Best 5/Worst 5 games of the season?

[SaintLiam]

All competitions

 

Best:

 

Saints 6 - 1 Aston Villa - Might be easier to go with the higher scoring option available but this match felt like we were creating our own chances and exploiting faults in Villa's defence, whereas Sunderland made their own. Included a record breaking hattrick, a 40 yard screamer, a well worked team goal and an opposition goal to top it off. Great way to sign off.

 

Saints 8 - 0 Sunderland - One nobody expected really, just goals pouring in before anybody knew what was going on. Some excellent defensive displays, especially from the likes of Vergini

 

Manchester United 0 - 1 Saints We hadn't won at OT since the '80s, and to do it with this team was an excellent marker for how far we've come over the years. Probably the most tense game, especially when those chances had fallen to Mata towards the end.

 

Saints 2 - 0 Arsenal The start of a great January for Saints, totally dominating Arsenal at SMS. Great goal from Mane, and I especially remember Merrington picking up on Big Vic's roulette and calling him 'twinkle toes'

 

West Ham 1 - 3 Saints The only time we had come back from a losing position in the league to win a game, part of a large collection of early season wins so it gets overlooked. Slightly disappointing that it was the only time.

 

Special mention to the Arsenal cup win, Everton win, both Chelsea draws and Newcastle @ SMS

 

Worst:

 

Sheffield United 1 - 0 Saints It couldn't get lower then this, could it? After 4 consecutive league defeats and the most recent one being a poor performance from Burnley, surely we'd be able to come back against a League 1 side. Nope. A poor goal to concede and we looked like pantomime villains - Gardos' red card, Morgan kicking the ball away and risking the same fate, and RK not shaking the opposition manager's hand.

 

Saints 0 - 2 Liverpool Probably the most crushing of defeats. Such an important game table-wise but also the context of the game. Plus, Lovren and Lallana were playing. What does Kevin Enemy do? He f*cks it up. One penalty claim which you have seen given, and the second which would be given every f*cking day of the week. Then Mignolet's handball outside the box...and to top it off Brendan the elephant seal says Enemy had an outstanding game and even has the nerve to question why Lallana wasn't in the matchday programme.

 

Burnley 1 - 0 Saints The worst part about this was by far the missed penalty. A weak one from Tadic and a somewhat unlucky goal to concede as it deflected off Clyne perfectly for a Burnley player.

 

Saints 0 - 3 Manchester City Our heaviest defeat of the season, not too many chances created and those we did take weren't great. But the scoreline was fair overall.

 

Saints 0 - 0 West Ham When a team comes hoping for a draw against a team whose attacking form is absolutely awful, you're always going to get a dull game. Poor refereeing display and the only highlight was Adrian's red card...which was later rescinded anyway.

[DuncanRG]

With you on all but one of those choices - I'd rank the Emirates win well above the Villa 6-1. That was a real occasion.

[adysaint]

I'd pretty much agree with that apart from WHU 0-0

 

A draw shouldn't rank as one of the worst games. We simply couldn't break them down.

 

I'd say the Swansea 0-1 was the day the CL dream died for me. We were on an amazing run coming off Man U & Newc. Swansea were in no form whatsoever,

had loads of injuries, had just sold Bony and came for a point. We battered them, missed loads of chances then got sucker punched by Shelvy.

 

I realised at that point that most good teams would have won that game easily and that we were destined to finish 7th.

 

The fact that Spurs and Liverpool fans will say the had a 'bad' season in 5th and 6th and we have had a remarkable season in 7th kinda shows the gap we need to

close.

[angelman]

Best for me was actually the 3-0 against Everton coming after a slump. Then the 8-0, 6-1 but they were against opposition that really didn't turn up.

[markr27]

Also worth a mention was Stoke at home - the game after the 8-0. So important to follow that rout with another win.

[Bucks Saint]

With you on all but one of those choices - I'd rank the Emirates win well above the Villa 6-1. That was a real occasion.

 

The OP put the 2-0 win at SMS down. I am with you, part of that early season amazement, beating them 2-1 at the Emirates with THAT goal from Clyne was unbelievable

[jb4life]

Agree with virtually all of that.

 

West Ham away was huge.

 

Morgan's performance in that game was the best individual performance I witnessed all season.

[andoru]

Saints 0 - 3 Manchester City Our heaviest defeat of the season, not too many chances created and those we did take weren't great. But the scoreline was fair overall.

 

As you said about choosing the high-scoring wins, it's also an easy choice to choose the big defeat, but I wouldn't include this one. Yes, we lost, but then we kind of expected to. Man City were just pure class that day, which I take as a sign of respect for us. They turned up to play because they knew they had to, and we got to see a masterclass. I never like losing, but I have no complaints about losing to that performance. For me, the worst games were the ones we dropped 'easy' points in, like losing to Burnley.

 

My best five (in no particular order):

 

Saints 8-0 Sunderland

Saints 6-1 Aston Villa

Saints 2-0 Arsenal

Man Utd 0-1 Saints

Saints 3-0 Everton (ending the run of five straight defeats)

 

My worst five:

 

Saints 0-2 Liverpool

Burnley 1-0 Saints

Leicester 2-0 Saints

Stoke 2-1 Saints

Sunderland 2-1 Saints (these last three all come in quick succession)

[GarrettIvo]

Those losses to Swansea, and especially Sunderland, really hurt.

[Saintsteve7]

The Everton game was a big one for me. We were on the back of horrible run and had injuries and suspensions galore but RK surprised us all with the 3-5-2 that worked an obsolute treat. It also highlighted for me the difference beteeen RK and MoPo, last season we would played our usual game with a 4-2-3-1 and probably lost!

[fanimal]

Worst that first game at home 0-0 v WBA i went away thinking OMG how bad was that - thankfully, as ROKO said Liverpool away despite the defeat swept that away. Leicester away was also only game I honestly didn't think we deserved anything.

 

But the plusses well outweigh the minuses this season, looking forward to July 30th!!

[S-Clarke]

The 0-0 against WBA was a low point for me - not just because of the flat performance, but the fan's reactions. Pelle was getting slaughtered in his 2nd ever game for us. He got jeered and booed. It was down right embarrassing.

 

8-0 and 6-1 obviously have to be up there as the high points, but I particularly enjoyed the OT away game! Which came as part of those 3 away wins on the bounce.