How wrong was I?

[Red and White Army]

Well, I wasn't one of the bedwetters on here but I was shocked and worried about the goings on in the summer. I fully expected us to be struggling at the other end of the table. Humble pie has never tasted so good.

 

Long live Koeman, long live the new arrivals and long live Southampton Football Club.

 

Played 8, Points 16, GD + 14. Like a wet dream.

[trousers]

I was also concerned about the summer "exodus" but I tend to hang fire on making a judgement until I've seen how things pan out.

[Red and White Army]

I was also concerned about the summer "exodus" but I tend to hang fire on making a judgement until I've seen how things pan out.

 

Nil nil written all over todays game?

[trousers]

Nil nil written all over todays game?

 

Reverse psychology works every time.....

[hutch]

Reverse psychology works every time.....

I agree

[Unbelievable Jeff]

I was also concerned about the summer "exodus" but I tend to hang fire on making a judgement until I've seen how things pan out.

 

The same, apprehensive but no point panicking until we need to.

[Dalek2003]

16 points is very good at this stage of the season. A long way to go, but a day to remember.

[Frank's cousin]

I thought we were fecked, nicely surprised.... We may still get pulled back down to earth in Dec/ Jan when we have a 'trickier' set of fixtures, but can't help but enjoy it whilst it lasts.

 

But anyone who says they were NOT concerned given what what's was happening - is telling porkies IMHO... Or where just over joyed Cortese and POCH had gone, which meant more than loosing 5 quality players, irrespective of the risks associated with bringing in unprovens in this league.

 

Hindsight is a wonderful thing... But seems that Reed et al were able to find quality out there. The problem was with the communication. Krueger got a lot of stick, and tightly so, for some poor statements...that really did challenge his credibility... He has since turned it around as he has learned quickly so fair play to him... But it was not a great time for the club and to suggest we would come through with such positivity is far more mystic meg BS than those having a melt down based on predictions of relegation... The majority of football thought we would struggle... If we end up selling half the side again in the summer and losing Kooman.... Yes the club will survive and we go on, but I would not bet that we will have such fortune again.

[nta786]

16 points is very good at this stage of the season. A long way to go, but a day to remember.

 

Only 24 to go then eh

[Whitey Grandad]

I have always maintained that there was no need to panic but even I never imagined a start like this. I won't get too carried away but I must admit I'm enjoying it at the moment

[eurosaint]

Nil nil written all over todays game?

 

That was a classic

Pity it was Trousers rather than one of the 'nasties' who we would have ripped the p*ss out of but a cracker nonetheless :)

[trousers]

But anyone who says they were NOT concerned given what what's was happening - is telling porkies IMHO

 

I doubt you'll find a "not concerned" quote from anyone on this forum between May and July. What you will find is a different way of dealing with that concern....

[trousers]

That was a classic

Pity it was Trousers rather than one of the 'nasties' who we would have ripped the p*ss out of but a cracker nonetheless :)

 

Yours tongue-in-cheek-ly

 

[Turkish]

I just repeated to myself

 

'In Les reed we trust'

 

And what a fantastic mantra that has proven to be.

[Turkish]

I thought we were fecked, nicely surprised.... We may still get pulled back down to earth in Dec/ Jan when we have a 'trickier' set of fixtures, but can't help but enjoy it whilst it lasts.

 

But anyone who says they were NOT concerned given what what's was happening - is telling porkies IMHO... Or where just over joyed Cortese and POCH had gone, which meant more than loosing 5 quality players, irrespective of the risks associated with bringing in unprovens in this league.

 

Hindsight is a wonderful thing... But seems that Reed et al were able to find quality out there. The problem was with the communication. Krueger got a lot of stick, and tightly so, for some poor statements...that really did challenge his credibility... He has since turned it around as he has learned quickly so fair play to him... But it was not a great time for the club and to suggest we would come through with such positivity is far more mystic meg BS than those having a melt down based on predictions of relegation... The majority of football thought we would struggle... If we end up selling half the side again in the summer and losing Kooman.... Yes the club will survive and we go on, but I would not bet that we will have such fortune again.

 

It was all fortune was it Franco? All luck? Appointing Koeman, luck? Signing Pelle, Tadic, Mane, Bertrand Tony Underwood, all just down to being fortunate? Nothing to do with having plan which was slightly more deeper and better thought out than the one you had which was to unquestionably believe everything you were told by a previous director pining all your hopes on one mans ego. Yes Franco, all just good luck

[Frank's cousin]

I doubt you'll find a "not concerned" quote from anyone on this forum between May and July. What you will find is a different way of dealing with that concern....

