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Martin Samuel, Daily Mail on Coretese: "self serving" and a "buffoon"


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Have to say sometimes articles like this just seem to be written to divide club and fans....isn't it about time Southampton got some good PR from the press?

 

Cortese I feel it seems is very misunderstood by many on here and I can understand why. Unless you've been in business and demand the highest standards from your staff you'll never reach the top. This is what Cortese demands....I respect him for that.

 

My only personal disagreement in the way he comes across is his lack of thankfulness towards Pardew and the EXCELLENT job he's done in the short time he's been here. It seems many of us have forgotten just how amazingly quickly Pardew spotted our issues and began to resolve them 1 by 1. Yes he had the money to do so, but he also demonstrates he knows how to get the best out of the players he's had like Lallana, Davis, Schiederlin & Others that were already at the club.

 

I'm in support of Pardew and Cortese, I think everything is correct at the club now, the only thing that's now required is some patience to see the fruits.

 

This article about Cortese was much better IMO!

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/football_league/article7070442.ece

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This is the kind of bonkers mentality that infests life.

 

No one or amount of money has a divine right to be or do anything.

 

Not only that, but sport (like life) is 90% work and 10% luck - possibly even more in the luck drawer.

 

Gary Player might have thought that the harder he worked the luckier he got but he wasn't in the aeroplane the day Payne Stewart came down in it was he?

 

Geoff Hurst got a linesman's flag his way. What if the Russian has signalled no goal? It wouldn't be 44 years of hurt, it would be 80...

 

We should beat Tranmere because we outplay them. We might beat them because we get the rub of the green. On the day we should have beaten them because we were the better quality side. We should have beaten them because we worked hard enough to justify it, just.

 

We didn't. That's football. That's life. Sometimes other teams win - either with fortune or without.

 

But above all, it's 30 games into the manager's career at Southampton. It's what ten games into Jason Puncheon's? Lee Barnards's? 30 into Rickie Lambert's?

 

And guess what, we will STILL LOSE football matches. Ask Mr Ferguson or Mr Ancelotti - how is that £700m investment in winning the Champion's League coming on? How did United fair at Burnley - a team they 'should beat' easily on any given measure.

 

This team is in promotion form. It could still get promoted. On Sunday we could win our first tin-pot trophy for 34 years...

 

After ten years of being the most beaten football club in England. After two relegations. After the complete bollix of a season I was forced to endure last year, can people please just let me enjoy it?? Or is that too much to ask for al those suffering from premature promotion fever...

But it is not just the Tranmere game. Im not wishing for a change of manager as it has never worked.

NC is correct that there have been times when with our resources, we have not come up with the results. Tranmere, Wycombe, away and Swindon home have all been games where we could and should have come way with more points. i wont factor in early season results as we were still not a team then.

I have never been a 'we are mighty Southampton and should win' type, but I do believe that we should have been less than 10 points from the play offs at this stage.

Iam pro AP but alos sympathetic to NC's thoughts

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But it is not just the Tranmere game. Im not wishing for a change of manager as it has never worked.

NC is correct that there have been times when with our resources, we have not come up with the results. Tranmere, Wycombe, away and Swindon home have all been games where we could and should have come way with more points. i wont factor in early season results as we were still not a team then.

I have never been a 'we are mighty Southampton and should win' type, but I do believe that we should have been less than 10 points from the play offs at this stage.

Iam pro AP but alos sympathetic to NC's thoughts

Couldn't agree more.

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I can't help but think that this article might have sealed AP's fate at SMS, one way or the other.

 

It comes across as one-sided but "well-connected" - like something we might read in AP's end of career autobiography. And that might not be lost on Cortese.

 

Cortese may be experiencing one of the dangers of getting on the wrong side of the British media - attack one of them and many others will see it as an attack on them.

 

Not a good day for us. I hope NC's and ML's interest in English football didn't just drop a few notches.

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Regardless of the whether the story is fair, accurate or horse ****e or indeed if the author is credible or well positioned to comment is irrelevant , my worry here is that battle lines appear to be being drawn.

National newspapers don’t just dedicate significant column space to thirds division clubs on what is effectively an old story, unless they are being fed from one side or another.

The slant of the story would suggest that this has come from the “Pardew” camp …….. a term which suggests tension, divisions and unrest.

