Russell Martin

[trousers]

28 minutes ago, Fabrice29 said:

Club plants ffs  Someone dares to suggest they'd rather see us pass the ball to each other than the other team pass the ball to each other and they are suddenly holed up in Staplewood on a short term contract to defend something that could potentially be over in 3 days. You melts  

Ticks off 'stock plant denial' on bingo sheet...

[Toussaint]

7 minutes ago, trousers said:

 

Edited November 7 by Toussaint
It won’t let me enter text

[tdmickey3]

34 minutes ago, Fabrice29 said:

Club plants ffs  Someone dares to suggest they'd rather see us pass the ball to each other than the other team pass the ball to each other and they are suddenly holed up in Staplewood on a short term contract to defend something that could potentially be over in 3 days. You melts  

Hahaha we pass the ball to the opposition quite a lot, do you like watch that, I certainly dont

[St Louis]

On 05/11/2024 at 17:26, franniesTache said:

Instead we have people on here telling us why our eyes and opinions are wrong, and why we should learn to love Russball as the only form of the game.

Thank you stooges, we have no learned that RUSS' WAY is the only way, that we are wrong, and must come onside.

You may be referring to others, but I certainly havent told anyone they should be a Russball convert or even enjoy watching it. I just enjoy it personally, and literally couldnt give a monkeys that others don't, I completely understand that. I dont think I'm alone though, as unless we are giving away tickets, the sold out stadium suggests its not the worst spectacle to spunk £100 on every week.
Results this season are abysmal, and I'm certainly not enjoying that, and if they continue this way then I would want a change too. I'm just saying that I hope it turns around and works out, as I personally have enjoyed watching Saints since he took over.
Surely thats OK isnt it? Or have I missed a forum rule where we all have to be on the 'hate it' side? This place would be pretty boring though wouldnt it, if we all agreed on everything all of the time?

[RTW Saint]

20 minutes ago, St Louis said:

You may be referring to others, but I certainly havent told anyone they should be a Russball convert or even enjoy watching it. I just enjoy it personally, and literally couldnt give a monkeys that others don't, I completely understand that. I dont think I'm alone though, as unless we are giving away tickets, the sold out stadium suggests its not the worst spectacle to spunk £100 on every week.
Results this season are abysmal, and I'm certainly not enjoying that, and if they continue this way then I would want a change too. I'm just saying that I hope it turns around and works out, as I personally have enjoyed watching Saints since he took over.
Surely thats OK isnt it? Or have I missed a forum rule where we all have to be on the 'hate it' side? This place would be pretty boring though wouldnt it, if we all agreed on everything all of the time?

Well said @St Louis . This fits the way i look at it - too many mistakes means that we have not won a lot of points so far this season, and that has to improve, but it is separate to being able to enjoy the way we play and seeing an element of progression in it. I completely accept that others won't see it that way. 

The SaintsWeb forum is overall a democratic place, and it would seem that my view is minority in comparison to those who really don't like the way we are playing - so you would have to say that the winning view at present is Russ out. However it has been good to see a few more voices piping up in the last few days to say they actually like what they are seeing and are interested to see how far it gets. May be a few more will put their views forward now...

[Lighthouse]

35 minutes ago, tdmickey3 said:

Hahaha we pass the ball to the opposition quite a lot, do you like watch that, I certainly dont

We either pass to the opposition quite a lot or we’re obsessed with having 80% possession. We can’t be both.

[CB Fry]

11 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

We either pass to the opposition quite a lot or we’re obsessed with having 80% possession. We can’t be both.

But we can, because our possession stats are phenomenal but our goals against is appalling. Often because of losing possession through dicking about with it.

It may be counterintuitive but it is, sadly, true.

[Lighthouse]

14 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

But we can, because our possession stats are phenomenal but our goals against is appalling. Often because of losing possession through dicking about with it.

It may be counterintuitive but it is, sadly, true.