 

...true, but may I ask what is so wrong with folks all reacting differently to it? We are all different, some reactionary, some over emotionally (expressed both positively and negatively), some predictably expressing that they are 'far too grown up' to be so emotional....yet is not supporting the ridiculous game all about emotion?

 

Sure some of the personal attacks against Katherina were totally out of order. I gave Krueger a load of stick because he WAS **** poor at communicating what was happening with any credibility.... And what is wrong with that? There are plenty on here who suggest this sis wrong, yet spent plenty of time in their criticism of the previous regime... It's opinion and on this kind of open forum, I still find it funny that some don't seem to expect such different opinions or responses.

[trousers]

...true' date=' but may I ask what is so wrong with folks all reacting differently to it? We are all different, some reactionary, some over emotionally (expressed both positively and negatively), some predictably expressing that they are 'far too grown up' to be so emotional....yet is not supporting the ridiculous game all about emotion? [/quote']

 

Fair point. Supporting a football team is largely an irrational exercise.

[Under Weststand]

I was definitely in the worried camp, but I was hanging onto the Koeman would have known the score when he came in line.

I can't quite believe how well the side have performed so far. Long may it continue.

[Whitey Grandad]

...true, but may I ask what is so wrong with folks all reacting differently to it? We are all different, some reactionary, some over emotionally (expressed both positively and negatively), some predictably expressing that they are 'far too grown up' to be so emotional....yet is not supporting the ridiculous game all about emotion?

 

Sure some of the personal attacks against Katherina were totally out of order. I gave Krueger a load of stick because he WAS **** poor at communicating what was happening with any credibility.... And what is wrong with that? There are plenty on here who suggest this sis wrong, yet spent plenty of time in their criticism of the previous regime... It's opinion and on this kind of open forum, I still find it funny that some don't seem to expect such different opinions or responses.

 

I can respect your opinions, along with all others.

 

It's a good thing we're all different.

[S-Clarke]

I don't think it was possible to avoid a few ''WTF'' moments in the summer, and it didn't help with Ralf's poorly timed PR exercises. But as I said at the time, the appointment of Koeman eased my fears. All the talk about selling up, losing our ambition etc etc was blown away by the fact we'd just appointed Koeman.

 

A manager of his stature would not be joining a club that had no ambition, so from the moment we brought him in I felt the ambition was still there from within. You do get the feeling that Les knew what was going on all along, and he didn't deserve any of the stick he got. We were bloody lucky he was still here this year.

[Whitey Grandad]

I don't think it was possible to avoid a few ''WTF'' moments in the summer, and it didn't help with Ralf's poorly timed PR exercises. But as I said at the time, the appointment of Koeman eased my fears. All the talk about selling up, losing our ambition etc etc was blown away by the fact we'd just appointed Koeman.

 

A manager of his stature would not be joining a club that had no ambition, so from the moment we brought him in I felt the ambition was still there from within. You do get the feeling that Les knew what was going on all along, and he didn't deserve any of the stick he got. We were bloody lucky he was still here this year.

 

It's almost as though it was planned this way all along

[TheCholulaKid]

...true' date=' but may I ask what is so wrong with folks all reacting differently to it? We are all different, some reactionary, some over emotionally (expressed both positively and negatively), some predictably expressing that they are 'far too grown up' to be so emotional....yet is not supporting the ridiculous game all about emotion?[/quote']

 

Absolutely fair enough. It was the relentless spamming of the board though that means some posters have subsequently been taken to task. And rightly so.

[Turkish]

Absolutely fair enough. It was the relentless spamming of the board though that means some posters have subsequently been taken to task. And rightly so.

 

In fairness whilst Franco was in a bad way, he was by no means the worst. Franco is just a bit of a sucker who got sucked into believing all the hype about Cortese and believed what he was told that southampton FC were nothing without him.

[Sour Mash]

Well, I wasn't one of the bedwetters on here but I was shocked and worried about the goings on in the summer. I fully expected us to be struggling at the other end of the table. Humble pie has never tasted so good.

 

 

 

Long live Koeman, long live the new arrivals and long live Southampton Football Club.

 

 

 

Played 8, Points 16, GD + 14. Like a wet dream.

 

There are some that stuck by the team, there are others that didn't. Both parties know who they are. Such is life.

[KingdomCome]

Anyone who wasn't shocked and worried probably don't support Saints.

[Whitey Grandad]

Anyone who wasn't shocked and worried probably don't support Saints.

