Diary of a Season: St. Mary's Redemption

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Sunday 18th September, 2022

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Newcastle United’s 0-2 home defeat to West Bromwich Albion means that we are fourth - 5 points behind the leaders Manchester United - with every team having played 5 matches. With 19 goals, we are currently the top scorers in the Premier League; Christoffer Jorgensen’s 7 goals so far - including yesterday’s hat-trick against Reading - make him the division’s top scorer.
 
Sunday 18th September, 2022

Preparation vs FULHAM (a)

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(I forgot to check the pre-match odds)

We are going to work on Attacking Movement in preparation for our Capital One Cup trip to bottom-of-the-table Fulham, who have just 1 point from 5 matches, so far. They beat Hull City, who are struggling in the Championship at the moment, 2-1 in the previous round. Fulham tend to score goals during the final 15 minutes, which suggests good stamina, but Javi Rico's comparison of their squad to ours is the worst I have seen from an opposition team, so far this season.

I want to play the 3-5-2 formation again, and I'm going to bring John Stones in for the first time this campaign. I've neglected Rodrigao since his disappointing showing against Arsenal, and he's not match fit, so I'm going to let him play 90 minutes for the U21s tomorrow night and promote 16 year-old Kieran Burke, for whom I have high hopes, to the subs' bench for a possible first-team debut on Wednesday. Jay Rodriguez will play an hour for the U21s, to get his fitness up, so he won't feature against Fulham, but I will use Tom Ince - whose last match was the opening day 3-3 at Arsenal.
 
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Tuesday 20th September, 2022

Giammarco Stangoni is back in training today, but lacking match fitness. I don’t want to rush him so I’m going to leave him out of tomorrow’s cup match at Fulham. We have four players in the Team of the Week, this time around.

The U21s beat Birmingham 1-0 last night. John Griffiths came off the bench for Rodriguez to get the winner. The young Dutchman Marc Smulders impressed on the left-wing of the 4-4-1-1, with a match rating of 7.8.
 
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Wednesday 21st September, 2022

Capital One Cup - 3rd Round
FULHAM vs SOUTHAMPTON
Craven Cottage, London; Att: 16,767

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SAINTS Team News: Louis Cruse returns in goal, playing in the domestic cup matches as he did last season; John Stones comes in for his first involvement this season, on the right of the defensive three; Diego Reyes returns to the Ball-Playing Defender role and takes the captain’s armband, with Sergey Radimov to his left; the presence of Mark Ardean-Webb, Jorginho and Shane Westley gives the central midfield an average age of 20-and-a-half; Sercan Calik returns to the right-wing while Tom Ince comes in on the left as he attempts to recover from recent injury; Andrew Powell will be a False9 next to Kingsley Idris as Advanced Forward; Kieran Burke could be in line for his first-team debut, among tonight’s substitutes - as too is Yvo Lucas.

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Fulham’s morale is poor going into this match. The only player I recognise in their squad is John Guidetti, the Swedish former Manchester City striker who did so well during a loan spell at Feyenoord. He’s on the bench. They are set-up in a 4-4-2. I instruct normal tackling and use a combination of team and individual pre-match chats to get everyone, except Andrew Powell, pumped up for this match.

1st Half Highlights
- 1sec: The Saints get us underway, wearing their all-red strip, attacking from left-to-right.
- 7mins: A left-foot volley from Sergey Radimov, from Calik’s right-wing corner, flashes past the left-hand post.
- 10mins: From another corner, Radimov heads across goal and Mark Ardean-Webb sends the ball over with his header from 6-yards, under pressure.
- 13mins: Calik beats the full-back and delivers an inviting cross, but Idris doesn’t get enough on the header - and a good chance goes begging.
- 17mins: Jorginho heads down a long kick from Louis Cruse to enable Andrew Powell to let fly from 25-yards, but Wayne Kelly saves comfortably in the Fulham goal.
- 19mins: Kelly is beaten by Sercan Calik’s long range free-kick, but the crossbar comes to the rescue of the former Sunderland man.
- 20mins: Kelly pushes a right-wing corner from Calik over-the-bar, but…
- 21mins: …from the resulting corner on the other side, Calik retrieves a headed clearance, plays a neat one-two with Ardean-Webb to attack the Fulham goal on the diagonal, and, despite an initial block by Vanek, prods the ball to JORGINHO whose first-time shot, from left of the 6-yard box, hits Kelly on its way into the roof of the net. 1-0.
- 24mins: Louis Cruse makes a brilliant save, diving to his right, to deny Urbancic’s shot from the D, after Garry Brock knocked the ball down from a partially-cleared Fulham corner.
- 27mins: Calik takes a throw-in next to the right-wing corner flag and Mark Ardean-Webb crosses to the near-post. Powell’s header clips the top of the side-netting.
- 29mins: Kingsley Idris burns past Ilori to latch onto Jorginho’s precision through pass, but fails to steady himself and shoots directly at the on-rushing Kelly. It should be 2-0.
- 32mins: Idris comes close again with a snapshot after good work on the left-wing by Ardean-Webb.
- 34mins: A fast one-touch passing move finds Andrew Powell in space on the edge of the Fulham penalty area, but he is tripped from behind by Garry Brock. Referee Lee Mason shows a yellow card to Brock.
- 35mins: Sercan CALIK places the resulting free-kick on the tip of the D - actually on the white line - and strikes a thunderbolt over the Fulham wall and into the top right-hand corner. Kelly is beaten all-ends-up. An unstoppable shot! It is 2-0.
- 37mins: A neat passing move through the middle provides a chance for Powell, but Fatai makes a last-gasp challenge to nudge the ball away.
- 41mins: Ardean-Webb meets Calik’s left-wing free-kick with a firm downward header, but Kelly is down quickly to make the save.

