Lallana's Left Peg

The ability of Saints fans to over-react never disappoints. I appreciate it is probably the same for all teams but it doesn't make it any less frustrating when you see teenagers all over twitter declaring it the end of the world when we concede a goal. I even saw one declare Lambert may be finished based on his miss in the second half. I can see why some of our resident Saintsweb characters like to poke fun at people at times like this. It would be more fun that trying to reason with these idiots. At the end of the day not only is it a pre-season friendly for which none of us have absolutely no idea what Pochettino wanted to work on or get out of the game, lets also remember that aside from the new players our existing players aren't going to come back from a summer break and be completely different players. Whats that? People want to point out that Fox may not be up to it? Bloody hell - there was me thinking he'd go away for the summer and come back and play like Roberto Carlos. The construct of the team is still very much what we saw last season - and why would it be any different anyway. It is the same group of players. We're a confidence team prone to lapses in concentration and a lack of leadership across the pitch. It is hard to address that unless you replace all the players but football doesn't work like that. We show a lot of promise but much of that will only be fulfilled with experience - we won't become miles better after a pre-season. It won't happen overnight. There was no lack of effort even considering it is a pre-season friendly, and our opposition were quality. Mistakes for goals are frustrating but it happens. I'd be more concerned if any player was hiding from the ball at 2-0 down but I didn't see that. Onwards and upwards.

I notice we've been training this morning, again ahead of a game tonight. I know Pochettino is a fan of the double-session during a regular season, so pre-season training must be very tough but I've never seen clubs train the same day as a pre-season game before. Given the standard of opposition in Spain I didn't think much of it but we're playing Champions League calibre opposition this evening and we've just spent the morning training So tonight I wouldn't expect much of a result as it seems the game is being used as a different method of improving fitness more than anything else - I bet the players legs are feeling very heavy right now. In the wider context though, do we really have the squad depth to be able to absorb the inevitable tiredness and fatigue that will creep in during the second half of the season? I know some clubs approach pre-season training in a way that is designed to get the player in a shape where their fitness improves over the course of the season, but the work we're doing suggests to me that we're getting the players very sharp for the start of the season with the risk that as it wears on we're more exposed to tiredness and fatigue.

Chambers hasn't looked too bad at all to me, be a shame if he lost opportunities because of a new signing in that part of the pitch. That said, I should really reserve judgement once we know who the player is and whether he actually signs.

Does not strike me as a player who can play as a lone striker up front, both in terms of style and presence. Interesting player but I can't see where he would naturally fit in.

As long as the club is on an upwards trajectory we should all feel perfectly entitled to feel very positive and excited for the future. Where there is a wide spectrum of opinions is where this progress will stop in terms of league standing. Even with considerable resources, it will be very hard to break into the Top 6. it's not just about having a team who are good enough to perform against the best, it is having the consistency to perform over 9 months and deal with everything that comes with it. I think we are a long way away from that at this moment in time, but that is no criticism of the club or anyone who thinks we can get there in time. I feel like the best chance the club will have of doing it is steady progress that can hopefully be sustained - the development of players on the pitch and the experience the non-playing staff have off it in a slow but sure way bodes much better for the future, but (and it is a big but) the problem with this is you are very exposed to your best players leaving which makes it hard to sustain progress and places a great stress on the transfer policy (no club in the world is better than average, whatever you may think). We should dream big and try our best to exceed every expectation, but realistically be aware that we're now embarking on the biggest challenge yet and one that historically is very hard to achieve AND sustain unless you have untold millions with little regard for your Academy (and Saints do have a budget and a definite view of what the Academy is to provide). I just hope, that should be 'toil' in the middle of the Premier League for the next few seasons that fan enthusiasm doesn't wain (it will) and that we can hang onto our better players and build slowly (highly unlikely). Then will come the big test for the owners and Cortese.

Spurs officials apparently in Valencia to try and agree a deal for Soldado. Cissokho potentially going on loan to Liverpool. The destruction of the first team is about to start but all quiet as far as Banega is concerned.

Considering his age when he signed the new contract and the length of it as well, I wouldn't be surprised if it was made with the view that both parties (Saints and Lambert) accept his role will clearly decrease over time but Lambert (like Davis before him) received long-term deal out of loyalty and thanks for services already rendered. It is becoming quite common in sports. If we do bring in another striker who does significantly cut Lambert's minutes, it remains to be seen whether Lambert will accept this new role or seek to play elsewhere.