 

Or too old to panic or worry

[KingdomCome]

Or too old to panic or worry

Fair play, don't want to insult anyone so maybe a bit strong. I would struggle to understand not being worried at some point during the summer though.

[SarniaSaint]

...true, but may I ask what is so wrong with folks all reacting differently to it? We are all different, some reactionary, some over emotionally (expressed both positively and negatively), some predictably expressing that they are 'far too grown up' to be so emotional....yet is not supporting the ridiculous game all about emotion?

 

Sure some of the personal attacks against Katherina were totally out of order. I gave Krueger a load of stick because he WAS **** poor at communicating what was happening with any credibility.... And what is wrong with that? There are plenty on here who suggest this sis wrong, yet spent plenty of time in their criticism of the previous regime... It's opinion and on this kind of open forum, I still find it funny that some don't seem to expect such different opinions or responses.

 

I find this strange to

But the precious know it all brigade cant get this LOL

BTW have asked Ms Leiberr for a date LOL

[um pahars]

I'm sure most people were concerned, but as trousers rightly points out it was the way that concern was expressed.

 

Whilst some had a hissy fit and invented (or believed) stories of a meltdown, chaos, conflict behind the scenes, sellng up, asset stripping, etc etc etc, many others fortunately saw it for what it was. i.e. A few ego & £££££ driven individuals flexing their muscles and demanding a move.

 

And fortunately this many were also prepared to give those in power a bit of time to respond and deal their way out of the situation, time afforded to a group who had helped haul us from the bottom of div 1 to the Top Flight. For me they deserved that benefit of the doubt, not the awful responses that saw them harangued and abused.

 

Good players will still leave us (can see Tadic being snapped up & Clyne being tempted) and am sure at some point Koeman will depart, and just next time the obvious disappointment can be tempered somewhat.

[Dalek2003]

Fair point. Supporting a football team is largely an irrational exercise.

 

and that is the essence of football. Your comment sums it up in a nutshell.

[Sour Mash]

I'm sure most people were concerned, but as trousers rightly points out it was the way that concern was expressed.

It's exactly that. Some are trying to paint it as "just an opinion", but that's not what most of us had a problem with, it was the sustained spamming of this board, page after page, by certain posters with the same rubbish, plus accusations on Krueger and Katharina Liebherr.

[CHAPEL END CHARLIE]

I too was concerned (to put it mildly) about what happen here during the summer. It seems to me however that if so many in the wider game - from well respected ex players to knowledgeable and experienced observers - expressed the very same doubts then we mere fans who called it wrong too can be permitted to put their mistake into some sort of perspective. Ultimately many/all of us probably know less about the game than we like to think we do.

 

It turns out that Koeman has been outstanding, the players we have signed seem (remarkably) to have all been wise additions too, even the fixture computer may have been rather kind to us. So a combination of money, good luck and (very) good judgement has seen us start the season as well as I can ever remember a SFC doing. Long may it last of course, but our resident 'I told you so's' may do well to take a day off from their basking and understand that it could all easily have been a different story.

 

Indeed, lose Koeman and sell-off our best players again next summer and it probably will be.

[St Marco]

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I don't think many could imagine us doing as well as we have during the summer. I had us down to struggle, concerns over RK ability to manager outside of Holland. KL commitment and so on. I have never been so happy to be so wrong. We have been fantastic and I hope it continues as we deserve it.

[Toadhall Saint]

It's exactly that. Some are trying to paint it as "just an opinion", but that's not what most of us had a problem with, it was the sustained spamming of this board, page after page, by certain posters with the same rubbish, plus accusations on Krueger and Katharina Liebherr.

 

Too many people that cannot keep their ott opinions to themselves, always looking for a scapegoat. I've got more time for alpine Saint than some of the others on here that just want to put the club they (allegedly) support down and boy would they have been shouting "told you so" (along with the so called football professionals/pundits) if we were third from bottom and not third from top. Bedwetters is really not strong enough.

[Toon Saint]

We can rightly talk about what a good job Les Reed and Paul Mitchell have done in firstly appointing Koeman; secondly, in attracting some excellent players to the club; thirdly, in extracting maximum value for the majority of players that were leaving; fourthly, in keeping calm while many were panicking, etc, etc.. That still doesn't disguise the massive void in public leadership that existed between January and May this year; the manner in which contracts for senior players were allowed to drag on without resolution (still the case with Cork); the lack of anything resembling a coherent vision or plan being installed or articulated (unless 'business as usual' really meant the continuation of Cortese's CL dream); the naivety of Hofstetter in taking about inheriting a 'difficult financial situation' which probably left the likes of Brendan Rodgers with a perma-boner for days; Krueger's various calamities and his annoyingly defensive rhetoric about trying to 'keep hold of our best players' as though the height of the board's ambitions was just retaining what we already had. None of that looked good from an outside perspective, and I think it was St. Bletch summed that up much better than me in a previous post a couple of months back (I forget where).

