Excellent article in Guardian re. our predicament

[washsaint]

http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jul/29/southampton-playing-with-fire-sales-assets-manager-ronald-koeman

 

Very fair article but good to hear there is no panic at St Marys - even if us fans are!

 

If Morgan stays, he will be gone January/next summer but at least we get some more time from him. As the article says....how on earth can we offer 100K per week wages? Answer is, we can't! And that is why we will always be a selling club and nothing we can do about it.

 

Afraid too many of our supporters have forgotten their glee and abuse to Pompey when they overreached themselves and want us to overstretch what we can't possibly pay.

[hypochondriac]

I don't want us to overstretch. I wanted us to manage our departures.

[angelman]

Why don't they come out these journos and tell it how it is? We all know the PL is rotten - "the little guy might enjoy his day in the Premier League but the door to the top six or seven is bolted" - yet this is about it.

[SaintRobbie]

Morgan will be gone by 1 Sep.

[pap]

It is easy to feel that a damaging momentum has gripped and there is sadness at how quickly an excellent team has been dismantled, together with dark mutterings about how this sort of thing can be accelerated when players are away at World Cups, listening to what the top names tell them is possible.

 

Dark mutterings, reported in a national newspaper

[Killers Knee]

good article

[JoeShmoe]

Excellent article that and supportive I think towards the view a lot of us are coming too

[GarrettIvo]

Similar analysis here. http://www.espnfc.com/blog/espn-fc-united-blog/68/post/1964442/southampton-exodus-simply-and-sadly-shows-submission-to-footballs-hierarchy

 

The club/board is f***ed whichever way they go really.

I'm just crossing my fingers for the best possible outcome we can get out of it all.

Midtable mediocrity will do me just fine this season thanks.

[Dark Munster]

"The problem, of course, is that it has happened all at once for them and it has been allowed to happen in the wrong order. One of the basic rules of the football market is to secure the replacement first. Instead, Southampton have banked the money but find that the clubs from whom they wish to buy have jacked up the prices."

Shame this rather basic rule flew over the heads of Wreck-It and co.

[Mystic Force]

It is almost as if someone wrote an article after reading this place as a means of research.

[sadoldgit]

I don't want us to overstretch. I wanted us to manage our departures.

 

Which is what the Board are doing.

[sadoldgit]

"The problem, of course, is that it has happened all at once for them and it has been allowed to happen in the wrong order. One of the basic rules of the football market is to secure the replacement first. Instead, Southampton have banked the money but find that the clubs from whom they wish to buy have jacked up the prices."

Shame this rather basic rule flew over the heads of Wreck-It and co.

 

And many SFC Boards before them too (and at a number of othe clubs).

[Wopper]

F-ing shambles

[hypochondriac]

Which is what the Board are doing.

 

Didn't look very managed to me when we lost Chambers.

[The9]

I don't want us to overstretch. I wanted us to manage our departures.

 

Which is what the Board are doing.

 

I've still got an open mind about what the Board is doing, and will judge them on results when the TW is closed - but it is very clear they are doing an absolutely terrible job of "managing departures". One of the benefits of having a strong squad is the ability to attract other players - as soon as you rip a couple, never mind five, players out of that, you get the double whammy of potential signings suddenly thinking something's wrong AND the selling clubs knowing you've got a pile of cash to use.

 

We may have got good prices for those sold, but we're a less attractive proposition to players who'll improve us, and the gains will be lost in negotiating for replacements with everyone expecting us to pay more.

 

In addition to that, they've suddenly hit an arbitrary point and jumped in and told players who were supposedly in discussions to leave that they're staying, rather than telling a few months ago that they could leave and ensuring the others couldn't long before it became an issue.

 

That, of course, is assuming we had to sell anyone at all for any reason anyway, which is a whole other discussion.

[The9]

On another note, whilst I completely reject the idea of the subtext proposed by the article that Koeman's tweet about the pictures on the wall of his office was intended to suggest even they could be sold, you do wonder how a manager with a bunch of pictures of himself on the walls of his office can be "ego free".

 

Don't get me wrong, I'd have pics of me playing football everywhere in MY office, but then no-one's claiming I don't have an ego.

[Whitey Grandad]

On another note, whilst I completely reject the idea of the subtext proposed by the article that Koeman's tweet about the pictures on the wall of his office was intended to suggest even they could be sold, you do wonder how a manager with a bunch of pictures of himself on the walls of his office can be "ego free".

 

Don't get me wrong, I'd have pics of me playing football everywhere in MY office, but then no-one's claiming I don't have an ego.

 

I think I prefer our manager to have a big ego, it worked for Clough, Mourinho...

[Minty]

Lots of people have photos in their office of their family or of past achievements. There's a big difference between having an ego, and simply having a few things around you that give you confidence or pride in what you do, or remind you of what is important to you.

[david in sweden]

"The problem, of course, is that it has happened all at once for them and it has been allowed to happen in the wrong order. One of the basic rules of the football market is to secure the replacement first.

 

Instead, Southampton have banked the money but find that the clubs from whom they wish to buy have jacked up the prices." Shame this rather basic rule flew over the heads of Wreck-It and co.

 

 

a fairly predictable reaction given the kitty after those sales, but also a good position for us dealing with clubs who are cash-strapped and desperate for capital....expect to see some sign, anyway.