I am genuinely baffled that Pardews job is even up for consideration. Whilst we had a slow start, I’ve watched him put together a squad capable of beating any team in the division, can play different systems, is not scared of changing things during a game and appears to have the support of the players and fans (No mean feat with Saints fans) and is set for a genuine promotion challenge next season – oh and don’t forget the little trip to Wembley that has attracted nearly 50,000 Saints fans.

That doesn’t mean we win every week, it doesn’t even mean we perform all of the time, but then neither do Man u Chelsea, Real Madrid etc etc. I fully accept there has been a significant investment, but surely that investment would be put at risk if Pardew was sacked? Some of our top players will definitely be being courted by championship and even Premiership clubs and we’ve seen firsthand how Pardew has held onto players that have been tempted by the bright lights……would for example Lallana stay if Pardew was sacked. Additionally any new manager would want to bring in his own style / players and for me the roundabout would start again.

There is nothing wrong pressure, ambition and driving for success, but it needs to be tempered with the reality and oddities that only football produces.

If these two really are at loggerheads, then something needs to give, but let’s not forget we are a third division club and regardless of whether Pardew was first choice or not, he is a big name in this division and from what I have seen so far we are lucky to have him.

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If we sack pardew at the end of this year, then i will loose all respect for Cortese, there is no better manager for a league 1 team. No top team is succesful by changing manager every season, look at Chelsea struggling now. Cortese has been great but if he sacks Pards all the good stuff like handing out tea at the ground, being a good guy will be ignored!

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Tabloids are all about sensationalist controversy, exposes and fights. If you dont have enough real ones to write about you have to make one up. tis easy - buy the Times. Some people think its boring - but thats only so if you need a diet of made up shock horror stories rather than facts. The Samuels article isnt based on any source within SMS imo. Read the Times article first then read the mail. Samuels article is just a snippy snidey little attack on Cotese based soley on what the Times has written.

Edited by buctootim
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But it is not just the Tranmere game. Im not wishing for a change of manager as it has never worked.

NC is correct that there have been times when with our resources, we have not come up with the results. Tranmere, Wycombe, away and Swindon home have all been games where we could and should have come way with more points. i wont factor in early season results as we were still not a team then.

I have never been a 'we are mighty Southampton and should win' type, but I do believe that we should have been less than 10 points from the play offs at this stage.

Iam pro AP but alos sympathetic to NC's thoughts

 

The week before playing us, Wycombe beat Millwall 1-0.

 

That is football.

 

I was at the game it was appalling with a capital F.

 

But Lallana missed a sitter to win the game and all this talk would be hot air and lost in the wind.

 

That is football.

 

When we are in the Permiership paying £60k a week, I will be pretty cheesed off if our strikers/midfielders miss sitters.

 

Until then, we're a League One club moving in the right direction.

 

Sure, we will take a backward step once in a while.

 

I wonder how many Norwich fans were baying for blood after we stuffed them at home? Look at Leeds!

 

We're not the best team in the league on season-long form. We are:

 

Second highest scoring team in the division.

Third best defence.

Second on last eight game form.

Second on last five home form....

 

For pete's sake man!!! If that's not enough to get you excited can I suggest Viagra???

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Why anyone believes anything that is written in this paper is beyond me. Having twice had reporters banging on my front door in recent weeks and seeing a pack of lies written and published about me on Monday I can vouch for this newspapers absolute dis regard for the truth and penchance for nasty mischief making.

 

Anyone who buys this very unpleasant rag should be ashamed.

 

Is there really any point in calling Cortese a buffoon?

 

Love to see Cortese take on the Mail and ban it from SMS.

 

You pink jacketed milliant you.

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Regardless of the whether the story is fair, accurate or horse ****e or indeed if the author is credible or well positioned to comment is irrelevant , my worry here is that battle lines appear to be being drawn.

National newspapers don’t just dedicate significant column space to thirds division clubs on what is effectively an old story, unless they are being fed from one side or another.

The slant of the story would suggest that this has come from the “Pardew” camp …….. a term which suggests tension, divisions and unrest.

I am genuinely baffled that Pardews job is even up for consideration. Whilst we had a slow start, I’ve watched him put together a squad capable of beating any team in the division, can play different systems, is not scared of changing things during a game and appears to have the support of the players and fans (No mean feat with Saints fans) and is set for a genuine promotion challenge next season – oh and don’t forget the little trip to Wembley that has attracted nearly 50,000 Saints fans.

