Nidger

I have seen a lot of people wearing the new shirt, but none of them have any names and numbers printed on the back. Does anybody know if the club are currently offering shirt printing on the new shirts yet, or are they waiting for the new squad numbers to be confirmed?

Realistic targets from the list IMO are: George Boetang - A candidate for that midfield general role we need to fill Febian Brandy - Ex Man Utd striker that has a lot of pace but is only 5ft 7in tall. Still only 21 though and has played for Swansea City, Hereford United and Gillingham at League 1 level in the past! Ben Burgess - A possible alternative to Lambert at 6ft 4in tall and still only 28. Also has a scorching long shot according to Super Mikey Danny Butterfield - Still only 30 and a possible solution to that big hole we have at right back Lee Carsley - Another candidate for the midfield general role but a bit on the old side at 36 Simon Derry - Yet another candidate for the midfield general role Amdy Faye - A solid central midfielder that is tall, athletic and quick. The only drawback is that he is an ex skate! Steve Finnan - A quality right back even though he is now 34! Another ex skate! Sam Hewson - A promising young central midfielder released by Man Utd. Could be interesting! Clint Hill - Can play at centre back or left back. 6ft 1in tall and still only 31 James McEveley - Ex Blackburn left back who was highly rated by them at 1 point. Surprised that Derby have released him! Still only 25 and 6ft 1in tall Gary McSheffrey - Didn't really impress for Leeds last season ut he was playing out of position on the wing. Has played for clubs like Birmingham in the past so he must have something to offer. Should play upfront though IMO Roy O'Donovan - A fine goal scoring record for Hartlepool United last season (9 goals in 15 games) at League 1 level! Still only 24, only drawback is his height at 5ft 7in tall! David Raven - Ex Liverpool right back who can also play at centre back. 6ft tall and still only 25. Lloyd Sam - A quick skillful winger that always looks a threat to the opposition's defense. He would also provide much needed competition for Lallana and Puncheon! Still only 25 too! Sam Sodje - A strong centre back with League 1 experience and some pace. Still only 31 and 6ft tall are both positives too! Ricardo Vaz Te - A quick tall (6ft 3in) centre forward but a bit unpredictable! Still only 23 too!

This would be a big miss for us if we didn't even try to sign Jackson! I know some people on this forum don't rate Simeon Jackson and some do, but for me he would give us that asset that is so dearly missing from our team and that is pace! I personally think that Simeon Jackson would be a good signing because he will provide us with some much needed pace in attack which would be a major asset in away games on the counter attack! Rickie, Barnard and Connolly are all top strikers, but none of them are blessed with the sort of pace that Simeon Jackson could provide! i trust AP to get it right in the transfer market! He hasn't made any mistakes so far IMO!

I think we need 2 RBs and maybe 2 central midfielders (possibly 3)! I reckon the following are good shouts: RBs - Simon Francis (Southend United), Danny Cold (Blackpool) and Danny Butterfield (Crystal Palace) CMs - Nicky Bailey (Charlton Athletic), Brian Stock (Doncaster Rovers), Chris Lines (Bristol Rovers) and Neil Danns (Crystal Palace) A striker or 2 and another top quality CB would do nicely! A good start to our summer transfer business with Ryan Dickson too!

Now that we have a new kit and a lot of players have been moved on, does anybody else think it would be a perfect opportunity to rejig the squad numbers? Looking at the official squad list on the Saints homepage we now have the following numbers free 3, 5, 8, 15, 16, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, etc. They also have the numbers 9 and 37 still assigned to Waigo and Antonio respectively so I would imagine that both these numbers are free too! It would also give us a prime opportunity to correct a few rather odd squad numbers that have been assigned. The obvious 1 for me is the number 10 being assigned to one of our worst players in Paul Wotton! Surely we can give the number 10 shirt to one of our better players or even a new signing! I appreciate that a lot of the free numbers will be assigned to the new signings we make but surely a few minor adjustments can be made now that we have a few more numbers available.