HALF-TIME: FULHAM 0-2 SOUTHAMPTON

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A more than satisfactory first-half in which we have dominated possession and tested the goalkeeper several times. Powell and Idris have both been a little wasteful up-front, but we’re continuing to create chances with Calik and Jorginho - the two goalscorers - both playing very well. Tom Ince is bearing up well at 86% condition, so he’ll stay on for a while longer. John Guidetti is coming on for Fulham, so they may be a different proposition in the second-45. We’re a little low in the tackles won department, but it hasn’t harmed us so far. I’m wary of Fulham’s trend for scoring late goals, though, and our own for conceding them. So I tell the lads that it’s going well but could be even better and send them out for the second-half.

2nd Half Highlights
- 50mins: Sercan CALIK does it again. Another free-kick, this time 25-yards out, left of centre; he curls a right-footed shot over the wall and off the underside of the crossbar, into the top left corner. 3-0.
- 53mins: A clever lay-off from Powell, with is back to goal, frees Calik on the right-hand side, but his floated chip hits the crossbar and goes behind.
- 54mins: Idris passes square to Powell and he strikes a low drive from distance to test Kelly again.
- 58mins: A patient build-up from Fulham sweeps from left-to-right, with Wharton spraying a pass to the right-wing for Urbancic to race clear, making a diagonal run to goal with Ince and Radimov in hot pursuit. The Icelander takes the ball into the penalty area before shooting for the far corner, but a strong one-handed save by Louis Cruse pushes the ball away from the danger zone to deny the lurking Guidetti a follow-up chance. An excellent piece of goalkeeping from the Saints Academy graduate.

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- 59mins: 16 year-old, Southampton-born, Kieran Burke makes his first-team debut, coming off the bench to replace Westley, joined by Luke Shaw who replaces Idris as The Saints switch to 4-4-1-1. I reset the Opposition Instructions.
- 60mins: Burke is immediately caught in possession by Freeman but his cross is headed away by Radimov.
- 64mins: John Guidetti goes close with a near-post header from Urbancic’s corner.
- 66mins: Martyn Wharton should have pulled one back for the home side after being released into the inside-left channel by Guidetti. But he took an age to set himself and gave Radimov time to get back and block his shot. The Saints have looked shaky since the tactical switch.
- 77mins: Radimov climbs highest to meet Calik’s left-wing corner, but his header floats wide of the far post.
- 78mins: Jose Pinho replaces Andrew Powell, moving into the Shadow Striker role, with Jorginho going up-front.
- An uneventful last 10 minutes or so…

FULL-TIME

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MAN OF THE MATCH:
SERCAN CALIK (SOUTHAMPTON) - 9.5
Wide Midfielder (Right)_Support: 2 goals; 1 assist.

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VERDICT:
Fulham could not live with our higher tempo 3-5-2 formation and were vulnerable throughout. But in the end, two stunning free-kicks by Sercan Calik made the difference. The switch of formation unsettled the team, but it was necessary to accommodate Kieran Burke at right-back for his senior debut.
 
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Thursday 22nd September, 2022

Preparation vs SWANSEA CITY (h)

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SAINTS: 1/2 (fav); Swansea: 9/2; Draw: 13/5

Javi Rico reports on our next opponents, Swansea City, who have moved into 10th place in the Premier League. Gianfranco Zola’s men play a 5-3-2 with a flat back 5. Another occasion to test our 3-5-2, but we’ll have to be wary of their counter-attacking threat. There are no real clues as to when they concede goals, but that doesn’t concern me - we have enough in our locker to cause problems for any team.
 