That doesn’t mean we win every week, it doesn’t even mean we perform all of the time, but then neither do Man u Chelsea, Real Madrid etc etc. I fully accept there has been a significant investment, but surely that investment would be put at risk if Pardew was sacked? Some of our top players will definitely be being courted by championship and even Premiership clubs and we’ve seen firsthand how Pardew has held onto players that have been tempted by the bright lights……would for example Lallana stay if Pardew was sacked. Additionally any new manager would want to bring in his own style / players and for me the roundabout would start again.

There is nothing wrong pressure, ambition and driving for success, but it needs to be tempered with the reality and oddities that only football produces.

If these two really are at loggerheads, then something needs to give, but let’s not forget we are a third division club and regardless of whether Pardew was first choice or not, he is a big name in this division and from what I have seen so far we are lucky to have him.

 

I believe I'm correct I'm saying we have gained 51 points from the last 26 games whilst at the same time reaching the JPT final and having a good FA Cup run. Any REASONABLE League one Owner/Chairman would I suggest regard that as highly satisfactory and yet I've felt uneasy about Cortese for a few months now. His comments leave me in no doubt his knowledge of football is practically nil and I would be 100 times more interested in what Marcus Liebherr felt about the situation. It's obvious that whilst we have spend a lot of money and expectations are rightly high the question I find myself asking is what would be good enough for Cortese ? He needs a reality check, needs to stop throwing his toys out of the pram if we don't win and most of all back his Manager. I'm afraid I'm finding his attitude seriously annoying and if he did decide to get rid of AP ( or more likely drive him out) then he would be no better than a succession of Chairman who brought this club to it's knees. One thing above all we should have learnt is that constant changing of managers is a recipe for disaster. I'd normally say barring really bad management any Manager should be given at least 12 months. As far as I'm concerned in this case you can forget about any time up to Christmas and look to the end of the year to reassess the situation. If we are not right up there challenging for automatic promotion then I would be worried. However, I fully expect the squad we have with a few additions if the right players are available at the right place to gain promotion next season and with some comfort. I believe that to be a realistic ambition and I suspect most would agree, what page are you on Mr Cortese ?

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Thanks for the link. I'm pretty sure that this article is what Martin Samuel is basing his rant piece on.

 

Exactly - the article in the Mail isn't an original piece, it's someone who's read another article in the Times, and decided to make something else out of it. When the Times article was kicked around on here, most posters seemed to think it was a good, positive piece about someone with the right ambitions for the club. Now a journalist has read it, and noticed that he doesn't mention Pardew at all (or, to be precise, Pardew wasn't mentioned by Cortese in the article)... it's what they do - and it's why it's so risible when journalists condemn politicians for trying to use 'spin'.

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I doubt very much whether NC is sitting in his office thinking 'Oh my god Martin Samuel doesn't like me'.

 

Also Samuel has blown the whole thing out of proportion I think. One comment was made about league performance about 2 months ago, which has since been clarified. As the Chief Executive he has every right to comment on his view of the teams performance. Nobody including AP should get too upset, it should be viewed as a motivator. I can't believe some people saying that AP might leave because it could have upset him. Managers will get criticism at any level, it goes with the territory. He he left us and went to another club, its highly likely that he would be subject to criticism at some point. If I had a £ for everytime my boss commented on my performance I'd be minted.

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We're not the best team in the league on season-long form. We are:

 

Second highest scoring team in the division.

Third best defence.

Second on last eight game form.

Second on last five home form....

 

For pete's sake man!!! If that's not enough to get you excited can I suggest Viagra???

I have enjoyed this season more than I have for a long time even more than WGS' reign. I dont worry if we dont get to the PL if we carry on entertaining ,scoring goals and hqave decent crowds. Im not suire I want to pay £40 to watch the so called 'worlds most exciting league' as Wigan/Bolton/Blackburn come to SMS set up not to lose. Im happy but that does not mean I dont want us to not do better when we patently should do.

As for Viagra i dont need it....yet

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Little Monster?

 

Free season ticket for life plus kitting out child in saints kiddies attire for one fan

 

Offering to pay for stewerding so more of our fans can go to Wembley

 

just two of the horrendous crimes perpotrated by said monster

 

Hang your head Nicola you horrible man!

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I do find it funny, if that had been article about Pompey it would have been disected and ageed upon about eevery point but as its against your club its ********...

 

It's an opinion piece.

 

Some people seem to agree with it. Most of us don't. Those are our opinions.