Now that the Inigo Calderon deal has fallen through I would have thought a right back (preferably 2) would be the 1st area we would need to strengthen! Has everybody forgotten about Simon Francis from Southend? According to the link below he still plays for Southend: http://www.skysports.com/football/player/0,19754,11716_255947,00.html

Really, why don't you talk to her about your opinions on football then instead of posting sh*t like this on forums!

To clarify, I do know what Heskey brings to the team! He is the guy that holds the ball up upfront allowing all the other players to join the attack . He is almost like a battering ram that shields the ball from the opposition's defenders and helps us to keep possession of the ball. This said I still do not rate him because he is injury prone, can't get a regular place in the Villa team and he can never stay on his feet long enough to hold the ball up. The main reason he is in the England starting Xi is because Wayne Rooney likes to play upfront with him! Probably because he knocks a few of the opposition's defenders out of the way meaning Wayne doesn't need to beat as many players!

Vassell = 29 and released on a free from some sh*te Greek side that I, and most probably nobody else, have never heard of! Sh*t finishing, not much skill, and is losing his pace rapidly! As for his England caps, as stated before, Heskey (the carthorse) has many England caps to his name and he is utter sh*t too! I think we are gonna have to agree to disagree on the subject of Vassell Mikey! AP has got it dead right in my opinion in looking to sign players with experience of the league we are playing in! Add some top players from the Championship like Jose Fonte (who is so far above the level he is playing at at the moment it isn't funny!) and you have the makings of a team that will walk league 1 next season and push for promotion from the championship the following season! Throw in a potential young Premiership reserve with something to prove (i.e Gael Kakuta from Chelsea) and that would be quality! Keep up the good work AP!

The 1 thing the team is crying out for in most areas is pace. I reckon Simeon Jackson is a great shout as a potential signing upfront. Albert Adomah sounds like he could inject some pace on the wings (lacking since Antonio's exit!) and Dickson sounds like he has some pace and can provide some pace up and down the left side if signed. Connolly definitely deserves another season (on a pay as you play deal due to his injury record!) because he offers the experience and class of an ex Premiership and International player that can be of great use in tight games!

An interesting point, but Pardew's first signing last year was a left back (Harding) on a free transfer (from Ipswich)! This deal was followed up by the signings of Rickie and Hammond! A sign of things to come hopefully!

As i've stated in previous posts Simeon Jackson would provide us with the 1 thing that is severely lacking in our attacking options and that is pace! He may not be over 6ft tall but his is quick and could definitely give us another option in attack!

I agree with your point that Boetang and Carsley would be good signings for us because we are missing a midfield general! A player who can put his foot in to win the ball back for us and get us back on the attack! This is a position where you can get away with having a slightly older player (i.e. Marsden) because they spend most of their time patrolling the area in front of the centre backs breaking up the play. I would prefer Boetang out of the 2 because I feel his is the slightly better player and has an age advantage on Carsley. I'm not sure either player would drop down to League 1 though but you never know! I still disagree with you on Vassell though! The fact that he is available on a free transfer does save us money on the transfer fee but also means that he is likely to want higher wages! I don't think he is worth paying silly money too!

Yeah, I would much rather see us looking at younger players at Premiership teams that have potential and something to prove to their parent club. A few examples are: Nathan Delfouneso (Aston Villa - Striker) Ryan Bertrand (Chelsea - Left back) Gaël Kakuta (Chelsea - Winger) Craig Eastmond (Arsenal - Midfielder) David Gray (Man Utd - Right back) Phil Jones (Blackburn - Centre back) Danny Rose (Tottenham - Winger) Jordan Henderson (Sunderland - Midfielder) These players are young and would really benefit from a season of 1st team action (albeit at a lower lever)! They aren't old players who are closing in on retirement and have little left to offer anybody like Vassell. His wage demands would be another issue to consider!

