Saints 1 Manchester Utd 1 - Post Match Reaction

[Mallagroth]

Means bugger all really, although I happen to agree that I would be surprised if he ends up leaving.

I don't think Adam would have done that as leaving now would make him a massive cock and he isn't like that.. There's kissing the badge in a celebration and then there's doing it with a lot of thought directly to your fans amidst speculation you've already signed for another club. The players ****take nickname for him is Mr Southampton. Still I could be wrong.

[Professor]

For a game that meant nothing to either side it was very entertaining. Good to see Pochettino giving the three teenagers a run out as the match went on. Much as I enjoy football, it's going to be nice to have Saturday afternoons back for 3 months, and not to have to wonder if its an odd kick-off time or a Sunday game.

[The Cat]

Well that was an amazing season. Massively proud of all the players and management for producing such great football and results with a relatively small squad.

 

We put in a decent performance today, especially until they scored their goal. Good to see the vast majority of supporters stay behind to give the players a clap and cheer on their lap of appreciation. Would have liked it if there had been a highlights of the season package on the screens while we were waiting rather than more dodgy music over the PA.

 

Roll on next season.

[70's Mike]

Well that was an amazing season. Massively proud of all the players and management for producing such great football and results with a relatively small squad.

 

We put in a decent performance today, especially until they scored their goal. Good to see the vast majority of supporters stay behind to give the players a clap and cheer on their lap of appreciation. Would have liked it if there had been a highlights of the season package on the screens while we were waiting rather than more dodgy music over the PA.

 

Roll on next season.

 

next season is huge rarely in my 54 years of going to games have we had 2 good top flight seasons on the trot

[Wes Tender]

During the end parade, Adz purposefully stayed near the back so as not to suggest he was saying goodbye. When his song was sung he made a big gesture of patting the badge and waving, he did this twice so it wasn't missed.

Up to then I thought he would probably leave, I'm now 90% confident he is staying it was that clear.

 

I saw it too and it was an emphatic gesture. Everybody around me thought the same as me, that it meant he was staying.

 

A shame that we couldn't get all three points against United. I'm really quite disgusted that we dropped four points against them as we have better players than them in many positions. We dominated them in the first half and needed another goal to wrap it up. It was obvious that United were getting frustrated, as they resorted to cheating and harassing the ref after we scored. Tactically we got it right the first half and Wanyama playing alongside Cork, Schneiderlin and Davis, makes us very hard to play through. Quite often United resorted to desperate punts forward or long range shots which were largely ineffective. The second half, Giggs made the changes that changed their fortunes and they began to claw their way back into the game. Their goal gave them a lift and galvanised them, but we stood firm, didn't falter and had some opportunities to hit them on the break. I'm certain that had Rodriguez been fit, he would have capitalised on the balls played behind them and punished them.

 

Shaw was magnificent and improves with every match. On the other wing, Clyne also had a good game and was needed to counteract Evra's pace on the right flank. Januzaj could have proved a thorn in our left flank, but Shaw had him in his pocket most of the time. During the first half, Boruc was largely a spectator, but apart from his usual casual miskicking, was solid in claiming the high balls put into the area. He had no chance with Mata's free kick and it was clumsy defending that conceded it. Without it, we might well have kept the clean sheet and wrapped up the three points, as United didn't really produce much otherwise.

 

It has been a great season and if we can keep the majority of the team and our manager away from the predatory top clubs who covet them so much, we could potentially progress a couple of places higher next season.

[Minty]

The only thing I am certain of is that nothing is certain. I believe Adam wants to stay, to have the chance of helping Saints move forward with his help, and that this relies on Poch signing a new contract, hence the comments in the Echo today about the fact that 'we' have work to do this summer.

 

Whatever happens, I will enjoy watching people on here overreact to every little rumour and quote this summer, and look forward to next season, supporting whoever is wearing the red (and white?)

[trousers]

Just got back from the game. We were by far the best side in the first half and was pretty even in the 2nd.

 

The club has reached the stage where we never looked like losing against the likes of Man Utd, so superb progress despite Utd not being the same force as last season.

 

All that remains to be seen now is whether we push on or settle for where we are. Never a dull summer at SFC....

Edited 11 May, 2014 by trousers

[Georgie]

During the end parade, Adz purposefully stayed near the back so as not to suggest he was saying goodbye. When his song was sung he made a big gesture of patting the badge and waving, he did this twice so it wasn't missed.

Up to then I thought he would probably leave, I'm now 90% confident he is staying it was that clear.

 

Him patting the badge made me think he was off! He loves the club, but as he said in the programme,he wants champions league football and to challenge for the title one day. We will never be able to give him that.

