Premier League Match 12 - Southampton 0 Liverpool 0

Virgil Plays On as Firmino's Legs Fall Off

What’s been going on.  Oh yeah, loads….

England.  The Under 21’s were of course in action at St.Mary’s against Italy so I went along.  When the teams were warming up I realised a couple of significant things.  One was that the two men who are managers of the two main England sides are Gareth Southgate and Aidy Boothroyd.  Let that sink in for a moment.  Gareth ‘yes sir’ Southgate and Aidy Hoofroyd.  The other thing was that Calum Chambers was actually playing football after two and a bit years of almost exclusively not doing so after his defection to Arsenal before he was out of nappies.

To the game and there were three Saints players in the line up in Jack Stephens, JWP and Nathan Redmond and an early lead as Leicester’s Demerai Gray knocked in a rebound.  1-1 as the Italian right back made 80 yards without a challenge on our left.  When left back Galloway went to block, it looped over the keeper and in.  2-1 down soon followed as a corner was flicked on to an unmarked forward.  The second half was better for England and we hit the woodwork a couple of times through Gray and Baker (one of those Chelsea players who are always out on loan) before Baker squeezed a shot past a very chocolate wristed keeper.  93 minutes and a corner from JWP, a header from Chambers and knocked in by Jack Stephens which was a nice end to a pleasant evening out.

It’s remarkable how a goal can change perceptions.  Stephens was the hero when in truth, he’d had a poor game as part of a defence that was pretty atrocious.  People always get blinded by goals.  Man of the Match awards and Garth Crooks’ Team of the Week are all exclusively the domain of goalscorers.  Demerai Gray was Man of the Match and he was one of our better players but his tap-in goal won it for him.  Our best player by several miles was Nathaniel Chalobah of Chelsea (Reserves) – season long loan to Saints with an option to buy for £3 million would do him some good.

To be honest, all of the Saints boys were pretty average.  Redmond had a couple of moments but was on the periphery for most of the game.  JWP hit the first man a few times with his set piece delivery but got it right when it mattered.  He was lively in midfield but did give the ball away a few too many times.  Stephens was playing on the left of Chambers at centre back and looked uncomfortable having to use his left foot.  He didn’t make any horrific mistakes and I think part of the problem was his centre back partner.  Talking of whom…

Calum Chambers was awful throughout, absolutely awful.  Indecisive, slow, poor touch, powder puff in the tackle and in the air.  Terrible.  He’s not stood still for the past 2 years but gone backwards alarmingly.  It’s a cautionary tale that not many will heed.  The big clubs will not develop you as a player – they are only interested in the here and now so unless you are brilliant and Big Club first team level then you really are better off staying at a medium sized club who gives a rats about all their players and there you can become the best player you can be.  Earn the move on footballing ability, not because of the big clubs and their player harvesting.

Anyway, 5 goals and an entertaining game – now for the first team against Scotland.  Southgate has made Rooney captain again which brings me deep joy.  Scotland have a team of Championship players and are the very definition of average but they play better football than us as we’re content to turn the game into a scuffle and John Stones is trying to play like Beckenbauer at the back.  There are a couple of problems with this.  One is that he is not Beckenbauer and the other is that the rest of the defence certainly aren’t so if he beats two players and gives one of them the ball, someone like Cahill will invariably Row Z it or give it away.  Out of nowhere and against the run of play, the ball deflects out to Walker on the right and his cross if expertly diverted home by Sturridge who does the wanker dance.  It’s his first touch and the celebration was the first time he moved.  He only found space because a Jock defender got felled by the original shot.  The Jocks pass up a couple of decent chances with a shite final ball and the second half starts with more of the same with Scotland being the better side.  They miss a sitter from the edge of the box and then Stones actually pulls out a decent block to deny Snodgrarse and up the field we go, Rose crosses, Lallana scores with a header.  On the hour, Rooney takes a corner and Cahill gets up and heads in easily and that’s it.  There is half an hour to go but we’re done.  We could go on and absolutely bury them by 5 or 6 but we just pass it about.  Very unconvincing aside from the finishing.