The video confirms what we were told about the Desso pitch being made bigger then - in the video the goal behind the gate is a good 15-20 yards away, whereas over the weekend it was stuck neat against the back.

I thought we did ok all things considered. Makeshift team, people out of position, and we only play together once or twice a year. These other teams play regularly and all that stuff so once we sorted ourselves out a bit and got used to each other we were more solid. Above all it was a good laugh and in terms of facilities and organisation this years effort blew Leeds out of the water. A shame more Saints fans don't want to get involved but hopefully that will change in the future! I didn't play 11's this past season so fair to say I am feeling it a bit now but I don't think I'll ever be able to stop throwing myself about on the pitch when the competitive juices get flowing. Sounds like I may see most of you for the game against West Brom fans the morning before the season opener.

Little update on this. Apparently Valencia have to raise €15 - 20m net in funds before the end of the transfer window and that includes after purchasing replacements (they don't have the quality in the existing squad to come in and fill in gaps in the first team). Plus in Spain transfers can be complicated with often significant portions of fees going to parties other than the selling club. So it is very much game on for the big sale at the Mestalla. Valencia continue to be linked to €3-5m signings in all three phases of the pitch as it doesn't appear any member of their team is untouchable. Rami has apparently refused to play in a friendly against Stuttgart in case he gets injured which has angered their fans and means he may be closer to the exit door than others at this moment in time. Valencia are desperately looking to offload squad players on big wages (like Piatti) however they are struggling a little because just about every club in the world is aware of their predicament (very hard to keep anything quiet in Spain, though Valencia's fight against debt is an annual thing anyway which would be newsworthy if it wasn't occurring rather than the other way around). However, that said, Banega does not appear to be linked with a proper exit from the club other than the articles already posted on here and the fans certainly aren't talking about him leaving either. He'll have his price though, I've no doubt about that. And if there is one part of the pitch Valencia could probably absorb a loss, it is midfield.

He isn't vital to the team yet, which is a shame considering his talent level and what he has shown in very minor glimpses. On that basis he isn't untouchable in terms of selling. That said, he is clearly worth a second season and the challenge is whether or not he fits how Pochettino likes to play the game. On the face of it he doesn't seem to fit. But on the other hand he is clearly a very talented player. There will have to be a compromise somewhere and it'll be interesting to see if it is Pochettino's or Ramirez's to make. I suspect the latter so we'll just have to see what happens in the first half of the season.

It is very peculiar for a bookie to refuse bets. I couldn't even credit them with laziness - once they've set the odds and tolerances up most of the revised odds will be automated after bets are taken without the intervention of traders. And if you look at some of the players they have markets for, they are quite obscure. I've done a little bit of research and taken a look at an English fan forum for Valencia. It appears that failure to qualify for the Champions League has blown a massive hole in the accounts and the club must generate a decent amount of money from selling players otherwise they may not see out the next season. There is even talk of going bankrupt and starting again rather than having to go through selling the best players at the end of every season just to keep afloat. On that basis you can see why clubs may be playing the waiting game with their players - as the transfer window goes on Valencia's position to negotiate gets weaker and weaker. Rami, Banega, and Soldado could well all be leaving. Saints' challenge will be timing getting a bid accepted whilst other teams won't be in the hunt, otherwise if the fee gets too low there will surely be more appealing destinations for Banega. Let the games begin...

I'm not too sure what people expect. Like every other club in the world, our transfer record is right in the middle between good and bad regardless of how players are targeted and signed. However, it has been good enough to support the aspirations of the club ahead of schedule the future has never looked as bright, so I don't really understand why people want to argue over it.

If Sharp was good enough for the Premier League and was available for just £1m, don't you think there would be at least 5-6 clubs in the Premier League after him? It appears there isn't so doesn't that sort of blow the 'Sharp is good enough and until he gets a chance you can't say otherwise' brigade out of the water? At the end of the day it would have been nice for all of the promotion team to get a fair crack at the Premier League but that is all it would have been - nice. There is no room for sentiment any more and the powers that be deemed Sharp wasn't worth keeping around when we were going to play a formation with one up front and four strikers ahead of him in the pecking order.

There must be something about Osvaldo that has made Pochettino absolutely convince the club that we must persevere trying to sign him. I know he worked with him at Espanyol but I can't see anything about him from the YouTube clips and reports I read about him that makes it clear to me exactly what would be so 'must have' about him. Its a bit weird.