Well said Badger!

The fact that Emile Heskey is regarded as one of the top 4 or 5 English strikers just shows the complete lack of top quality English strikers! How can Darren Bent, who scored 24 league goals for a mid table team in the Premiership last season, be overlooked at international level for the carthorse that is Emile Heskey? How many goals did Heskey get for Villa last year? I forgot, he has to actually play for Villa to score goals! As for Vassell, as I have stated before this guy is no where near as good as people are stating! I have no idea how he managed to get 22 England caps! His finishing is utterly abysmal! His injury record is awful too! We need people who have experience of the league we are playing in (i.e. Jackson) rather the players who are past it or just crap! 2 or 3 players from league 1 and a couple of players from the championship would be ideal. Just look at how good Jose Fonte was for us last year! People are entitled to their own opinions, including me!

Emile Heskey has multiple caps for England and he is nearly as bad as Vassell! Jackson terrorised us when we played away to Gillingham. The main reason for this was his pace and direct running! He could easily outscore Vassell at League 1 level! I think Heskey could outscore Vassell!

Vassell is pacy, he tricks himself (due to his complete lack of ability!) and his finishing is abysmal! There is a good reason why he is playing for a sh*t club in Turkey, he is utter dog sh*t! Simeon Jackson would be a much better option! But then again who wouldn't!

Wotton is f*cking useless and should be shot!

Harewood isn't getting any younger but he would provide us with the 1 main thing we are missing in attack, namely pace! I would still like Simeon Jackson from Gillingham too though. The swap deal involving Lines and Holmes is an interesting 1 and a quality piece of business IMO if it happens. Racon looks a class act at Charlton too!

He is a striker and Leeds were wasting him by playing him as a right midfielder! I reckon he could do a job at League 1 level if he was played as a striker. I don't think we should sign him though because he is similar to players we have already got in terms of size (i.e. Barnard).

Has everybody forgotten about Brian Stock from Doncaster Rovers? AP wanted him during the January transfer window but NC couldn't see the point in paying around £800K for a player that we could get for free during the summer (I believe he is out of contract in the summer). I also think that AP will buy a couple of players from whichever teams don't get promoted from the playoffs. Paynter and Austin (from Swindon) and mayber Rhodes and Pilkington (form Huddersfield). Morrison looks a good striker at Millwall and Racon from Charlton too. All players who have done it in this league. Simeon Jackson from relegated Gillingham would be another top piece of business!

Does anybody have any idea what time this meeting is supposed to be taking place tomorrow? I am out most of the day and was wondering when to check for updates regarding the meeting on the internet. I expect the meeting will take place at some point in the morning. I agree with all the people who are stating that this meeting is just to discuss the following: 1) A review of last season 2) Transfer budget and transfer targets for next season 3) Which players will be retained / released 4) Expectations for next season (promotion obviously - preferably as champions!)

I definitely agree with the fact that we need an alternative to Morgan because we lack creativity from central midfield when Morgan is missing. I believe AP is gonna go back in for Brian Stock from Doncaster in the summer. I'm not sure if he is a creative midfield player but he has played at Championship level so he could easily do a job for us. I would like to see Danns and Ambrose signed from Crystal Palace, but it looks like Danns will follow Warnock to QPR and Ambrose is being eyed up by Wolves. On the striker front, Lisbie is an option as a replacement for Lambert but my only reservation with him is his age. Roy O'Donovan has done a job for Hartlepool this season and it looks like he will be available on a free transfer from Sunderland during the summer so that would be a good signing. I still think Simeon Jackson is the best bet in the pace stakes though!

I feel that Simeon Jackson would be a great signing! He would give us one of the main assets we are missing in attack which is pace. I also think we desperately need an alternative to Rickie as well because when he is not in the team we don't have a target to aim for upfront. We don't have another striker that is over 6ft tall (except maybe Papa Waigo).