Seems to be a lot of anti-Lallana people

[Pahars_Legend]

Obviously is a talented player but he tends to over do it. He will have a chance to shoot/cross then cut back (sometimes cut back again) and the opportunity is lost, happened a lot last season. Puncheon deserved to play ahead of him with his form but Lallana is still an important member of the team.

[DuncanRG]

But he really wasn't good. 3 goals isn't enough and puncheon scored 7. Some games Adam was just damn right awful.

 

We can all agree he needs to work on his direct goal threat, but he was still at the heart of a lot of our good play. Has greatly improved his defensive game since Pochettino came in as well - it was a great worry watching him and Fox in tandem early on in the season.

[Lighthouse]

Is this one of those threads where people get outraged over something nobody has actually said?

 

There aren't any haters, nobody is writing him off, saying he is sh*t, saying he isn't good enough for the Premier League or anything like that. It's just fair honest criticism of his overall game, the same as any other player. He isn't beyond criticism just because he is a local, academy grown player. He needs to improve his final ball and his shooting if he is to keep his place in the team. Lallana wont get into a top 6 team playing like he did last season and that is where Saints have to be aiming.

[Appy]

He needs an injury free season, he started last season so well, but picked up that injury against Reading and never really got back to top form.

[Saints boy in Leeds]

I don't get this. Has bags of talent, can be a joy to watch but people on this forum give him a lot of stick. Ok, he needs to up his shooting but on his day can cause all sorts of problems, Liverpool at home for example. Even as captain, it doesn't stop other players from voicing opinion on the pitch or motivating a player. Why do these people give him so much stick ??

 

I think its because he shows loads of potential but is hot and cold, some games plays a stonker, others he's just not in the game. The goal he scored against Reading last season was top class IMO, he's still only 25 and it was his 1st PL season last time out, give the boy time.

[Grey Crab]

Some seem to have more attachment and loyalty to an inanimate striped shirt than they do to a human being who has worked hard and shown commitment to Southampton F.C.

[Chez]

He doesn't have pace and he doesn't have a powerful shot. He never will. Accept that and start enjoying his terrific attributes. There is more than enough room in our squad for players with his ability.

[Batman]

lallana is frustrating, brilliant and a saint

 

love the fella

he loves the club

he has been here since god knows when

he is supremely gifted

he does frustrate

he is and will become a good premier league player

 

enjoy someone with natural skill, accept that he, like many others of his ilk will frustrate and see what he can do

[derry]

There appears to be two Adam Lallana positions. The midfield position he seems to be taking up in the latter half of the season and in the sporadic internet coverage of the last two friendlies where he appears peripheral and ineffective. Then the wide left where he seems most effective with the odd switch to the wide right and rather than coming in centrally all the time does it less often but into more advanced positions. The second for me is the position he excels at. The central position often sees him crowded out.

[Crazy Diamond]

He's a very talented player and as Crab Lungs has said, in the Football League he was very good. In time, when he has more than a single season in the top flight behind him, I believe he will be a very good player at this level as well.

 

He does frustrate me with his need to take one touch too many, but that is perhaps something that again, experience will solve.

[Saint_clark]

The Lallana hate on here is pathetic, he stuck with us through all the bad times and was a very competent championship left mid and a key part of the way we played under Adkins in the championship, as the amount of assists Lallana and Richardson got that season will testify. He isn't a a premier league player, anyone can see this, but like Fox, Sharp, Richardson, Hammond and Davis did the job he was brought in to do, the only difference is the the others were replaced by better players so are viewed as heroes who did their job in the championship and were part of a great team. Whereas we failed to bring in a left mid last summer, so Lallana is viewed as some useless out of depth clown who should never play for us again.

 

Good read for the Lallana and Gaston negative fans:

http://footballspeak.com/post/2013/04/01/Southampton-on-the-rise.aspx

 

I for one am a big fan of AL and think he's done ok for his first season in the prem. of the top of my head he was excellent against Liverpool. A great talent who will get better and better, for sure. Encourage his talent, don't knock him.