Friday 23rd September, 2022
- The Echo Online


BARKLEY RETURNS TO THE LIMELIGHT - AND SLATES FORMER MANAGER

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ENGLAND HOPEFUL Ross Barkley has slated his former Southampton manager, rocheyb, for almost ruining his career, after a series of fine recent displays for his new club Leicester City.

The former Evertonian wonder kid spent an agonising five seasons with The Saints, after a 12-million transfer from Goodison Park in the summer of 2016, that he hoped would take his game to a higher level among rocheyb’s assembled legions of young English stars such as Jonjo Shelvey, James Ward-Prowse, Jay Rodriguez, Tom Ince, Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana and Barkley’s former Everton team-mate, John Stones.

But Barkley, 28, was unable to force his way into a side that also contained the likes of the Uruguayan international, Gaston Ramirez, and club-captain Morgan Schneiderlin, and despite some good reviews for his performances in his second season at St. Mary’s Stadium, found himself increasingly marginalised to the fringes of the squad.

“Even when foreign players like Sercan Calik and Kostas Kabastanakis came to the club, I still felt that I would be able to play my way into the team, because the manager likes to rotate a big squad and often changed tactics from week-to-week, so you were always in with a chance,” said Barkley, who made a total of 121 appearances for The Saints, scoring 16 goals. “But it seemed that no matter how well I played when I did get a chance in the first-team, I would be out again the following week and sometimes had to wait ages for my next chance.”

Things came to a head during the 2020/21 season, when Barkley made only 6 appearances in Southampton’s Premier League-winning campaign, and made only 3 starts all season.

“I knew the writing was on the wall by December, really. The manager had put me on the bench quite a lot but I was getting on to the pitch less and less often. Jonjo Shelvey had become a bit of a hero with the fans, while Sercan and Kostas have proven to everyone what good players they are. So I spoke to the manager and asked about his long-term plans for me. He told me that he couldn’t guarantee me a place in the team, so I passed on the opportunity to discuss a new contract and decided to move on a free that summer.”

The Liverpool-born playmaker was most upset at his lack of involvement at international level.

“Missing out on the World Cup with England was the hardest thing to deal with, especially with so many of the Southampton lads becoming such an important part of the national team under Roberto Martinez. I desperately wanted to be a part of things and thought I might be when I was called-up for the March friendly, but I guess it came down to a straight choice between me and Jonjo - and he was playing regularly for The Saints and scoring plenty of goals for club and country,” he said. “I’m 28 and I’ve only got 7 caps and I’ve never scored for England, so I feel like I’ve got to make up for lost time.”

But after a good first season with Leicester, in which he started 38 of his 41 appearances for the club, and an excellent start to the current campaign, Barkley’s name is again being mentioned in relation to international honours, as Luis Enrique looks to repair the damage of Murat Yakin’s disastrous World Cup 2022 group stage elimination in Qatar.

“I’m enjoying my football again for the first time in years and I’m really focused on Leicester City right now. But if Snr Enrique gives me the call, I’ll definitely be there to represent my country and hopefully help us to qualify for the Euros in Sweden, in two years.”

Enrique is faced with a difficult task, and it is no secret that rocheyb would like to take the England job should it ever be made available to him, even having turned down offers from both France (twice) and Spain to leave himself open to an approach from the FA. So, with his own international future in mind, Barkley had some kinder words to say about his former boss.

“You can’t argue with the gaffer’s decisions. I mean, look at what he’s won. And I’ve got medals from my time at Southampton that I wouldn’t otherwise have got,” he said. “The fans were great with me and gave me a really nice reception when I went back there last year. So I don’t want to sound ungrateful but I didn’t really enjoy it there and if I had my time over again, I would probably do something else. Stay at Everton or go to Arsenal - anything really, but not sign for Saints.”

And Barkley is now focusing on his future, and that possible international re-call.

“I’ve got my confidence back at Leicester and I’m playing week-in, week-out - scoring a couple of goals and setting them up for others. We’ve made a decent start to the season and if we can just find a bit more consistency we could really push on - maybe even qualify for the Europa League. And if I do get the call for England, then I’d be delighted.”
 
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Friday 23rd September, 2022

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After beating Fulham in the 3rd Round of the Capital One Cup, we have a home tie against Wigan Athletic to look forward to in Round 4. The tie of the round is definitely Chelsea vs Manchester United at The Blues’ new 57,000 capacity Cole Stadium, while League One York City have a money-spinning away trip to Anfield, to face Frank de Boer’s Liverpool.
 
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Friday 23rd September, 2022

FM Customisation - Part 1
1st TEAM SQUAD DATA-CENTRE

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Throughout FM, there are a wealth of customisable options to give you as much or as little team and player data as you like. Personally, as a former 11 year-old football know-it-all and someone who worked with statistics for several years, I do likes me a bit of data. So, I’m going to talk you through the customised views that I use, beginning with my preferred first-team squad view.

