Cracking the top 4

  • Thread starter Thread starter SaintMotbot
  • Start date Start date
  • Replies Replies 754
  • Views Views 243K
View attachment 1008228
Mesut Ozil came to me in my office today to inform me that he was beginning to miss home and wanted to see what I would be willing to do about it. Mesut is such a key part of the squad that I was really keen to keep him happy. I arranged for him to take a short leave of absence back to Germany and he will now miss the next few weeks because of it. I want this club to remain as grounded as possible and there is no way that results are more important than player happiness, especially when the player has come to me with their concerns rather than sulking about it.

View attachment 191287
 
View attachment 191284
Atletico Madrid Vs Southampton
17th February, 2021.

View attachment 191283
View attachment 191282
View attachment 191281
A fantastic start to our last 16 tie in the Champions League as we managed to beat Atletico and grab two away goals. Kingsley Coman, in for the absent Ozil, got us off to a fantastic start by heading in a Martial cross. Martial then grabbed a goal of his own when he converted a penalty to restore our lead after Diego Godin tapped in an equaliser following some confusion. The icing on the cake was Griezmann getting himself sent off for a filthy two footed tackle that will see him miss the return leg.
 
View attachment 191276

Southampton Vs Swindon
20th February, 2021.

View attachment 191275
View attachment 191274
View attachment 191273
Job done as we easily beat a dogged Swindon side to move into the 6th round of the FA Cup. Mike Williamson opened the scoring as he was played through on goal thanks to some brilliant movement and then Dele Alli doubled our lead and made it extremely plain sailing.

View attachment 191272
Everton away will be a tough test in the FA Cup but one we can be fairly confident in winning. Better news is the return to full training of Lorenzo Insigne. He will have to be integrated very slowly back into the first team.

View attachment 191271
 
Last edited:
View attachment 973945

Southampton sign midfielder Ganso

View attachment 973948
Southampton have today signed 25 year old Brazilian midfielder Ganso for a fee of £5.75 million. Ganso arrives in the Premier League from Sao Paulo where he made 101 appearances and scored 16 goals. He will link up with the first team squad immediately and will be available for Southamptons next match against Chelsea in the Premier League.

"We are delighted to welcome Ganso to the club and look forward to seeing what he can do for us" Southampton manager Ronald Koeman said. "he is a clever playmaker and can play in a variety of positions, we hope he can give us that extra something that can unlock tight matches."

BBC football pundit Jermaine Jenas reckons that the saints have bought well. "Ganso is a class act. He has been capped multiple times by his country, he is a good age and can still improve. His play is based around his intelligence and his ability to pick a pass which is something that Southampton will find very useful."

Ganso has been capped 8 times by Brazil and will join the midfield fight at his new club, vying for a place with the likes of Steven Davis, James Ward-Prowse and Gaston Ramirez.

Great Story, mate. Just started reading. But I guess the one in the picture is Pato :)
 
Great result against Athletico. I did laugh at how Liverpool set up against you, I think they was slightly worried.
 
View attachment 1008293
Southampton Vs Brentford
24th February, 2021.

View attachment 191232
View attachment 191231
View attachment 191230
I noted in our pre-match scout report of Brentford that they concede the majority of their goals through the middle of the pitch, so we switched formation back to the narrow diamond and absolutely slaughtered a really poor Brentford team. Martial and Williamson are quite the strike team and managed to grab three goals between them. Even better is the news that United only drew with Swansea meaning we close the gap to two points.

View attachment 191229
 
View attachment 1008320
Southampton Vs Crystal Palace.
27th February, 2021.

View attachment 191207
View attachment 191206
View attachment 191205
Our home form has really underpinned our Premier League charge and we do it again as we ease past Crystal Palace with our normal 4-3-3 formation. Martial scored the opener and then Van Dijk was left completely unmarked at a corner and made a run from deep, powering in a header from near the penalty spot. The palace side is quite good with Song and Wilshere holding the midfield and Tadic and Townsend out wide, so I am quite proud of this result.

View attachment 191202
 
Oh really nice
hes got that Pace and not a bad weak foot which are very heavy CA stats weights
mental looks decent too and only 20

Yeah he is going to be top class! in fact he already is. If we get an absolutely massive offer for Martial I would have no worries in giving first team duty to this lad.
 
Yeah he is going to be top class! in fact he already is. If we get an absolutely massive offer for Martial I would have no worries in giving first team duty to this lad.

Dont sell martial ;)
I know a lot of people like buying and selling
But its sooo easy too keep your players, just learn the teamtalks when they get ****** of you rejecting a bid
The squad keeps a better cohesion and gives you extra points in the start of the season
 
Dont sell martial ;)
I know a lot of people like buying and selling
But its sooo easy too keep your players, just learn the teamtalks when they get ****** of you rejecting a bid
The squad keeps a better cohesion and gives you extra points in the start of the season

I am going to be very reluctant to sell.. I turned down a £59 million bid from Real Madrid for him in January, but if somebody wants to come along and break the world transfer record for him then it is something I would seriously consider. Financially we cannot compete with the bigger clubs, even now. If selling Martial for £100 mil odd would give us the money to expand the stadium and improve our youth facilities even further then I am happy to do that.
 
View attachment 1008388
February Review

View attachment 191140
A bit of a dodgy start to the month but we soon picked up our momentum once more and find ourselves in a decent position at the end of the month. The win against Atletico was massive for our confidence, but can we finish the job at fortress St Marys?

View attachment 191137
We are oh so close to that top spot and definitely in the race this year. Having said that though, we are casting a very wary eye backwards to Guardiolas City who have put together a stunning run of form and if they win their game in hand they will be just one win behind that first spot.

Player of the Month
View attachment 191135
Im afraid its Martial yet again. Another 5 goals this month for the French hitman and he is leading the line in wonderful fashion. Spare a thought for poor Mike Williamson who just cannot force his way past Martial into the first team.


March Preview
View attachment 191131



Youth Intake
View attachment 191129
A very lean year this time around in terms of our youth intake. Perhaps only a couple of players that show some form of talent.
 
View attachment 191112
Southampton Vs Atletico
9th March, 2021.

View attachment 191111
View attachment 191110
View attachment 191109
Well that was a lot closer than I would have liked it, and to be honest I have no idea how we lost that game, but we are through to the quarter finals of the Champions League on away goals and that is all that matters. We hammered on the door all match long but somehow we didnt score. The bad news of the day is that Gareth Bale is injured again, I am starting to wonder if he is worth his wages.

View attachment 191106
 
View attachment 1008449
View attachment 191081
What a draw in the Champions League quarter final! A lot of other people would complain about how hard this draw is, but this is what all the hard work put in is about! playing the top teams in the world on a regular basis. We will all thoroughly enjoy our trip to the Bernabeu, win or lose.
 
Things are going really well aren't they! You are still in the title race and seeing of Atletico Madrid in the Champions League is huge. Real Madrid will be a real tough ask but you never know... Too bad about the youth intake but you've still got some very good players coming through so it isn't the end of the world. I do hope that Ozil will be back for the match against Madrid as you could definately use a player of his quality and experience in such an encounter.
 
Things are going really well aren't they! You are still in the title race and seeing of Atletico Madrid in the Champions League is huge. Real Madrid will be a real tough ask but you never know... Too bad about the youth intake but you've still got some very good players coming through so it isn't the end of the world. I do hope that Ozil will be back for the match against Madrid as you could definately use a player of his quality and experience in such an encounter.

Cheers for following man :) I too am really hoping for Ozil back soon, especially with Bales new injuryand Insigne still finding his feet after his injury. Plenty more kids looking to break into the first team next year!
 
Back
Top