on numerous occasions and paid the penalty. Pretty doesn't cut it when in the bottom half of the table.

Personally I think we have a massive attitude problem at the back. The coaching staff need to take a hard look at themselves. In game after game in the Premier a lot of teams think the short passing working out of the ball is the way to go which is utter nonsense. Yesterday for example Bournemouth did it twice lost the ball as a result and surrendered two goals. Mid table clubs have mid table defenders not MC or Barcelona etc so stop trying to play that way we just don't have the players. All our defenders assume that they can control the ball, beat opponents, pass it around. they can until they are challenged, then we are in trouble. It's high time they were forced to accept their limitations. Firstly pass it forward out of the danger zone alternatively smash it down the field, danger over. the last thing they should be trying to do is pull a ball down under pressure with an opponent on the way. I don't blame Valery or the others because it's up to the coaches to batter it out of them. Yesterday it required the anywhere ball which would have solved the problem immediately. Valery only did what he's been trained to do. We should be training the defenders to clear the ball into the next district when there is danger. OK if there is no pressure, play a pass but we have to be ruthless in defence at the moment because we defend like pussies. Yesterday at least three time we were breaking Newcastle's midfield and the player with the ball was body checked out of it. Once the refereee didn't give it although the check was made as another movement as the ball was past. that showed a ruthlessness we haven't got. All the top sides do it to stop attacks early. We need to get ruthless, physical and uncompromising when defending. We don't need to play football at the back because it gets us into trouble.

Personally I think the majority viewing a successful club wouldn't care.

Newcastle Council own St James Park. All a buyer would be getting for the £400m ish is a training ground and the assets of a football club in mid table.

Jim Ratcliffe Ineos has a box at Chelsea. Tried to buy it a while back as he's a fan. In a newspaper article some time ago.

Nothing

Nothing on OS. Looks like a misprint on Sky because then they started to show Guardiola on at 1.30 pm

Showing on Sky Sports News currently. I wonder what that's about because it's usually a Thursday before a Saturday match.

That was a shambles. Every time we chicken out and try and pass the ball around at the back we pull ourselves out of shape, lose our high tempo, no press and expose the centre backs to breaks. We had 66% possession, probably less than 30% was any use the rest was one of the main reasons we lost. Most of the time we just turned the forwards into static spectators who had no idea what was going to happen next but that we were going to pass it around slowly until we lost it and were exposed to the break. McCarthy back to passing out was a lot of the problem. First goal an ill advised pass to JWP instantly pressed instead of putting his foot through it, passed weakly up the line gave it away and a few passes later we picked it out of the net. His Prima Ballerina impression for the second goal was in Ralph's words "an absolute joke". McCarthy hasn't a clue and should just kick it long because firstly it would stop our back four passing it around and secondly we wouldn't be giving the ball away in dangerous areas. Smallbone links up well but just contributed to the slow possession. He is neat and tidy but not combative in the slightest. We missed JWP in the middle and together with a full back should have made us stronger. Our goal was all that is good direct from the back, three players run and quick passing forward and Obefemi scores. Nearly every game we lose and most home games are ruined by the nonsensical possession at the back. Just cut it out, high tempo pressing and quickly get the ball up to the forwards is the way we win matches. That should be the Southampton way. I think we should have peppered the WHU back line with early balls and forced them to defend at the same time leaving four back to shut down any clearances. and certainly be a lot more ruthless than we are.