When you say ‘often’ which was the last goal you would class as, "dicking about with it"?

[redkeith]

Arsenal's 2nd, blind pass by Downes intercepted. 

 

I think we are getting better at not trying to control and pass hospital balls.  I think we have still got away with a few close shaves, but there is a definite improvement 

[Lighthouse]

16 minutes ago, redkeith said:

Arsenal's 2nd, blind pass by Downes intercepted. 

 

I think we are getting better at not trying to control and pass hospital balls.  I think we have still got away with a few close shaves, but there is a definite improvement 

Just because a pass was misplaced, I wouldn’t count that as, "dicking around with it." The whole team was trying to break forward at speed, exactly how you’d want us to play at Arsenal. Downes was trying to play a ball to a wide player, near the halfway line, as the rest of the team was running forward. Hardly a daisy cutter across our own 6 yard box.

[The Left Back]

Pulling apart style of play from match results, I'm happy to pin my colours to the Russball mast.  When we are playing well I enjoy the style of football more than the style of football for example when we played well under Koeman or Puel.    But I also accept that possession based football, with an emphasis on retention over penetration, is not everyone's cup of tea and that other fans on here and sitting round me in the stadium have other preferences.  But if we are talking purely about style of play then when we are playing well I like it a lot.  

The big question remains - can he get this team playing well enough in this division?  My worries are pretty specific  - does he have the technical nous to get us more solid in defence while retaining his preferred style?  And secondly can he coach the conversion of possession into high xg chances?  We've been rubbish at both for the most part but I think we are improving in both these areas, although the jury is still out for me.  I hope he does manage to keep us up because as well as the style of play when we are playing well I also like the nature of the man and the way he goes about his business.  Having grown up on McMenemy and Nicholl I'm also a fan of managerial stability.

[redkeith]

19 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

Just because a pass was misplaced, I wouldn’t count that as, "dicking around with it." The whole team was trying to break forward at speed, exactly how you’d want us to play at Arsenal. Downes was trying to play a ball to a wide player, near the halfway line, as the rest of the team was running forward. Hardly a daisy cutter across our own 6 yard box.

I know it is not as bad as Brentford away, for example. I just don't like blind passes , unless they are in the final 3rd.

[CB Fry]

59 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

When you say ‘often’ which was the last goal you would class as, "dicking about with it"?

Arsenal as above.  Newcastle away, the first game of the season.

There are others and plenty of chances given away.

I read here the system allows us to "break through the lines at speed" but we don't do that.

And also the system gives us "defensive solidity" when we had an appalling goals against record last season and this.

Let's see if you demand evidence from contributors claiming we are "breaking through the lines" and being "defensively solid" like you jump on me.....

Edited November 7 by CB Fry

[SaintsBarry74]

[tdmickey3]

1 hour ago, Lighthouse said:

We either pass to the opposition quite a lot or we’re obsessed with having 80% possession. We can’t be both.

Fwiw I don’t care how much possession we have or don’t have I just want a positive outcome either way but Martin’s insistence with having lots of it has given us a pathetic 4 points from 30, so perhaps having less will be more successful, it works for other teams

[Whitey Grandad]

5 hours ago, ErwinK1961 said:

What a weird post.

You do know the person you’re responding to joined the forum in 2006? That’s one hell of an inside job if you’re insinuating Russell Martin planted someone on a football forum 18 years before getting the managers job to fight his corner.

They’re also saying they are enjoying watching us play, its an opinion, which they’re just as entitled to have as you are yours.

It was also aimed at RTW Saint.

[Whitey Grandad]

5 hours ago, skintsaint said:

No can't be having that bollox. The left winger took a man on and ran forward at pace.

Rushball.

[Lighthouse]

36 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

Arsenal as above.  Newcastle away, the first game of the season.

There are others and plenty of chances given away.

I read here the system allows us to "break through the lines at speed" but we don't do that.

And also the system gives us "defensive solidity" when we had an appalling goals against record last season and this.