 

Are you bi-polar?

[Baird of the land]

I like Lallana a lot as a player. Really hope he can have a big season. Part of me does wonder if he would thrive better in a freer role.

[Turkish]

So, I think to summarise this thread no there aren't a lot of anti Lallana people.

[red&white56]

Some seem to have more attachment and loyalty to an inanimate striped shirt than they do to a human being who has worked hard and shown commitment to Southampton F.C.

 

Good comment!

[VectisSaint]

So, I think to summarise this thread no there aren't a lot of anti Lallana people.

Looks like 1.5 people, Roger and half of Glasgow. ART hasn't commented on this thread but is usually very negative about AL

Fortunately Saints supporters still think AL is a great Saint, those at matches seem to think differently than the few on here. Clearly was not at his best when he came back from injury, and like others I would have preferred him not to be captain, but can see why he is. Can be frustrating but has bags of skill and creativity, only really his shooting that lets him down, and not great at set pieces (but frankly who is?). I would still rather have him in the matchday squad than not any time and think he will be very good next season. Nice to see he has ditched the dodgy haircuts as well.

[Hedgehog]

Whilst I still feel frustrated about his decision making, shooting ability and doing crop circles when a pass would do, if you were to look at the following:

we would be on page 30 of thinking of buying this player for £12 - 15mil on these clips.

Hope he comes back stronger this season, injury free.

[Horley CTFC Saint]

For me he's been held back injuries in the last couple of seasons - seems to struggle to regain form and maybe the captaincy lays a bit heavily on him. I'd like to see him have an injury free season as hasn't really progressed as much as I'd hoped and expected - still time to prove all of the doubters wrong and hope he does for his loyalty as much as anything else

[Guan 2.0]

Whilst I still feel frustrated about his decision making, shooting ability and doing crop circles when a pass would do, if you were to look at the following:

we would be on page 30 of thinking of buying this player for £12 - 15mil on these clips.

Hope he comes back stronger this season, injury free.

 

I understand getting behind a player, but I think the only people who would suggest spending 12-15 mil on a player after watching him score (and miss) a few in League one, Carling cup and Paint pot trophy at present would be smoking crack!

[Viking Warrior]

Having been on this forum and its predecessor for many years and each season someone comes up with a victim to be this seasons whipping boy . It's sad but people have their opinions which I disagree with but Adam llallana being put up as this season sacrificial lamb

[Hedgehog]

I understand getting behind a player, but I think the only people who would suggest spending 12-15 mil on a player after watching him score (and miss) a few in League one, Carling cup and Paint pot trophy at present would be smoking crack!

 

My point was, most people were deciding whether Wanyama was good enough after watching youtube. If unlike us, seeing Adam play week in week out, and we were neutrals and our club were after some guy called Adam Llanna, we would be writing pagefulls of why aren't we snapping this guy up.

[Faz]

My point was, most people were deciding whether Wanyama was good enough after watching youtube. If unlike us, seeing Adam play week in week out, and we were neutrals and our club were after some guy called Adam Llanna, we would be writing pagefulls of why aren't we snapping this guy up.

 

Only if he was Uruguayan and playing in Italy.

[Crowds]

A good player but I was disappointed last season and I think I expected more! He might be captain and have been here for years but don't be silly enough to think he'd be loyal if we went down or a bigger club came in for him....

[Faz]

A good player but I was disappointed last season and I think I expected more! He might be captain and have been here for years but don't be silly enough to think he'd be loyal if we went down or a bigger club came in for him....

 

Hmmm

[LostBoys]

I think everyone ar SFC wants him to succeed but he had a poor last season and he cannot afford another. Also he should not be captain.

[channonwindmill]

Think the problem is a lot of people thought he would be a top Premiership player for us and in the two thirds of his first season in the league he did not live up to people's expectations.

 

How dare he take longer than 20 odd games to adjust to the next level up

 

Luke Shaw adjusted pretty well, and that was without 5 or 6 seasons of regular first team football behind him.

