September One - Judgement Day

[Colinjb]

Agreed. Alpine has been quite reasonable this summer and he certainly had a basis for his opinions that we were short of cover at CB and that Ramirez had been a disappointment generally since he arrived. Both are sorted and so he is content with how things have turned out and has said so. But as you say, Saint Richmond has been a prize idiot throughout and he has gone very quiet of late. Perhaps returned to his village, who were missing him.

 

It's a troll! A stirring f**king troll. Put it on ignore.

 

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthrea...33#post1957533

 

How it's not been banned I don't know, perhaps the mods are trying to fish out it's other identities.

[doddisalegend]

Or Saint George whathisname, suggesting he is the reason we didn't sell Morgan and Jay. If he hadn't have spoken up, god knows what would have happened.

 

Forever in our debt.

 

Yeah he should go on the saintweb banner he is a legend

 

Shouldn't forget crablungs and his #it'shappeningbutnotasyouexpected bollix as well

[sadoldgit]

Today is Judgement Day at the request of Mr Krueger.

 

We have a great manager and staff.

We have money in the bank still.

We have a good new team, possibly could do with a striker, but so be it.

We have reinforced where we were weak

We have kept hold of our best players after all

We have an owner who cares

We have ambition, our manager says we are heading to the champions league in 3 years

We have fans that care... Some are too complacent, but those that put themselves above the parapet may have sent a message to the Boardroom to help keep a good owner and encourage a Board that made mistakes. Those that say it was always going to be good are full of blind faith.... those who fought cared.

 

We have a Boardroom worth giving a chance to.

 

It's time now to get behind Saints as a oner... Manager and team, senior leadership (owner and Board) and us the people ... The fans.

 

Well done everyone. We have a club to be feared. Let's take it into Europe together.

 

You still dont get it do you Robbie? Just because many of us didnt wet our beds every 5 minutes didnt mean we didnt care. Time and again the bed wetters were told to wait and see what hapened by the end of the window before they slit their wrists. The Board had promised action and all we had to be was patient.

 

As for those brave souls who wet their beds on behalf of the club, I think the only message it sent to the Board was dont listen to these reactionary idiots.

[View From The Top]

Think how much could have been avoided in the Board had been honest and straightforward from the very beginning instead of the walking PR disaster that it was through May/June which caused the majority of the disharmony.

[buctootim]

11th-14th is middling

 

8th and above is good

 

Agree with that

[sadoldgit]

Think how much could have been avoided in the Board had been honest and straightforward from the very beginning instead of the walking PR disaster that it was through May/June which caused the majority of the disharmony.

 

How were they dishonest though? They said no player would be sold unless the manager agreed and it was in the clubs best interest. They said the club wasnt for sale. They said they would rebuild the squad. From what I heard they have pretty much been straight.

[St Jim]

It's a troll! A stirring f**king troll. Put it on ignore.

 

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthrea...33#post1957533

 

How it's not been banned I don't know, perhaps the mods are trying to fish out it's other identities.

 

 

That still makes me

[Fowllyd]

It's a troll! A stirring f**king troll. Put it on ignore.

 

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthrea...33#post1957533

 

How it's not been banned I don't know, perhaps the mods are trying to fish out it's other identities.

 

Not so much a troll as a loon I'd say - swivel-eyed or otherwise. Given the general tenor of Richmond's posts, it comes as no surprise at all to find him accidentally quoting or arguing with himself!

[Frank's cousin]

Staying balanced throughout the turmoil was never about point scoring or acting superior - it's about acting like an adult. Pragmatism and emotion need not be mutually exclusive.

 

Some have said that you can only work with the information you're given but that goes both ways. So many ridiculous assumptions were made and conclusions jumped to about who would be leaving; Katharina Liebherr's intentions; the board's and staff's competencies etc. All without the possession of facts or substantiation. Basing opinions and emotions on diddly squat is instantly setting yourself up to look daft.

 

Over-use of terms such as 'fire sale' and 'meltdown' were media constructs as much as anything. Incorrect terminology angled towards crafting a narrative and - if you believe the conspiracies - carefully targeted by friends of the 'big boys' towards destabilising our remaining playing personnel. It's been an interesting contrast to see how little we've been talked about since the signings started rolling in.