Let's see if you demand evidence from contributors claiming we are "breaking through the lines" and being "defensively solid" like you jump on me.....

So your best example, since the first game of the season, is a misplaced pass out wide near the halfway line, when we were trying to break against Arsenal at pace.

Every team is going to give away chances and goals, especially one with players as poor as ours. I’m not claiming we are defensively solid but this idea that we’re shipping goals passing it around our own penalty box trying to keep 80% possession is just a fantasy.

[Whitey Grandad]

2 hours ago, St Louis said:

Haha, calm down. Clearly stupid enough to not click on my profile and see I'm not that 'new' as I've been posting on here for nearly 19 years, and The Saints Forum for many years before that. It doesnt bother me one bit that you have a different opinion and dont like this style, good on you. And you shouldnt care that some of us do, why would that bother you?

I'll assume you're just joking and that you aren't just a complete d*ck who cant accept that different people might enjoy different things. Ive been a ST holder and watched most home games and many away games for near on 40 years, so wind it in a bit and let people have their own opinions. You make yourself come across as very bitter, and maybe you could try a different sport or different team that you can enjoy watching? Or just try enjoying supporting Saints, like most of us who go to the games do, whether we win, draw (or usually) lose!

It's a real shame you can't go to games anymore because you have such disdain for the young manager and "wont continue paying to watch his ego trips", as you'll be sadly missed by those who sit near you I'm sure. In contrast, you are aware that the "vanity project that nobody wants to look at" which you talk of, sells out every week home and away arent you? So please dont speak for all of us!

If you read my original post you'd see I expect we will we go down, and I'm as disappointed as you with the results (obviously), but I'm enjoying watching my team play with a style and I'm enjoying the ride, last season and this. And whats the worst that could happen, we go down and I will still love watching us in The Championship (whoever the manager is). And who are you to tell me I can't? 

Like tastes in football, music, movies, women or anything else in life.... we will all enjoy different variations. Maybe try and understand that before you tell us all you arent stupid 😂

I did click on your profile and to be honest I was really aim my comments at RTW Saint who only joined a matter of days ago.

I’m bitter because this style of football makes me bitter. It’s selfish and suicidal. It’s some sort of style but it’s not stylish.

I won’t be sadly missed by anybody near me since they won’t be going either.

[Golac's Cunning Stunts]

5 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

So your best example, since the first game of the season, is a misplaced pass out wide near the halfway line, when we were trying to break against Arsenal at pace.

Every team is going to give away chances and goals, especially one with players as poor as ours. I’m not claiming we are defensively solid but this idea that we’re shipping goals passing it around our own penalty box trying to keep 80% possession is just a fantasy.

you can argue whether we ship goals passing around the penalty box as being fantasy or not. It is kind of irrelevant. The facts are that we have shipped 19 goals so far in 10 games. So projecting that forwards, that would be roughly 72 goals conceded by the end of the season - slightly more  than all the Martin teams have conceded over a season (I believe the average quoted is 60 odd for each of his seasons in management). He does not know how to coach a defence which is just weird as he was supposedly a defender. 

[RTW Saint]

45 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

Arsenal as above.  Newcastle away, the first game of the season.

There are others and plenty of chances given away.

I read here the system allows us to "break through the lines at speed" but we don't do that.

And also the system gives us "defensive solidity" when we had an appalling goals against record last season and this.

Let's see if you demand evidence from contributors claiming we are "breaking through the lines" and being "defensively solid" like you jump on me.....

@CB Fry - looking back it was me who used the phrase defensive solidity and I think you might be right, it’s difficult to defend the goals against record. That’s the wrong phrase and I’ll withdraw that. 
 

I think what I’m trying to get at is that the playing style should make us quite resistant to pure counter-attacking goals as we don’t commit players beyond the ball in numbers too early - and only when we’ve escaped the press. Looking at Bednarek and THB trying (unsuccessfully) to catch up with Beto on Saturday I reckon the current personnel are better suited to having lots of bodies to defend rather than being exposed with loads of players committed forward. 

