Hodgey

We need some big players - we’ve somehow ended up with a really small squad, and our promising youngsters are also small. Need a few big players in that league who can put it about, ones that can run about for more than 20mins too. looking back that’s what we did when we dropped to league 1 - Jaidi, Lambert, Fonte, Guly - even the likes of Hammond could put it about. Then we complimented them with players like Hooivelt and Cork who could also handle physical games. This squad is far too lightweight for that league

Some baffling comments here. Why is top 6 the barometer ? That would make sense if our ambitions are to be a top 6 club - they’re not. he’s a proven Prem league player who will go to a top 10 team, he’ll go to a top 10 team as he is a top 10 player. Being a top 10 player in the Prem makes you a top 30 player in your position in the world. But for some mad reason, a large proportion of saints fans see him as not good enough and can’t wait to get rid.

I don’t buy the illness line either - I mean he doesn’t risk a clearly fit striker. Also that note incident didn’t even go to him. As for those looking fwd to him leaving - be careful what you wish for - he performs a very decisive roll which is under appreciated, which you’ll see next year.

I’m baffled - what on earth was that ‘performance’. Why didn’t we play a striker in a game we have to win ?, why replace Jwp with Lyanco ?, why did the players seemingly not get out of first gear ?, what was the plan ? Etc etc They didn’t even look that bothered at the end of the game. There is something seriously amiss with this club at the moment. I reckon it’s going to take us a year to turn this around it’s such a mess, we need to make sure we don’t get sucked into a relegation fight in the first half of next season which I can see happening. Once the few family jewels are sold we really don’t have many players equipped for a championship battle

It’s really simple - we had 3 priority problems to address - gk, st, manager - all we’re not good enough for various reasons. £160m later and unbelievably we are now weaker in all 3 areas.

What’s odd is how sparingly/inappropriately he’s been used, he can score, pick a pass and get into those ‘red zones’ we bang on about all the time. Should be playing 90m every game for me - Selles has been overthinking this. The type of player you would build around in the championship.

Keep making those comments Window - each time you do we seem to instantly respond !. I’d expect this game to be over before tea

Don’t think he was to blame yesterday but he’s not Prem standard and I don’t think he ever will be. Think he’ll be a decent Championship gk but I don’t think he’s even that yet so should be our number 2 next year and we need to buy better (and experienced)

The problem is this won’t happen. There is no evidence to suggest we are capable of finding improvements when selling our best players, let alone in the championship. Thankfully we may not need to in the championship, if we get the right manager with a decent budget he can chose a player mix that will deliver his style. That’s a big if with our recruitment team / board. I’m hoping they are already having conversations with managers willing to jump on board early with the aim of automatic promotion. Rest of this season is a write off.

1) Tough one this - Baz and Moi run him close, but A Armstrong has offered absolutely nothing. 2) At the moment Jones, reserve right to change at end of season as Selles is quickly catching up, at least Jones had a long ball plan with Tall Paul to try something different 3) Can only be Wolves at home. You can’t lose from a 1-0 lead against 10 men for most of the game 4) So many, going to go for Che’s attempted header against Wolves with an open goal. if anything sums up our entire season it’s that shocking miss. 5) Osric - was bought as the ready to play difference maker but is somehow worse than our multitude of poor wingers. 6) Ankerson - he decided Jones was the answer, and he personally took accountability for the terrible Jan window where he was apparently ‘buying players to keep us up’.

I’d like to see Carrick or Rowett - whichever doesn’t go up. Not convinced about Gerrard / Rooney etc. Potter would be batting above our average, only wild left field style thinking I’d like to see would be a top manager from another league Prem clubs haven’t taken a gamble on - ie Celtic manager (I know extremely unlikely). Cooper would be tailor made - question is if Forest go down, and even then if they sack him.

They are a very good team, but this batting issue has been a problem for a while. When conditions are not favourable it seems like we have few batters who can tough it out. Prest deserved a go, but we are still 2 openers light. Organ needs a rest but I’m unconvinced on Holland as an opener so lots of pressure on Middleton (started well).

Better hope for rain in this one. No idea why we can’t bat at the oval, but I don’t fancy us bowling them out for less than 250 so we need the tail to really wag. Madness to chose to bat first

We are just so weak in the air (both ends) so a keeper who can’t clear out doesn’t help. Haaland really should have had a hattrick - just rusty at the back post against JWP, I don’t see Bazuna saving that if it’s on target. I dont blame Bazuna for any of those goals, it’s just that he looks so small to me, he doesn’t seem to have the ability to make himself big (might be a confidence thing) and put strikers off. I’d really worry about him and our cbs in the championship with the amount of big players and diagonal Ariel balls.