[Saint Martini]

He had a good start to the season last year and was deservedly called up to the England squad. He then got injured and he never really looked the same for the rest of the season. He became very ineffectual and made the wrong choices a lot. I also think he doesn't really have the personality to be captain. If he's on form it works, but if he's strugling he seems to be too pre-occupied with himself to also be an inspiration for others. From the beginning of last season I know he has the potential to be a good PL player so calling him crap and championship material is over the top. I can't understand why fans can't show a bit of loyalty to a player that has been very loyal to the club. Its one thing if the staff at the club decide he's not good enough for the PL but for the fans to get on his back because he's played below par for half a season is something I do not understand.

[stknowle]

they scored from a penalty right on half time and Lallana missed a shedload. Early season TV game, The rest has disappeared into the mists of time. Just remember Lallana's woefulness, we could have had the game stowed away long before Blackpool scored.

 

Was the game after our 1 0 away humbling of Derby (who hadn't won for 35 games or something, it being the year after they got relegated from the Prem with lowest points total ever - 11), and the game that basically reinstalled my belief that playing a load of kids and Chris Perry wasn't going to work. Think it may have been the last game of Killer's 5 game come back as well. Anyway, Lallana - really want to see him succeed but remain concerned he won't chiefly because of the pace thing. But, as someone above said, has only had approx 20 games at this level so may start to come good after a few more. In the words of one of my favourite posters - we'll see!!

[Viking Warrior]

I thought Adam had a good season we survived our return to the premier league . He may not have been a prolific scorer . But he opened up a lot of premier league defences and provided opportunities for others . The premier league is a tough league. Whoever plays in it . Richie scored loads but several on here moaned about his goals . So from a saints fan who has watched the team for a lot longer than some of you have been around . Stop knocking the players unless they are total dross . This is one of the best altogether squads we have had for a few years . Adam llallana , Guly Garston etc etc . Get behind the squad instead of always bloody moaning . If you don't like the saints go somewhere else

[Viking Warrior]

Speaking to a few Celtic colleagues there is a different opinion up here . Yes he can be a rock but sometimes he tends to be a pebble . I hope now he is with saints he becomes a piece of granite

[Dig Dig]

When pundits and other teams manager and fans mention quality players which Saints have, Lallana is nearly always mentioned.

I think some fans fail to understand the impact which injuries and little loss of confidence have on players (Ramirez another example) and are often overly critical.

[Glasgow_Saint]

Speaking to a few Celtic colleagues there is a different opinion up here . Yes he can be a rock but sometimes he tends to be a pebble . I hope now he is with saints he becomes a piece of granite

 

Agree he can be a pebble at times, but I thought Adam had a good season we survived our return to the premier league . He may not have been a prolific scorer . But he opened up a lot of premier league defences and provided opportunities...

[lordswoodsaints]

I rate Adam highly,he stuck by us when we were on the bones of our arses when he could of strolled into a decent prem team,so for that he has to be applauded especially in these days of no loyalty and greed.

On the minus side,even though he deserves his title of captain I don't think he should be,he needs to have more of an end product and he needs to up his game sometimes but these are all things that can be worked on.

There are a lot of teams out there who would love to have him,but I am so glad that he is ours.

[DuncanRG]

Luke Shaw adjusted pretty well, and that was without 5 or 6 seasons of regular first team football behind him.

 

Indeed. If a run-of-the-mill, ordinary footballer like Luke Shaw can do it, why can't everyone?

[Tamesaint]

lallana is frustrating, brilliant and a saint

 

love the fella

he loves the club

he has been here since god knows when

he is supremely gifted

he does frustrate

he is and will become a good premier league player

 

enjoy someone with natural skill, accept that he, like many others of his ilk will frustrate and see what he can do

 

Excellent post.

[St_Tel49]

Is this one of those threads where people get outraged over something nobody has actually said?