The player’s personal data on the left hand side, as standard. Displaying their nationality can prompt you as to possible language barriers within your squad and the flags are hot-linked, to enable quick navigation throughout your game’s universe. Say I want to look at a particular Colombian international player that I’ve been considering. I can click on Rodrigao’s Brazilian flag and then move down two clicks from the Brazil page until I reach Colombia.

Knowing how tall your players are, and which of them is good in the air, helps you to quickly set positional instructions for offensive and defensive set-pieces. Their weight is generally less important, except maybe for forwards who you want to hold the ball up, and perhaps centre-backs.

The next 8 columns provide me with the top line data I need to judge a player’s form, over the course of the season-to-date and the last 5 matches. I’m pleased to see a healthy spread of the Player of the Match awards at this early season stage and most of my players have managed at least one high-rating performance among their last 5 appearances for club and country. The only two players who have not averaged 7.00 or higher, so far, are my Saints Academy graduates, Shane Westley and Mark Ardean-Webb. I expect better from Westley but MA-W is still a teenager, so I’ll be patient with him.

By grouping together the morale, confidence, match-fitness and fitness progression columns, I get a quick at-a-glance update of who is fully fit, who’s injured, who needs a run-out to get themselves going again after injury. At the moment, Giammarco Stangoni is going to have to turn out for the U21s a couple of times to get himself back to sharpness - I will even arrange matches with some local area teams to provide that opportunity. Gently does it at first, maybe limiting him to 45 minutes, then 60, then 90 - until he’s ready to come back to first-team action.

The next block of columns tell me:

- Tackles per game
- Tackle completion ratio
- Pass completion ratio
- Header completion ratio
- Cross completion ratio
- Shots on target ratio
- Distance covered per 90mins

From these stats, I can tell who is performing as I want them to in their specifically assigned roles within the team and, possibly, gain some clues as to which players might be suitable for re-training in alternative positions to provide a greater range of tactical options. These numbers can also help you to make team selections if you want to play a possession-based game, know you’re going to have to defend and tackle a lot, know the opposition is weak in the air etc.

All Time Career Appearances and All Time Career Goals is nice to know, particularly for those players that you’ve had for a long time. Jay Rodriguez has already had his Southampton testimonial - I guess Tom Ince will be next.

The Potential star rating was only added this season, when I brought a few younger players up from the U21 and U18 ranks. I’m going to keep a close eye on it so I notice as soon as one of my hottest prospects drops down a notch, so I know to concentrate my efforts on him again to get him back up as high as possible. I’ve had a couple of very highly rated youngsters in the past who didn’t make it by the time they reached their early-20s, so I want to avoid that with my current crop.

Having wages, value and contract expiry date listed together helps with the financial and long-term succession planning that the game requires of you. By comparing contract expiry dates to players' ages, and factoring in their market value, I can decide which players to try to sell and who to allow to run down their contract and leave for nothing. I can also maintain control over the club’s wage levels, by making sure that my most outstanding players are the most well-paid. Allowing a lesser player to have a greater salary than the better performing key players can cause all kind of “new contract NOW” demands, and send your wage bill spiralling out-of-control.

The last club column is there partly because, as you may have noticed in this thread, I have a football club badge fetish, but also to add a bit of interesting detail and colour. They also aid navigation throughout the game. For example, Fiorentina are my feeder club, so if I want to take a quick look at them, I can click to them via Tin Jedvaj's Roma link - who are currently in Serie B, so another click is required to get to Fiorentina via the Serie A league table.

- - What do you think of this item? Is this teaching you stuff you already know? Would you be interested in similar articles on my customised views of Youth Squads, International Squads, Transfer Targets, the Matchday Selection page, etc? Or should I just keep my nonsense to myself and get on with the Manager Story?!
 
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really enjoying this. I can't ever seem to pay attention to detail like this. keep 'em coming.
 
lovin this thread.... and plzz dont change ur detail level
 
Thank you, chaps! Here comes some more...
 
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Saturday 24th September, 2022

Premier League - Matchday 6
SOUTHAMPTON vs SWANSEA CITY
St. Mary's Stadium, Southampton; Att: 37,518

SAINTS Team News - 3-5-2: Ibrahim resumes responsibility between the sticks; Rutten comes back in at centre-back, as does Tin Jedvaj; Diego Reyes continues in the Ball-Playing Defender role; Tom Ince came through 90 minutes unscathed against Fulham but now steps down to allow Migliorini back into the left-wing berth; Westley (DLP_S), Ward-Prowse (AP_A) and Pugliese (BWM_D) comprise the central midfield; the fully-fit Kostas Kabastanakis comes back in place of Sercan Calik, who is tired; Kingsley Idris gets the nod ahead of Yvo Lucas as AF_A as reward for some fine recent form and the Premier League's current leading goalscorer Christoffer Jorgensen returns in the False9 role; I have decided to go without a back-up goalkeeper today, so that I can squeeze Giammarco Stangoni in among my substitutes, in the hope that he'll be able to come on for the last 15 minutes or so - if we're looking good on the scoresheet by then.