That was a shambles. We had 66% possession, probably three quarters of it five yard passes in our own half. McCarthy is just plain stupid. He was directly at fault for the first two goals. He was back to his kamikazi passing out as opposed to his direct play last week. His pass to JWP was rediculous, quickly closed down, played a nothing ball up the line instead of putting his foot through it a couple of passes and it's in our net. The second was a pussy like lack of determination by McCarthy It was his ball all day except he went for it like a prima ballerina and was knocked off it. The third goal was another Bednarek bullied by Antonio. If teams are going to put it about then they have to be expecting to be mercilessly clattered not half heartedly challenged. WHU were more aggressive the whole game and we let them. Smallbone was a major problem today. He failed to physically challenge and apart from a few forward balls he played sideways and backwards. along with the back four that pinned us in our own half. We were giving the ball away regularly after a dozen or more passes and then taken apart on the counter. If we don't stop this possession based negative rubbish and get back to attacking immediately we win the ball as we did with our goal, Bednarek forward for once to Bertrand, to Armstrong breaking, to JWP overlapping pull back to Obefemi. Dynamic, one touch, direct. The defenders and the keeper need to play the passes immediately forward, once we go sideways we are in the mire.

Best to go to the site and read the information.

I've had it for a while now it's the best I've come across. Firstly the cost go to www.saintsplayer.com there are a variety of subscriptions from a free 24 hr trial (no sport) to a year £70. I don't know how much but it does a multi room subscription as well. My son has it on two smart tvs. The service is brilliant. I have it on a windows laptop and a Samsung smart tv. The laptop accesses either through the premium player usually 1, or the IPTV Smarters app. The reception is brilliant and the coverage is enormous. for example on a Sat every, Premier, Championship, League 1 and 2 matches. I kid you not. Other than football it literally has hundreds of tv stations, thousands of movies, similar to Prime/Netflix, hundreds of series etc. The smart tv works from either Samsung the nanomid app or other smart tvs IPTV Smarters app. I use the nanomid app which is Sky HD quality with no buffering at all. It also works on every type of games receivers, phones, ipads etc, android tablets/phones. SP supply random user name, password and URL to access the preferred service. There is a contact on the home page and they come back very quickly. I am really impressed with it.

"if Frazer can do a deal with Southampton" They buy him cheap and we pay a lump of his contract so they can cut price him. We should bring him back and only if he can't win his place, on present form he could, we should sell him to the highest bidder.

There is a meeting this week to establish any changes. It will mean 6 votes from 8 to get a decision. 4 home nations plus 4 FIFA reps. The offside rule is not up for discussion. All items for this meeting had to be ratified at a council meeting last December. What is up for discussion is to allow the spectators to see the video replays and hear the conversation while the evaluation is carried out.

For the last year I used Saintsplayer and it wasn't bad. This year I have renewed and they now have an absolutely superb site. They offer every match on multiple sites plus stations that are showing all the matches such as Bein and Supersport. I watched today's match in superb HD without interruption on the nanomid app on my Samsung smart tv. Other smart TVs use the IPTV Smarters app. All sorts of computers, phones, tablets, games boxes catered for. there are also thousands of movies, hundreds of series and hundreds of TV stations. There are free trials and various periods offered, I pay £70 for the year for everything. You get two sources, laptops/TVs for that price. www.saintsplayer.com

VAR is here to stay. In England what we need is a team of full time trained experienced referees that only work on VAR. At the moment every referee on the list takes his turn whilst still refereeing. That in itself leads to inconsistency. The only thing that is working well within the parameters laid down is offside. Right every time. It's the things that need an opinion are inconsistent. The same opinions that go against us regularly.

Firstly a good win. Secondly we dominated the game and played like we were away. It's been crying out for a performance like this all season. Again 28 shots and 46% possession which means we attacked more and had most of our possession in the opponents half. Passing around at the back doesn't work. Today a a few times we passed up the chance to pass it forward especially Stephens and Hojbjerg then made poor balls lost possession and twice nearly gave up a goal. we have to cut that out completely. At the end, their corner, good punch from McCarthy, picked up by Adams, checked out, looked up made a yard and hit a great crossfield ball right into Armstrong's path who finished well. Good team performance.

Although I've got a season ticket since the Bournemouth game I think I've been to three games including two cup ties. The way we play at home just isn't enjoyable. It's incomprehensible that we haven't found a way to play teams that have come to try and steal points. I've chosen not to go again today. Looks like he is tinkering again. JWP at right back and Smallbone in the midfield. I don't see the point of that, Valery at right back looked like the call to me. I hope I'm wrong but I can't see the point of moving JWP out of midfield. Good luck to Smallbone. It'll be interesting to see how we play. I just hope we win but personally I've had it with the slow motion crap we play at home. We are great to watch away.