 

The so-called 'silence' from the club was punctuated by relatively frequent statements. When they talked, it was claimed they said the wrong things. When they remained silent and asked for our patience that was wrong too. Some of the comments and slurs directed towards our club's owner and board were nothing short of shameful. Even on the less extreme end of the scale, the sense of entitlement and constant need to have metaphorical heads patted was frankly embarrassing. Perhaps that's just indicative of modern society.

 

A difficult situation was dealt with by maximising return from the disruptive want-aways and carefully reinvesting it in quality replacements. Minimal panic buys and a relatively steady flow of incumbents spread across the entire transfer window. Krueger and Reed asked for patience. They have delivered us a strong, charismatic manager and a strong, deep squad in an incredibly short space of time. A squad whose performances so far have hinted towards a continuing stability and cohesion. In my eyes they have been vindicated and deserve immense credit.

 

Firstly that is a well written, balanced and intelligent response. So thank you for taking the time to put forward your POV in an eloquent and thoughtful fashion.... But ;-) I do think you are being a little disengenuoys and even patronising when you speak of 'acting like an adult'

 

first up, this is a football club web forum. Now not sure about you but last time I was at St Mary's I did not witness too many fans 'behaving like adults' - I see thousands of 'grown-ups' singing songs about Pompey scum, swearing at refs and generally being loud, obnoxious and passionate about their club.... In an environment that encourages it. Maybe you sit in the Chapel and it's all nice and sanitised, but for most football is the EMOTIVE escape FROM being an adult... Sure it's not be and it's not clever, but for many football is their interest and passion precisely because its not yet completely sanitised or devoid of passion.... Passion that leads to over emotive outbursts....yet you expect the same fans to meekly let major changes at eh club in the summer be viewed with dispassion?

 

Most of us spend 99% of our time behaving like adults and dealing with all the responsibilities that brings. Seriously your post tries too hard - it's naive, and that is not meant with any disrespect, but surely you should see that a web forum about football is the place FOR letting of steam and having a mindless rant about the issues folk perceive at their club?

 

In don't agree with the personal attacks on KL, but stating that Krueger was acting in an incompetent fashion was an opinion based on what we were witnessing... And we still await the real outcome of the summer of upheaval - something we will not truly know until Next May. It's the inconsistent messages driven in part by some on here that added to the frustration. .... talk of 'serious' financial problems when the recent spend has shown there were none, that it was impossible to hold on to players - yet when the club shows some balls and holds on the Schneiderlin it disproves this theory.... But ultimately no matter how frustrating, infuriating or ignorant an opinion, it's it's an opinion, even if a wind up.... And you either accept this is a place for diverse and often plain nuts

opinions (the real adult thing to do) or you don't and set up something for yourself

 

This place is full of ***** but that is what makes it interesting, even if only a study of thebonkers nature of it all...I behave like an adult at home, at work, with my family- the escape at football and being able to shout at the players, the board, the ref, other fans who are 'wrong ' is a release of all the stress and strains of the normal.....if that means I act like a child at games, in front the telly, or in a web forum, so be it...

[washsaint]

dear oh dear FC.....so your personal insults at Kruger and the Board (and they were petty uncalled for insults) was just you letting off steam. Yet when someone posts a well thought out, logical, neutral post they are "naive".

 

You - and many others on here - threw the baby out with the bathwater and acted like self-indulgent and entitled brats. The level of bitterness and bile towards people related with SFC that you don't even know was disgusting and you all jumped the gun. Sure the season might not be stellar but we now have better governance at the club, a potentially superb manager and a stronger squad.

 

So - simple yes or no will suffice - do you now think we are in a better position than the end of the season with better foundations across the club as a whole?

[View From The Top]

How were they dishonest though? They said no player would be sold unless the manager agreed and it was in the clubs best interest. They said the club wasnt for sale. They said they would rebuild the squad. From what I heard they have pretty much been straight.

They said no sales and sold SRL the next day! They then sold players before we had a manager appointed. The message that it sent out was, IMHO, why so many went into their own personal meltdowns.