I agree that we still concede too many goals though, so the system definitely doesn’t work perfectly in that respect. 

[Lee On Solent Saint]

1 hour ago, The Left Back said:

I enjoy the style of football more than the style of football for example when we played well under Koeman

That has to be the most craziest thing I've read on here in a long time.

Edited November 7 by Lee On Solent Saint
words

[Farmer Saint]

33 minutes ago, RTW Saint said:

@CB Fry - looking back it was me who used the phrase defensive solidity and I think you might be right, it’s difficult to defend the goals against record. That’s the wrong phrase and I’ll withdraw that. 
 

I think what I’m trying to get at is that the playing style should make us quite resistant to pure counter-attacking goals as we don’t commit players beyond the ball in numbers too early - and only when we’ve escaped the press. Looking at Bednarek and THB trying (unsuccessfully) to catch up with Beto on Saturday I reckon the current personnel are better suited to having lots of bodies to defend rather than being exposed with loads of players committed forward. 

I agree that we still concede too many goals though, so the system definitely doesn’t work perfectly in that respect. 

I don't personally think Martin can coach a defence. A manager, however, doesn't have to be a good coach - he just has to meld together the separate areas into a coherent unit. However, his backroom team needs to be able to coach. When our keepers were shit 5 or 6 years ago, we ended up getting rid of Dave Watson, the GK coach. We seem to concede a lot of goals from set pieces, yet we don't have a full time set piece coach. Colin fucking Calderwood is our defensive coach (another PL defender).

Perhaps there is a further issue, and that is that the backroom team is incomplete and/or incompetent.

 

[Farmer Saint]

34 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

That has to be the most craziest thing I've read on here in a long time.

Absolutely, I remember going up to Sheffield United in the League Cup and really enjoying my evening. 

I seem to remember our fans booing Mane that night as well.

[Farmer Saint]

I think there is a fairly easy list of conclusions you can come to with Saints this season.

1. The Manager is not of PL quality.

2. The Backroom staff are not of PL quality.

3. The team as a whole is not of PL quality.

[SWLondon Saint]

46 minutes ago, RTW Saint said:

@CB Fry

I think what I’m trying to get at is that the playing style should make us quite resistant to pure counter-attacking goals as we don’t commit players beyond the ball in numbers too early - and only when we’ve escaped the press. Looking at Bednarek and THB trying (unsuccessfully) to catch up with Beto on Saturday I reckon the current personnel are better suited to having lots of bodies to defend rather than being exposed with loads of players committed forward. 

The playing style is not particularly relevant to what happens when you lose the ball as it's inevitable you will lose it at some point, you just need to have a clear plan - have a look at this old article about Ralph which explains 'rest defence'.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/3581810/2022/09/22/explaining-southampton-manager-ralph-hasenhuttls-footballing-vocabulary/?redirected=1

I don't know if it's because the European managers are just more willing to talk in technical terms or the training in this country simply doesn't cover it in as much detail but I don't think I've heard Martin (or any English coach for that matter) talk with that level of specificity. Anyone done their UEFA A badge on here?

[Farmer Saint]

20 minutes ago, SWLondon Saint said:

The playing style is not particularly relevant to what happens when you lose the ball as it's inevitable you will lose it at some point, you just need to have a clear plan - have a look at this old article about Ralph which explains 'rest defence'.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/3581810/2022/09/22/explaining-southampton-manager-ralph-hasenhuttls-footballing-vocabulary/?redirected=1

I don't know if it's because the European managers are just more willing to talk in technical terms or the training in this country simply doesn't cover it in as much detail but I don't think I've heard Martin (or any English coach for that matter) talk with that level of specificity. Anyone done their UEFA A badge on here?

Our defence certainly had a rest in the two 9-0s...

