Signings

[MarkSFC]

So....does last nights horrendous display highlight the need for three decent signings - One each in defence, midfield and attack?

 

Are we just going through a bad run of it with injuries?

 

Will VVD or A.N. Other(s) still want to come here without European football?

 

Did we have signings lined up based on qualifying for the group stage?

 

Discuss!!!

[Lallana's Left Peg]

Why are we all of a sudden going to start signing better players? This summer we signed lots of players in the bargain bin range because we thought we'd have more games but it turns out we won't have more games as those players aren't that good (or good enough yet).

 

We have an ok team but the number of players who are going to interest better teams dwindles by the year and that was always going to happen.

[La_Saint]

We are now a long ball team. So we need bigger players!

[Fitzhugh Fella]

A bloke

Who knows where the back of the net is would be nice

[Batman]

we have needed a new striker since January. That has been obvious

 

The Juanmi signing should have been someone who could come in and give pelle a proper run for his money.

but no, bargain bin again

[alehouseboys]

Most 'decent' players will be looking for European football. Oh.

[CB Fry]

In the anticipation of a clutch of European fixtures we have loaded up the squad with reasonable/average filler.

 

Following yesterday's debacle that now looks rather silly. We've beedn unlucky in not having a fit Clasie - him being any good early on (in the way Tadic and Pelle did) might have built some confidence.

 

Still think VVD is coming but that probably is it for the window.

[Ivan Katalinic's 'tache]

we have needed a new striker since January. That has been obvious

 

The Juanmi signing should have been someone who could come in and give pelle a proper run for his money.

but no, bargain bin again

 

Bargain bin and given little or no opportunity thus far, to boot.

[Batman]

Bargain bin and given little or no opportunity thus far' date=' to boot.[/quote']

 

clasie looks decent on paper

VvD will be a good signing

Stek looks fine but if FF is out for the whole/most of the season, we are no better off on the keeper front when it really hurt us last season

but, Juanmi, Martina. Just do no get it. That is 2003 levels of filling the squad with 'stuff'

 

also, the black box that monitors players all over the world etc etc etc. is cedric (with martina as back up) the best a club that finished 7th in the league could come up with as a proper right back?

 

as someone pointed out, we sold two right backs for £28m and replaced them with two players worth £6.5m..........

[La_Saint]

We got into Europe and sold 2 of our first 11. That was a decision the club made. Clyne still had one season and Morgan had a new contract. The 3 we lost were more than good players on the pitch. They led the team on and off the pitch.

 

We lost our best defender because we were being cheap and wanted to leverage a clause. At the time I felt we should pay Atletico the higher price he was worth, after a good season in the EPL. Spurs wouldn't have been able to show up and snoop if we bought him when the season ended.

 

We have lost the character that got us where we are. These players don't have the will to win and team spirit togetherness.

[Saints foreva]

We do need more than a CB signing but it isn't going to happen.

[Saint Charlie]

Will just be a CB IMO. An additional midfielder with a bit more attacking power would be a nice bonus but mainly need players fit again.

[Convict Colony]

I just want an upgrade on Davis/JWP, they can't score in a brothel

[supersonic]

We are now a long ball team. So we need bigger players!

 

To start with we could buy a striker who actually wants to head the ball. Chesting the ball down is fine every now and again but not every time.

[Batman]

To start with we could buy a striker who actually wants to head the ball. Chesting the ball down is fine every now and again but not every time.

 

since when does he jump? rarely does he unless it is for an attempt on goal

[Pilchards]

We do need more than a CB signing but it isn't going to happen.

 

Correct,

Too much spending money on squad players.

Stuck with them now so we just have to knuckle down and pray they improve quickly.

 

Me personally to save our short term problem I would indeed flog Long and bring in Austin,

Play Caulker, Fonte and VIrgil as 3 CB's and make sure I would get a good covering left footer to give Bertrand more support for his overlaps when fit again.

 

Then shove Mane in a number 10 free role to do what he wants while we play the ball to feet and stop pumping it to Pelle all the time.

Regarding RB & RM - screwed!!!

RB, One can't attack and one can't defend while your covering right midfielders are either lazy to track back, light weight or too slow.

BIG PROBLEM - At least Townsend could solve half of it.

[Hodgey]

Before yesterdays game I thought what team I would pick out of those available and came up with - Stek, Cedric, Caulker, Fonte, Maya, Reed, Romeu, JRod, Tadic, Long, Pelle - whilst I think that team would have had a better showing than the one that played, after looking at it I simply thought 'that team isn't good enough'. It's too late now to get any more decent players in as we clearly thought VVD would complete our squad. Assuming we get him (which we may not), theoretically the squad will be good enough for a 14th ish finish. But we may have a couple of very uncomfortable months whilst players settle and confidence building must now be a high priority. Also now we are out of Europe I'd be tempted to send the likes of JWP and Targett on loan as they are not good enough and I feel they are going backwards at the moment. As per a previous poster I'd also love a swap with Long and Austin but the reality is that with Longs wages and transfer fee he isn't going anywhere. What we should be thinking about NOW is getting replacements for Mane and Wanyama who will both clearly be off next year and start tapping them up - we also may need to turn the black box on and off again as it appears to be malfunctioning.

