woodsaint

Stephens was also a reserve player during the prem promotion season

People moaning about getting rid of surplus defenders, the same ones they criticised for not being good enough. The mind baffles. That being said its only worth it if we have a big window for incomings in the summer. Not overly confident in Ralph being backed tho

We cant let both him and Danso go this month. Would leave us two injuries away from dipping into the u23 CB cover which would be madness

Very good signing. A player we should have pursued

Merely pointing out that just because hes second or third choice at his current club doesnt mean he isnt a good player. Distinctly remember some on here who werent happy with Bertrand signing and it worked out very well. This thread already shows people writing KWP off. If he doesnt do well then its 'i told you so'. If he does very well then its 'happy to be proved wrong'. Give the fella a chance and base your views on his performances for us

We signed Chelseas third choice left back a number of years ago and it worked out ok

Richard Kitzbichler came in as assistant coach. Is that the same as the role Rohl held? Or more of what Fleming and Davis do? Who knows but it seems to be working

Thanks for this. I would dispute the last point however. Funny how during our great run there hasnt been any mention of Rohl. But when we were struggling, it was all because Rohl had left. Think his influence has been overstated by some and if Ralph was really that isolated, he would have asked to club to address it. We certainly wouldnt have went on the run we have if Ralph was feeling isolated. Thats not to say there wont be backroom changes in the summer, but dont think things are as bad as some make out

Today was his chance....but only gets 20 minutes. Should maybe read what you write before posting

Would prefer their RB Frimpong. Looks decent

Another thing which needs mentioned is that after next weekend, we'll have played Liverpool, Leicester, Chelsea, Spurs, Wolves and Palace twice already. Our run in must be very favourable. Cant help but notice teams around the relegation zone playing each other nearly every week. The likes of Bournemouth, Villa, Brighton and Watford must have tough run ins

Yeah the last thing a player who has barely featured this season needs is a bollocking after his first mistake. His confidence would get shot to pieces.

Fantastic. To think some on here already had us losing three in a row and being back in a relegation fight. 3 points off 5th. What a turn around. Give Ralph that new contract now!!

Typical SW overreaction right there. Hes been excellent the last 6 weeks or so, but now hes not good enough for Wessex League standard, whatever that is. I agree we need a new CB, but based on recent form it would be Stephens who would be partnering him

All three goals contained defensive errors 1. Bednarek dives in out wide when he didnt need to and then Cedric lets their player do a full 180 and get the shot off. Yes hes worrying about the other attacker but needs to be tighter and Stephens with a poor attempt at a recovering tackle. 2. Stonewall pen if you ever see one. Poor lunging effort from Stephens. 3. The worst of the lot. Stephens trying the offside didnt work but least we recovered and got three defenders back behind the ball....all for them to just ball watch and be attracted to Traore. Neither Stephens or Cedric have a look or try and cover the movement of Jimenez who is wide open for the cutback. We've been spoilt the last number of weeks but the poor defensive decisions returned today. Ralph wont be pleased. Lets hope we can return to being more solid during the week. We cant complain about VAR for either the pen or the Traore handball as its been our best friend this season.

Shouldnt come as a surprise. Stephens has been excellent recently but is always prone to his usual lapse of concentration. Who knows how he'll follow it up vs Palace. Still think we need a quality CB to play beside him or Bednarek. Unlikely to identify anybody in January but should be a must in the summer when Yoshida and possibly Vestergaard are moved on

Been a great squad player, happy fulfilling that role (which is rare in todays game) and has stepped up time and again when called upon. Most notably when VVD got injured/Fonte left and Yoshida/Stephens covered the rest of the season and steadied the ship. I think hes been an excellent servant.

Maybe because he moves like hes 48

I know it was highly unlikely he would've chosen us, but recent target JC Todibo has signed for Schalke on loan with option to buy

If Che isnt up for the challenge and wants to go, then let him. Would be disappointing if he isnt willing to put the graft in to make himself a success at a PL club. However, only let him go after a replacement has been secured because we're an injury to Ings away to being left with a championship strike force

No update on this?

Not to mention that the only three teams we have played twice are Chelsea, Spurs and Leicester.

On the plus side, we are a much more attractive side to sign to for compared with 6 weeks ago.

Leicester worst performance was because we made them look bad. All credit to Ralph and the boys. Superb. Alot of folk will be eating humble pie right now

Christ the night