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Episode 404: Matchday Review: 13 UNBEATEN! NORWICH NULLIFIED!
128 Plays15 days ago
Southampton – Zak said this was the trickiest game of the rest in this spell.... and it sure felt that way, but we did enough to get another 3 points, and take us up into those play-off places! What a time to be a saints fan!
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Transcript
Saints vs Norwich: A Nerdy Victory?
00:00:13
DailySaintsPod
Hello and welcome back to the Daily Saints pod. My name is Greg. Flying solo today with a match review episode of a... nerdy win against Norwich, let's say. But a win nonetheless.
Saints' Performance and Ball Movement Issues
00:00:32
DailySaintsPod
Now 13 games on the Saints. Heading up into sixth and...
00:00:40
DailySaintsPod
feels like we can't be stopped. Just another another game that you know wasn't the most convincing of performances.
00:00:48
DailySaintsPod
It was such a strange game. It was felt like a really good, solid performance, but also like we just didn't do enough to get it across the line. It was the same issues that we saw at West Brom, except the performance wasn't bad like that it's just that the ball movement was just a bit slower than it needed to be I think you know trying to play around Norwich who to be fair to them their press was was very good and we struggled to break through it but uh we did and we got the win and you know we we held them at length and i mean who would have thought
00:01:28
DailySaintsPod
at any point earlier in the season that we'd be you getting games like that over the line. that the difference is immeasurable in the team that we were earlier in the season.
Lineup Strategy and Formation Fluidity
00:01:38
DailySaintsPod
But look I'm going to try and keep it a little bit structured and start with the team news and lineups that we obviously saw at the start of the night. So the the lineup came in and it was was pretty much as predicted from us in our preview episode. Dozie coming in and starting and playing as that wide player.
00:02:04
DailySaintsPod
Matzki staying in the team and and not really any, you know, no other changes. No Leo on the bench, no Stuart on the bench, as predicted, just to throw it out that they might be involved presumably to keep the opposition getting and preparing for them, but But it was was good. It was exactly what we expected. there Still this same sort of 4-1, off the ball formation, which kind of built to a like a four three three in possession. it was quite fluid. It was quite clear that our plan was to
00:02:44
DailySaintsPod
try and build up from the back, and try and draw their press and find the spaces and find the gaps. And, uh, we just didn't really at any point manage to decisively do that time and time again. We were quite happy with being patient though, and, and waiting for those gaps. And, you know, chances
Refereeing Controversies
00:03:07
DailySaintsPod
did come. We, we had probably the clearest chances of the game.
00:03:27
DailySaintsPod
that referee was rubbish. like But equally to both sides, I think, again, like we talked about in the Coventry game, you booked like six Norwich players and some of them were deserved and some of them were questionable and then...
00:03:46
DailySaintsPod
you know He booked a few of our plays in the in the second half, which, again, some of them deserved, some of them not. There was a penalty shout in the first half against a dozy. From where I was sat, the other end of the ground, to be fair, I looked at him and went, it looked like six of one, half dozen the other. They were kind of at each other.
00:04:08
DailySaintsPod
But looking at the replay, he just gets gets pulled down by the arm. It's just ridiculous. a clear A penalty, but it matters less when you take into account the result, I suppose. But Kyle Lahren continues to be the most fouled man on the planet and never receive a free kick.
00:04:29
DailySaintsPod
But if he so much as shrugs his shoulders in the direction of a Norwich player, a free kick goes the other way. It's... The inconsistency week to week and the quality of refereeing in this league is such a disappointment compared to the the quality of football in the league and the quality of competition in the league. And honestly, they need to sort it out. it's It's getting beyond a joke. And i know that it's the same in the Premier League, but it's ridiculous. It's not something that we should have to talk about every week because...
00:05:05
DailySaintsPod
It's not what want to do. I don't want to go to the football and call the referee all the names under the sun because I think he's doing a rubbish job. i would love to the game and not think about the referee at all and my criticism to be solely based off of how either team is playing.
00:05:23
DailySaintsPod
But... you know, we can wish for these kind of things, but whether they will come into play, probably not, I suppose.
