Taking Southampton North!

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UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Game 5 - FC Schalke 04 (Away)


We travel to Germany for the return match against Schalke. Get a result here and we guarantee qualification for the knockout rounds. A win would likely see us top the group, though it would still depend on the last fixture.

In the 13th minute Barbosa slipped Choupo-Moting through, and he belted it into the top corner to put the Germans in front.

In the 60th minute Juanmi found Tadic in the area, and the Serbian whipped a low ball across to the far post, where Ward-Prowse was on hand to finish! It was a beautifully executed team goal.

In the 68th minute Sidney Sam hit the post from a tight angle, but Dragowski probably had it covered anyway.

Rodriguez replaced Kießling in the 71st minute.

Zivkovic replaced Juanmi in the 74th minute, moving to the right wing and shuffling Ward-Prowse to the centre and Tadic to the left.

Barbosa skinned Van Dijk in the 75th but Dragowski denied him the go-ahead goal.

Palombo replaced Wanyama in the 77th minute.

In the 82nd another great team move culminated in Zivkovic slipping an excellent pass through for Rodriguez, but the sprawling keeper denied him!

Huntelaar found space for a half volley from an 83rd minute corner, but Dragowski’s brilliant save kept the scores level.

Bertrand’s burst down the left allowed him to release Rodriguez with space to run into, but he shot too early and sent the ball wide.

We played well today, and earned our qualification to the knockout rounds with a hard-fought point. We grew into the match, and it really makes me wonder why we can’t produce that sort of form in the league. Something has to give, surely?


POM: Gabriel Barbosa (FC Schalke 04 - 8.6, 0G, 1A)

Best Southampton Player: Dusan Tadic (7.8, 0G, 1A)
 
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English Premier League - Game 13 - Stoke City (Away)


Can we do it against Stoke at the Britannia? If recent form is to be believed, then probably not, but who knows? We held a team meeting before the match, and everyone agreed that we could be doing much better, so let’s hope that begins today!

Wilson found some space on the edge of the box for Stoke in the 8th minute, but blasted high and wide.

Does anyone else remember how Wanyama won goal of the month recently for a 25 metre screamer against Spurs? Well in the 32nd minute he absolutely blew that effort out of the water with one of the most incredible goals I’ve ever seen. 30 yards from goal, he chested down Luan’s lofted cut back, and then rifled through traffic into the top left corner!

He went for another in the 49th minute, but Butland was able to watch this one sail wide.

In the 53rd minute we had our second, through Dusan Tadic. Rodriguez slipped him through, and he did the rest, nestling the ball in the top right corner.

Key players Tadic, Wanyama and Clasie were replaced in the 71st minute by Gitschier, Van Dijk and Davis respectively. Palombo moved into midfield so that Van Dijk could slot into the back 4.

In the 78th minute it was nearly 3 as Palombo found the run of Gitschier, but he couldn’t beat Butland from a tight angle.

Seconds, and a couple of long balls later, it was 2-1 as Campbell pulled a goal back for the Potters.

In the 88th minute Rodriguez seized the ball after a Stoke miscommunication and played Gitschier through, but unfortunately the youngster curled the ball the wrong side of the post.

It didn’t matter though, as we saw out a much needed win!

Good performance overall, and hopefully this isn’t another false dawn. We controlled the match, but we also can’t rely on Wanyama to produce worldies every game. That goal was something special. Tadic and Luan, who continues to impress, were also excellent, but the match ball belongs to Wanyama!


POM: Victor Wanyama (8.5, 1G, 0A)
 

UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Game 6 - AS Monaco (Home)


Our captain Fonte makes his return from injury in our last Champions League Group Stage clash, as we host Monaco. Schalke top our group, but we have a superior head to head record, so if we better their result today, then we will finish first.

In the 4th minute Luan played Ward-Prowse in behind, but he was denied at close range by Nardi.

In the 12th minute a Ward-Prowse corner was poorly dealt with by Monaco, and resulted in a loose ball. Kießling pounced to open the scoring!

In the 49th minute we opened up their defence with some great passing down the right, before Ward-Prowse slipped Tadic through. The Serbian was denied at close range, but Juanmi nipped in to turn home the rebound!

In the 70th minute Ward-Prowse and Tadic played a great one-two before the latter sent Kießling through, but his effort was tame with just Nardi to beat, and was easily turned aside.