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Swansea City - 5-3-2: Steven Caulker is the left-sided centre-back within a flat back five; the three centre-backs are aerially strong but relatively slow, so we might get some joy in-behind them; Jose Francisco, an attacking right-back the Swans acquired from Stoke this summer, is a player that I took a long look at prior to signing Buti Ndou; the former Arsenal prospect Dan Crowley on the right of the visitor' three-man midfield; the Swedish striker Muamer Tankovic is their captain and joint top-scorer with 4 goals - level with the US international Aron Johansson, who starts on the bench.

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Swansea's morale is fair-to-middling. I instruct my players to close down their full-backs, midfielders and forwards always, tackle normal and show them onto their weaker foot - and manage to motivate most of them before the kick-off with an assertive team-talk and one-to-one chats. I'm finding that when a player already has superb morale, talking to him calmly to reassert your faith in his abilities often has a better effect than being assertive - as you can see in the screenshot with Migliorini and Idris.

1st Half Highlights
- 1sec: There's rain as The Saints kick-off, attacking the Northam Stand, from right-to-left.
- 1min: Migliorini's left-wing cross lands at Jorgensen's feet just 4-yards out, but Radhi stabs the ball away for a corner.
- 2mins: From the corner, Ward-Prowse crosses low to the near-post where Shane Westley lays the ball back to Kabastanakis on the edge of the area - and he forces Benjamin Siegrist into a fine save diving to his left, to deny Southampton an early goal.
- 4mins: But The Saints aren't to be denied for long. Christoffer JORGENSEN volleys home from close range at the near-post from Ward-Prowse's right-wing corner. The Swansea players put their hands to their heads - they know that was a soft goal to concede; where was the marking? 1-0
- 7mins: The home side extend their lead with a move that begins with the goalkeeper Ibrahim rolling the ball to his right, to Tin Jedvaj, inside the penalty area. Short passes to Pugliese, Kabastanakis and then Ward-Prowse bring the move to the halfway line. The captain then plays Jorgensen in on the right-wing where the Danish striker could run at Steven Caulker. From the byline he by-passed two defenders with a cut-back to Kabastanakis whose low, driven cross-shot may have found the unmarked Migliorini but for an inadvertent block by Jose Francisco. The ball bounced kindly for Kingsley IDRIS to slot home from 5-yards, with both Radhi and Siegrist wrong-footed. 2-0.
- 8mins: Jorgensen carries the fight to Swansea again, running from the halfway line, right-to-centre, until multiple white-shirted defenders block his path just outside the penalty area. He slips a square pass to Migliorini who beats his man and finds Idris with a short cross, but the young striker is denied a second goal with his near-post shot by Siegrist's athletic save...
- 8mins: ...Southampton regain possession from that last broken-down attack and Pugliese rolls the ball forward to Jorgensen about 30-yards from goal in the inside-right channel. His sharp turn and clever feet allow him to escape Caulker and progress forwards, before playing a short diagonal pass to Kabastanakis on the right, inside the area. Caulker tries to close him down as he progresses to the byline, but in doing so leaves JORGENSEN unmarked to stroke the winger's square pass home from 4-yards. Swansea's game plan is falling apart. 3-0.
- 9mins: The visitors are lucky not to be 4-down in the first 10 minutes; Siegrist having to dive to push Migliorini's left-wing cross over-the-bar.
- 10mins: Swansea City are 4-0 down in the first 10 minutes!!! Ward-Prowse loops his corner from the left high to the back-post and Reyes gets up well to head it back to about 3-yards behind the penalty spot. Kostas KABASTANAKIS stikes it full on-the-volley, into the top right-hand corner beyond the despairing dive of the beleaguered Siegrist. 4-0.