Transition Play Strengths and Weaknesses
00:05:33
DailySaintsPod
But yeah, when we weren't trying to play it out from the back, we almost seemed happy to to sit off a bit and let them have the ball and maybe felt that our our strength was in transition, which which is something that we've you know It is one of our strengths. It's why we don't do so well against teams that are happy to let us have the ball. It's because we, when we switch up a game, move forward fast and and do so in numbers.
00:06:35
DailySaintsPod
But sometimes it's very effective and creates very good chances. And yeah, look, it was enough today. and And when we were off the ball, we we, on the whole, kept them very quiet. A couple of...
00:06:54
DailySaintsPod
shots from range that were, would say, pretty comfortable saves for Peretz, and one exceptional double save. and And then I guess one that kind of could have gone anywhere off of Stevens right at the end and bounced off the top of the crossbar, which, I mean, didn't do anyone's nerves any good. It's not...
00:07:14
DailySaintsPod
you know We talked a lot earlier in the season about the scar tissue and the mentality of the players, but I think I speak for all Saints fans to say that we've suffered a enough trauma as as a set of fans to never be comfortable at 1-0 up.
00:07:28
DailySaintsPod
It was not... a game where we were sitting pre and i I felt like we probably needed two to win the game and as it was we we shored up and held our own and got the win.
Defensive Confidence and Shape
00:07:44
DailySaintsPod
What impressed me was that our press, even though we were Allowing them to have the ball. It was not freedom on the ball You know pretty much until the end of the game we were there competing for the ball with them and just slowing them down immensely they they really struggled get out of it and you know, it showed. We were happy to just let them pass it around to the back and then put the pressure on in the middle of the park. And that kind of 4-1-4-1 shape helped with that immensely. We, you know, we were really strong in the middle of the park and they they just couldn't get through it most of the time, which is why, you know,
00:08:30
DailySaintsPod
And more or less all of their shots ended up coming and being lashed at from, you know, from range because that was the only option they had left. So, hello look, it was effective and it worked. And, you know, it's a confidence that we have in the defence that we have not had at points earlier in the season.
Man-of-the-Match: Perrette's Commanding Performance
00:08:51
DailySaintsPod
And that kind of speaks for itself. Yeah.
00:08:55
DailySaintsPod
I mentioned Perrette obviously got man of the match in the stadium from Saints fans and probably rightfully so. Definitely three points that we don't have yes he's not the the player in the goal. he The confidence that he pushes out to the defenders in front of him and the command he has of the box and the saves he is able to make...
00:09:23
DailySaintsPod
it just brings like an immeasurable value to the team to have that confidence in, in the keeper behind you. And is,
00:09:33
DailySaintsPod
put so much effort into keeping a clean sheet. It is like his single driving motivational force. And, uh, love it. And he's slightly eccentric as we saw at the end of the game with his, uh, interaction with the saints fans and, uh, enjoying the clean sheet and the win and the 13 game on beating run. And it was great to see. And,
00:10:30
DailySaintsPod
But look, that's an interesting discussion that we, I'm sure, we will continue to have in the summer, depending on on what happens with the rest of the season, right? That's the an interesting one. But yeah, he he was exceptional today.
00:10:45
DailySaintsPod
Again, like that's two games in a row where he has been the important difference maker to get us the the win. So, yeah, what what an incredible signing in January that is to turn the season around.
00:11:00
DailySaintsPod
In hindsight, anywhere we're at. say I can't heap enough praise on him. I thought he was was excellent.
Zaz's Goal and Exceptional Play
00:11:09
DailySaintsPod
Fina Zaz, of course, the goal scorer, but definitely on one of his hot games today, we talked about him as a slightly hot and cold player, but actually the the space he was able to create today with Norwich almost seeming to to hang off of him at certain points,
00:11:30
DailySaintsPod
it just unbelievable not Just, of course, the goal, which was excellent. Just an absolute dream of a first touch to take two players completely out of the equation and an incredible finish to put it top bins.
00:11:43
DailySaintsPod
and But just his play in general, his fight, his press. us just He didn't seem to stop running at all today, which is a criticism that we have had seen and have had of him in the in the past. and there was none of that today. he was...
00:12:00
DailySaintsPod
physically strong. He wanted to be first to every ball. And every time he got on the ball, he he looked to try and create something. And it was, yeah, an exceptional performance.
00:12:13
DailySaintsPod
Rewarded with the goal. His 10th of the season. great. It's just such a great player to watch and enjoy watching play football when he is...
