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The World Cup Is Over ! The Real Work Begins Monday, 14th Jul 2014 10:02
With the final kick of the World Cup on Sunday the signal went up for the free for all which is the summer transfer window to begin in earnest.
Saints have probably had more transfer activity than most clubs so far, but with the World Cup over and players back with their clubs after the summer break the real work for Ronald Koeman is about to begin.
Of course nothing is certain in football, but so far the Dutchman has done some good work in bringing in Tadic and Pelle who on the case of it could well prove to be better than the two players they have replaced, that is no slur on Rickie Lambert, he has had an amazing five years at St Mary's, but the key to not only keeping a team on an upward curve not to mention preserving the reputation of a legend is always about replacing him at the right time, Saints have raked in around £25 million for Lallana and Lambert after paying Bournemouth their cut, they have spent around £20 million on their replacements , this could be good business.
But the real key is what Ronald Koeman does next, firstly he has to sort out the situation with Lovren, over the next few days he will spend time with the defender in the training camp in Belgium, this will be key as to whether Lovren's head is going to stay in Liverpool or come back to Southampton.
When he has done that there is the little matter of making a few more aquisitions, most supporters will be looking for some high profile signings and that is understandable given that we have around another £30 - £40 million left to spend, but perhaps the key will be the players that Koeman brings in who are not perhaps immediate first team players.
Our problem last season was that our squad was too small in terms of actual Premier standard, Pochettino preferred to work with a core of around 15 and did not bother about the other dozen members of the squad who just made up the numbers and rarely played except when injury struck.
This proved to be a problem when players did have to miss games and I think that key will be strengthening the squad as a whole as well as the key positions.
But so far so good for Ronald Koeman's first couple of weeks, those predicting doom and gloom should remember that as a squad we are still stronger than we were starting in the Premier two years ago, back then we managed 14th so there should be no cause for panic.
Photo: Action Images
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Let's be pleased with the players we have managed to bring in so far, but this doesnt mean we have to pretend that losing Rickie and Lallana is a good thing. However much the deals made financial sense, in footballing terms we have lost two instrumental players who we will do well to replace. It's a big gamble stepping up from the Eridividse to the Premier League. In terms of improving 'the squad', I think all prospective signings should be brought in with idea that they will be first choice and improve the squad. This way we will build a team with at least two PL quality players in each position with real competition for places. As Nick aludes to, this has not been the case in the last two seasons with players such as Fox, Guly, Hooiveld, Mayuka, Lee, Sharp amongst others just not up to the level required. Whilst a club our size and status cant expect a squad the size of Man Utd, added depth and competition could see us negotiate a busy festive period better than we did last year.
Let's be pleased with the players we have managed to bring in so far, but this doesnt mean we have to pretend that losing Rickie and Lallana is a good thing. However much the deals made financial sense, in footballing terms we have lost two instrumental players who we will do well to replace. It's a big gamble stepping up from the Eridividse to the Premier League. In terms of improving 'the squad', I think all prospective signings should be brought in with idea that they will be first choice and improve the squad. This way we will build a team with at least two PL quality players in each position with real competition for places. As Nick aludes to, this has not been the case in the last two seasons with players such as Fox, Guly, Hooiveld, Mayuka, Lee, Sharp amongst others just not up to the level required. Whilst a club our size and status cant expect a squad the size of Man Utd, added depth and competition could see us negotiate a busy festive period better than we did last year.
Whilst we are all keen for the 'squad' to be improved, I'm not sure this fits with the culture of the club and it's commitment to promoting youth. The feeling was under Pochettino that having a smaller squad of players facilitated the transition and breakthrough of our academy players into the first team during busy periods, for injuries, suspensions or in cup competitions. At times last year looking at our bench it was difficult to see a player with any experience who could come on and change the game. However we can't have it both ways, we either have a stronger and more competitive core of first team players and risk blocking the progress of our academy, or continue with a smaller squad and accept that at times during a season our results may suffer depending on injuries, suspensions and busy periods such as last year. This being the case, those supporters expecting us to use our player sales to sign 6-8 squad players to cover every position I feel will be slightly disappointed. Whilst this model can be frustrating at times, this is why we continue to produce the best young players and give English youth a chance. Personally I much prefer our model to the French club up north who fill their squad with cheap foreigners. Everything that is wrong with the modern British game.
I still think he needs to look at improving our defense. When Boruc was out last season, we looked horrible. Same whenever Hooiveld had to play, so would love to see a new GK and defender (even 2) signed, and if nothing else, would be very happy with that.
I was interested to read here that it is thought selling Lallana Shaw and Lambert made financial sense. Iam na economist, and I can assure you that such short termism makes no sense at all. Markus Liebherr wanted to turn us into a world brand and you are not going to do that bny selling five of your very best players. its suicide frankly. I say five, because I am resigned to both Lovren and Schneiderlin leaving the club , simply because once you start selling the best, the rest will want to follow. A very stupid move from Katarina Liebherr,but lets face it , its why both Cortese and Pochettino left. We had a great , great chance of achieving that dream of top four , but that has now gone, it will take years for us to recover if at all. The club had been handed a casket of jewels and they were cashed in by our owner, simple as that. I know this might not be a popular view but it is reality whether we like it or not. Ou ambitoin seems now limited to arguing about the price of Nathan Redmond for whom its reported we put in a measly offer of 3.5 million.I m sorry but I expect more from Southampton, where is the economic planning, the stadium expansion, and so on? I have said before that I feel Katarina Liebherr should sell the club to someone who is prepared to put heart soul and money into the project instead of looking for short term gains.
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