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- 11mins: Unsurprisingly, Gianfranco Zola decides to take action by making two substitutions and switching to a variation of 4-5-1, with two defensive midfielders. I reset Opposition Instructions.
- 13mins: Jose Francisco is booked for Swansea.
- 19mins: As one Southampton attack breaks down, another is quickly initiated with a ball out to Migliorini on the left-wing. He runs at Jose Francisco and Tankovic, who is now operating on the right-wing, before whipping a cross onto the head of Idris, about 10-yards out, in line with the edge of the 6-yard box. There are three defenders between him and his strike partner but his deft flick-on loops over all of them to find Christoffer JORGENSEN totally unmarked, centre of goal, 6-yards out, and the former Brondby man claims his second hat-trick of this fledgling season with a left-foot side-foot volley. Denis Bijedic, one of Swansea's centre-backs, raises both arms in disbelief. it's 5-0.
- 21mins: Siegrist does well to catch Ward-Prowse's angled snapshot after his attempted through ball came back to him.
- 28mins: Roel Rutten is injured in a sliding challenge with Lukas Spalvis. Phillip Kaminski comes on to replace him.
- 30mins: Yellow card for Ashley Hanford of Swansea.
- 32mins: A one-touch passing move through the centre opens the Swansea defence up again and Siegrist dives low to his right to push Migliorini's shot around the post.
- 33mins: Jorgensen is denied a fourth goal only because his firm volley hits his team-mate Idris on the back.
- 39mins: Jose Francisco has made a number of well-timed sliding tackles on Migliorini, but he's on a yellow card already and is being exposed time-and-time again by our expansive wing play and direct running.
- 40mins: Jorgensen fires into the side-netting from the right, after a clever through ball from Ward-Prowse.

HALF-TIME: SOUTHAMPTON 5-0 SWANSEA CITY

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A pulsating first-half of near total Southampton dominance. Swansea haven't managed a single shot, yet. The switch of formation by the visitors has stemmed the tide a little, but the damage had already been done. We have three players who are able to run at defenders, drawing two or three out of position at once, and the space that is being created is ideal for players with the vision of James Ward-Prowse or the clinical finishing of Christoffer Jorgensen. Pugliese is doing a quietly effective job in midfield by picking up the ball each time Swansea clear it to get us back on the front foot immediately. The only *** note is the injury to Roel Rutten. My half-time team-talk doesn't quite get the desired response this time, but hopefully we will produce more of the same in the second-half.

2nd Half Highlights
- 47mins: Idris receives a pass from Migliorini on the left, and shows good feet to step away from his marker and strike from the edge of the area. Siegrist catches the ball close to his right-hand post.
- 54mins: Paddy Byrne goes down innocuously after passing upfield, and Swansea are forced to make their third and final substitution with more than half-an-hour still to play.
- 56mins: Yellow card for Bijedic for a trip on Jorgensen.
- 60mins: Christoffer Jorgensen receives a standing ovation as he leaves the field to be replaced by Yvo Lucas.
- 63mins: Kingsley Idris is playing well. He receives a lobbed pass to feet, outside the penalty area, to the left. His sharp twist and turn-of-pace loses his marker but his shot is slightly rushed and goes wide.
- 68mins: A Kabastanakis cut-back from the right side of the byline enables Lucas to strike on goal, but Siegrist parries the ball away. The Saints regain possession and quickly switch to the opposite flank, calling Siegrist into action action to catch Migliorini's effort.
- 71mins: A low cross by Idris is cleared by Caulker but Westley keeps the pressure on by winning the header, midway inside Swansea's half. The ball falls to Migliorini, back-to-goal, 20-yards out, and the Argentine winger smashes a right-foot shot on the turn, forcing Siegrist into an excellent save.
- 73mins: Giammarco Stangoni makes his return from injury and takes back the captain?s armband, as James Ward-Prowse makes way to a standing ovation from the crowd.
- 74mins: A half-cleared corner is worked back out to the right for Kabastanakis and his deep cross is met with a firm back-post header by Phillip KAMINSKI for this first goal of the season. 6-0.
- 76mins: Kabastanakis comes close with a long-range free-kick, but Siegrist dives and saves to prevent it going into the top right-hand corner.
- 85mins: Kaminski rises at the back-post again to met Idris's flick-on from a left-wing Kabastanakis free-kick, but the German defender heads straight at the keeper.
- 89mins: Ironic cheers ring round the stadium as Swansea's first shot of the match produces an unnecessarily theatrical save from Ibrahim.
- 90+1mins: The match ends with The Saints playing possession football in Swansea's half, to chants of Ole! Ole! from the delighted St. Mary's faithful.

FULL-TIME

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MAN OF THE MATCH:
CHRISTOFFER JORGENSEN (SOUTHAMPTON) - 9.7
False9_Support: 3 goals; 0 assists.

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VERDICT:
Another occasion where an emphatic first-half display ends the match as a contest and the second-half is virtually a non-event. Not that I'm complaining. Swansea were never in this match - we overwhelmed them from the first minute. Excellent predatory instincts on show from Jorgensen but the whole team did their part to torment the opposition defenders with wave-after-wave of fast-paced, incisive attacking football - and plenty of goalmouth action. If Benjamin Siegrist has trouble sleeping tonight, he could try counting the footballs flying past his ears!
 