Ward-Prowse, Clasie and Tadic were replaced by Zivkovic, Slattery and Davis before the corner was taken, and we dropped into a 4-3-3.

In the 73rd minute Juanmi played an excellent ball for Kießling, who finished nicely but was ruled offside.

In the 75th minute Diallo picked up a second yellow and was sent packing for a foul on Zivkovic.

In the 83rd minute some good passing between Luan, Davis and Slattery worked the ball to Zivkovic, whose shot seemed destined for the net before it hit Kießling, who was standing in an offside position!

Van Dijk’s header from an 85th minute corner was blocked on the line, as was Juanmi’s followup effort.

In the 92nd minute Davis sent Zivkovic through with a great ball, and he drew a man and squared for Kießling, who drew a man and sent it on to Juanmi, who was denied with just the keeper to beat.

A comprehensive win in the end, as we dominated from start to finish, and could have had more if our finishing was more clinical. Finally beginning to look like the team that took the Premier League by storm last season, and not a moment too soon. We now need to translate this into a serious run of form in the league. Luan was once again amongst the best on the pitch, with Bertrand and POM Tadic also highly impressive.


POM: Dusan Tadic (8.7, 0G, 1A)
 

English Premier League - Game 13 - Wolverhampton Wanderers (Home)
Wolves are our opponents, and whilst they’re sitting low in the table, they’re actually in pretty good form right now, so we have to be careful. Still, anything less than 3 points will be a major disappointment. We need to start winning these matches where we are favourites. Jose Fonte makes his 250th league appearance for the club.

We dominated the opening stages, setting up camp in their half, and got our reward in the 8th minute, when some great passing culminated in an Augustinsson cross and a Ward-Prowse volley at the back post to put us ahead.

In the 17th minute an audacious backheel from Tadic set Ward-Prowse free, and he slid a ball through for Kießling, who tucked the ball into the bottom corner to double our lead.

Two minutes later the same combination saw us pick up our third, Ward-Prowse picking out Kießling with a great ball, and the German finishing the job after a fine piece of skill to throw off his two defenders.

In the 44th minute Kießling turned provider, playing a fine ball for Tadic, who was denied at first, but put away the rebound to extend our lead.

In the 48th minute Luan sent in a dangerous cross for Kießling, who was pulled down as he leapt for it, and we were awarded a penalty. Up stepped the German with a chance to seal his hat trick from the spot…goal! Fantastic effort from the experienced man today!

In the 61st minute Mane and Zivkovic replaced the exceptional Ward-Prowse and Juanmi, with Tadic shifting to the left wing and Mane slotting in behind Kießling.

Palombo replaced Wanyama in the 72nd minute.

A minute later a brilliant save prevented Clasie adding to the scoreline with a powerful drive from Zivkovic’s cut back.

In the 74th Dragowski made a fantastic save to stop Wilson adding a consolation goal from point blank range.

Kießling almost added his fourth in the 86th minute from Tadic’s cut back but a last ditch block prevented his shot from testing the keeper.

A fantastic win today, and I couldn’t be happier! We completed shredded the Wolves, with attacking verve and clinical finishing, and resolute defending to boot! Ward-Prowse, Tadic and Kießling were most impressive with some brilliant moves on display, and the defence was watertight. Great performance! What a way to celebrate our captain’s 250th league appearance for the club.


POM: Stefan Kießling (9.6, 3G, 0A)
 
Great result against Wolves, no hopefully the team kicks on from here for the rest of the season.
 

We get the worst possible Third Round FA Cup Draw, as we have to travel to defending champions Manchester City!

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Hey guys, I'm off on holidays again as of tomorrow morning (AEDST) and it's unlikely I'll get another chance to post before then. I can't guarantee that I'll be able to update for the next 10 days or so, but it's possible I will at a couple of points. This is just an assurance that the story is still alive, even if it's not being updated for a few days. Thanks for all your support!

In the meantime, there are plenty of other great stories on the site, but the one I want to draw attention to in particular is http://www.fm-base.co.uk/forum/football-manager-2016-manager-stories/350633-dug-out-dugout.html by Meehar. It is the best written story on the site - you feel like you're reading an actual novel, and in my opinion it is just criminal that it only has 7000 views. It is deserving of a much greater audience, hence this promo. Read and enjoy!

Thanks again guys, I'll be back soon :)
 
Wow, thanks for the glowing promo man. It's appreciated :) Enjoy your holidays!
 