[SWLondon Saint]

While I was trying to find that old article about rest defence, I also happened across this one. Although it's about Antonio Conte, there's an interesting bit about what happens when teams know what you're going to do and counter it.

https://analyticsfc.co.uk/blog/2023/01/23/the-automatisms-of-tottenham-hotspur-under-antonio-conte/

Though it also makes me wonder why, when everyone and their dog knew what Everton would do with that free kick (long to back post, back across to Beto), we still managed to leave them both completely unmarked for free headers.

[Farmer Saint]

3 minutes ago, SWLondon Saint said:

While I was trying to find that old article about rest defence, I also happened across this one. Although it's about Antonio Conte, there's an interesting bit about what happens when teams know what you're going to do and counter it.

https://analyticsfc.co.uk/blog/2023/01/23/the-automatisms-of-tottenham-hotspur-under-antonio-conte/

Though it also makes me wonder why, when everyone and their dog knew what Everton would do with that free kick (long to back post, back across to Beto), we still managed to leave them both completely unmarked for free headers.

Lack of set piece coach and poor decision making from the defenders.

[CB Fry]

1 hour ago, Lighthouse said:

So your best example, since the first game of the season, is a misplaced pass out wide near the halfway line, when we were trying to break against Arsenal at pace.

Every team is going to give away chances and goals, especially one with players as poor as ours. I’m not claiming we are defensively solid but this idea that we’re shipping goals passing it around our own penalty box trying to keep 80% possession is just a fantasy.

If you ignore the examples it doesn't happen, got it.

Of course my pitiful examples won't begin to match the abundance of examples of us "playing through the lines at speed" or whatever it is supposed to be that has seen us return no less than seven entire goals this season, worse than any other team.

There is lot of "fantasy" about, that's for sure.

[Dark Munster]

1 hour ago, RTW Saint said:

I agree that we still concede too many goals though, so the system definitely doesn’t work perfectly in that respect. 

FIFY. 

[SaintsBarry74]

Van Nistelrooy’s pulling a Martin Russell move, grinding his first XI to pad the stats and fluff his CV.

[The Kraken]

2 hours ago, Lighthouse said:

So your best example, since the first game of the season, is a misplaced pass out wide near the halfway line, when we were trying to break against Arsenal at pace.

Every team is going to give away chances and goals, especially one with players as poor as ours. I’m not claiming we are defensively solid but this idea that we’re shipping goals passing it around our own penalty box trying to keep 80% possession is just a fantasy.

I love this pretend reality you’ve created for yourself.

[Fabrice29]

1 hour ago, CB Fry said:

If you ignore the examples it doesn't happen, got it.

Of course my pitiful examples won't begin to match the abundance of examples of us "playing through the lines at speed" or whatever it is supposed to be that has seen us return no less than seven entire goals this season, worse than any other team.

There is lot of "fantasy" about, that's for sure.

We played through the lines quite a lot against Everton and in other games, but the result of seven goals isn't because we play it out the back it's because we lack ruthless quality in the final third which we'll still lack whether we smash it long or do something in between. I'd also add our complete lack of any quality physical threat up top really doesn't help and means we have to work quite hard for chances. We could really have done with signing Delap.

I'd also point out that whilst our goals scored is worse than any other team that's mainly because most other teams are scoring a lot more goals from set pieces rather than any major difference in open play goals and again, I don't think our goals scored suddenly becomes much better if we play a different way.

Happy to be proven wrong of course and when the manager changes next week we can all believe that the likes of Armstrong etc can suddenly thrive in a different system, until kick off at least.

Edited November 7 by Fabrice29

[Fabrice29]

5 hours ago, tdmickey3 said:

Hahaha we pass the ball to the opposition quite a lot, do you like watch that, I certainly dont

Rather than spending your days leaving that  reaction on all my posts can I suggest you check out what the word "possession" means instead.

[Lighthouse]

1 hour ago, CB Fry said:

If you ignore the examples it doesn't happen, got it.