 

There aren't any haters, nobody is writing him off, saying he is sh*t, saying he isn't good enough for the Premier League or anything like that. It's just fair honest criticism of his overall game, the same as any other player. He isn't beyond criticism just because he is a local, academy grown player. He needs to improve his final ball and his shooting if he is to keep his place in the team. Lallana wont get into a top 6 team playing like he did last season and that is where Saints have to be aiming.

I'd reread the thread if I were you.

[channonwindmill]

Indeed. If a run-of-the-mill, ordinary footballer like Luke Shaw can do it, why can't everyone?

 

So you wouldn't expect an experienced player with 5 or 6 seasons of first team football to perform better at Prem level than a 17 year old in his debut season? Ok.

[DuncanRG]

So you wouldn't expect an experienced player with 5 or 6 seasons of first team football to perform better at Prem level than a 17 year old in his debut season? Ok.

 

I would if we lived in some bizarro universe where footballing performance was on a set trajectory and everyone progressed at the same rate. Luke Shaw is quite clearly an exceptional case.

Edited 28 July, 2013 by DuncanRG

[Charlie Wayman]

He isn't a a premier league player, anyone can see this.

 

Only by you apparently. Usually I only read posts these days but outrageous rubbish like this needs response. Many on here seem see you as some sort of oracle on matters Saints but more entries like this will cost you dear in reputation.

[Glasgow_Saint]

Only by you apparently. Usually I only read posts these days but outrageous rubbish like this needs response. Many on here seem see you as some sort of oracle on matters Saints but more entries like this will cost you dear in reputation.

 

You have taken just a small section of my post?

 

The point i was making is we'll be in or around the relegation zone all year - second season syndrome - and found wanting in creating goals as we were last year when the pressure was on and we desperately needed to win games. Not many clubs seem able to avoid this type of slump in their fortunes and the only explanation can be that all the pumped-up hype and expectations of pre-season (usually arising from the relief of surviving their first season) is misplaced introspection. For that reason we need Lallana at his best and i am backing him to deliver 110%

[channonwindmill]

I would if we lived in some bizarro universe where footballing performance was on a set trajectory and everyone progressed at the same rate. Luke Shaw is quite clearly an exceptional case.

 

If we spend £10m+ on a new midfielder Lallana's place will be under threat. I presume you wouldn't advocate that we get Dean Hammond back in and give him 20+ starts next season ahead of Schneiderlin and Wanyama to see what rate he progresses at?

[SaintJackoInHurworth]

Adam Lallana has been without question one of our most consistent quality players of recent years. His quality remained there for all to see at the start of last season. Many clubs would love to have a player of his quality. I suspect there are too many WUMs on this board - some with decidedly fishy tendencies.

 

That having been said, maybe there were a few games at the end of last season where our opponents identified his threat as significant and nullified it as you would expect from any good Premier League team. This, coupled with some loss of edge in his fitness after injury (which then also affected his pace) may have led to Adam trying a few different things, as you would expect of any player seeking to improve. Sadly, some of these did not come off and people immediately start to have questions about his ability. Yet what people are seeing as a lack of ability is instead the complete opposite - these are the marks of a quality player seeking to be even better.

 

With the right support - both from the fans and from within the club's management - Adam will continue to improve and will find the ways in which he can best utilise his (IMO) undoubted ability. Playing against quality opposition, with quality players around him and quality coaching will lead us in time to see a new improved Adam Lallana. So, let's be patient and enjoy seeing him attain that next level!

 

Incidentally, a few years ago, there was a new star in English football who very quickly became the glorious hope of English football. However, as people began to learn about him, so opposing managers began to identify ways of nulifying his threat. Wayne Rooney has not got worse as a player, but he has got to work much harder nowadays to achieve the same results as he saw in his early days. It was much the same with Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlaide Chamberlain and it is also the same with Adam Lallana.

 

As well as allowing Adam the freedom to express himself so that he can discover what works in beating Premier League quality players, so also we need to ensure that the other players around him also provide such a threat that Premier League players cannot afford to focus all their efforts on nullifying Lallana, Ramirez and Lambert. Instead we must ensure that every player is such a threat that no such tactics can be effective.

