Moneyball won't win the Premiership 2012-13

the boycott idea is i think sadly in the same category of lovely romantic fantasy as the illusion that your club might not be run by classless mercenary cunts. 90 mins of pro-nige chanting (on sky too) tho, for sure.

xp
yes that is true we've got loads of money now

ps fuck cortese

http://www.talksport.co.uk/magazine/top-ten/120905/revealed-europes-biggest-spending-clubs-summer-transfer-window-180254?p=3

This says it's true. Net spend £33m.

LOL EPL

£33m to attempt make a Championship team into a Premier League team seems about right imo, given the TV income it gets you if it works - especially considering they were a League One team in May 2011.

Seriously fucked if it doesn't work, mind.

Southampton haven't sold anyone at all, which skews it a bit, but who apart from Rodriguez and Ramirez have they actually signed?

Most of their standout players seem to have been there already, clyne excepted

Argh Sandro out for the rest of the season, noooo.

shitttttttt

even if southampton were surefire relegation candidates there'd be fuck-all of a case for sacking adkins for pochettino, who kept espanyol up twice and got sacked with them fucked. that's no cv of exceptional brilliance.

xp that'll be no livermore then

wonder if levy's thinking about m'vila now, bit excessive but holtby's not the answer to the question

Former Southampton manager, and vice president of the League Managers Association, Lawrie McMenemy on new Saints manager Mauricio Pochettino: "What does he know about our game? What does know about the Premier League? What does he know about the dressing room? Does he speak English?"

http://i.imgur.com/XM60m.jpg?1

parker, livermore, huddlestone, it's not all that bad tbh

Lawrie McMenemy's still alive?

Sorry to interrupt the Spurs thread

good work from McMenemy there making the case for Pochettino

sorry that a first team player's just been announced out for the season, where'd you rather it was noted/discussed for all of four posts?

The long anticipated Spurs thread perhaps?

Arsenal have got their own thread after all

we need twenty new ilf rolling team threads now huh

walcott agrees substantial increase on 60k wages in new deal lol

not claiming it's a particularly great insight. my point was just a rebuttal to the idea that there's some wondrous integrity at work at a select few clubs. there isn't. their managers just have generally met expectations.

it's a different point to say that a club sacking a boss in january to avoid relegation is bullshit, that wasn't the point we started from, we started from every club lacking integrity.

How many times has sacking the manager half way through a relegation battle seen the team in question ultimately go down? Probably more times than its kept them in the Premiership, I'd guess.

who's to say the sacked boss would have kept them up? it's a gamble most of the time, a desperate gamble.

southampton isn't like this and i agree it's a particularly bad one, but the dilemma is to stick or twist really, with millions of pounds to be won/lost.

https://twitter.com/DWindass10/status/292264006637457408

we don' need no stinkin' badgers

As far back as October, powerful figures within the club were reportedly doubting whether Adkins would remain as manager. One player privately said "he could literally be gone any week".

he literally could, and literally did go this week!

“@henrywinter: Pochettino: "I know about the #saintsfc squad because I've been researching them for several weeks'

it's prob been in the works for months, maybe the good run just delayed it. also flashing back to promotion day last season, adkins was all "i know i won't be here forever." i guess they couldn't very well sack him right then.

was kind of lacking a team who I actively wanted to go down this season and were remotely likely to, so there's that

Boo! I think everything I want to say re: Adkins has already been said on this thread.

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/01/19/article-2264846-170660BA000005DC-52_306x423.jpg

Nigel Adkins left a message for the players which was posted on Twitter by a Southampton performance analyst

I wish the sound wasn't out on the Fox Soccer feed on my cable system.

pathos unfelt since gazza xp

if that's real i think i might cry

Anyone else try and imagine the mental state of a very-recently-sacked manager? That coupled with Nilmar's photo makes for a weepy saturday afternoon.

and on that miserable note, I think I will opt for...reading - newcastle

newcastle - reading, even

It takes a particular sort of person to put ears on their smiley faces, especially in this day and age. I like it.

depends which way you're reading it

xpost

lost all sympathy for adkins after that tbh

at least it wasn't this

http://image.spreadshirt.com/image-server/v1/designs/11989522,width=190,height=190/Fuck-you-FU-FFFUUU-rage-face-meme.png

idk if i've ever seen another keeper dive seemingly the wrong way and save with his legs as much as julio cesar does, it's terrifying

west ham with diame pulling the strings pummelling us with the set plays, we're hitting on the break but fudging it with remy repeatedly offside but linking ok with adel

exactly what you expected to a tee in other words

De Gea likes a leg save. I approve

£££££ remy 1-0 oh yes ££££

fans sing "we sign who want" thus ensuring this afternoon will end in tears

cracking strike from Henderson just now

chamakh's been a legit pain in the arse, mightve had a pen there

the bossest of dummies from Sturridge puts Suarez through to score. Liverpool looking good

^

Well, don't think I'll bother with the 2nd half of Liverpool vs. Norwich :(

much needed ht whistle, pressure building, arry needs to settle it down with a bit of possession and getting remy back up top springing the trap instead of drifting wide