VVD Replacement

[Appy]

This site has them on 4 each, but it has OR on 8, but I thought he was on 9 (perhaps Cup games count, but aren't shown in this tally?)

 

https://www.premierleague.com/stats/top/players/yellow_card

 

Don’t think we’d miss him at all, he’s been dreadful this season and looks unfit.

[saint1977]

On the plus side, we didn’t sign Ruben Semedo who Saints were strongly linked with - in a bit of trouble in Spain

[Dark Munster]

Seems odd to have let Gardos go out on loan (aka release him) when 'we' (the management/owners) must have known Yoshi was out injured.

That's a very polite way of saying ****ing incompetent.

[woodsaint]

Whats Caceres doing lol? Oddly i won a comp the club did when he signed and have his signed shirt. Collectors item

[Dusic]

That's a very polite way of saying ****ing incompetent.

Genuinely think Gardos would have been behind some 17 year olds in the preference order. He hasn't played more than a couple of U23 games in a year and is finished at a good level.

 

The incompetence is nothing to do with letting Gardos go, its not replacing VVD.

[Faz]

I mean,seriously, some of you are criticising the club for letting Gardos go?

[GGalpin]

Whilst he may be a fantastic prospect at youth level that still doesn't guarantee he'll be succesful when given the chance to step up.

 

If you've not seen BT Sports documentary 'No Hunger in Paradise' then I suggest you might want to watch it. It features a former West Ham trainee (who's name escapes me) but who was a wonder-kid through their academy system, got academy player of the year and captained their youth team. He never got a pro contract and ended up going to university in the USA.

 

Anyway, even if he turns out as good as projected, there's nothing wrong with having two young star centre backs.

 

Fair point and obviously it's not a barometer that he will come good for the seniors; saying that, is it nailed on that Bednarek will either? Jones cost us nothing.. Bednarek cost a Polish top flight record!

[Dark Munster]

I mean,seriously, some of you are criticising the club for letting Gardos go?

You make it sound like he's the Ali Dia of CBs. When you're down to bare bones half a loaf is better than none. We may get lucky and not need him, but why take the chance?

[Faz]

You make it sound like he's the Ali Dia of CBs. When you're down to bare bones half a loaf is better than none. We may get lucky and not need him, but why take the chance?

 

In what universe are we down to the bare bones, and how would a player who has hardly played first team or u23 football in 4 years be a better option than an up and coming young player?

[alpine_saint]

I have to say that I find the announcement of his loan within a couple of days of announcing Yoshi in all likelihood wont play again this season, to be utterly baffling.

 

I really wonder if the board / management have got a grip of running this club any more.

[Matthew Le God]

I have to say that I find the announcement of his loan within a couple of days of announcing Yoshi in all likelihood wont play again this season, to be utterly baffling.

 

I really wonder if the board / management have got a grip of running this club any more.

 

How have you worked out he won't be available for the games in May and possibly late April?

[Guan 2.0]

Yoshida out for 4-5 weeks.

 

Down to Hoedt, Stephens and Bednarek as the only available CBs for a hugely key part of the season.

 

Ludicrous.

 

**** me, what happens if Hoedt and Stephens pick up knocks?

 

£50mill profit in the window as well - it's kamikaze stuff.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-4209622/Secret-Scout-Southampton-new-star-Alfie-Jones.html

 

 

 

 

Yet another completely avoidable situation rears its ugly head - One that is symptomatic of our current malaise. If you have ignore the black box because your current manager can't attract the calibre of player to get you out of the situation that your current manager has got you into, that is a problem. If your current manager picks a bang average striker for 20 million, that is a red flag.

 

If by this same process you are unable to replace the international class Defender you have just sold, that is the defining moment at which you must replace the manager before the window shuts.

 

If you have a cultured youth star CB, who is ready to make the step up to first team football, and you let his contract run down in the under 23's at a time when you face a defensive crisis, that is a dereliction of duty to the future of the club.

 

Before anyone accuses me of Cherry Picking this topic, I've been speaking on Jones' future for a while now, as i foresaw this very situation given our disastrous recruitment policy.

 

If Jones doesn't sign long term, it will come back to bite us IMO.

 

This is the trickiest of fixtures, and i find myself partially agreeing with both of you. Although not as high a priority as it would be in a normal year, i wouldn't drop McCarthy, I would however rest Romeu for the yellow card risk. As our central defenders aren't exactly on top form anyway, I'd be tempted to bring in Alfie Jones at CB, and hope he can emulate Obafemi's performance and provide competition. But agree on resting Cedric and Bertrand.

 

Even if Jones Makes the bench now, no doubt his advisers will tell him to A) Run down his contract and hope any first team appearances attract other premier league teams, or B) Sign a short term deal that for a higher amount than we could have offered previously but with a ridiculously low release fee linked to relegation.

 

I was worried when i thought we just had a clown for a manager, now I look at the examples of Norwich and Sunderland (currently propping up the championship table), and realise we must have a travelling circus for a boardroom. Abdication of responsibility and common sense has become a cottage industry at SFC. Instead we steam ahead with our half baked blue sky thinking, serial contrarians to any kind of logical solution, with absolute faith that our 'system' will magic up a solution.