 

Who knows? Maybe it has all turned out for the best and we have come out of it all with a more competitive squad, a more harmonious club, a better bank balance, and even a striped kit. That is a credit to the structure of the club and maybe Reed was the brains behind the operation all along. But mistakes were made during that period which made for a very difficult summer. A lot of my worst fears haven't been realised but that doesn't mean to say they were misplaced. It was one PR disaster after another over the summer, but thankfully, we have come out of it very well and good times seem to be ahead.

[Unbelievable Jeff]

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I don't think many could imagine us doing as well as we have during the summer. I had us down to struggle, concerns over RK ability to manager outside of Holland. KL commitment and so on. I have never been so happy to be so wrong. We have been fantastic and I hope it continues as we deserve it.

 

But that is the point, for a lot of us it wasn't hindsight, it was foresight.

[Whitey Grandad]

We can rightly talk about what a good job Les Reed and Paul Mitchell have done in firstly appointing Koeman; secondly, in attracting some excellent players to the club; thirdly, in extracting maximum value for the majority of players that were leaving; fourthly, in keeping calm while many were panicking, etc, etc.. That still doesn't disguise the massive void in public leadership that existed between January and May this year; the manner in which contracts for senior players were allowed to drag on without resolution (still the case with Cork); the lack of anything resembling a coherent vision or plan being installed or articulated (unless 'business as usual' really meant the continuation of Cortese's CL dream); the naivety of Hofstetter in taking about inheriting a 'difficult financial situation' which probably left the likes of Brendan Rodgers with a perma-boner for days; Krueger's various calamities and his annoyingly defensive rhetoric about trying to 'keep hold of our best players' as though the height of the board's ambitions was just retaining what we already had. None of that looked good from an outside perspective, and I think it was St. Bletch summed that up much better than me in a previous post a couple of months back (I forget where).

 

Who knows? Maybe it has all turned out for the best and we have come out of it all with a more competitive squad, a more harmonious club, a better bank balance, and even a striped kit. That is a credit to the structure of the club and maybe Reed was the brains behind the operation all along. But mistakes were made during that period which made for a very difficult summer. A lot of my worst fears haven't been realised but that doesn't mean to say they were misplaced. It was one PR disaster after another over the summer, but thankfully, we have come out of it very well and good times seem to be ahead.

 

I never saw any of this as a problem. This is not a political party having to canvass for votes, all that matters are results on the pitch. I guess some of us have different expectations.

[Unbelievable Jeff]

I never saw any of this as a problem. This is not a political party having to canvass for votes, all that matters are results on the pitch. I guess some of us have different expectations.

 

Considering this has never happened at our or any other football club I'd wager, I find it a strange expectation to have of the board. Whatever they'd have done wouldn't have been good enough for some.

[CHAPEL END CHARLIE]

But that is the point, for a lot of us it wasn't hindsight, it was foresight.

 

So you knew for a fact then that Koeman would adapt to the Premier League with such apparent ease did you? Did your (near supernatural) level of foresight also tell you that most (if not all) of the players we signed last summer would too be successful? I wonder did you know 12 months ago that Osvaldo was going to punch Fonte in the face or that Arsenal would end up giving us £16m for Calum Chambers.

 

Your talents are wasted on here Jeff - be kind to we less enlightened SFC fans on here and tell us what next Saturday's lottery numbers are going to be and we can all share in your wonderful gift.

[Toon Saint]

I never saw any of this as a problem. This is not a political party having to canvass for votes, all that matters are results on the pitch. I guess some of us have different expectations.

 

Easy to say that now. Certainly lots of things were magnified over the summer, perhaps excessively so, but when players like Morgan come out and admit they were 'lacking motivation' and demoralised given events at boardroom level, it shows that poor PR, lack of public leadership, constant negative media speculation, were a problem and did actually have material effects. Our success on the pitch this season will certainly mean I will be more relaxed should 1-2 players leave in the summer, but the transfer window just gone was an unprecedented situation which largely warranted a lot of the anxieties being spouted on here.

[Toon Saint]

But that is the point, for a lot of us it wasn't hindsight, it was foresight.

 

Jeff, you keep crowing about your amazing 'foresight' but what did you actually say that was so prescient? I'm yet to speak to a fan who predicted we'd be third at this stage of the season.