The main thing that this game said to me was that Rooney is finished, done, past it.  He’s so far past it, it’s not funny.  In the form he’s in now he’d struggle to have an impact in the Chinese Super League or wherever he’s going to end up.  Like in the Malta game a few weeks back, Sturridge scored but he did fuck all else including running against a bang average side.

When I saw the team for the Spain friendly I thought it might be better because the two static players weren’t playing and sure enough it was as England played good football throughout, initially inspired by Lallana whose penalty put us 1-0 up.  Just after half time, Henderson of all people curled a superb cross onto Vardy’s head and Steptoe buried it past Reina for 2-0.  All was still going well until the excellent Danny Rose was taken off and Cresswell from West Ham was given a debut.  Cue two goals down our left hand side with the last one apologetically bobbling between Heaton’s legs.  To me, the result was unimportant but what it did show was how good a side England can potentially be if we play with pace on the break and everyone works hard.  So – no more Sturridge and Rooney for me.  The last time England played well was in the Germany friendly which we won 3-2 and neither of the statics were playing in that game either.

Southgate still hasn’t been given the job but he will be.  There will be a token scout around for other candidates but he’ll be given it.  The media have decided that he should be given it and there’s not one ex-player voicing a contrary opinion.  Not for me but I struggle to see who else is out there and available unless you go down the recently retired ex-pro route and appoint Shearer which would be an almighty punt in the dark.

Anyhow, club before country…

We seem to have had some success over Liverpool in the recent past but right now they are developing into a fucking scary outfit as Jurgen Klopp's ideas get through to the players and he begins to fully unpick the shambles left by Brendan Rodgers…. and they are currently top of the league and speak to any Red Scouser and "it's our fucking year".  The buying from Southampton policy has not altered without Rodgers and Sadio Mane has started well for them this year much to my annoyance as he is exactly the sort of player we could do with now to make our attack look better than tepid. I was hoping of course that he'd have an indifferent to start at Anfield, so that the entitled morons in their fan base and the Liverpool dominated media would quickly turn on him but of course he's started like a fucking house on fire so he's the best player ever. The one hope is that he does what he did in his two seasons with us and basically have December to March off. This year he will definitely be off for a bit of it as Senegal will be playing in the African Cup of Nations.  I hope they win it and he's out of the country for ages.

Of the other ex-Saints, even Lovren is playing quite well now due in part to the signing of Matip to take the other centre back position. Matip is an interesting player in that he's fucking enormous. Clyne has been doing as well as you'd expect and Billy Big Bollocks Lallana is possibly playing the best football of his career... what a shame he picked up an injury in the pointless England friendly. Elsewhere, they've got Coutinho who invariably smashes one of the top corner from 30 yards against us and attacking threat will also be provided by Roberto Firmino who I'm not 100% convinced about as yet.  Oh, and James Milner is at left back which is something I never would've seen coming but that's got to be a weak link hasn't it?

Claude names a very strong looking 11 for this game with Hojbjerg is preferred to Clasie but the big news is that the first choice back four are all present and correct with the Cedric returning from injury and Cuco the Clown returning to the bench. On the bench next to him is Shane Long, making a return from the hamstring injury he picked up in the San Siro. Hopefully when he gets on he'll be at full throttle because Liverpool play a very high line and for all his qualities as a footballer and a human being, Lovren is not the quickest and he is a massive fucking twat.

Away we go and the first time Lovren gets the ball there is loud booing and chant starts about the gardener who was putting the love into Mrs Lovren. Not big, not clever, not funny, much... oh that’s not funny either, Twattenburg is refereeing. Liverpool are pressing like madmen and we are trying to play the ball around but it’s seat of the pants stuff.  Cedric gets away on the right and sees his cross blocked before taking a pot shot with his left foot and lashing it well wide.