[DuncanRG]

My gut feeling is that Lallana, provided we keep the manager and bring some players in, will stay for another year and solidify his place in the England team and then be off. At 26 he's got to get into the Champions League within the two or three years if he ever will, but at present there's a risk he won't play enough at a top club to hold his international place.

 

Another season like this and he can play regularly for a top club and his country. I don't think anyone would begrudge him that. Nor should they begrudge him a move now really, should the club allow him to leave.

 

His behaviour today doesn't tell us anything really.

[CWD]

It has been an utter pleasure to follow our club this season, very proud of our owners, our players, our academy, our youth, our back room staff and our fans.

 

On all levels we have shown class and dignity

 

Followed this team for 40 years and can honestly say that this has been the proudest I have ever been.

 

More to come in the World Cup

 

It's been a pleasure to share it with you

 

Cheers

 

Absolutely. Well said sir.

[kpturner]

Game was a bit of a non-event, but good to see Egil Ostenstad in Block 10.

[saintds]

I was in the Chapel and between full time and the players coming back out, Luke Shaw came over with Harrison Reed, had a chat with some people down the front and gave his shirt to someone. It seemed pre-conceived, as opposed to just chucking it into the crowd, but I couldn't work out what or why. Anyone get wind of what was said?

 

Good atmosphere today, I thought the Utd fans were in good spririt too, rather than being their usual arrogant selves.

 

All in all a very enjoyable season. As ever, we won't know anything about what's going on in the club until it's reported on the OS, so all speculation on here is exactly that. I get that people on here need to be a part of the rumours and hearsay. That's great and will no doubt help to fill the long slow summer days, but as someone above very sensibly suggested, I'm steering clear of this place until pre-season and/or we get some solid newsflow.

 

Have an enjoyable World Cup all and here's to next season

 

COYR!

[S-Clarke]

Just about this game, rather than the season as a whole, but how bad are Man Utd? Serious dross, and they need some massive fixing in the summer. Frustrating we couldn't do anything really, as we had them on the ropes for most of that first half - good first goal, but should have been more.

 

2nd half was a total non-event to be honest, like a training exercise - all a bit odd! Imagine it was down the players just calming down for the forthcoming world cup, but it didn't exactly make captivating viewing!!

[John B]

Our best Premier season. Vintage.

 

Yes I agree really good but cannot believe we will finish higher next season especially if we lose a couple of players

[spyinthesky]

In the corporates today

Half of the 10 were supposed Man Utd followrs but none go regularly to games.

Food was poor for the money it costs for a box.

Everyone thought Saints were great for the first half but expected Utd to improve in the second half as happened.

Shame we don't have a couple of quick, nippy forwards as I think we would have won.

Not sure exposing Sam Gallagher to these sort of games is helping his development but what choice does the Manager have

Man Utd were average and any new manager will have to spend big money to get them back on track.

Good atmosphere

Was Boruc involved in the pitch celebration?

The end of one of the most enjoyable top flight seasons since the Keegan era.

Unfortunately the feed back from catering staff (who also work at Staplewood) is that bad news is in store re the Manager and up to 3 of the current first team players (assume Adam, Luke and one other) and this view was confirmed by one of the PR staff at the club.

Truly hope this is wrong but fear the worst

[laughba]

did januzaj dive? havent seen the highlights yet

[Chez]

Simply taking off Kagawa and bringing on Carrick changed the game completely and United ran us ragged in the second half. Funny how every time we take off Cork we turn to ****. What today did show was just how tough it will be next season should Lallana and Shaw depart.

[Viking Warrior]

**** now the catering staff are in the know

[Mallagroth]

Him patting the badge made me think he was off! He loves the club, but as he said in the programme,he wants champions league football and to challenge for the title one day. We will never be able to give him that.

 

I think he wouldn't have kissed the badge and I think he would have made a bigger deal of saying goodbye. Also how can you be so sure we will 'Never' be able to give him either of those things. Unlikely I grant you, but we aren't far off challenging if we keep a young fast improving team another year and add a few real bits of quality and add some depth for injuries.

[SuperMikey]

did januzaj dive? havent seen the highlights yet

 

Don't need the highlights to confirm that he definitely dived.

[simo]

Cracking season up there with the 2 promotion seasons ! Looking forward to seeing our 3 boys in Brazil although I'm going to spend all summer feeling like the hottest girlfriend I've ever had may leave me for another bloke who's richer and more handsome than me , she's says she's happy with me but I don't know.......?