 

Finally, I believe that Puncheon's success (and he DID have a great season for us!) has perhaps come largely as a result of his direct style, but also maybe because he is not perceived to be as much of a threat as Lallana and Ramirez.

[austsaint]

Looks like 1.5 people, Roger and half of Glasgow. ART hasn't commented on this thread but is usually very negative about AL

Fortunately Saints supporters still think AL is a great Saint, those at matches seem to think differently than the few on here. Clearly was not at his best when he came back from injury, and like others I would have preferred him not to be captain, but can see why he is. Can be frustrating but has bags of skill and creativity, only really his shooting that lets him down, and not great at set pieces (but frankly who is?). I would still rather have him in the matchday squad than not any time and think he will be very good next season. Nice to see he has ditched the dodgy haircuts as well.

 

To be fair to ART, I think he's saying that AL and the team would be better off if he wasn't Captain.

[BlakeySFC]

Lallana shouldn't be captain, why the hell MoPo has stuck with him as Captain I'll never know.

 

We usually play better when he's not in the team, all he seems to do is make mazey runs into nowhere and then give the ball away.

 

I love the lad to bits but he's not PL standard, should be loaned out to some random lower league team until the end of his contract and then let go.

[S-Clarke]

Lallana shouldn't be captain, why the hell MoPo has stuck with him as Captain I'll never know.

 

We usually play better when he's not in the team, all he seems to do is make mazey runs into nowhere and then give the ball away.

 

I love the lad to bits but he's not PL standard, should be loaned out to some random lower league team until the end of his contract and then let go.

 

As with most of your posts last season, they're completely outlandish and wrong.

 

He shouldn't be captain, that I agree with, but to say he's not PL standard and should be loaned out to a ''lower league team'' is comical to say the least. He would walk into most of the PL sides in the bottom half of the league.

[Toon Saint]

Adam Lallana has been without question one of our most consistent quality players of recent years. His quality remained there for all to see at the start of last season. Many clubs would love to have a player of his quality. I suspect there are too many WUMs on this board - some with decidedly fishy tendencies.

 

That having been said, maybe there were a few games at the end of last season where our opponents identified his threat as significant and nullified it as you would expect from any good Premier League team. This, coupled with some loss of edge in his fitness after injury (which then also affected his pace) may have led to Adam trying a few different things, as you would expect of any player seeking to improve. Sadly, some of these did not come off and people immediately start to have questions about his ability. Yet what people are seeing as a lack of ability is instead the complete opposite - these are the marks of a quality player seeking to be even better.

 

With the right support - both from the fans and from within the club's management - Adam will continue to improve and will find the ways in which he can best utilise his (IMO) undoubted ability. Playing against quality opposition, with quality players around him and quality coaching will lead us in time to see a new improved Adam Lallana. So, let's be patient and enjoy seeing him attain that next level!

 

Incidentally, a few years ago, there was a new star in English football who very quickly became the glorious hope of English football. However, as people began to learn about him, so opposing managers began to identify ways of nulifying his threat. Wayne Rooney has not got worse as a player, but he has got to work much harder nowadays to achieve the same results as he saw in his early days. It was much the same with Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlaide Chamberlain and it is also the same with Adam Lallana.

 

As well as allowing Adam the freedom to express himself so that he can discover what works in beating Premier League quality players, so also we need to ensure that the other players around him also provide such a threat that Premier League players cannot afford to focus all their efforts on nullifying Lallana, Ramirez and Lambert. Instead we must ensure that every player is such a threat that no such tactics can be effective.

 

Finally, I believe that Puncheon's success (and he DID have a great season for us!) has perhaps come largely as a result of his direct style, but also maybe because he is not perceived to be as much of a threat as Lallana and Ramirez.

 

Interesting post, but some points to pick up on. Comparisons with Rooney are a bit extreme - let's not forget AL has had one season in the Premier League, Rooney has been playing in it since age 16 (eleven years ago, not a 'few'). Not convinced it is that PL defenders have sussed him out either, but a combination of poor morale, fitness issues, and being played out of position that has led to his recent troubles on the pitch.