It quickly settles into a pattern of Liverpool being the dominant side and us just living off scraps and defending the crap out of it.  However, we creak as Clyne gets in a low cross from our left and via Mijnaldum the ball finds Mané and his sidefooter is heading for the top corner before Fraser takes off and somehow tips it over.  World class save.

In the main we are defending pretty well and we’ve obviously learned the Coutinho lesson.  Every time he picks it up within 40 yards he’s got players flying at him and he drags an effort along the ground and wide.  We haven’t noticed Twattenburg for 25 minutes so of course, that has to change and a rare attack by us on the right is halted deliberately by Milner trashing through the back of Redmond.  It’s cynical and late and nowhere near the ball and through the back of him but it’s not a yellow card according to Twatt.  The terrible refereeing has riled the players so for the next few minutes the gloves are off and tackles are flying in everywhere.  The Twatt is at it again as Davis breaks forward n the left and Henderson just hauls him back – play on.  Twattenburg then dramatically turns and wags his finger at Hojbjerg, assumedly because Pierre had said something Anglo-Saxon at him.  Twattenburg is happy now – he’s the main man in the game now and that’s just what you want from a referee.

Oh crap, a 1-2 on the edge of the box and Wijnaldum puts Mané through and he’s away.  He’s gonna score isn’t he and no one’s gonna catch him… along comes Virgil and blocks the shot away for a corner.  Brilliant defending.  We have a rare foray into their half as Austin superbly controls a ball forward but he has no support and is eventually crowded out.  Getting crowded out in their half counts as an attacking highlight today.

There is quite possibly the worst half time entertainment ever as two blokes bundle through some oversized footballs and score a goal.  Who cares?  Makes the guys holding the footballs rugby players and allow them to smash the contestants.  At least make it interesting.  Kenzie called it entertainment.  It wasn’t, it was shite.

The second half starts in much the same manner as the majority of the first with a ball being flipped over the top to Firmino who is behind Virgil.  Virgil clearly grabs a handful of shirt and Firmino decides to collapse, meaning that he gets given nothing because it looks like he’s dived.  Yes it was a foul but outside the box anyway. Phew.

The pressing from the Liverpool team makes us our own worst enemies at time as we try and play through it and Hojbjerg shanks a pass straight to Firmino who puts Coutinho in on the left but Fonte steams across and gets close enough for Coutinho to shat himself and lash it well wide.  Austin then narrowly avoids an own goal as a free kick is crossed in and Charlie’s the only one who goes for it.

My Christ we had a chance as Redmond picks up loose ball, plays Cedric away on the right and he fires over brilliant first time cross first time and Austin gets above the much smaller Clyne and meets it well but well wide.  Poor effort in truth and should have done better considering who he was up against.  We don’t have a monopoly on poor efforts though as Coutinho threads Firmino in and he basically has an open goal but decides to hit it with the outside of his boot and casually rolls it past the post.

In quick succession, Long is on for Boufal who hasn’t done much and J-Rod is on for Austin with Sturridge coming on for them, if he can be bothered.  His first contribution is to turn Redmond inside out on the left wing and stand up a superb cross for Clyne to steam in and meet and plant his free header wide of the far post.  Another huge let off.

Into the last 10 and Firmino has a dig from distance which takes a deflection and Fraser pushes it away well before we actually got up their end of the pitch and Bertrand’s cross is nowhere near a Saints player but Milner clearly handles it as it goes across his body.  The lino is looking right at it, nothing.. and none of our players are anywhere near it so no one appeals aside from those in the Chapel who all saw it.

As the game runs down we have no intention to play for anything more than a point and Liverpool seem to rely on hope more than expectation.  Twattenburg has had a quiet few minutes and so he pings Bertrand for making a few yards on a throw in.  There’s no way Twatt would have given it if Klopp wasn’t right there making various angry faces.  We survive the combined might of Liverpool and Twattenburg and full time.