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Saturday 24th September, 2022

Trust an accountant to ruin your mood: we have to pay 1-million to FC Utrecht because Kostas Kabastanakis’s goal was his 20th in the Premier League since joining us in 2017. I say they should have to pay us double for the fact he hadn’t reached that total long ago!

And trust a physiotherapist to pile on when there’s a hint of misery to be had: Roel Rutten is out for 3 months with a torn hamstring. That’s a serious blow to our squad rotation policy. But we still have Radimov, Kaminski and Jedvaj as recognised centre-backs; Diego Reyes and John Stones can also deputise there and Kevin Egan should be back in about 6 weeks, so he could get his debut as soon as he’s up to full-fitness.

We remain 4th in the table, but Manchester United’s 1-1 draw at Norwich City closes the gap to 3 points.
 
Sunday 25th September, 2022

Preparation vs AMKAR PERM (h)

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SAINTS: 1/8 (fav); Amkar: 12-1; Draw: 5-1

It’s rare that a club I have never heard of makes it to the Group Stage of the European Champions League, but Amkar Perm have done it and we face them at St. Mary’s on Tuesday night. From Javi Rico’s scouting report, I am confident that anything approaching the mauling we gave Swansea would be equally successful against their usual 4-4-2, but as Rene Meulensteen reminded me this morning, we have to guard against over-confidence and plan our squad rotation through this game and the match at Coventry on Saturday, so that we’re ready to take-on Chelsea, at home, on the 15th.

We’re working on Attacking Set-Pieces, as recommended by Rico, and I’m considering switching to the 4-5-1 Assymetric System - which is the one I used for the majority of my first few seasons with The Saints - so that I can bring in a couple of players who have not been involved in much first-team football recently. Amkar concede a lot of goals during the last 15 minutes - which is good to know if things don’t go according to plan.
 
Tuesday 27th September, 2022

European Champions League, Group F - Matchday 2
SOUTHAMPTON (Eng) vs AMKAR PERM (Rus)
St. Mary’s Stadium, Southampton; Att: 37,277

SAINTS Team News - 4-5-1 Assymetric: Louis Cruse rotates back in for Ibrahim; Buti Ndou will attempt to not get sent-off at right-back; Hrustic plays on the left of the back four, with Radimov and Kaminski pairing-up in the centre; Mario Pugliese will anchor the midfield, with James Ward-Prowse operating as Deep-Lying Playmaker and skipper; Tom Ince gets another run-out on the left; Sercan Calik takes up the more advanced winger berth on the right flank; Jose Pinho will be the off-set Shadow Striker behind Yvo Lucas; Rodrigao and Jorginho both feature on a young bench.

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Amkar - 5-3-2: The Russians line-up in the same formation adopted by Swansea at the weekend, but their three central defenders are at least quicker than Caulker et al.

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An ineffective assertive team-talk is rescued by calmer one-to-one chats - and we’re ready to take to the pitch!

1st Half Highlights
- 1sec: Southampton, in their change strip of black shirts, white shorts and black socks, kick-off, attacking the Chapel End. Amkar are in a Poland-style white shirts, red shorts, white socks.
- 3mins: Early possession yields a goal when Tom Ince is released down the left-wing to centre for Yvo LUCAS to volley a low angled drive into the bottom right-hand corner. 1-0.
- 9mins: Pugliese receives a cheeky back-heel from Ward-Prowse, on the edge of the centre-circle, and releases Sercan Calik down the right-wing. His high cross is met in the air by Pinho, but the header flies narrowly over-the-bar.
- 11mins: Good possession football by Ince and Hrustic on the left allows Ward-Prowse to work the ball in-field, and Pinho’s attempted lob from outside the area calls Makaridze into action in the Amkar goal.
- 17mins: Ward-Prowse shoots wide from a free-kick.
- 23mins: Tom Ince crosses from the left and Pinho’s header is pushed over by the keeper.
- 25mins: Pinho should do better with a snapshot that goes wide from 18-yards, after Miletic is caught in possession by Pugliese and Lucas squares the ball to him.

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- 34mins: Amkar are forced into a change when Vladimir Skvortsov injures himself whilst fouling Lucas in midfield. They change their shape to a 5-3-2 with wing-backs, with Maxim Belyaev coming into the centre of defence. I reset Opposition Instructions. From the resulting free-kick, Hrustic and Ince combine to play-in Pinho but his shot from the edge of the area is too weak to trouble Makaridze.
- 38mins: A Southampton counter-attack presents another gilt-edged chance to Pinho, but he heads Calik’s right-wing cross over-the-bar from 4-yards. He applauds the cross but he knows he should have done better with that chance!