The problem is speed. Ideally you would want to sell and buy quickly so you know what you have pre-season, but to maximise value we probably need to sell at the end of the window. This means we’re going to have a very turbulent pre-season, which will probably see us start slowly as we build a new team. So it’s going to require patience and good will - something that frankly is in short supply. There is an argument to take a financial hit and get the business done early. But I don’t think we have the mentality or ability to do that. Expect long drawn out transfer sagas, inertia in signings as we try and sell/loan players, and a fair few unhappy players causing issues when the window closes. Of course you also can’t really get going until you have a manager in who tells you who they do / don’t want…. Wilcox is going to have a very busy start.

I mean what do people expect, of course a novice manager is being found out against world class experienced managers - only a lunatic would think that would work in a relegation battle. The same lunatic who thought a long ball nutcase who had failed at a similar club to us would somehow surprise everyone. He’s done well given what he’s inherited and his experience but playing like that in the Championship we’ll have no chance. We also need to bring in a lot more height and strength - the team of small inexperienced kids we have will be beaten up there. On the plus side this is a genuinely exciting chance for a manager to start again. Someone who can bring a new style / players that suit / their own coaching squad / money to spend. Of course the well known issue is the sheer arrogance of our leadership making this decision, it’s at best 50/50 that they don’t balls this up and appoint some left field strategy which only they’ve spotted as they are so clever. We don’t need to be clever here, we need to do this by the numbers - get a proven manager in with a short term (2 yr max) goal of taking us up. If that means buying a few expensive 32 year olds with zero sell on value, or players without a ceiling to become a Prem star but actually just bloody good / nasty sods in the championship then we do it. Oh and an experienced gk please. As Burnley proved its also a great chance to play the loan system - something we’ve again had a pretty poor record of.

Didn’t realise that he signed a long term contract. maybe this ITK isn’t ITK then !

Shame the wheels have come off a bit, as there seems to be some talented players at this age group, I don’t like the playing younger players excuses - if you are getting thumped by 7 and 6 there is more to it than that. on the Athletic comments there was someone who seemed very ITK who said Doyle won’t sign a new contract and will sign with someone else, and Payne is wanted by 3 Prem clubs (but under contract). That’s a bit worrying as Morgan and Doyle were seen as two of our best. I wonder if some players are understandably below par due to being unsettled. hearing good things about the two ex Spurs lads, with Ballard described as a great talent who needs to work on his decision making - which sounds worryingly similar to many of our 1st team attackers !!

Surrey starting with another 400 plus first innings, carrying on where they left off last season, will take some stopping….

Middleton steadied the ship today opening - impressive for someone with so little experience, dare we hope he’s the opener we need. it’s still a funny batting side - Vince aside there is little difference in run scoring from Organ opening down to Fuller at 9 - says as much about our top order as it does our tail. Let’s see what score they can put together in this innings still can’t imagine many batters fancying Abbas, Abbott and Barker in April.

Selles has actually done a good job for someone who has never managed before. He’s obviously making mistakes, as you would expect, but looks to have something about him. Sadly not here though, we can’t afford someone learning on the job next year, especially someone who I feel is better playing teams that play nice football and attack you (won’t be much of that in the Championship), plus his team looks really weak at defending set pieces. A new manager needs a clean start and his own team so I don’t see how he goes back to a coach (not that he would want that) Hopefully another club look at this spell outside a ‘manager relegated’ and give him a deserved chance.

We’re going to need a massive rethink for the Championship. There are a load of West Ham / Leeds / Brentford type teams there - you know, ones where we don’t look like scoring. the Ralf playbook needs to be put in a safe and as we prep for the championship we need to think much more positively on how we score goals and equally importantly how to defend the standard free kick / corner we seem so susceptible to. Both Jones and Selles have tried to tighten up at the back, all both succeeded in doing is moving our defeats from 3-1 to 1-0. We have players who can score in the championship, but they won’t if we play like this. That league is all about strength and speed. Lots of players we have won’t cope in that league but there are a fair few who should excel. question is can we keep the ones who can and lose the ones who can’t, and find a manager. Work cut out…..

So first game next week, is it me or is there absolutely no news or build up (maybe just used to PL hype), I’ve no idea who has played in friendlies, if they looked good, any surprising names, injuries etc, even Hampshires own website isn’t interested !! Hoping for another good season, still an opener light and relying on dads army for the bowling but think we can be top 4. Limited overs will be interesting, look to have a good t20 team again with Benny Howell. Brave look weak this year so might give up bothering with that increasingly Micky mouse competition and focus on the 40 overs instead. Got a feeling we will see more from Organ, Currie and Prest this year. Be surprised if Fuller can maintain last years level. Also looking fwd to seeing a few evening major posts - never tire of that.

Yeah mentally I must have forgotten about him! - he’d be there all right - although like Tall Paul some mitigation in that he was bought by another manager / style.

Best - Case, Adams, Flowers, Hall, Katchoul, Richards, Clyde, Beattie, Schneiderlin, Marsden, Lambert, Mane, VVD, Tadic, Svenssonsx2, Worst: Delap, McLaughlin, Osvaldo, Delgado and his mate, Van dam, Crainey, Moi, A Armstrong, Forren, Marshall, Dixon, Speedie, Quashie, Bernard