Ralph sacked as Saints manager

Ralph isn't the person doing the signing. I'm sure he has some input, but there are very few clubs where the manager is primarily responsible for recruitment these days, and we are not one.

Setting that aside, it's also not even true that all of the attacking players save Long and Redmond arrived during Ralph's tenure. Both Elyounoussi and Stuart Armstrong also pre-date Ralph's time with the club.

Also, of our permanent signings in the past three seasons, fully 50% were from domestic clubs, which is probably among the highest of any club. The comment about French players being inherently more prone to flatter to deceive is straight-up weird.

 

As has been said before, he was ages ago. I don’t know why this story persists.

 

Well, that told me! Yep certainly didn’t know & actually have never ever heard his name mentioned before ….. maybe that says something? Interesting that also a number on here refer to additional coaching staff.

 

Given Ian's obsession with "the Frenchman", Claud Puel, it's fair to say that he is not a francophile...

 

Ian has a bit of a point that not too many players who come direct from the French league do well in the PL.

That is also the case with the Bundesliga and flops are much more common from that league.

 

That picture just makes me chuckle.

 

SA

But I am a Francophile!

My point was that players from French football have not necessarily done well in English football and especially at Saints. Thinking of players like Boufal, Pied, Colleter, Diallo, etc. Even when the players on question have come from African countries, I think that the step up from French to English football is too much of a massive leap for them. I am hping that Perraud can cement a place for himself in our squad as I have been impressed with him. Shame that Yann Valery has not evolved in to the fop flight talent I had anticipated when he first played for us.

It is interesting just how many French players in the World Cup winning team actually played their football abroad. The success of the national team in the 1990s /2000s tended to mask the fact that their domestic league is pretty underwhelming when yo get beyond the likes of PSG, Lyons and Marseille. Outside of Arsenal , Man Utd and Chelsea, I think that French players as a whole have not really dominated the game although there has been the odd player like David Ginola who has captured the imagination. The few matches I have seen in France have not been too good. A match between Troyes (ESTAC) and Dijon being a particular low point and maybe compatible with League One in the UK.

As for Puel, I don't really think he was much better than some of the mediocre English managers of the time like Bruce, Pulis and Allardyce. His nationalitywas of no consequence as to his ability and perception of how the game should be played and I think the perception of most Saints fans would be similar to that of those from Leicester and St Etienne.

 

Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera, Emmanuel Petit, Eric Cantona etc, etc. We just buy the wrong French players. I know they didn’t come straight from France, but Kante and Mahrez did. Mahrez is Frenchish, I know.

 

Who was that Morgan Spiderman bloke who used to hang around our team being nothing short of a genius? Wasn’t he vaguely French?

 

I’d say the players signed from Serie A have been the biggest disappointment; Osvaldo, Lemina, Gaston, Gabbiadini.

Hopefully the Gorilla can buck the trend.

 

He never played so not sure he's contaminated.

 

I don't think it's fair to lump Gabbiadini in there mate

 

Yeah, Thierry Henri was a flop wasn’t he? Along with Vierra and Petit. And Didier Drogba was mediocre at best

 

And despite being clinically insane, Danny Osvaldo was worth every penny for that goal against City

 

Yeah, if one judges by the players Saints have signed since returning to the PL, you'd quickly conclude that football development in every nation is awful...save for Scotland.

 

I miss Steven Davis
WE miss Steven Davis

We lack that undervalued skill combined with incredible work rate AND fantastic mental toughness and never say die attitude

 

Kind of get all that from JWP I think.

What we miss in midfield is a little bit of magic, someone to open doors. Doesn't have to be French but it might help...

 

He's borderline. He started great, 6 goals in his first 4 games. Sadly it took him another 50+ games to get the next 6. Overall just a bit underwhelming considering he cost 15m and we signed him from a big Italian club.

 

He’s not as good as Stevo in open play for me, but apart from that I guess he is. Needs better around him now Oriel is slowing down