00:12:26
DailySaintsPod
in form like he was tonight. It's like genuinely some of the vision he has or some of the passes he makes are unreal. Just very enjoyable to watch.
00:12:37
DailySaintsPod
Laren for me Also very good. Mentioned earlier, like I say, continues to get assaulted every single game. Never given a foul against. Just baffling to me.
00:12:50
DailySaintsPod
But again, it's another one of those games where, you know, on paper, he he wasn't able to break through the back line. And, you know, I don't think he had a shot.
00:13:04
DailySaintsPod
But... every time he was on the ball, he was swarmed by three Norwich players. And what that meant was that someone else was free. And he a few times was able to find that player and get an opportunity to to create that chance. And what he brings as a physical presence.
00:13:22
DailySaintsPod
And as a threat with a bit of pace running in the press, I have to say, they their keeper did not enjoy having... the imposing figure of Lahren running at him to press the ball at any point in the evening. And it was it was good. At the end of the day, it's a
Laren's Role and Contributions
00:13:39
DailySaintsPod
team game.
00:13:40
DailySaintsPod
And as stats-driven as people are in this modern day and age, you have to understand that the work he does to create the stuff for other people by by distracting other eyes is as important because you just don't get the freedom and space to to do it.
00:14:04
DailySaintsPod
Yeah, it's a good performance for me. I think we look better with Laron than we do with Stuart at the moment. And I just hope that he can stay fit enough to continue to be impactful.
00:14:18
DailySaintsPod
And yeah, thought he was excellent. some some good hold-up play as well today. And, yeah, good stuff all around. Adozi, obviously, yeah know, getting rewarded with the start today. Assisted, of course, Lahren in that West Brom game and... He has good energy about him at the moment. He looks like a completely revitalised player. and He was bright. He was energetic.
00:14:44
DailySaintsPod
He defended and covered Manning very well at times, with Manning sort of pushing high at certain points. as part of that sort of rotation to drag a defender out and try and create space.
00:15:00
DailySaintsPod
But Dosey was good. So, yeah, he made some some good, important tackles, picked up the ball really deep and immediately looks up and tries to run.
00:15:12
DailySaintsPod
and it's it's great, tries to drag us forward that way and beat a man, and that's what you want from from a wide player of his of his quality, and several times in the game, you know, much like we say about Leo, that the he didn't have an answer for his pace other than to just kick him and take him out the game as best they could by fouling him and You know, he he won several free kicks, some of which led to half-decent chances.
Adozi's Disallowed Goal: Was it Fair?
00:15:42
DailySaintsPod
And, of course, scored the goal that was disallowed for offside, which was, mean, slightly dubious because it was a Zaz that was offside and he didn't touch the ball, he did go to play the ball, so i guess technically in the name of the law, didn't. It should have been offside, but it's it's shame because it was a performance that was worthy of of the goal.
00:16:06
DailySaintsPod
I was so happy for him when he scored and so devastated when I looked up and saw the linesman holding the flag up. But yeah, I thought he was brilliant. I can only presume the substitution to take him off was minutes-based and safe either saving him for the weekend or or you know watching the minutes that he's allowed to play as he's still kind of coming back to full fitness. But I think that must have been the case because a lot otherwise I wouldn't have taken him off at all because he was just a very good
00:16:38
DailySaintsPod
And it's great to see him coming back into a bit of form and finding his feet because, you know, who knows how long Leo is is actually going to be out.
00:16:49
DailySaintsPod
And he's potentially going to be a and called upon in these very important moments to to bring that quality that we know he does have and and stick with it. But yeah, very good for him. Very pleased for and with him.
00:17:04
DailySaintsPod
this evening just the the whole team performed really well we could go through the entire team and and praise every single one Matzke was continued to be strong on that right hand side and again made some excellent defensive plays and some pretty good going forward plays some nice passes yeah it's going to really hard Tom Fellows to get back in the team because of how well Matzke is playing at the moment and Oh, what great problem to have. Speaking of fellows, just a weekly reminder that I definitely curse that man to never score a goal. He found himself in acres of space at the back post, only to painfully watch a slightly over-hit cross just graze like half a foot above his head. If he was just like half a foot taller, we'd have been having a different conversation, but...