[sadoldgit]

Did they say no sales though? Koeman said he was aware of all of the outgoing plans and was clearly in conversation with the Board about this before hisofficial appointment.

[Frank's cousin]

dear oh dear FC.....so your personal insults at Kruger and the Board (and they were petty uncalled for insults) was just you letting off steam. Yet when someone posts a well thought out, logical, neutral post they are "naive".

 

You - and many others on here - threw the baby out with the bathwater and acted like self-indulgent and entitled brats. The level of bitterness and bile towards people related with SFC that you don't even know was disgusting and you all jumped the gun. Sure the season might not be stellar but we now have better governance at the club, a potentially superb manager and a stronger squad.

 

So - simple yes or no will suffice - do you now think we are in a better position than the end of the season with better foundations across the club as a whole?

 

You don't half seem to take yourself...ever so seriously, don't you? Lol. You should have a special little constables helmet as you avatar , policing historic posts 'anything you do post will be documented and regurgitated at will be so we can gonna nana nana an...' Yep I threw a few nasties at Krueger, and hofstetter, not at KL, because it was the naive and blatant BS in public statements that was incredulous.... And remains so. Do I think we are in a better place now than when we still had Lambert, Lallana, Shaw, Chambers, Lovren or 97mil of talent? No we are not. We may through the graft and guile of RK and the new players - with luck and hard work- see this squad deliver a decent season and show potential to get better as it tells, which is at least something positive to build on. As to governance, financial prudence and accountability.... The real answer is we are probably in a good place now, as we were previously.... Except in the rather fertile imaginations of those with an axe to grind against Cortese..... Do you think the CFO form the Cortese era, would still be at the club now, if it had all been as 'hideous ' as some on here want everyone to believe?

[the saint in winchester]

So, to summarise - we are all happy with the squad as of 1st September.

 

Well done, the Board and Management.

 

(end of thread)

[View From The Top]

Did they say no sales though? Koeman said he was aware of all of the outgoing plans and was clearly in conversation with the Board about this before hisofficial appointment.

They did although it was obvious to all of us that players were going to go.

[washsaint]

A simple yes or no would have sufficed you buffoon FC.

 

gave up reading your illiterate reply after about 5 words.

[Wes Tender]

Frank, I'm a bit disappointed in you, as you normally have the ability to make balanced and reasonable judgements on most matters. But here you are trying to draw a parallel between football fans' behaviour at a match and believing that it is therefore the same on an internet forum, because they are the same people. The fans' behaviour at a match is a tribal ritual thing and emotions are stoked by incidents as they occur, in the heat of the moment. That is quite a bit different from a single person's reactions to a situation when the more sensible ones have the time to give some thought to their opinions before posting them on here, isn't it? As for the childish/adult aspects, calling people names as some did with the board members and our owner, was puerile and largely indefensible and comments from posters calling for them to grow up and act like adults is well-deserved in their case.

 

OK, we get it that in your opinion we are not as good a team as we were when we had Lambert, Lallana, Lovren and Shaw. Many disagree, believing that they have been adequately replaced, some perhaps not as good, but others better. But the depth of squad is almost certainly better and many believe Koeman to be a better manager than Pochettino. We will have to wait and see who is right.

 

But the thread is about judging the board on the basis of where we are on September 1st and most are happy that the board have done a fine job in getting us to where we now are, regardless of some niggles which may or may not be justified along the way.

[eelpie]

Firstly that is a well written, balanced and intelligent response. So thank you for taking the time to put forward your POV in an eloquent and thoughtful fashion.... But ;-) I do think you are being a little disengenuoys and even patronising when you speak of 'acting like an adult'

 

first up, this is a football club web forum. Now not sure about you but last time I was at St Mary's I did not witness too many fans 'behaving like adults' - I see thousands of 'grown-ups' singing songs about Pompey scum, swearing at refs and generally being loud, obnoxious and passionate about their club.... In an environment that encourages it. Maybe you sit in the Chapel and it's all nice and sanitised, but for most football is the EMOTIVE escape FROM being an adult... Sure it's not be and it's not clever, but for many football is their interest and passion precisely because its not yet completely sanitised or devoid of passion.... Passion that leads to over emotive outbursts....