[Unbelievable Jeff]

So you knew for a fact then that Koeman would adapt to the Premier League with such apparent ease did you? Did your (near supernatural) level of foresight also tell you that most (if not all) of the players we signed last summer would too be successful? I wonder did you know 12 months ago that Osvaldo was going to punch Fonte in the face or that Arsenal would end up giving us £16m for Calum Chambers.

 

Your talents are wasted on here Jeff - be kind to we less enlightened SFC fans on here and tell us what next Saturday's lottery numbers are going to be and we can all share in your wonderful gift.

 

No, but I knew we'd be fine, unlike a lot of the rest of you who whinnied all Summer about things that didn't happen, firesales, asset strips, insulting our board, our owner.

 

It was childish, myopic, and uncalled for. I now know who on this forum are liars, who can't keep their cool under pressure, and who's opinions are worth listening to.

 

Unfortunately there are a lot of people that I didn't realise were such muppets, people who I have previously thought were half decent posters.

[Unbelievable Jeff]

Jeff, you keep crowing about your amazing 'foresight' but what did you actually say that was so prescient? I'm yet to speak to a fan who predicted we'd be third at this stage of the season.

 

I said we'd be fine, and we are.

[Unbelievable Jeff]

Jeff, you keep crowing about your amazing 'foresight' but what did you actually say that was so prescient? I'm yet to speak to a fan who predicted we'd be third at this stage of the season.

 

How many times have I used that word on this site? Perhaps if i keep saying it you can tell me. Or are you talking crap again Tom?

[CHAPEL END CHARLIE]

No, but I knew we'd be fine, unlike a lot of the rest of you who whinnied all Summer about things that didn't happen, firesales, asset strips, insulting our board, our owner.

 

It was childish, myopic, and uncalled for. I now know who on this forum are liars, who can't keep their cool under pressure, and who's opinions are worth listening to.

 

Unfortunately there are a lot of people that I didn't realise were such muppets, people who I have previously thought were half decent posters.

 

A radical thought I know, but has the possibility occurred to you that perhaps you, and for that matter our club, just got lucky?

[Unbelievable Jeff]

A radical thought I know, but has the possibility occurred to you that perhaps you, and for that matter our club, just got lucky?

 

No. But keep on clutching...

[pap]

Never worried

 

http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?51097-Season-ticket-for-sale&p=2002854#post2002854

[CHAPEL END CHARLIE]

No. But keep on clutching...

 

Are you saying that if Koeman, Pelle, Alderweireld, Bertrand, Tadic and Mane all leave next summer you'd be fine with that because this game is so very easy?

[Toon Saint]

I said we'd be fine, and we are.

 

A somewhat capacious forecast, that. I predicted we'd finish 10th-12th, does that make me:

 

a) an omniscient observer blessed with 'foresight' knowing that we'd be just 'fine'

b) a hysterical tart who had abandoned any semblance of rationality and won over by the church of St. Richmond

c) someone reacting to a constant stream of poor PR, sales of five key players, constant negative media speculation, but tempering this with a knowledge of the qualities still present in the squad. a person as in the dark as everyone else (bar K Billy and Guan) about what was going on behind the scenes.

 

The whole dichotomy you erect between yourself (and a handful of selected others) as some sort of font of 'foresight' and the rest as 'childish', 'myopic', hysterical 'liars' is laughably reductive, and just suggests you are on some sort of bizarre ego-trip.

Edited 21 October, 2014 by Toon Saint

[norwaysaint]

Shaw has suddenly gone from world class to a bit poor and unfit

Lallana is a bit average

Lovren has gone from commanding to wobbly

Lambert is making no impact

MP is still not getting much out of Spurs

 

Tadic seems to be an improvement on Lallana

Pelle has almost certainly had more impact than Lambert would've

Schneiderlin stayed and has been excellent

Cork is scoring goals

Our two new CBs have been solid, certainly not worse than Lovren was last season.

Bertrand, despite never excelling anywhere else, is now looking even better than Shaw did last year, but with more scoring ability

RK is a more likeable and entertaining manager than MP and is keeping pace with his results or improving

Clyne is flourishing under RK and has been far better than Chambers so far this year

 

We are third, all of the clubs we lost players or staff to are below us

 

Pompey are still very poor and not going up

 

We made lots of money from our transfers

 

We've had our biggest win ever, including the fact that nine times out of ten our goalie would have been sent off early on

 

 

Did I miss anything?

 

 

 

 

Seriously, has one of you sold their soul for this or something?