Article by Sam Wallace @ Telegraph

Not sure I need to hear from Gao to be honest.

But for Semmens and Steele, how about https://www.southamptonfc.com/news/...mpton-football-club-thursday-10-december-2020 (their 3rd forum but not as punchy as the earlier ones due to it being on zoom).

To be honest I think the current board have been much more open with fan forums than Cortese ever was (I think he only turned up at one - preferring the rehearsed one on one interview). That said you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. Remember the 5 year plan to get us into Champions League that was widely mocked? The Black Box strategy?? Semmens, IMO, has been far more modest and realistic in his stated aims for the club. We work within our means so we have to generate our own transfer budget; we no longer have to sell but if a player wants to go, we won't stand in his way. We want to push up the table. We want to take cup competitions seriously. Ralph has bought into that model with his playbook, the academy/ B team model. The development of players already here is evidence of that. Buys under Ralph have been solid suggesting recruitment is back on track.

Saints can't say too much more as ownership is a bit of an unknown quantity. It does seem Gao would sell at the right price. Potentially 5 buyers interested. But anyone thinking this will result in a sugar daddy with an open check book is sadly deluding themselves. The only change will be certainty of ongoing ownership (which undoubtedly makes it easier for Semmens and Steele). The self sustaining model is with us to stay

 

We know you don’t follow everything too closely.... Semmens has done at least a couple of very in depth interviews.

They weren’t printed on the back of a red top though.

 

I think the way we are being run is very good. I have faith in the whole club right now. We have a better manager than we had any right to expect after Pellegrino and Hughes. The stated aims are achievable, the timeframes are not overly ambitious. The pathway from junior to first team seems clear and open, recruitment has been stellar for the first time in years and the football is dynamic and exciting. What more could we expect? It'd be pretty shallow and hollow to concern yourself purely with first team results week by week. Ive enjoyed this season even including the current horrid run as there's been plenty to look at and feel positive or hopeful about.

The concerns for me are exterior. Token Ownership and the financial operating environment are tough.