Liverpool last night came up against the same problem we have been having at home. They had 73% possession against a compact ten players all pressing and holding their shape. Liverpool used the possession to try and play through without success. 8 shots, 0 on target. AM had 27% possesssion 7 shots, 2 on target and scored fron their first corner. After that it was up hill all the way for Liverpool. They were unable to break the AM lines successfully and when they got close they were crowded out. Possession just isn't the answer to teams that refuse to play and just back off. Arguably the best team in the world on current form found that out. I'd be surprised if AM didn't look to play the same in the second leg. It will be interesting to see whether Liverpool continue to try and pass their way through using their undoubted talent or try something different. They may well opt for more of the same hoping that home advantage will enable them to score the goals necessary.

I think it's the fact our defenders aren't looking for the quick forward pass, dwell on the ball for seconds and then see the scenario in front closing us down so to buy themselves time and avoid making a ball into the channels and in their eyes risk losing it pass to the other centre back who now sees nothing so passes it back to the other centre back and so it goes on. The way forward is to immediately make the first pass forward after we win the ball, or to a wide forward or straight into the channels for one of the strikers to attack. If McCarthy has it dead or in his hands launch it towards Long, whichever channel he is in. Winning the breaking ball is the key after the long ball. We can't just carry on doing the same things that are losing us games at home. We have to make life difficult for the opposition. We know what their plan is so we need to batter it to bits not just submit to it.

It doesn't matter how long we pass it around at the back because our opponents game plan is the defence and midfield not to come out. The longer we pass it around the more efficient their compacting becomes and the less space available. The only time we have to get at these teams, is as soon as we win the ball. That is probably the only time when their defenders are vulnerable. Delay and our high pressing, high tempo has gone. We are now just probing slowly backwards and sideways denied space and creating nothing. We can't just keep saying it won't work, because we can't keep playing the way we are as we have the worst home record in the division. If teams want to play that way, we should not allow them the comfort of seeing their gameplan working, as our centre backs often get themselves and the keeper in a mess, often ending with losing the ball in dangerous positions or McCarthy making a poor clearance. Liverpool regularly launch early long balls up to the strikers, they also have no problem in hitting long clearances if under pressure. We rarely do either. I'm not just advocating long balls but I am advocating instant forward passing and movement as soon as we have the ball. We can't play from the back slowly and win against these teams.

We allowed Burnley and about seven other teams to beat us by getting us to keep possession at the back allowing them plenty of time to compact and crowd out our attacks at the same time pulling us onto them and leaving ourselves wide open to counter attack. Bournemouth, Wolves, Burnley just for example. We have to deny opponents the time to get ten players into their own half, the only way to to that is play the ball quickly out of defence to our forwards, play it out, or break quickly but like Liverpool regularly do hit the ball deep into the opponents half for our forwards to win it. The slower we play, the more meaningless passes we have and the easier it is to stifle our attacking. Another problem with our defenders keeping possession is the danger element to us. Whilst we can't entice their defenders and midfield forward whatever we do, opponents strikers eventually close down our centre backs and we either make a mistake or pass it to McCarthy who under pressure often slices a clearance, or just kicks it into centre of the congested midfield. If the defenders haven't an immediate forward ball it is far better than McCarthy being brought in, to just put the ball into the channels for our forwards to win it or press the defence deep in their half.

Can't have it both ways. Ralph says he wants the ball forward quickly, puts in Vestergaard because he allegedly can carry the ball forward, Stephens can but Vestergaard didnt. We are not a combination passing team like Man City or Arsenal under Arteta. If we pass it around at the back we are back to the early season results. Get it forward quickly and we break through regularly, pass it around and we get crowded out and lose.