 

Good point. St Mary's is the ONLY place that ANYONE will let me sing!

[ant]

Firstly that is a well written, balanced and intelligent response. So thank you for taking the time to put forward your POV in an eloquent and thoughtful fashion.... But ;-) I do think you are being a little disengenuoys and even patronising when you speak of 'acting like an adult'

 

first up, this is a football club web forum. Now not sure about you but last time I was at St Mary's I did not witness too many fans 'behaving like adults' - I see thousands of 'grown-ups' singing songs about Pompey scum, swearing at refs and generally being loud, obnoxious and passionate about their club.... In an environment that encourages it. Maybe you sit in the Chapel and it's all nice and sanitised, but for most football is the EMOTIVE escape FROM being an adult... Sure it's not be and it's not clever, but for many football is their interest and passion precisely because its not yet completely sanitised or devoid of passion.... Passion that leads to over emotive outbursts....yet you expect the same fans to meekly let major changes at eh club in the summer be viewed with dispassion?

 

Most of us spend 99% of our time behaving like adults and dealing with all the responsibilities that brings. Seriously your post tries too hard - it's naive, and that is not meant with any disrespect, but surely you should see that a web forum about football is the place FOR letting of steam and having a mindless rant about the issues folk perceive at their club?

 

In don't agree with the personal attacks on KL, but stating that Krueger was acting in an incompetent fashion was an opinion based on what we were witnessing... And we still await the real outcome of the summer of upheaval - something we will not truly know until Next May. It's the inconsistent messages driven in part by some on here that added to the frustration. .... talk of 'serious' financial problems when the recent spend has shown there were none, that it was impossible to hold on to players - yet when the club shows some balls and holds on the Schneiderlin it disproves this theory.... But ultimately no matter how frustrating, infuriating or ignorant an opinion, it's it's an opinion, even if a wind up.... And you either accept this is a place for diverse and often plain nuts

opinions (the real adult thing to do) or you don't and set up something for yourself

 

This place is full of ***** but that is what makes it interesting, even if only a study of thebonkers nature of it all...I behave like an adult at home, at work, with my family- the escape at football and being able to shout at the players, the board, the ref, other fans who are 'wrong ' is a release of all the stress and strains of the normal.....if that means I act like a child at games, in front the telly, or in a web forum, so be it...

 

Not sure how it's even relevant, but I 'sit' in Block 42 of the Northam. Quite near the back too. Surprised?

 

Actually in all of that long-winded monologue you seem to have overlooked one line of my post:

 

Pragmatism and emotion need not be mutually exclusive.

 

Was I ****ed off, concerned or otherwise frustrated at any point this Summer? Yes, of course. My passion for Southampton Football Club knows no bounds, yet I'm generally able to keep my behaviour in check when adversity rears its ugly head. You talk as if trying to keep the bigger picture in mind is the wrong thing to do! Using emotion as an excuse to throw toys out of the pram (and timidly reaching back for them when realising it was a rather groundless over-reaction) - that's the truly disingenuous attitude.

Edited 3 September, 2014 by ant

[LaptopSaint]

If it's true that Spurs wanted Morgan, JRod, Clyne and Mane - and ended up with none of them - well that's a result in itself isn't it?

 

Not normally one to hold grudges, but I would allow myself a wee smile if Pochettino were to fall on his ar*e.

[Turkish]

You don't half seem to take yourself...ever so seriously' date=' don't you? Lol. You should have a special little constables helmet as you avatar , policing historic posts 'anything you do post will be documented and regurgitated at will be so we can gonna nana nana an...' Yep I threw a few nasties at Krueger, and hofstetter, not at KL, because it was the naive and blatant BS in public statements that was incredulous.... And remains so. Do I think we are in a better place now than when we still had Lambert, Lallana, Shaw, Chambers, Lovren or 97mil of talent? No we are not. We may through the graft and guile of RK and the new players - with luck and hard work- see this squad deliver a decent season and show potential to get better as it tells, which is at least something positive to build on. As to governance, financial prudence and accountability.... The real answer is we are probably in a good place now, as we were previously.... Except in the rather fertile imaginations of those with an axe to grind against Cortese..... Do you think the CFO form the Cortese era, would still be at the club now, if it had all been as 'hideous ' as some on here want everyone to believe?[/quote']