 

I don't deny that Lallana is perceived by opposing fans as one of our more talented players, and rightly so, but I'm not sure whether teams have been set up purely to nullify his threat. Tactically, I think teams will set up to exploit our high-line rather than focusing on individuals. Also, I really don't think Adam had a good enough season to justify being man-marked or deliberately targeted as our danger-man.

 

As you say, he started the season brightly but faded badly towards the end. Why? The injury problem in December was obviously a major reason, but he also had the double difficulty of trying to win his place back in the team under a new manager. Being a yard off the pace can't have helped with adjusting to Poch's high-pressing style. Yet even allowing time to regain match fitness, he just didn't do enough in the second half of the season to justify a starting spot - let alone to receive any special treatment from opposing managers. We looked badly balanced every time he was employed out on the right and his approach play was frustratingly over-elaborate. Very effective coming on against Reading away, but he was up against tired legs and a poor side.

 

I am hoping that he will have better time of it next year and he certainly has the talent. Yes, we need to be patient with him, but that doesn't mean to say that we can't be critical of some of his performances towards the end of last season on an internet forum. Nor does it follow that a poor run of form is somehow indicative of a 'quality player seeking to be better' - should we also apply that logic to James McClean of Sunderland or Stewart Downing of Liverpool, or are they just average players who can't affect the game?

 

Interesting that you managed to explain away Lallana's poor form because teams were focusing all their efforts on nullifying him, but Puncheon success owes to him being underestimated. Is it not that Puncheon actually has more experience of PL football than Lallana? Was he not just more consistent overall? Why did teams not respond to JP's obvious threat but, supposedly, remain intent on containing AL?

 

Again, I don't recall any games last season where specific players were targeted for man-marking. The bad defeats under Poch (Newcastle, West Brom) owed more to the opposition exploiting our general game plan - long diagonal balls over the top to pacy, athletic wingers/strikers - than a focus on particular individuals.

[NickG]

....

 

Time flies..

 

http://www.thefa.com/england/All-Teams/Players/L/Adam-Lallana

[STEVEADAMS]

I disagree and believe AL can be a good premier league player. To say he is out of his depth is wrong. How many premier league players have his technique? Not many. I agree he needs to up his shooting and maybe a few more assists, but last year was his first season in the prem and injury hit. I really think he can deliver at this level. Someone out there must believe this too ?!

 

 

I agree totally with this post. I love Adam he is Saints thru and thru none more passionate. I'm sure he will show us all what he can do this season. He stuck with us thru it all when there probably opportunities to go elsewhere and remember the stick he got with all that on here as well. Lets get behind him and all the team.

[ghq]

Is this one of those threads where people get outraged over something nobody has actually said?

 

There aren't any haters, nobody is writing him off, saying he is sh*t, saying he isn't good enough for the Premier League or anything like that. It's just fair honest criticism of his overall game, the same as any other player. He isn't beyond criticism just because he is a local, academy grown player. He needs to improve his final ball and his shooting if he is to keep his place in the team. Lallana wont get into a top 6 team playing like he did last season and that is where Saints have to be aiming.

 

Pretty much sums it up.

[eharty9]

The problem is, a lot of you clowns on here think if a player is not scoring, getting assists or running non stop for 90 minutes they are not doing well. Maybe at under 8's you would be right.

 

To say AL is not a premier league player is ridiculous! His movement is top class, one of the few who is willing to take that last man on and isn't even at peak age yet

[Saint Billy]

The problem is, a lot of you clowns on here think if a player is not scoring, getting assists or running non stop for 90 minutes they are not doing well. Maybe at under 8's you would be right.

 

To say AL is not a premier league player is ridiculous! His movement is top class, one of the few who is willing to take that last man on and isn't even at peak age yet

 

I think it is the fact that he c@cks up alot of goal scoring opportunities and not necessarily that he does not score enough although I suppose they equate to the same thing.