[stedje]

I just want an upgrade on Davis/JWP, they can't score in a brothel

 

Not really related, but according to Lundekvam`s new book, many Saints players did. :-)

[Verbal Kint]

If the club were serious about improving the squad, Cedric would have been bought as a young right back with potential and we'd have brought someone else in as first choice, rather than having Martina as a utility back up.

 

Targett should be loaned out for the season. Doubt he'll ever be good enough to be honest but he's a liability in the first team. Go and buy a young left back with some actual talent to be Bertrand's back up

 

Loan out JWP and bring in a proper no 10 who might be able to create a chance occasionally.

 

Sign a striker as competition for Pelle, he can't do it all on his own and I don't think anyone is convinced he's that good anyway.

 

I realise this will cost money but when you see how much money other teams are spending is it really too much to ask we have a net spend of 15-20 million this summer?

Edited 28 August, 2015 by Verbal Kint

[Toomer]

A bloke

Who knows where the back of the net is would be nice

And not the ones put up pre match.

[sadoldgit]

We signed decent players last year without European football. The Premiership is still a big draw.

[Ex Lion Tamer]

How much are we missing Paul Mitchell ?

 

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[Whitey Grandad]

I just want an upgrade on Davis/JWP, they can't score in a brothel

You have to spend if you want to score, even in a brothel (so I believe ).

[Batman]

If the club were serious about improving the squad, Cedric would have been bought as a young right back with potential and we'd have brought someone else in as first choice, rather than having Martina as a utility back up.

 

Targett should be loaned out for the season. Doubt he'll ever be good enough to be honest but he's a liability in the first team. Go and buy a young left back with some actual talent to be Bertrand's back up

 

Loan out JWP and bring in a proper no 10 who might be able to create a chance occasionally.

 

Sign a striker as competition for Pelle, he can't do it all on his own and I don't think anyone is convinced he's that good anyway.

 

I realise this will cost money but when you see how much money other teams are spending is it really too much to ask we have a net spend of 15-20 million this summer?

 

exactly this

[austsaint]

If the club were serious about improving the squad, Cedric would have been bought as a young right back with potential and we'd have brought someone else in as first choice, rather than having Martina as a utility back up.

 

Targett should be loaned out for the season. Doubt he'll ever be good enough to be honest but he's a liability in the first team. Go and buy a young left back with some actual talent to be Bertrand's back up

 

Loan out JWP and bring in a proper no 10 who might be able to create a chance occasionally.

 

Sign a striker as competition for Pelle, he can't do it all on his own and I don't think anyone is convinced he's that good anyway.

 

I realise this will cost money but when you see how much money other teams are spending is it really too much to ask we have a net spend of 15-20 million this summer?

 

Just about the most astute summary of what we need to compete for a mid-table finish. The CB reinforcement of itself will not right the ship without the other additions.

[Verbal Kint]

Additionally, I don't have any issue with the policy of selling players that want out for BIG money (which we have done I think), but that only works if the money is used to reinvest and the recruitment is right. Martina is a cheap signing unsuitable for where we are as a club IMO. Juanmi hasn't had a chance yet, why not? Why have we bought him if he isn't a winger, a no 10 or a lone striker? Everyone has their hopes pinned on Clasie and my gut feeling is he is going to be totally underwhelming to be honest, another holding midfielder who doesn't use the ball well enough to play as a no 10 and our midfield with him, Vic and Romeu will look average.

 

It should also be said we've gone from the 'black box', which i interpret as just being a good scouting system evaluating players all over the world, to suddenly stockpiling dutch players since RK became manager. Why aren't we trusting our scouts to find the good players at the right prices? There is too much trust being put in RK when it comes to signings IMO. He should be identifying positions, the scouts should be offering a list of options and RK should sign off on them. I find it slightly amateurish that we bought Martina because Erwin knows him from Holland. That's not how a well run PL club should be operating

[Saint Charlie]

Previously we bought players to go straight into the starting XI and make an impact, like Lovren, Forster, Alderweireld, Wanyama.

 

This summer we have bought a couple and the rest pad out the squad.

 

Thats the difference.