I am not so much concerned about the depth as others, as much as I am about the quite diverse styles of the players we've got in the squad. If we were to assume that Pochettino likes to play a certain way regardless of the players at his disposal (which I think is the case from what I can tell) then it is a little concerning to think what the impact a few injuries may have on the team at this moment. For example, I am not overly concerned about Fox being our back-up left-back. If you look up and down the league you'll find that most teams have back-ups at full-back who aren't as good as the first choice. My concern is more that he doesn't appear suited to the way the team wants to play - he has average pace, is easy to be turned, and prone to lots of ball watching which mean his weaknesses can be exposed by being high up the pitch. So it is not so much Fox that is an issue, more that it is Fox being asked to play in a style which really places the emphasis on his weaknesses. So on one hand you may say it is good to have an array of talents in the squad to choose from, but when you are asking them all to play in a certain way there will inevitably be players who benefit and players who struggle a little, plus some players who may feel their strengths and key attributes can't be taken advantage of. Having said that, the biggest gap for me is in the final third anyway. The majority of our forward thinking players have attributes which support a slow, considered build-up and that is the opposite to the vision Pochettino has. Yes when we have possession and build from the back it is nice but the idea is to win the ball high up the pitch and create an opening very quickly through some incisiveness, and that has been dearly lacking at times this season. In fact I think Rodriguez's increased importance to the team has come from him being able to run at players, be direct, and take chances rather than have to slow everything down like he had to at the start of the season. It would be nice to have another forward player like him and I consider that to be our biggest gap at the moment. It doesn't need to be a winger, or a striker, or have to be an attacking midfielder - any of the aforementioned will do, but someone who can carry the ball and 'have a go' would be good to have. The consequence of this is that he attracts attention and opens up space for others as well, so it is far more than the individual benefit of having a player like this. If we're going to win the ball high up the pitch, there is no point slowing it down and letting the opposition get men behind the ball after we do it. We need to have purpose and try some one / two touch stuff to take advantage of it. Hopefully with the depth we now have with Wanyama as well as Cork and Schneiderlin we reduce the threat of the break on us that will occur when we lose the ball high up the pitch as well, but I definitely think we need something extra in the final third.

Doesn't mean anything either way but Banega trained with Valencia in Germany today.

I somewhat fondly remember him launching Paulo Futre into Row E at Upton Park many years ago but this challenge has completely escaped me: Run it off son

Steve - are you including Mark in that 11 or not? I'll make some enquiries tonight for other players if you want?

Steve said one of the pitches was 3G, but having seen the lineup we play all three games on the Saturday on different pitches so probably worth taking boots for all eventualities.

Banega is a very interesting player. I said this in the transfer thread at the start of the summer when he was first linked, but he is very creative without operating in the final third of the pitch. He carries the ball well, draws players towards him, and creates openings for others. He is a very important link between the middle third and the final third without being a player who necessarily creates too many assists. He facilitates the starts of moves and the fact he can carry the ball as well will be a massive help against teams that sit back and defend against us when we play at home. He'll lose the ball sometimes, maybe frustrate, but that little bit of unpredictability is starting to become important in the game as teams become so much more tactically aware and keep shape well.

Feels like the most significant signing of the past decade for a number of reasons.

Over the course of the season Puncheon was probably better, however Lallana wasn't the same after his injury - he kept getting little knocks and could never find his rhythm, and I don't blame him for that whatsoever. It was only back in early December when he got the serious injury against Reading that Saints fans declared it the end of the world and said we'd get relegated. The anxiety was off the scale. You don't go from a player who has that sort of influence on the team to one who isn't good enough for the team after one injury followed by indifferent form caused by a number of reasons. I'm not saying Lallana should be an automatic choice by any means - it is important we have competition and genuine options for the team, but all things being equal (i.e. he isn't carry knocks etc.) I would imagine Lallana would be a starter and would be so on merit. There is definitely more to come from him and he shouldn't blindly play, but lets not use the last 3 months of the season as a guide as to what he has to offer going forward. However, I'll agree on the Captaincy piece. I think there is an element of seniority to him given the age of our team and the fact he sets a great example of what the club wants to achieve, but on the pitch I think Schneiderlin and Lambert can wear the armband to greater effect.

With shifting perceptions you also get shifting expectations. It'll be very interesting to see how the team and club react to an increased level of expectation next season. There have been times last season when the moment we had a little cushion above the bottom three we simply stopped playing with the intensity and quality needed to get results against 'lesser' opposition. That simply won't do this season and so it will be interesting to see how Pochettino can keep the players 'at it'.

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