[benjii]

In what universe are we down to the bare bones, and how would a player who has hardly played first team or u23 football in 4 years be a better option than an up and coming young player?

 

In the sense that we have two fit CBs deemed good enough for first team football and they are both a pit pony.

[CityRanger]

Whats Caceres doing lol? Oddly i won a comp the club did when he signed and have his signed shirt. Collectors item

 

He’s at Lazio. They were keen on him in summer but couldn’t get him due to squad quotas so he went to Verona. Really impressed there apparently (14 games/3 goals) and finally moved to Lazio last month in transfer window.

Basically they banked £17m from us for Hoedt and replaced him with a (possibly better?) player for free that we had in the building already.

[Miltonaggro]

He’s at Lazio. They were keen on him in summer but couldn’t get him due to squad quotas so he went to Verona. Really impressed there apparently (14 games/3 goals) and finally moved to Lazio last month in transfer window.

Basically they banked £17m from us for Hoedt and replaced him with a (possibly better?) player for free that we had in the building already.

 

Lol FFS! When you put it like that!

[Dusic]

This is actually quite astonishing. Should have sold VVD in the summer but to sell when struggling mid season and not replace is ludicrous.

[Saints foreva]

Jack Stephens is our VvD replacement.

[benjii]

Jack Stephens is our VvD replacement.

 

Pathetic isn't it?

 

He'd struggle in the Championship at centre back FFS.

[S-Clarke]

I find it hard to critisise Jack, it's not his fault he's not quite at the level required. The blame lies with the club.

 

Two shambolic January windows whereby we sold our best two CB's and forgot to replace.

[benjii]

I find it hard to critisise Jack, it's not his fault he's not quite at the level required. The blame lies with the club.

 

Two shambolic January windows whereby we sold our best two CB's and forgot to replace.

 

Yeah, it's not his fault. Complete **** up by those in charge of transfers.

[Badger]

Pathetic isn't it?

 

He'd struggle in the Championship at centre back FFS.

 

The fact he was seldom selected for Middlesbrough whilst there was lost on Reed.

[Dusic]

This decision (or rather the lack of it) geta more and more bizarre as the games go by.

 

It wasn't even that anything seemingly fell through, the club decided we had good enough options.

 

Quite ridiculous. Yoshida has always been and will always be a third choice PL CB (at least in a decent enough team) and he is the best CB we currently have.

 

Quite possibly the weakest options in the league, when it wasnt long ago we arguably had the best, or certainly top 4 or 5.

[SuperSAINT]

This decision (or rather the lack of it) geta more and more bizarre as the games go by.

 

It wasn't even that anything seemingly fell through, the club decided we had good enough options.

 

Quite ridiculous. Yoshida has always been and will always be a third choice PL CB (at least in a decent enough team) and he is the best CB we currently have.

 

Quite possibly the weakest options in the league, when it wasnt long ago we arguably had the best, or certainly top 4 or 5.

 

It would have helped if Hoedt was half decent.

 

Stephens & Hoedt would probably look way better if we had a commanding leader alongside them.

[Dusic]

And again...

[Saints foreva]

Time the asset strippers got actual **** inside the stadium and not on social media.

 

In 12 months they sold our two best CBs and didn't replace them. Fat Kat also sold us to an absolute chancer who would fail the fit and proper persons test now.

[benjii]

The more I think about this, the more annoying it is.

[Dusic]

The more I think about this, the more annoying it is.

In the end, it will probably be what causes us to go down rather than narrowly escape.

 

None of our CBs are PL starting quality and its costs us every game.

[Batman]

So you don't disagree at all. Player for player, Bertrand Hoedt and Cedric are plenty good enough for a top half table team and Stephens had plenty of potential. However, as with all facets of the team except attack (who don't have sufficient personnel), it's the setup (or organisation for arguments sake), that is the issue.

 

This is awkward

[benjii]

In the end, it will probably be what causes us to go down rather than narrowly escape.

 

None of our CBs are PL starting quality and its costs us every game.

 

Absolutely. Our goals for is not disastrous for a bottom half team. In fact it's the same as Burnley's (shows what a dour division we are getting relegated from when they're seventh).

 

We have been in the lead in loads of matches.

[Toon Saint]

The January transfer was only ever permissible if we had several transfers lined up that would genuinely improve us as a squad.

 

For us to sell him for a world record fee and bring in a striker who has had such a negligible impact is absolutely unforgivable.

 

The fact that Ralph dressed it up as a way of improving squad harmony just handed Pellegrino another excuse for his lack of leadership and deflected from wider issues about how the squad had been assembled.

 

Still at least Les got some nice articles about Liverpool dancing to his tune. The pied piper who leads us off the cliff-face.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SaintTex]

Absolutely. Our goals for is not disastrous for a bottom half team. In fact it's the same as Burnley's (shows what a dour division we are getting relegated from when they're seventh).

 

We have been in the lead in loads of matches.

Actually, currently we are 15th best in FOR GOALS and 13th best in AWAY goals.