[Batman]

Martina was the main worry for me. Cedric looks a good prospect and Christ knows why he isn't playing. But Cedric and trippier or Byram would have been good. Not Cedric and a non league standard clown

 

surely, the lad we sent to Boro could have done a better job than Martina, ffs

[Wade Garrett]

It's just like Lowe is pulling the strings again. Sell anything that moves and replace them with cheap sh*te.

 

A terrible strategy. We need to sign a quality defender, quality midfielder and quality forward. Ron knows it, I wouldn't blame him for walking if the board f*ck him around.

[CB Fry]

It's just like Lowe is pulling the strings again. Sell anything that moves and replace them with cheap sh*te.

 

A terrible strategy. We need to sign a quality defender, quality midfielder and quality forward. Ron knows it, I wouldn't blame him for walking if the board f*ck him around.

Lowe didn't sell 8 players in two years or whatever the number is that Delldays/Batman likes to use.

 

Quite frankly Lowe did a brilliant job of keeping our Prem squad together. Maybe one sold a season - the dream Everton model, surely?

[marc_saint]

Saw this on Facebook. Don't know how accurate it is but show that with all the TV money we don't seem to be really pushing on and making the most of where supposedly want to be.

 

[Wade Garrett]

Lowe didn't sell 8 players in two years or whatever the number is that Delldays/Batman likes to use.

 

Quite frankly Lowe did a brilliant job of keeping our Prem squad together. Maybe one sold a season - the dream Everton model, surely?

 

Dont want to go into the Lowe debate. But we have a board following the same policy now, despite the massive TV deal and billionaire owner that Lowe didn't have.

 

I for one am not swallowing Kruger's We March On bullsh*t.

[shurlock]

Martina was the main worry for me. Cedric looks a good prospect and Christ knows why he isn't playing. But Cedric and trippier or Byram would have been good. Not Cedric and a non league standard clown

 

Behave - he wasn't that bad. Got beaten one or twice towards the end of the game when we were chasing things and his crossing wasn't great (he did cross for Jrod's best chance). He was no better or worse than any other of our players. He certainly wasn't helped by the poor link-up with Caulker who seemed to be working on commission for the number of times he successfully hoofed to Pelle.

[Lallana's Left Peg]

Dont want to go into the Lowe debate. But we have a board following the same policy now, despite the massive TV deal and billionaire owner that Lowe didn't have.

 

I for one am not swallowing Kruger's We March On bullsh*t.

 

I don't believe the club willingly sold any of the players that left, and we certainly gained great transfer fees for them all. The argument against the board at the moment is whether or not they have diligently spent the money required on replacements. One thing that ****es me off is that we sell a player for £25m and buy a replacement for £8m and then also cover that replacements wages from the transfer fee received for the player sold. It's going to create a team of far less quality.

[Saint Charlie]

I don't believe the club willingly sold any of the players that left' date=' and we certainly gained great transfer fees for them all. The argument against the board at the moment is whether or not they have diligently spent the money required on replacements. One thing that ****es me off is that we sell a player for £25m and buy a replacement for £8m and then also cover that replacements wages from the transfer fee received for the player sold. It's going to create a team of far less quality.[/quote']

 

Yes, this is the issue. We also (due to not spending the cash) have to always go for foreign players on the whole, who have to adjust to the PL.

 

That is why someone like Cabaye is such a great signing because you know he will fit in and isn't going to have a problem with the intensity of the game here.

 

There are of course good foreign signings, loads of players in the world would love to play in the PL for a decent side and many will leave good European clubs to come to our midtable teams. You just have to pay the fees and wages and then you can sign a Shaqiri, Wijnaldum, Payet etc.

 

We have done that before but decided to go a rung lower this summer which is disappointing.

Edited 28 August, 2015 by Saint Charlie

[angelman]

I am a little worried about goals. Looking at last season, we scored 54, which out of the top 4 only 2 other teams scored over 50 - Spuds with 58, Liverpool with 52. The freak Sunderland & Villa account for over a quarter of all the goals we scored. And there were games when we struggled and Pelle struggled. So who are the alternative centre forwards - Long & Mayuka, and I don't think that anyone will say that they are adequate.

[Wade Garrett]

I don't believe the club willingly sold any of the players that left' date=' and we certainly gained great transfer fees for them all. The argument against the board at the moment is whether or not they have diligently spent the money required on replacements. One thing that ****es me off is that we sell a player for £25m and buy a replacement for £8m and then also cover that replacements wages from the transfer fee received for the player sold. It's going to create a team of far less quality.[/quote']

 

They sold players under contract, unlike Everton and WBA.

 

I agree with your description of club policy. It is a shambles. The board need to listen to the manager.