Bloody hell that was a tough game.  You can certainly see what Klopp has brought to Liverpool as the soft mentality they’ve had for the last couple of years has certainly gone.  They will see it as a bad result whereas we can see it as a bit of a relief as we got virtually nothing going in the final third, defended superbly but did rely on some horrific finishing by Liverpool to get a point.

It was a strange game for us with some players having exceptionally good games whilst some were dreadful.  On the positive side, Fraser was back to his best with the pick of the bunch being the stunning save from Mané in the first half.  It was brilliant to have Cedric back and he certainly added to the defensive solidity that just isn’t there was Cuco the Clown is playing.  Virgil and José were magnificent as usual and Ryan Bertrand was quietly effective defensively but struggled to get forward at all.  Part of that was down to the horrific performance of Steve Davis in front of him. The game just looked to be to fast for him and he always seemed to be arriving just as the ball had been moved on.  Romeu proved again that he is one of the best defensive midfielders in the league and it was good to see Hojbjerg back in the Premier League side. 

Though lack of possession was an issue, the three up front were a problem.  Austin worked hard again but we needed him to bury his one chance and he really should have done better with a header against Clyne which went well wide.  Boufal didn’t really get into the game and Redmond had one of ‘those’ games.  By that I mean that he was bollocks.  There seems to be no inbetween with Nathan.  I’ve seen three games from him this season where he looked like a player who has no ability whatsoever – Arsenal away, Liverpool home and the England Under 21 game at St.Mary’s – and he’s had games where he’s looked like a great player.

Claude declared himself happy with a point and I think he’s right but we have to be doing a bit more than that going forward at home.  It’s a shame that Shane Long wasn’t fit enough to play a bigger part as I feel that his pace would have ensured that the relatively pedestrian Matip, Lovren and Milner wouldn’t have had such as easy afternoon.  Maybe it was a tactic specifically for today but with Austin up top and Boufal and Redmond playing very wide, we had precious little going on with Charlie having virtually no support and no pace to give the Liverpool defenders any issues.

It was the finishing and lack of it that means that Liverpool are only the second best team we’ve played this year behind Chelsea.  None of their regular front four (Coutinho, Firmino, Lallana, Mané) are prolific natural goalscorers so maybe this will be their problem this season.  Their one natural goalscorer is a lazy bastard which is why Klopp won’t play him.  The giant Matip looked like a good signing for them but the back 4 is the main issue which will mean the wait for winning the league will go on.  You aint gonna win the league with Milner at left back and the keeper has looked a bit dodgy – not today as we didn’t do anything.  I still dislike the arrogance around Liverpool and their fans in general are deluded fuckwits with a massive sense of entitlement.  Some of the dislike has gone with the departure of Rodgers and I’m warming to Klopp now he seems to have toned down his pitch side antics.  As for our ex’s – well Dejan was a Twat as usual but he had a solid match, Mané flitted in and out without damaging us and Clyne missed a sitter.  Out of the three (four if you include Adam the Twat) I guess it’s only Mané who we haven’t really replaced as yet, unless Redmond or Boufal are really going to step up.

Match of the Day was shit again in the way it was edited.  No mention of the Milner handball incident or Twattenburg’s shit refereeing but they shat on all day about Liverpool’s penalty shout.  Apparently their players were tired because they were all away playing internationals.  Well so were ours you fuckwits and we’re playing in Europe as well this year whereas they are not.

Oh yes, Europa. Next up is the Europa League and Sparta Prague away – win that and we’re through to the knockout stages and a win has got to be the aim against a team we beat easily at home.  I can see Yoshida, McQueen and bloody Martina coming into the defence, Clasie into midfield and probably Shane and Jay into the attack but no matter, we should still have enough to make Thursday a good day.