Of course my pitiful examples won't begin to match the abundance of examples of us "playing through the lines at speed" or whatever it is supposed to be that has seen us return no less than seven entire goals this season, worse than any other team.

There is lot of "fantasy" about, that's for sure.

I’m not asking you to ignore anything. You’ve given one erroneous example against Arsenal, which nobody would be trying to attribute to, "dicking around with it," if it were conceded by a team managed by anyone else. It was a failed counter attack when the team was trying to break forward at pace, we both know it. The only legitimate example you’ve given was on the opening day of the season, committed by a goalkeeper no longer in the team.

We’ve only scored seven goals because our attacking players are sh*t. Hope that clears that issue up for you. Armstrong, Archer and BBD are all matching the best top flight scoring rates they’ve ever managed in the rest of their careers. Our creative players, well people were up in arms because rested a teenager who made his debut two months ago, that’s how good that situation is.

55 minutes ago, The Kraken said:

I love this pretend reality you’ve created for yourself.

I’m not the one who’s genuinely convinced that Russ would rather lose and get noshed off by Pep, than actually win a game of football. Nor am I the one posting, "Yes!!! 74% possession, get in!!!" every 5 minutes when we’re losing a match.

[Wade Garrett]

7 hours ago, Fabrice29 said:

Club plants ffs  Someone dares to suggest they'd rather see us pass the ball to each other than the other team pass the ball to each other and they are suddenly holed up in Staplewood on a short term contract to defend something that could potentially be over in 3 days. You melts  

‘Melts’ - you’ve been watching too much Danny Dyer.

[CB Fry]

27 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

I’m not asking you to ignore anything. You’ve given one erroneous example against Arsenal, which nobody would be trying to attribute to, "dicking around with it," if it were conceded by a team managed by anyone else. It was a failed counter attack when the team was trying to break forward at pace, we both know it. The only legitimate example you’ve given was on the opening day of the season, committed by a goalkeeper no longer in the team.

We’ve only scored seven goals because our attacking players are sh*t. Hope that clears that issue up for you. Armstrong, Archer and BBD are all matching the best top flight scoring rates they’ve ever managed in the rest of their careers. Our creative players, well people were up in arms because rested a teenager who made his debut two months ago, that’s how good that situation is.

I’m not the one who’s genuinely convinced that Russ would rather lose and get noshed off by Pep, than actually win a game of football. Nor am I the one posting, "Yes!!! 74% possession, get in!!!" every 5 minutes when we’re losing a match.

Over and over again we piss around with it and put ourselves under pressure, and that this is pumping up our possession figures and it is of zero benefit because we score fuck all and we let in shitloads.

That is all happening, pretty much every Saints fan breathing oxygen knows it but yeah you've never noticed it.

[Lee On Solent Saint]

10 hours ago, Farmer Saint said:

Absolutely, I remember going up to Sheffield United in the League Cup and really enjoying my evening. 

I seem to remember our fans booing Mane that night as well.

Sure. Pick out one game and focus on that. Am sure you enjoyed your day in Sunderland and Leicester just as much last season.

[Weston Super Saint]

10 hours ago, Farmer Saint said:

I think there is a fairly easy list of conclusions you can come to with Saints this season.

1. The Manager is not of PL quality.

2. The Backroom staff are not of PL quality.

3. The team as a whole is not of PL quality.

If only there was some sort of way that one or maybe even two of those points could be fixed.  If only.

[rooney]

8 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

If only there was some sort of way that one or maybe even two of those points could be fixed.  If only.

When you look back on the clips of Koomans teams you can see the difference in quality.

[TheAlehouseBrawlers]

19 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Sure. Pick out one game and focus on that. Am sure you enjoyed your day in Sunderland and Leicester just as much last season.