00:17:59
DailySaintsPod
unfortunate for him
00:18:22
DailySaintsPod
Yeah.
00:18:24
DailySaintsPod
Look, we talked and are going to talk a lot about the transfer windows from this summer and and this January. And Sports Republic have obviously had question marks over their heads for them, you know, because of the form we were in before.
00:18:41
DailySaintsPod
And some of that's gone away because of the form we're on. And that's fine. and That's great. But... It doesn't mean that at the end of the season there's not going to be a full, you know, hindsight moment where we look back and think about whether it was a success or not. And the biggest question that remains for me is what were we thinking in sending James Bree out on loan at the start of the season? Because I think currently he is probably the best player for us on the pitch. Just involved in so much of the game.
00:19:19
DailySaintsPod
Excellent defensively. Just an absolute brick wall sometimes. Gets forward equally well. creates chance after chance. There were three crosses I can think of early on that were were lethal. Obviously had the shot saved that bounced out to a doze for the disallowed goal.
00:19:39
DailySaintsPod
Was involved in putting the cross in for the the penalty that should have been for a doze. Just a player that has properly stepped up and is, you know...
00:19:51
DailySaintsPod
doesn't really have any competition for a place at right back anyway at the moment but uh if he did would not would be an irreplaceable part of the system uh just just yeah very very very good yeah I know, an interesting game. It's interesting that the performances all feel so positive and I feel like we played really well, but also I just feel... just couldn't feel comfortable. It wasn't a comfortable win by any stretch of the imagination.
Gritty Victory Against the Odds
00:20:23
DailySaintsPod
we We let them have more than we should have and we didn't create half as much as we should have.
00:20:32
DailySaintsPod
I think on merit and on performance, like we still still deserve the win. you know Based off of nothing but vibes from Stadium and sort of my my overall view on the game, but you know the stats maybe say otherwise. 14 shots for Norwich compared to nine for us.
00:20:54
DailySaintsPod
and And, you know, XG... Not upset Zach, but, you know, XG, they were higher than us. And, yeah, it it was... It's one of those games where... it was a win where we probably didn't play our best, but were still quite impressive against a very informed team in Norwich, even, you know, with the position they find themselves in at the table.
00:21:17
DailySaintsPod
You know, their form is... is it immense, right? Four wins and a loss. The loss being us. Sorry, four wins a loss before us, and then, of course, the loss to tonight. And, you know, a team that very, on any other day, could very easily have come here and beat us. But we we saw it out with 13 games unbeaten in all competitions.
13-Game Unbeaten Streak: What’s Next?
00:21:43
DailySaintsPod
We are sixth in the table now. you know it's It's great. What an incredible run of form we're on. What an amazing job Tonda has done to turn it around and instill that confidence in the players and and get us into a position where we're winning games like this that we just were never winning and never going to win earlier in the season for you know any reason. which We just wheeled this game over the line effectively with...
00:22:17
DailySaintsPod
with with our struggle to sort of keep Norwich at bay. But it was it was good. We won. It was not comfortable. I did not enjoy it. horrible way to win a game. Would have much preferred my prediction to come true where we scored three more goals in the second half.
00:22:33
DailySaintsPod
But three points and fate and destiny truly in our own hands heading into another home game at the weekend.
00:22:45
DailySaintsPod
yeah. What's gonna stop the Thunder Train? Because i don't I don't know if anything can. Certainly feels that way.
00:22:52
DailySaintsPod
sir It's nice. It's a nice feeling to have after a horrible time in previous seasons. But it's great. It's good. It's fantastic.
Listener Engagement and Upcoming Matches
00:23:05
DailySaintsPod
It's all of the good things.
00:23:07
DailySaintsPod
And it's going great to continue to to look to build from that and head back to St. Mary's on Saturday. uh and all that but this this is all i've got time for today so thank you so much for sticking with me through this episode uh Let me know your thoughts on the match and how you feel about it and how you think it went in the comments on the socials with Daily Saints pod absolutely everywhere. TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, X, Blue Sky, YouTube, everywhere. Hit us up. Let us know. we love hearing from you. We will be back tomorrow to talk about that very game coming up at St. Mary's I was talking about against Oxford. Until then, though, enjoy that win, everyone.
00:23:55
DailySaintsPod
Have a wonderful day, and we will see you then.