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What was Saints' best transfer season?


norwaysaint
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Which year do you rate as Saints best for players coming in? Up to you if you factor in who left the same year and what we got for them.

 

I brought this up because for some reason I found myself looking at 98-99 and seeing that we brought in:

 

Beattie

Pahars

Marsden

Kachloul

who all had a major impact on an improved team over the next few years.

 

as well as the slightly less successful

Howells

Hughes

Ripley

which at least showed ambition.

 

At the same time we sold Kevin Davies for a, then, whopping 7.5m after only 25 appearances and even managed to get over a million for a clapped out Carlton Palmer.

 

All this under the leadership of Dave Jones.

What other seasons stand out for you? Probably a few during our rebirth from league one.

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Which year do you rate as Saints best for players coming in? Up to you if you factor in who left the same year and what we got for them.

 

I brought this up because for some reason I found myself looking at 98-99 and seeing that we brought in:

 

Beattie

Pahars

Marsden

Kachloul

who all had a major impact on an improved team over the next few years.

 

as well as the slightly less successful

Howells

Hughes

Ripley

which at least showed ambition.

 

At the same time we sold Kevin Davies for a, then, whopping 7.5m after only 25 appearances and even managed to get over a million for a clapped out Carlton Palmer.

 

All this under the leadership of Dave Jones.

What other seasons stand out for you? Probably a few during our rebirth from league one.

 

The Poch-out, Koeman-in metamorphosis season.

 

Remarkable who we sold & who we replaced them with & actually got better.

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The Poch-out, Koeman-in metamorphosis season.

 

Remarkable who we sold & who we replaced them with & actually got better.

 

In:

Pelle

Mane

Long

Tadic

Betrand

Forster

Alderweireld (loan)

 

Out:

Lambert

Lallana

Shaw

Lovren

Chambers

Cork

Do Prado

Barnard

 

Such a huge change, and as you say, led to our most succesful team of the era.

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2014 was also my first thought when I saw the thread title. We really moved up a gear that summer.

 

In 2008-9 our transfers in nembered four:

 

Tommy Forecast

Antony Pulis

Lee Molyneux

Ryan Smith

 

So the book is closed on "worst transfer season".

 

I’ll see that and raise you 2007. We p*ssed away a load of money we didn’t have on crap like Euell and Safri when we should have been trying to trim the wage bill. Not only did our actions eventually put us in administration, we also completely ignored the gaping holes in our defence and started the season losing 4-1 at home to a Jamie Scowcroft hat trick.

 

At least 2008 was born out of poverty and necessity, even if they were crap.

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2014 was also my first thought when I saw the thread title. We really moved up a gear that summer.

 

 

 

I’ll see that and raise you 2007. We p*ssed away a load of money we didn’t have on crap like Euell and Safri when we should have been trying to trim the wage bill. Not only did our actions eventually put us in administration, we also completely ignored the gaping holes in our defence and started the season losing 4-1 at home to a Jamie Scowcroft hat trick.

 

At least 2008 was born out of poverty and necessity, even if they were crap.

At first glance, you have a point, but then one remembers that Tommy Forecast was signed instead of keeping the sell on clause for Gareth Bale. I think this makes Tommy Forecast one of the most expensive signings we've ever made. Tommy Forecast.

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At first glance, you have a point, but then one remembers that Tommy Forecast was signed instead of keeping the sell on clause for Gareth Bale. I think this makes Tommy Forecast one of the most expensive signings we've ever made. Tommy Forecast.

 

It was Tommy Forecast plus a chunk of cash we needed to keep going. It may seem ridiculous now but we didn't really have a choice.

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Surely the first season in league one? We were utterly dreadful the few seasons before that and Pardew rebuilt the team in the two windows signing players who would be key to our rise.

 

Lambert and Fonte obviously two out the best best signings we’ve ever made but Hammond, Harding, Barnard, Jaidi and even Puncheon all played a part in our promotions.