I would take some convincing that any Saints fan "enjoyed" that midweek trek up to Sheffield. Something like 6,000 travelled up north a week before Christmas, it was a shit journey gridlocked on the M1, many of us didn't arrive until near kick-off. And then we were shit against lower league opposition. The entire side were booed through frustration and the prospect of another miserable trip back south, Mane copped an earful as he came a bit too close to our end after.

One of the least "enjoyable" nights I've had.

[SaintsBarry74]

11 hours ago, Farmer Saint said:

I think there is a fairly easy list of conclusions you can come to with Saints this season.

1. The Manager is not of PL quality.

2. The Backroom staff are not of PL quality.

3. The team as a whole is not of PL quality.

The manager would strongly disagree with you, just have a look at the stats.

[Farmer Saint]

55 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Sure. Pick out one game and focus on that. Am sure you enjoyed your day in Sunderland and Leicester just as much last season.

It was a joke mate, I was living in New York at the time so didn't get to any other games in the Koeman era.

[Farmer Saint]

39 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

If only there was some sort of way that one or maybe even two of those points could be fixed.  If only.

You can fix two of those very easily, yes, and it should have been done a few weeks ago, but what can you do? The third may mean the other two changes were pointless though.

[franniesTache]

17 hours ago, RTW Saint said:

Well said @St Louis . This fits the way i look at it - too many mistakes means that we have not won a lot of points so far this season, and that has to improve, but it is separate to being able to enjoy the way we play and seeing an element of progression in it. I completely accept that others won't see it that way. 

The SaintsWeb forum is overall a democratic place, and it would seem that my view is minority in comparison to those who really don't like the way we are playing - so you would have to say that the winning view at present is Russ out. However it has been good to see a few more voices piping up in the last few days to say they actually like what they are seeing and are interested to see how far it gets. May be a few more will put their views forward now...

What are you talking about no one wants Martin out, we are all learning to love the million passes that go nowhere, and we NOW understand that football is not about winning, but about statistics.

Anyway i need to go back to my re-education because apparently i didn't quite express my love for Martin hard enough

[Oldandtired]

12 hours ago, Fabrice29 said:

Rather than spending your days leaving that  reaction on all my posts can I suggest you check out what the word "possession" means instead.

In Saints’ case it means a reluctance and inability to get the bag of wind forward and into that white rectangle with a net on it.

 

 

[Whitey Grandad]

There’s a whole article by James Gheerbrant in The Times today about Russell Martin 

 

“Why Gary O’Neil and Russell Martin are prioritising style over results”

I won’t paste the whole article because of copyright issues but here’s a paragraph:

 

“And yet, oddly, they have found themselves this season facing similar complaints: an enervating inflexibility, a lack of urgency, playing as if to some ulterior objective besides scoring. Wolves and Southampton have, respectively, the highest and second-highest percentage of backwards passes this season. In the dying seconds of their game against Manchester City, trailing 1-0, and with the 6ft 7in striker Paul Onuachu freshly introduced, Martin’s team opted to take their last free kick short and were still tapping the ball among themselves when the final whistle blew.”

 

 

[Miltonaggro]

56 minutes ago, Whitey Grandad said:

There’s a whole article by James Gheerbrant in The Times today about Russell Martin 

 

 

“Why Gary O’Neil and Russell Martin are prioritising style over results”

I won’t paste the whole article because of copyright issues but here’s a paragraph:

 

 

“And yet, oddly, they have found themselves this season facing similar complaints: an enervating inflexibility, a lack of urgency, playing as if to some ulterior objective besides scoring. Wolves and Southampton have, respectively, the highest and second-highest percentage of backwards passes this season. In the dying seconds of their game against Manchester City, trailing 1-0, and with the 6ft 7in striker Paul Onuachu freshly introduced, Martin’s team opted to take their last free kick short and were still tapping the ball among themselves when the final whistle blew.”

 

 

Salad days at Saints...

[danjosaint]

That can't be right just like Cascarino,  they probably haven't seen our games so don't know what they're talking about  blah blah blah