[Chez]

did januzaj dive? havent seen the highlights yet

 

I thought there was contact, but my pal said he went down soooo easily.

[shurlock]

I thought there was contact, but my pal said he went down soooo easily.

 

Shoulder to shoulder -should have been booked. Glad Shaw ironed the cheat out later on, a worthy yellow.

 

Ref had a niggly and mediocre game - how the hell Clyne didn't get a free kick after Evra's cynical bodycheck is beyond me. There also looked like a handball in the area at the start but would have to see the highlights.

[Olallana]

Don't need the highlights to confirm that he definitely dived.

 

Yes....but the question should be, how many times...

[ant]

Take the positives and lock them away in your memories. Don't tarnish them with what happens in the summer.

 

So many will ignore this advice. Shame. Looking at the season as a whole it's been a magnificent 9 months.

 

Slightly ran out of steam today but glad we got the point at least. United deserved nothing more.

[pap]

Thought it was a good game, but difficult to keep track of it at times. Very noisy in and around Itchen North. What the fúck was it the Man Utd were singing for the majority of the second half? It sounded like gravy rendered as sound.

 

As I said before, it very much felt like goodbye for a couple of our players, although I really hope that I'm wrong on that front.

[Lighthouse]

Good game, good atmosphere. It's easy to see why Utd are where they are, I don't remember Boruc having to make any particularly challenging saves and their goal came from a rather dubious looking foul from where I was sat.

 

I think things might be getting worse before they get better for Utd. Looking at today's defence, Vidic is off, Ferdinand turns 36 next season and Evra will be 33. RVP will be 31 and has a dubious injury record already. Carrick will be 33, Giggs retired probably. Sure they will have Rooney, Matta and Januzaj up front but a gaping canyon of talent behind them, at least relative to the title contenders.

 

Saints on the other hand look good. A couple of decent strikers in and a decent 'keeper should see us push on. Hopefully we can hold on to everyone but I've given up trying to second guess who is going and staying.

[S-Clarke]

Good game, good atmosphere. It's easy to see why Utd are where they are, I don't remember Boruc having to make any particularly challenging saves and their goal came from a rather dubious looking foul from where I was sat.

 

I think things might be getting worse before they get better for Utd. Looking at today's defence, Vidic is off, Ferdinand turns 36 next season and Evra will be 33. RVP will be 31 and has a dubious injury record already. Carrick will be 33, Giggs retired probably. Sure they will have Rooney, Matta and Januzaj up front but a gaping canyon of talent behind them, at least relative to the title contenders.

 

Saints on the other hand look good. A couple of decent strikers in and a decent 'keeper should see us push on. Hopefully we can hold on to everyone but I've given up trying to second guess who is going and staying.

 

Rio and Evra are out of contract as well, and will surely be off. Giggs has retired.

[The Cat]

Does anyone on here know the bloke that ran on the pitch to celebrate with Lambert?

[Sour Mash]

We were decent first half, but struggled 2nd as they pressed us and upped the intensity and we didn't offer much in return.

 

Fair result all told. Davis man of the match for me.

 

Thought Januzaj gave Shaw a tough afternoon.

 

Pain being kept a while for the players to come out at the end, but decent sing song, the players showed how much they appreciated the vocal bits of the ground.

[Roger]

We were decent first half, but struggled 2nd as they pressed us and upped the intensity and we didn't offer much in return.

 

Fair result all told. Davis man of the match for me.

 

Thought Januzaj gave Shaw a tough afternoon.

 

Pain being kept a while for the players to come out at the end, but decent sing song, the players showed how much they appreciated the vocal bits of the ground.

 

Must have been only one who thought shaw had tough game. Completely brilliant. Why do saints fans say "wanyama" was rubbish really? The guy is immense.

[shurlock]

Must have been only one who thought shaw had tough game. Completely brilliant. Why do saints fans say "wanyama" was rubbish really? The guy is immense.

 

Shaw bossed Januzaj- the united fans were saying the same thing on the train back. Wanyama played v.well - showed more finesse in his game, though it was a silly free kick to give away. Out of our midfield three, Morgan didn't particularly impress.

[kpturner]

Thought Januzaj gave Shaw a tough afternoon.

Really? You must have been watching a different game to me.

[Sour Mash]

Really? You must have been watching a different game to me.

Unlikely, as there was only one Saints v Man Utd game today. Which opposition this season do you think gave Shaw a tough afternoon?

[kpturner]

Unlikely, as there was only one Saints v Man Utd game today. Which opposition this season do you think gave Shaw a tough afternoon?