Capital One Cup - Quarter Final - Blackburn Rovers (Home)


Ward-Prowse starts at right back for today’s clash with Blackburn in the League Cup Quarter Final. Cedric has almost recovered from his injury but isn’t ready to play, and I’d rather rest Luan ahead of our trip to Old Trafford in 3 days time. The youngsters get another run out, with Persson on the bench again. Slattery misses through injury, sadly.

Davis gashed his head in just the second minute, and so I replaced him with Palombo after 12.

In the 19th minute the two Rodriguez’s combined for the opener. Gitschier sent a great ball through for Dario, who whipped a cross into the box, and Jay nodded home at the near post.

Four minutes later we were pegged back though, as Jordan Rhodes took a ball brilliantly out of the air with his head, spinning off Upamecano in the process, before slamming the ball into the bottom corner.

Milik replaced Mane in the 62nd minute, shifting Jay Rodriguez to the left wing.

Cazares replaced Balic in the 71st minute, dropping Gitschier into central midfield.

We couldn’t find the breakthrough though, and once again were forced into extra time.

Milik picked up a knock in the 98th but I kept him on.

No luck again, and penalties it was.

Milik scored, before Forster denied Marshall.

Jay Rodriguez and Maffeo were both successful, before Van Dijk was denied by a great save.

Fortunately, Conway hit the bar with his effort to keep us in front.

Palombo then sent his effort wide, before Guthrie tied things at 2 apiece after 4 kicks.

Cazares kept his cool, but so did Mahoney.

Bertrand then shot straight at the keeper and was denied, before Evans sent Blackburn through.

Disappointing result but I can live without the extra competition, though I would have preferred it to have been settled in 90 minutes. Gitschier and Dario Rodriguez both impressed with ratings of 7.6, but our finishing wasn’t good enough. It was frustrating as Chelsea and Manchester’s City and United all crashed out in this round too, which opened it right up.


POM: Moritz Gitschier (7.6, 0G, 0A)
 

English Premier League - Game 15 - Manchester United (Away)


As always, this is the match I badly want to win. Back to a first choice lineup, and with both teams underperforming in the league, it would be great to start stringing together some wins, and leapfrog the Mancs in the process. Kießling is preferred to Rodriguez up top. United have a top class lineup, and this game will be far from easy.

It took just 6 minutes for the breakthrough, but unfortunately it was Berahino with a close range volley from Darmian’s cross.

They ripped through us on the counter in the 20th minute, but fortunately Berahino struck the post, and Augustinsson cleared the rebound from danger.

In the 34th minute we had 3 shots blocked in quick succession, and the eventual clearance flew into our half, catching our defence by surprise, and setting Asensio free. He raced through but Dragowski was too good, cutting down his angle and making a good save.

In stoppage time Dragowski once again came to the rescue, this time denying Darmian from close range.

Finally in the 48th minute we had our equaliser, as Kießling volleyed home at the near post from Ward-Prowse, in a similar fashion to Berahino’s opener.

In the 57th minute some brilliant passing saw Ward-Prowse slip Tadic in behind, but he couldn’t beat De Gea from close range.

Jay Rodriguez replaced Juanmi seconds later.

In the 59th minute Berahino scored, but fortunately he was a mile offside.

3 minutes later though Memphis raced through and scored, with the flag staying down.

Asensio scored another offside goal in the 70th minute.

Zivkovic replaced Tadic a minute later.

In the 75th a lightning counter led to Zivkovic finding Kießling, who slipped Rodriguez through, but he couldn’t beat De Gea at the near post.

Gitschier replaced Kießling in the 84th minute.

**** it’s frustrating to lose to these guys, particularly when we were the better side for most of the game. We just need to finish our chances! Ward-Prowse was brilliant again, but the chances he laid on mostly went to waste.

POM: Miralem Pjanic (Manchester United - 8.9, 0G, 1A)

Best Southampton Player: James Ward-Prowse (8.4, 0G, 1A)
 
And the injuries keep coming ... Hang in there Patrick. Good luck with the games against PSG !
 
kolas79 said:
And the injuries keep coming ... Hang in there Patrick. Good luck with the games against PSG !
Click to expand...

Compared to earlier these injuries are nothing! :P Still waiting on Pjaca to return though, still a couple of months away. Thanks, not going to be easy but we'll do our best
 
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