 

Firstly that is a well written, balanced and intelligent response. So thank you for taking the time to put forward your POV in an eloquent and thoughtful fashion.... But ;-) I do think you are being a little disengenuoys and even patronising when you speak of 'acting like an adult'

 

first up, this is a football club web forum. Now not sure about you but last time I was at St Mary's I did not witness too many fans 'behaving like adults' - I see thousands of 'grown-ups' singing songs about Pompey scum, swearing at refs and generally being loud, obnoxious and passionate about their club.... In an environment that encourages it. Maybe you sit in the Chapel and it's all nice and sanitised, but for most football is the EMOTIVE escape FROM being an adult... Sure it's not be and it's not clever, but for many football is their interest and passion precisely because its not yet completely sanitised or devoid of passion.... Passion that leads to over emotive outbursts....yet you expect the same fans to meekly let major changes at eh club in the summer be viewed with dispassion?

 

Most of us spend 99% of our time behaving like adults and dealing with all the responsibilities that brings. Seriously your post tries too hard - it's naive, and that is not meant with any disrespect, but surely you should see that a web forum about football is the place FOR letting of steam and having a mindless rant about the issues folk perceive at their club?

 

In don't agree with the personal attacks on KL, but stating that Krueger was acting in an incompetent fashion was an opinion based on what we were witnessing... And we still await the real outcome of the summer of upheaval - something we will not truly know until Next May. It's the inconsistent messages driven in part by some on here that added to the frustration. .... talk of 'serious' financial problems when the recent spend has shown there were none, that it was impossible to hold on to players - yet when the club shows some balls and holds on the Schneiderlin it disproves this theory.... But ultimately no matter how frustrating, infuriating or ignorant an opinion, it's it's an opinion, even if a wind up.... And you either accept this is a place for diverse and often plain nuts

opinions (the real adult thing to do) or you don't and set up something for yourself

 

This place is full of ***** but that is what makes it interesting, even if only a study of thebonkers nature of it all...I behave like an adult at home, at work, with my family- the escape at football and being able to shout at the players, the board, the ref, other fans who are 'wrong ' is a release of all the stress and strains of the normal.....if that means I act like a child at games, in front the telly, or in a web forum, so be it...

 

You don't half talk some nonsense.

[buctootim]

You don't half talk some nonsense.

 

You read it? kin ell

[pap]

You don't half talk some nonsense.

 

You read it? kin ell

 

Now now gents. Bletch went to several paragraphs to rescue this thread from what you would make it now.

 

It has been an excellent read since then, until now. Might I suggest that the pair of you internalise these kinds of thoughts and save such efforts for being nawty, soulmates or whatever?

 

Ta.

[Tamesaint]

I'm witing for Saint Charlie to make an appearance. He hasn't posted for over 24 hours now and only made a few posts yesterday (although in true Charlie style one of his posts was having a pop at the club re ticket prices). In the "mid summer crisis" that bloke was never off these pages seeing the dark side in every silver lining.

 

I hope he hasn't done something silly to himself .... like starting to watch Pompey.

[um pahars]

They said no sales and sold SRL the next day! They then sold players before we had a manager appointed. The message that it sent out was, IMHO, why so many went into their own personal meltdowns.

 

I thought only Lambert was sold before Koeman was appointed mid June???

[doddisalegend]

They did although it was obvious to all of us that players were going to go.

 

I'm pretty sure the club line was "We don't want to sell any players" which isn't the same as "we won't sell any players". A lot of people read those club statements and then interpreted them to fit their own views when things didn't work out the way they thought it would they wet the bed. My personal view was mopo and those players could have stayed if they wanted but chose not to hence my disappointment was directed at them not the club.

[View From The Top]

I'm pretty sure the club line was "We don't want to sell any players" which isn't the same as "we won't sell any players". A lot of people read those club statements and then interpreted them to fit their own views when things didn't work out the way they thought it would they wet the bed. My personal view was mopo and those players could have stayed if they wanted but chose not to hence my disappointment was directed at them not the club.