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Hands down for 2014-15. Alderweireld and Mané on deadline day turned out to be the icing on the cake. Great summer.

 

The summer before promised a lot with Lovren, Wanyama and Osvaldo but the latter was a nut.

 

I have a soft spot for 96-97 under Souness. Even though they didn’t achieve much as a team, I liked Lundekvam, Berkovic, Ostenstadt, Van Gobbel and ultimately Evans saving the day. The less said about Dia the better.

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Surely the first season in league one? We were utterly dreadful the few seasons before that and Pardew rebuilt the team in the two windows signing players who would be key to our rise.

 

Lambert and Fonte obviously two out the best best signings we’ve ever made but Hammond, Harding, Barnard, Jaidi and even Puncheon all played a part in our promotions.

 

Plus even the loans were good - Antonio and Waigo. Connolly was an astute free transfer.

 

2014 obviously was stellar, 2015 with VVD not too bad. Agree with those saying 96-7 as well, that team underperformed for the personnel we had but Souness signed some excellent players and it was exciting to watch at times. 98-99 a mixed bag with Howells and Hughes, selling Davies for silly money but then getting Marian on deadline day.

 

Worst are 2007 as Lighthouse mentions, Burley's CM obsession went way too far, 2016/18/18 until Les sacked, and 92-93 on par with Les given Shearer was replaced by Speedie and Dixon, plus signing the likes of Steve 'hoof' Wood. David Lee might have been that season, and Groves. The only saving grace that season was Super Ken. Dread to think how much paying a lot of those contracts off cost the club when Lawrie and Bally returned.

 

Speedie/Dixon and Carrillo/Pellegrino are probably the joint transfer season nadirs.

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The first Poch summer when we signed Wanyama, Lovren and Osvaldo was a game changer for us - and we didnt lose anyone.

 

Lovren was essentially taking Hooiveld's place and is probably the biggest upgrade of a starting player since being back in the PL (Shaw for Fox maybe the other).

 

Wanyama also hit the ground running and those two massively improved us.

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What about 1980-81?

 

Convincing Keegan to sign was probably the most impressive transfer feat in our history.

Drove past the Potters Heron the other day with Mrs JBS - and joked they should have a Blue Plaque on the wall stating that one of biggest Football signing coups was revealed on this spot on the 11th February 1980.

 

On the Kevin Davies sale to Blackburn, I vaguely recall reading something from Dave Jones about this. It was along the lines of being sat in his office and a call from Blackburn being put through to him, Blackburn saying they wanted to buy him and were offering £7.5m for him, Jones said he nearly fell off his chair on hearing the amount, Blackburn thought he had hung up due to the silence on the Southampton end of the line, but Jones was just running the madness through his head, that there was this lad who played a season for Saints let alone the Premier League (I always thought under the circumstances us getting Davies from Chesterfield was a bit of blinding business - getting 10 times what we paid for him even more so) Jones had commented that Davies still had a lot to learn but if someone was stupid enough to spend that kind of money on an unfinished player then he had better say yes before they changed their mind. Turned out to be a cracking bit of business as we got some oik called James Beattie as part of the deal.

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On the Kevin Davies sale to Blackburn, I vaguely recall reading something from Dave Jones about this. It was along the lines of being sat in his office and a call from Blackburn being put through to him, Blackburn saying they wanted to buy him and were offering £7.5m for him, Jones said he nearly fell off his chair on hearing the amount, Blackburn thought he had hung up due to the silence on the Southampton end of the line, but Jones was just running the madness through his head, that there was this lad who played a season for Saints let alone the Premier League (I always thought under the circumstances us getting Davies from Chesterfield was a bit of blinding business - getting 10 times what we paid for him even more so) Jones had commented that Davies still had a lot to learn but if someone was stupid enough to spend that kind of money on an unfinished player then he had better say yes before they changed their mind. Turned out to be a cracking bit of business as we got some oik called James Beattie as part of the deal.

 

I wonder if any player has ever had such a mark up, based on such little reason, in so short a time?