 

The stark difference between that and recent PFC coverage is that you have to read between the lines of PFC coverage to figure out what on earth is actually going on, even in a straight factual report. With regards to opinion pieces about PFC, we agree with the ones that are negative and disagree with the ones that are positive. That's not surprising really is it? Do you not think PFC has rightly attracted negative opinion this season? Are you happy with the way it's conducted itself? Do you think Storrie's done a good job? Al-Faraj for PM? Fahim to head the NHS?

 

I'm not sure what you find funny.

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you've gotta run a tight ship, thats all cortese is doing ...i'm not so much worried about the harsh line hes taking with pards and demanding success ...more with how samuel points to the fact he just 'laughed off' the suggestions about using us as a stepping stone, but then again it wouldnt really make sense based on what he's said about taking the job because of leibherr ...either way, i guess nothings forever anyway ...personally i think both pards and cortese are doing a spot on job and nothing should change

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I do find it funny, if that had been article about Pompey it would have been disected and ageed upon about eevery point but as its against your club its ********...

 

Also, it's hardly against the club is it?

 

The underlying premise is that we have a team and manager on the way back up.

 

It is a personal attack on Cortese full of lazy rhetoric about bankers and apparently outraged that Alan Pardew wasn't name-checked often enough in the other interview. It employs a load of ridiculous hyperbole that suggests NC doesn't know what he's doing and for some reason conflates that with the fact that our financing comes from someone other than NC. Rather odd as the fact that the financier trusts NC to deal with his money, having worked with him for many years, surely speaks much louder than the obese raspings of a far-off observer.

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All a bit OTT really.

 

But it is the Daily Mail and Cortese is an immigrant.

:rolleyes:

 

 

lol:D

 

...also, samuel looks a hell of a lot like that other gobby c*nt garry bushell, has anyone ever seen them in the same room together :confused:

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I do find it funny, if that had been article about Pompey it would have been disected and ageed upon about eevery point but as its against your club its ********...

 

These Journos should all be concentrating on your club and at the very least its mismanagement, with such a target available it makes you wonder why Samuel picked on Cortese ?

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Isn't he the same muppet who used to slag Saints off every week in the News of the World? The same prat who's articles in the NOTW we used to complain about every week on here and S4E?

 

Martin Samuel maybe the cheif sports reporter at the Mail, but regulary gets his facts wrong and tables his opinions to the market that reads his paper.

 

Just look at some of the headlines on that page "Take Beckham as cheerleader" sticks out straight away. They guy hasn't got a clue.

 

OOO

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As a person he seems just as arrogant, smug and egotistical is Rupert

 

Maybe, but you need to be all of these things in such a position. The difference essentially is that Lowe was in it for Lowe which meant syphoning money from the club to himself, wheras Cortese can syphon all he likes because we're minted.

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This article is nonsense - I listened to the entire interview with Cortese and this article just does not reflect Cortese's attitude towards Pardew.

 

From all that I've heard and read about Cortese, it seems to me that he is smart, competent, demanding and fully committed to his job. To call him a "bufoon" is ridiculous.

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What I find difficult with the article is that it attempts to weave, rather unsucessfully, IMHO several different issues together that ...well, simply dont quite fit to draw the concusions that samual does in this case. I am not sure what NC has done to upset the man, but I find his conclusions, rather ill reserached and based as others have pointed out on various DIFFERENT sourcs already in the public domain...so nothing new apart form his sudden support for Pards.

 

If we address the points in isolation (as they should be) there are quite rightly some good points:

 

Pards - has done well (IMHO), base don the changes to the squad, the -10 point start, etc we have shown a big improvement.

 

That does need to be balanced against the support provided by NC/ML in the transfer market.

 

As I see it, when NC goes public with higher expectations its in light of this investment - I doubt that NC would be so critical (or positively prevening complacency) had there been no funding.... the critique and expectations are therefore very high, in view of the high spending and investment - which is fair, and to be honest, I am sure teh working relationship between Pards and NC is one of mutual respect - highly demanding can in many folks eyes be seen as having high ambition.

 

Ambition: for years during the Lowe years it was craved, the weekly calls to 'spend some ****ing money' from the terraces... which fell on deaf ears - or were greeted with the response of 'prudence being the wise appraoch'...