 

I'm not disappointed with the club over the sales, just their very poor PR and mixed messages in the early days. It set the tone and allowed the press frenzy to go unchecked.

[buctootim]

I'm not disappointed with the club over the sales, just their very poor PR and mixed messages in the early days. It set the tone and allowed the press frenzy to go unchecked.

 

The early PR was poor and showed inexperience. That said they recovered very well - have shown ability and been true to their word.

[Lighthouse]

I'm not disappointed with the club over the sales, just their very poor PR and mixed messages in the early days. It set the tone and allowed the press frenzy to go unchecked.

 

To be honest there was very little by way of mixed messages from the club. Most of it was from random weirdos on here and twitter claiming to be ITK.

 

I don't regard the club's PR as being particularly poor either. What do you really expect them to do when players are leaving like that? We could have had tweets from the club along the lines of "OMG Lovren's agent is such a greedy bastard," or we could have hired Tariq Aziz to come out and say, "Everything is fine, nobody is leaving."

 

I wouldn't expect the club to say anything on transfers other than confirming their departures. They don't need to make the specifics public knowledge and if they do it will only fuel rumours.

[CB Fry]

To be honest there was very little by way of mixed messages from the club. Most of it was from random weirdos on here and twitter claiming to be ITK.

 

I don't regard the club's PR as being particularly poor either. What do you really expect them to do when players are leaving like that? We could have had tweets from the club along the lines of "OMG Lovren's agent is such a greedy bastard," or we could have hired Tariq Aziz to come out and say, "Everything is fine, nobody is leaving."

 

I wouldn't expect the club to say anything on transfers other than confirming their departures. They don't need to make the specifics public knowledge and if they do it will only fuel rumours.

Selling Lambert the day after a media blitz constitutes a mixed message. That was a definite balls up.

[S-Clarke]

The PR stuff at the start was a bit of a contradictory mess, but the club learnt from it. Notably by rather quickly pulling Ralf away from it

 

I think the whole setup was very naive at the start, nothing more sinister than that tbh. Right intentions, poorly executed.

[View From The Top]

The PR stuff at the start was a bit of a contradictory mess, but the club learnt from it. Notably by rather quickly pulling Ralf away from it

 

I think the whole setup was very naive at the start, nothing more sinister than that tbh. Right intentions, poorly executed.

 

Agree totally. Naivety which sparked a media feeding frenzy.

[Whitey Grandad]

Agree totally. Naivety which sparked a media feeding frenzy.

 

None of it of any importance.

[View From The Top]

None of it of any importance.

 

It was to many hence all the bedwetting. It could have all be avoided.

[SaintRobbie]

You still dont get it do you Robbie? Just because many of us didnt wet our beds every 5 minutes didnt mean we didnt care. Time and again the bed wetters were told to wait and see what hapened by the end of the window before they slit their wrists. The Board had promised action and all we had to be was patient.

 

As for those brave souls who wet their beds on behalf of the club, I think the only message it sent to the Board was dont listen to these reactionary idiots.

 

Everyone cares - just some worry more than others SOG.

 

Bed wetters is a pretty insulting a term for those who worry more than most. I would describe them as supporters.

 

Finally, as I recall, those that failed to 'wet the bed' on this site were the ones that allowed Lowe to lead the club...twice. Those that fought back eventually removed boardroom failure. We don't need to do that today. Thank goodness.

Edited 3 September, 2014 by SaintRobbie

[SaintRobbie]

Selling Lambert the day after a media blitz constitutes a mixed message. That was a definite balls up.

 

Yep. One of many. But we are in as good a position now as we could have hoped for given the errors. Time to get behind the lads.

[Patrick Bateman]

The PR stuff at the start was a bit of a contradictory mess, but the club learnt from it. Notably by rather quickly pulling Ralf away from it

 

I think the whole setup was very naive at the start, nothing more sinister than that tbh. Right intentions, poorly executed.

 

This, exactly!

[SaintRobbie]

The PR stuff at the start was a bit of a contradictory mess, but the club learnt from it. Notably by rather quickly pulling Ralf away from it

 

I think the whole setup was very naive at the start, nothing more sinister than that tbh. Right intentions, poorly executed.