 

750000 is about what we paid. He had 25 games and scored 9 goals, nothing outstanding apart from one really nice one. Then off again for ten times the price! They really had too much money in those days. I think the whole valuation nonsense really put too much pressure on him too and it was years until he really found his way again, at Bolton.

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I wonder if any player has ever had such a mark up, based on such little reason, in so short a time?

 

750000 is about what we paid. He had 25 games and scored 9 goals, nothing outstanding apart from one really nice one. Then off again for ten times the price! They really had too much money in those days. I think the whole valuation nonsense really put too much pressure on him too and it was years until he really found his way again, at Bolton.

 

i cant remember it exactly but i feel like he may have scored a couple of winners and also possibly a couple of winners against bigger clubs. Sometimes maybe 9 goals seem a lot more when they have a value to them. Also the mazy dribble and a scrappy winner against utd maybe? showed a couple of types of goal he could score. Not saying it was a good move but maybe there was a bit there to tempt them (also my memory could be rubbish!)

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i cant remember it exactly but i feel like he may have scored a couple of winners and also possibly a couple of winners against bigger clubs. Sometimes maybe 9 goals seem a lot more when they have a value to them. Also the mazy dribble and a scrappy winner against utd maybe? showed a couple of types of goal he could score. Not saying it was a good move but maybe there was a bit there to tempt them (also my memory could be rubbish!)

 

It was Everton...

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjkR91QEjFg

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It was Everton...

 

sorry - wasnt clear - i remember the everton goal - was thinking he scored a coupkle of scrappy winners and poss one in a 1-0 against man u - there was one where the ball came in pretty much along the line and he forced imself in front of defence to bundle it in - in my head it was a 1-0 winner againt utd but could be complete nonsense!

 

either way was thinking maybe he showed a couple of types of goal he could score and that increased his value

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sorry - wasnt clear - i remember the everton goal - was thinking he scored a coupkle of scrappy winners and poss one in a 1-0 against man u - there was one where the ball came in pretty much along the line and he forced imself in front of defence to bundle it in - in my head it was a 1-0 winner againt utd but could be complete nonsense!

 

either way was thinking maybe he showed a couple of types of goal he could score and that increased his value

 

KD scored the only goal in the third minute on 19 Jan 1998, in a 1-0 home win against Man Utd.

17:06 in this video

Edited by badgerx16
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The season we signed Ricky Lambert

 

This. Not because we had the best saints team ever that season (clearly we were in league 1) but because it signalled us really turning a corner we went from being on our knees to signing Lambert, the divisions top scorer, for big money, then signing Fonte in Jan for an even higher fee and we also signed the divisions second highest scorer (at the time) in Lee Barnard in Jan. It was just such a good feeling to be the big boys for a while buying up the best players we could for big money (at the level we were playing at). In fact Fonte and Lambert are still in top eight of all time most expensive buys in league 1.

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I agree about the first league one summer when it felt like nothing would even be any good again.

 

But i'd forgotten how big and how successful the Poch-Koeman transition was. Based on what they contributed over the next couple of seasons (not what had gone before when Rickie was obviously a God)....

 

Pelle better than Lambert

Mane better than Lallana

Bertrand better than Shaw

Toby better than Lovren

Tadic better than Corky

Long better than Guly

Forster bigger than Barnard (although he was short AND f*cking 'ard

Which just leaves Callum Chambers and the less said the better.

 

 

 

In:

Pelle

Mane

Long

Tadic

Betrand

Forster

Alderweireld (loan)

 

Out:

Lambert

Lallana

Shaw

Lovren

Chambers

Cork

Do Prado

Barnard

 

Such a huge change, and as you say, led to our most succesful team of the era.

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cheers - thats a good example but not the one ive got in my head! cant have been man u then! cheers though as sort of half right so brain mostly still in place!

 

He scored in a 1-0 win at home against Chelsea after Xmas - also scored earlier in season at home to Liverpool in 1-1 draw.

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