HALF-TIME: SOUTHAMPTON 1-0 AMKAR PERM

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We are comfortably the better team, but we have been wasteful in front of goal, especially Jose Pinho. But I am going to persevere, because if we can get a second goal I don’t see Amkar coming back - they haven’t taken a shot, yet - and I want the players who started this match to get a proper run-out. Tom Ince has been the star performer so far, despite still not being fully-fit coming into this game. I tell the players that there is room for improvement in the second-half.

2nd Half Highlights
- 48mins: A neat triangle of passing on the right-hand side frees Ndou to cross into the box. Lucas knocks it short to Calik, to the right of the 6-yard box, but his fiercely struck shot crashes into the side netting.
- 50mins: Belyaev makes a mistake by misdirecting a header, from Ndou’s long punt upfield, into the path of Calik. He advances on the diagonal and shoots but Makaridze pushes it behind for a corner.
- 57mins: Ward-Prowse goes close again from another free-kick, from 25-yards out, central to goal.
- 58mins: Ince skips away from van Baarlen’s sliding tackle and presents Pinho with another good chance, 8-yards out. But the Portuguese forward takes too long to make a decision and his shot is closed down by Miletic.
- 59mins: Pinho misses another one - this time a header from Ince’s cross.
- 65mins: Lucas suffers 50p-Head Syndrome when left with a clear chance from 5-yards, from Calik’s flick-on, heading wide when it would have been easier to hit the target.
- 66mins: I have a quiet word with Stangoni before sending him on for the luckless Pinho, and I switch him to a Trequartista role with Lucas now playing as Complete Forward_Support, with instructions to Shoot more often.
- 67mins: Makaridze pulls-off an outstanding save to deny Calik a headed goal from Tom Ince’s cross from the byline.
- 68mins: Ndou’s throw-in, from an advanced position on the right touchline, is headed down by Calik, and Yvo LUCAS strikes on the volley, from an angle, to beat Makaridze low to his left. That’s Lucas’s 3rd goal of the season. 2-0.
- 73mins: A pinpoint pass from Pugliese, from the halfway line, picks out Calik on the right of the penalty area. He beats his man and shoots but Makaridze saves the ball at his feet.

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- 74mins: Amkar have changed their shape again, so I reset Opposition Instructions. Rodrigao replaces Ndou at right-back for The Saints.
- 76mins: Pugliese, with another accurate, direct pass, finds Ince to the left of the area. He exchanges passes with Hrustic before floating a cross into the middle. Stangoni’s glancing header is caught by Makaridze.
- 81mins: Yvo LUCAS completes his hat-trick, heading Sercan Calik’s right-wing corner into the roof of the net from 3-yards. 3-0.
- 84mins: It’s a double-barrelled bonanza: I decide to give James Ward-Prowse a rest and send on Mark Ardean-Webb.
- 88mins: Calik floats in a free-kick from the left-hand side and Sergey Radimov volleys it home from inside the 6-yard box - but he was offside. No goal.
- 90+1mins: The Southampton fans stand to applaud their team from the pitch, upon hearing Herr Meyer’s final whistle.

FULL-TIME

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MAN OF THE MATCH:
YVO LUCAS (SOUTHAMPTON) - 9.6
Deep-Lying Forward / Complete Forward_Support; 3 goals; 0 assists.

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VERDICT:
A satisfactory result overall against a team we were expected to beat comfortably, anyway. Yvo Lucas did himself no harm whatsoever with some excellent finishing, but Pinho’s errant shooting is a bit concerning. As a right-foot only player, he might be struggling with operating from that left-of-centre starting position, but he also missed a couple of headers that he should have buried. Tom Ince is coming back to something like his best and Calik continues to pose a dangerous threat from the right-hand side. I take Rene Meulensteen’s advice and forgo a team-talk this time around - the players are all brimming with confidence already.
 
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Tuesday 27th September, 2022

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A score-draw in the other Group F match means that after just two matches, we take control of the group:

ATLETICO MADRID 3-3 FC LORIENT

Lorient were 0-2 down until the 63rd minute, so put that together with their 0-4 to 3-4 fightback against us and it tells you something about the resilience of their team - if also, perhaps, a tendency to start slowly.

Elsewhere, former Southampton player Ryan Gauld got Celtic’s consolation goal in a 1-2 home defeat to Bayern Munich. And both Italian clubs in action tonight scored 4 against clubs from the former-Yugoslavia; Genoa beating Red Star Belgrade (…didn’t your uncle play for them?) 4-1, while Juventus won 4-2 at Dinamo Zagreb.
 
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