 

That's fair comment. As long as they don't make the same mistake twice and have learnt from from their failures, and .... as long as they don't make many new ones.

[Alain Perrin]

Those that fought back eventually removed boardroom failure. We don't need to do that today. Thank goodness.

 

 

Does the "Saints go Wilde" t-shirt still fit because that's where fan action got us?

 

The fact that we have risen from the ashes has more to do with luck that Markus turned up, than bed wetting reactionaries. That and the fact that our assets made us a good acquisition - principally the stadium that evil Lowe built brick by brick with his bare hands

 

Otherwise our Pinnacle would probably have been League 1 like Pompey.

[SarniaSaint]

Did they say no sales though? Koeman said he was aware of all of the outgoing plans and was clearly in conversation with the Board about this before hisofficial appointment.

 

Yes they did say it or rather Reed said it the day before Lambert went to HubCap FC.

[St_Tel49]

I'm not disappointed with the club over the sales, just their very poor PR and mixed messages in the early days. It set the tone and allowed the press frenzy to go unchecked.

 

Is it possible to allow that the club did mishandle the PR at the start but learned from their mistakes. It was an inexperienced board after all.

[doddisalegend]

Yes they did say it or rather Reed said it the day before Lambert went to HubCap FC.

 

Les Reed

 

Any enquiries we get will probably be met with a ‘no, not for sale.’ Our intention is to keep this very good team together and build on it by bringing in players to improve upon it.

 

The bits in bold are the sort of words people skipped when reading club statements over the summer. I still think it was people read what they wanted to hear rather than take notice of the clubs subtle get out clauses in every statement.

[Lazlo78]

Les Reed

 

Any enquiries we get will probably be met with a ‘no, not for sale.’ Our intention is to keep this very good team together and build on it by bringing in players to improve upon it.

 

The bits in bold are the sort of words people skipped when reading club statements over the summer. I still think it was people read what they wanted to hear rather than take notice of the clubs subtle get out clauses in every statement.

 

Also, it is really that difficult to imagine that the above qoute was an indication of the board's intentions at the time, but shortly after a bid for Lambert arrived out of the blue creating a new situation? I would have thought it a complete lack of belief in their own ability to run the football club if they had said no to Lambert on the grounds of having released a statement shortly before.

 

Constantly grasping for this contradiction to make the board look clueless seems a little too convenient for me.

[brmbrm]

It's a troll! A stirring f**king troll. Put it on ignore.

 

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthrea...33#post1957533

 

How it's not been banned I don't know, perhaps the mods are trying to fish out it's other identities.

 

LOL out loud! I hadn't seen that, having other things to occupy me, but scrolling back through a few lines of the thread was hilarious!

 

No it wasn't

 

Yes it was

 

No it wasnt you're an idiot

 

ha ha ha!!!!!!!!!!

[70's Mike]

Did they say no sales though? Koeman said he was aware of all of the outgoing plans and was clearly in conversation with the Board about this before hisofficial appointment.

 

NOT Sure that is 100%, he knew about Shaw. Lalana and Lambert but not Loveren and Chambers

[Professor]

Unless the people who run clubs like Liverpool, Man U and Arsenal know very little about football, a player's ability can be judged by what he is worth in the transfer market. There are some well-publicised mistakes under that system, Torres for one, but largely it will be true. Those clubs only pay huge fees for certain players because they are operating in a market that is subject to the rules of supply and demand. If they could get other players who were as good or better for less money they would do so, but they obviously believe that they are buying the best.

Maybe, at Southampton, that theory is under challenge. The club has sold expensive international players who have Premier League experience and has replaced them with cheaper players, mostly also internationals but mainly without Premier League experience. If cheaper really does mean lower quality then the team should be expected to do less well than last season. If it matches last season's performances, that could be regarded as a successful challenge to the theory, if only because it would have been done whilst also putting money in the bank. If the team does less well than last year, that will tend to support the theory that price reflects ability.

As a fan, I'd like to see the theory blown out of the water, but as a pragmatist, I can't feel too confident about that. Hope and belief are too different things and hopes are not always fulfilled.