 

There are several ironies here that make this quite interesting. If you took NC and Lowe on paper, they probably ahve more in common than we would choose to recognise... living within ones means, a sound financial footing, and pressure on the manager to succeed with teh resources they have. The difference is that NC via ML has provided resources that Lowe did not sanction (please no debate on whether we had tehm or should have borrowed etc...thats history), yet most fans would now agree that this sound financial management IS the best way to go - maybe times have chnaged given the global financial climate that we are all more realistic in our expectations of what and how a club should be run financially and 'living within our means' (operationally at least -as we know ML has dipped into his pocket to support the purchases) carries less of an association with 'no ambition' as it did under Lowe... just a guess... but given the crap state of football finance, I think more clubs and more fans are beginnning to recognise that something went very wrong with the state of football finance... everyone in fact in tyhe media, fans, NC...everyone except Samual, who seems oblivious to the the problems by having a pop at NC over his criticisms of the shocking situation many face...

 

NC, is a tough, no nonsense businessmen who is ambitious and demanding. Whatever his personal ambitions with respect to football, he will only realise them if he delivers success at Saints - because if he fails given the financial backing he has, he will not be welcomed anywhere. His opportunity is our opportunity. His ambition will translate as our ambition. He will stand and fall by his decisions and given that he employed Pards after discussions with senior figures in the game, has backed him with cash, and we have seen a fairly rapid improvement as a result, Samual is talking out of his fat arse.

 

NC may well make wrong decsions, and make mistakes, he may lose patience, or he may leave who knows, but the time to judge will be in 4 years, not when a lazy journo decides to rake up various old stories , and apply the 'making 5 from 2+2 rule of crap journalism', for no obvious reason apart from to appear 'hard hitting' and 'controvercial'

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Agree with a lot you say above FC far more eloquent than I could express it.

On the surface there are a few good points made, but as usual that S**ty paper, has used certain snippets out of context, to hammer NC & Saints. That paper in all my 38-years of supporting the Saints they have always always had a downer on us as a club. They take the echo story & take there side of the story. This is just sloppy journalism from a sloppy journalist from a s**te paper IMHO.

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I do find it funny, if that had been article about Pompey it would have been disected and ageed upon about eevery point but as its against your club its ********...

 

On the contrary. I can totally see where he is coming from. I just think he should massively tone down his comments and most of the article is deliberately inflammatory and serves no purpose other than to cause trouble.

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have oyu a link to that FF?

I havent seen it posted on here.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1259684/BA-Unite-strikes-Willie-Walsh-vows-win-war-attrition.html

 

Personally I think the shoes are far worse fashion crimes than the pink jacket! I can't believe he wears that stuff when not on duty, it must be the sort of Geography Teacher casualwear clothes that one wears when leving one's large house to stand on the picket line with people who actually serve the drinks.

 

 

article-1259684-08D19743000005DC-314_634x413.jpg

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It is actually a quite well put together opinion. He uses information in the public domain from his interview and analyses it, nothing wrong with that.

 

Nothing in there is anti-Saints, and it reflects many of the discussions and threads we have had on here the past months. If anything it is highly supportive of AP.

 

His final conclusion is where I would critique him, that seems spiteful, but up to that point there isn't much in the article that doesn't apply to many on here with their differing but valid "We should win at Wycombe/Tranmere" opinions.

 

Agree with all Wade says, nothing wrong with keeping your staff on their toes, but I would add as long as it doesn't force them to use their toes to walk at the first chance to get out. Pressure and spirit when balanced well help to make good morale, too much can break morale, I think ATM NC from what we can see has the balance about right.

 

What IS interesting though is that we are starting to attract publicity and debate.

 

That has been a long time coming and long may it happen.

 

I would argue that from what we can see we can hope Cortese has the balance about right and hopefully he has learned some lessons about what even the fans consider reasonable expectations.

 

Cortese is not a million miles from Lowe and other CEO's who believe and rightly so that football should be run like any other business. However, it looks increasingly like that he believes his business management experience can be applied to the management of the team and what he has said publicly can only lead to undermine and demotivate it and that and his arrogant 'untouchable' style is not dissimiliar to a Swiss Rupert albeit with slightly better contacts.

 

A CEO should in public back his manager and other staff to the hilt and until he feels the need to do likewise at which point you simply dispense with their services. It's why the vote of confidence is so dreaded isn't it? Cortese's comments could be perceived as creating division among the ranks and unusually his current expectations are out of sync with the majority of the fan base and the season we have enjoyed to date.

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This article is nonsense - I listened to the entire interview with Cortese and this article just does not reflect Cortese's attitude towards Pardew.

 

From all that I've heard and read about Cortese, it seems to me that he is smart, competent, demanding and fully committed to his job. To call him a "bufoon" is ridiculous.

 

I agree. In the interview, he plainly states that there is no rift between him and Pardew.

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