 

Can't remember tbh. I am sure somebody has, but he certainly wasn't given a tough game today. Looked pretty comfortable in defence IMHO

[Sour Mash]

Must have been only one who thought shaw had tough game. Completely brilliant. Why do saints fans say "wanyama" was rubbish really? The guy is immense.

What the f**k, I thought Shaw had a good game, but was given a tough afternoon. I haven't heard anyone say Wanyama was "rubbish", so not sure what that's all about. For what it's worth though, he does allow himself to give away a few too many soft free kicks, definitely something for him to learn going forward.

[Roger]

Unlikely, as there was only one Saints v Man Utd game today. Which opposition this season do you think gave Shaw a tough afternoon?

 

Haven't seen hardly anyone give shaw a tough time but today was one of shaws best performances. Merson said shaw had him in his pocket.

[Roger]

What the f**k, I thought Shaw had a good game, but was given a tough afternoon. I haven't heard anyone say Wanyama was "rubbish", so not sure what that's all about. For what it's worth though, he does allow himself to give away a few too many soft free kicks, definitely something for him to learn going forward.

 

Thought it we more a prob with cork and Morgan today the bad tackles.

[Sour Mash]

Thought it we more a prob with cork and Morgan today the bad tackles.

I thought Wanyama had a better game than both of them, but he does let himself down with clumsy challenges.

[Whitey Grandad]

Thought it we more a prob with cork and Morgan today the bad tackles.

 

Cork's deliberate foul on Januzaj was unnecessary as Luke had the situation covered. That left him hanging on a yellow for a large part of the game.

[TwoPints]

I thought Wanyama had a better game than both of them, but he does let himself down with clumsy challenges.

 

Yep, his distribution and decision making has improved immensely since his return... maybe he returned from his last injury too early? Thought he was good today but I think he'll get better too next season.

[Charlie Wayman]

Waste of bloody money. Couldn't they wait until Monday to go on holiday?

[Charlie Wayman]

Clear handball by Vidic denied us the win we deserved. Ref as usual in awe of ManCrap and gave them far to much from the start. Fed up with useless bloody refs and their biased attitude towards the BIG teams.

[Goatboy]

Well that was an amazing season. Massively proud of all the players and management for producing such great football and results with a relatively small squad.

 

We put in a decent performance today, especially until they scored their goal. Good to see the vast majority of supporters stay behind to give the players a clap and cheer on their lap of appreciation. Would have liked it if there had been a highlights of the season package on the screens while we were waiting rather than more dodgy music over the PA.

 

Roll on next season.

 

A good idea and one that I hope is adopted next season.

I don't want to listen to Olly f***ing Murs at the best of times and certainly not in a football stadium.

[Wiggles31]

First half we totally outplayed them. RVP probably had two touches all half. Second half they brought on Carrick which gave them a bit more of the midfield battle.

 

Thought Big Vic was back to his best. We look so much better defensively with him as the stats prove. Shaw again was DC.

[John Boy Saint]

Clear handball by Vidic denied us the win we deserved. Ref as usual in awe of ManCrap and gave them far to much from the start. Fed up with useless bloody refs and their biased attitude towards the BIG teams.

Mike Dean certainly didn't let me down he ref'd the game exactly the way I expected, breathe on a Man U player blow the whistle, Man U player pushing a Saints player on his backside with both hands on his chest to do so sod all given. Januzaj could ran out of ideas v Shaw and getting him booked was about the only thing left in his pocket. As for the fiasco after Rickies great goal Dean should have flashed a card or 2 in the melee and nipped it in the bud.

Considering we took our foot off the gas second half and still Man U couldn't open us up showed how far we have come, Chris Smalling for them looks like an accident waiting to happen, RVP looks shot, no Evra or Vidic next season they are going to be very wobbly.

 

We have seen a great season with great performances if we can pretty much stick together over the next few months, I think we could have an even better next season......................... Must have been good as Roy will be trying to get England to play like Saints in the World Cup just you see.

[Appy]

Januzaj should've been sent off, Mike Dean bottled it.

[Goatboy]

In a sea of mediocrity, Mike Dean is a shining beacon of absolute sh*te.

[Patrick Bateman]

Must have been only one who thought shaw had tough game. Completely brilliant. Why do saints fans say "wanyama" was rubbish really? The guy is immense.

 

Yes I think you're the only one! Shaw was up against a skilled/tricky and very fast player - it was obvious he was told to not bomb forward so often just in case Januzaj's pace was used on the break. I thought Shaw was excellent again and adapted to a slightly different (more defensive?) role very well. He had it covered, no problems - he really will be an outstanding player.

[melmacian_saint]

Will there be any training sessions this week or is the season officially over?