Same old. Negatives as usual: no incisiveness up front, build up too slow, though some attempts at faster counters failed. Like the last couple of games I have seen on the box, some of the previously accurate passing, notably in midfield, but also from Ryan Bertrand, now goes astray, and they closed us down much too easily at times. Tadic off the boil, Charlie and Gabba lacked service. Their keeper had a good one of course. Claude was a bit slow to react to Stoke’s switch to a back four, but maybe Pied was a good idea on the right, we just didn’t have enough time to use the extra width.
Positives, we are still trying to play decent football, and lack the last piece of luck (Redmond’s lob would always be sheer luck to pull off, but he did the right thing). One or two decent flashes from Boufal, sure he will come good with time. Yoshi and Jack Stephens look better each game. Yoshi is concrete, Stephens stood up very well eg to Shaqiri, who looks the sort of thug who would stab you several times in a seedy Tirana back alley for so much as a casual glance at his wife.
Lacking the leader on the pitch. If you know who will still be there next year, no problem, if not then we need someone. Yoshi is better at marshalling at the back, Davis is surpisingly muted for an international captain, and also JWP, who by all accounts leads well at U21 level but can’t or won’t for us.
I am not one to call for sacking people every 5 minutes which is why I don’t both much with TSW. I don’t dislike Puel and I want him to succeed. However something clearly isn’t working. We have a decent squad but we don’t seem to be able to win matches that we should be winning. Something needs to change. I don’t mind if Claude stays, but SOMETHING needs to change!
As most of you lot are pleasant, intelligent and (in the main) sane, may I humbly suggest that for your own protection you delete any and all accidental links that could take you to fiverweb.
And if anyone in the UK that can call a Toll Free number, may I suggest that you ask The Samaritans to send re-inforcements urgently.
Tbh a lot of those booing our team and management yesterday are SCUM of the highest order. This was NOT a Branfoot Season, it was a disappointing season.
FFS we could have been Sunderland or Boro, and at least our summer wasn’t as bad as Hull’s
If this is a bad season, God help us if we got to the point where we are fighting relegation every year again. If the Government think that mental health issues are worrying now…
Im looking forward to the summer now to see what happens. Despite my favouring of a change in management I feel Puel is an honest man. He came in with a philosophy based on rotation and pragmatism and stuck to it. The shame is it hasnt worked. Whether we get a new manager or not the club need to decide given the results what our ambition really is. As I have said the takeover with largly determine that. There can be no conning of supporters any more that we can progress as a selling club. Kruger has said that will change so he can be held to his word. Commercial revenues are up slightly so that is good but if we want to match the Corsesea ambition then we have to follow his previous lead to keep on adding to the squad with better an invitably more expensive players. Our costs on that front are already quite high.
PUBLISHED: 20:24 BST, 21 May 2017 | UPDATED: 23:07 BST, 21 May 2017
Stoke striker Peter Crouch upheld his end of the bargain with Tyrone Sidley and handed him his match shirt after the avid Potters fan turned up at Southampton wearing nothing but Speedos.
Sidley had contacted the veteran forward on social media earlier this week, asking if he would be willing to hand over the shirt if he travelled to and watched their final Premier League game of the season in nothing but the revealing swimwear.
To his surprise, Crouch agreed while midfielder Charlie Adam offered his shirt if Sidley also wore scuba diving gear, which he duly agreed to.
Tyrone Sidley was challenged to wear speedos by Stoke stars Peter Crouch and Charlie Adam
Crouch agreed to give Sidley his shirt if he wore Speedos to Stoke’s game vs Southampton
Crouch upheld his end of the bargain, which was made all the better after his winning goal
Having seen Crouch score the winning goal in the match, Sidley waited patiently in the front row of the away end and it wasn’t long before the former England international spotted him and made his way over.
Not only did Crouch hand over his shirt, but he took the time to have a brief chat with the larger-than-life character before posing for pictures. Soon after, Adam did the same.
