VVD and Fonte: one of best CB pairings in EPL

http://worldsoccertalk.com/2015/10/...-of-the-best-center-back-pairings-in-england/

Article praising Virgil as an asset for Southampton when paired with Jose. Fonte is the constant in all our best defences over recent years providing a foil and a stability to his more obviously talented partners over the years. Definitely have a gem in Virgil. No article that laughs at Lovren can be all wrong.

 

http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2015/10/0...southampton-claims-transfer-activity-has-bee/

I missed MOTD2 extra so I didn't hear Shearer praising our recruitment policy. Not sure about the finishing line to the article. Ronald Koeman underrated? Really?

 

Any article starting, "For all his Liverpool deficiencies .." Is going to be worth a read.

 

I begin to feel sorry for Dejan! If we are the sharp operators in the market, Liverpool's record makes them the complete numpties. Take a good player, pay over the top and watch them slide. Poor old Rickie is off to West Brom (West Brom!), probably because it suits his family to not move again; Lallana was one of our genuine players that we could see doing well elsewhere - well that worked out well, and now Clyne looks a shadow of his former self. And as for Lovren. An Evertonian mate of mine said to me recently that he thought DL had been good for us, but now realised that playing in a back 4 with Shaw, Clyne and Fonte, with Boruc in goal and behind Victor and Morgan was a straight forward job. Trying to marshall the Liverpool defence is like herding cats. That Reds fans are celebrating the fact he's injured sums it up.

As for Sheaer's comments, it's easy to forget the odd mistake and one huge clanger (step forward Osvaldo), but generally we seem to be making OK players look good again. Who was fighting us to get Graziano, Sadio or Virgil, to name but three? There were one or two sniggers behind the hand when we bought a clapped out Dutch keeper to fill the jersey until Fraser is fit. Koeman is a genius, of course, but there is one hell of a team behind those scenes. Proud times to be a Saint and I'm loving it.

 

http://www.london24.com/sport/footb...transfer_saga_and_hails_chelsea_win_1_4260228

Talking about the defence, Victor wants to forget the transfer saga in the summer and just play for Saints. Have to admit I had forgotten all about that already (though will probably remember when the summer transfer window opens ).

 

Still annoyed by his behaviour, but must say, his performances have been very good.

 

YEt 3 weeks ago Shearer said 'you can't do it every season'. I'm sure he is struggling with memory issues.

 

They do of course need some sort of crap to spout, in order to get something right come season's end. All the pundits who predicted our relegation last season all predicted Chelsea as title-winners this season, I'm sure. Nonsense industry, really. Guess as long as we see it for what it is - entertainment - then it's no big deal that they know no more than the average working man.

 

Well, an example is watching MOTD. Every week nearly all of us have the opportunity to watch the 90 minutes of Saints playing later on in the evening, after the match, and several of us do that. But the vast majority watch MOTD to view 5-10 diluted mins of action and 10 minutes of the pundits talking about the team we beat. When you look at it in that perspective perhaps we ought to re-consider our supporting motives and what entertains us. Truth is, with the match over, many people actually don't want to watch much more football, even if they never saw any live. They just want to see people talking about it. Personally, I think that's quite odd and I watch MOTD too. Just not instead of the real thing first.

 

It still makes me wonder why it took so long to get the VVD transfer to go through. If we had just paid a little extra and got him in earlier, then we might be a few points better off, and still in the Europa League.

 

Celtic played hardball when we bought Victor and Frasier....probably no different with VVD.

 

Pundits just give their opinion (the same as we do)....hardly surprising that they can disagree with each other and us. One day we may get analysis by computer and we'd all be expected to take it as gospel...not as entertaining as quibbling with what a real human being thinks.

 

http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2015/10/0...-celtics-biggest-problem-claims-van-dijk-tra/

Neil McCann says that Celtic are already missing Virgil....they definitely wanted to keep him, especially when trying to get through in the CL. That held everything up....just as we're playing hardball with Mane and Victor.

 

http://sportwitness.ning.com/forum/...rning-much-more-at-southampton-than-at-celtic

Virgil saying how much he has learnt in his 5 games at Southampton. I know he has said previously how much he is enjoying it here. If he feels he is still learning, then bring it on.

 

'In five games with Southampton I've learned more than in years before.'

I feel a lot of rage up north!

 

There shouldn't be when you think that two of his games involved Manchester United and Chelsea.