I see 1st October as the next good date for a comparison, 3 more games under the belt with an equal number of home and away matches having been played. A target of 11 points out of 18 would match how the club was doing at the same point last year. Currently they are on 4 out of 9 but with 2 of the first 3 matches away and 2 of the next 3 at home, this is eminently doable if the team perform as we all hope. At the moment all we have are expectations and a good performance at West Ham. In a month's time we will know more.

[angelman]

Les Reed

 

Any enquiries we get will probably be met with a ‘no, not for sale.’ Our intention is to keep this very good team together and build on it by bringing in players to improve upon it.

 

The bits in bold are the sort of words people skipped when reading club statements over the summer. I still think it was people read what they wanted to hear rather than take notice of the clubs subtle get out clauses in every statement.

 

 

I have said before, that I am ok with the Club having told white lies. You aren't exactly going to say that all players are available are you? Do that, and you weaken your bargaining position and are unlikely to get as high a fee as possible.

[dubai_phil]

You read it? kin ell

 

I love Frank.

 

He actually makes me seem eloquent.

 

For the record, happy with the outcome of the summer. Hopefully some of the transfer profit has been spent sending Les & Ralph on more advanced Media Management courses for their future pronouncements. (To be honest most of what they spouted this summer seemed to have been written by me or Frank)

 

Right.

 

Ryder Cup time.

[CB Fry]

Unless the people who run clubs like Liverpool, Man U and Arsenal know very little about football, a player's ability can be judged by what he is worth in the transfer market. There are some well-publicised mistakes under that system, Torres for one, but largely it will be true. Those clubs only pay huge fees for certain players because they are operating in a market that is subject to the rules of supply and demand. If they could get other players who were as good or better for less money they would do so, but they obviously believe that they are buying the best.

Maybe, at Southampton, that theory is under challenge. The club has sold expensive international players who have Premier League experience and has replaced them with cheaper players, mostly also internationals but mainly without Premier League experience. If cheaper really does mean lower quality then the team should be expected to do less well than last season. If it matches last season's performances, that could be regarded as a successful challenge to the theory, if only because it would have been done whilst also putting money in the bank. If the team does less well than last year, that will tend to support the theory that price reflects ability.

As a fan, I'd like to see the theory blown out of the water, but as a pragmatist, I can't feel too confident about that. Hope and belief are too different things and hopes are not always fulfilled.

I see 1st October as the next good date for a comparison, 3 more games under the belt with an equal number of home and away matches having been played. A target of 11 points out of 18 would match how the club was doing at the same point last year. Currently they are on 4 out of 9 but with 2 of the first 3 matches away and 2 of the next 3 at home, this is eminently doable if the team perform as we all hope. At the moment all we have are expectations and a good performance at West Ham. In a month's time we will know more.

You post consistent tosh, fair play.

 

There are plenty of factors influencing price, length of contract, players age, potential, affluence of selling club and buying club, nationality, current wages, etc etc.

 

Your "theory" (something nags at me that you might not be an actual real professor) is so crudely facile it is barely worth scrutiny.

 

But one pointless example: we replaced Adam Lallana who cost us fifty grand from Bournemouth with Tadic for 200 times more. So Tadic 200 times better. Easy.

[Smirking_Saint]

I said I was dissapointed for the majority of summer as it seemed the good ship southampton was sailing into the choppy waters of the EPL without its vital supplies. Credit where credit is due they certainly managed to rescue the situation late on and we now look, with a bit of luck (players settling) a better outfit then we did last year.

 

Ill still stand by what I saw, and heard early in the transfer window. A lot of the outgoings could possibly have been avoided if we acted sooner. The Poch debarcle should have been dealt with in a way whivh kept him or dumped him early, but the majority of that is by the by. I never believed that we were asset stripping, just that I thought they were naive and inexperienced.

 

Very glad that they proved me wrong of course, made some excellent acquisitions and strengthened across the board. I said at the end of last season TA should be the sort of player we should be looking at and Im excited about the rough diamond thats Mane. The team remarkably has seemed to have gelled very quickly aswell which is very positive, thought we might start the season on the back foot and recover but the coaching teams clearly worked wonders.

 

Happy to stick my hands up and say I feared the worst and have now moved from going into this season on a slightly worried base to being really excited again.

 

Onwards and upwards COYR