[shurlock]

I am a little worried about goals. Looking at last season, we scored 54, which out of the top 4 only 2 other teams scored over 50 - Spuds with 58, Liverpool with 52. The freak Sunderland & Villa account for over a quarter of all the goals we scored. And there were games when we struggled and Pelle struggled. So who are the alternative centre forwards - Long & Mayuka, and I don't think that anyone will say that they are adequate.

 

You take out the Villa result we scored 16 goals in 18 games in the second half of the season - that's close to bottom three attacking play.

[simo]

Saw this on Facebook. Don't know how accurate it is but show that with all the TV money we don't seem to be really pushing on and making the most of where supposedly want to be.

 

 

That says it all imo!

[van Hanegem]

clasie looks decent on paper

VvD will be a good signing

Stek looks fine but if FF is out for the whole/most of the season, we are no better off on the keeper front when it really hurt us last season

but, Juanmi, Martina. Just do no get it. That is 2003 levels of filling the squad with 'stuff'

 

also, the black box that monitors players all over the world etc etc etc. is cedric (with martina as back up) the best a club that finished 7th in the league could come up with as a proper right back?

 

as someone pointed out, we sold two right backs for £28m and replaced them with two players worth £6.5m..........

 

You're writing off Juanmi already? I'm hoping Koeman will give him a chance behind Pelle, their link up play could be great.

VvD would be a great signing, I rate him higher than Alderweireld.

When money is no issue I would like to see Jethro Willems from PSV to play for the Saints. I know many fans like Bertrand but Willems is so dangerous with his pace, technical skills and awesome crossball. He's far better than Shaw for example while he costs way less, 10 million pounds will do.

Furthermore the Saints need a playmaker in midfield but to come up with a name and a reasonable price... that's difficult.

Ah well, I don't expect Southampton to spend a lot of cash so it doesn't matter anyway.

[whelk]

Saw this on Facebook. Don't know how accurate it is but show that with all the TV money we don't seem to be really pushing on and making the most of where supposedly want to be.

 

 

Who have Tottenham spent £53m on?

[alpine_saint]

Genuinely doubt we will sign anyone else, considering just how bad we are playing and the fact we lost the main non-financial attraction last night.

[Verbal Kint]

Who have Tottenham spent £53m on?

 

Son, N'jie, Toby, Wimmer, Trippier

[whelk]

They have Son now then

[shurlock]

Saw this on Facebook. Don't know how accurate it is but show that with all the TV money we don't seem to be really pushing on and making the most of where supposedly want to be.

 

 

Will get in early and say that whatever we pay for VVD (tbc) will effectively be covered by the Lovren sale and surplus we ran last summer.

[Batman]

I have no idea what planet Les (and who ever) are on when talking up 'champions league' for Saints and then running at a net profit two summers in a row

 

whilst WBA telling spurs to f-off, Everton seemingly rejected monster money for Stones with Swansea, Palace and Stoke bringing in quality like Ayew, Cabeye and Shaquiri.

[angelman]

I am going to wait until Tuesday evening before spouting off. But, I would say presuming we are getting someone in (!!!!), it would have been best pre-season rather than 7/8 competitive games in.

[Wes Tender]

How much are we missing Paul Mitchell ?

 

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How much do you think? I'm not even certain that the black box was his idea, but as far as I know, he was just the person who oversaw its operation. There were several others whose jobs were to analyse the videos of all the players around the world and then research their character and suitability to our team and style of play. I don't recall hearing that since Mitchell's departure that anything regarding the way that we identify targets has changed. Like when we replace players sold with somebody we hope to be as good, we have replaced Mitchell with somebody well enough thought of by Huddersfield (Ross Wilson) that they appointed him a board director.

 

http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/news/article/20150314-announcement-ross-wilson-director-of-scouting-recruitment-2333456.aspx

 

Also, it's pertinent to answer your question with the counter question; has Mitchell's arrival at Spurs improved them? It seems that his innovative and imaginative approach is to go for some of our players, or others who we were rumoured to be interested in when he was here.

[SaintBobby]

Wasn't VvD cup tied in Europe anyway having played for Celtic who are now in Europa League?

 

I guess if he's determined to play in Europa, this may incline him to stay at Celtic - but my understanding was that he wouldn't be eligible to play for Saints in that competition anyway.

[eddie]

How much are we missing Paul Mitchell ?

 

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who knows? I think they've made some good signings (toby....and Son I've always thought was very good, shouldn't take him long to adapt though we'll see....trippier also good but we'll see how he survives) but to be honest I wonder how much of them getting signings is down to levy's magic rather than mitchell being able to spot them. I think spotting the talent is the easy bit, actually. Spotting the talent and knowing what would fit in your squad.

 

But actually getting deals done and working his magic with players/agents......that's why mourinho is such a genius coach. He's not just tactically good, he seems like the kind of bloke that after spending a few hours with him he just convinces you that his way of thinking is the best.