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Episode 182: Matchday Review: WE AREN'T THE WORST!
81 Plays4 days ago
Southampton – Ok, so we're joint worst, but it's still a step in the right direction! Zak and Greg talk all things West Ham, the game, and the future!
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Transcript
Introduction of Hosts
00:00:09
Global Sports Podcast Network
Hello and welcome back to the Daily Southampton, part of the Global Sports Podcast Network. My name is Greg Elliott and as always joined by my good friend and wonderful co-host, Zach Ingo Finch.
00:00:20
Global Sports Podcast Network
How mate?
00:00:22
Zak
Yeah, mate, good. I mean, we got a point.
Southampton's Relegation Woes
00:00:25
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:00:25
Zak
We're already relegated, but now we're just the joint worst team in the Premier League all time.
00:00:29
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, that is an upgrade, just the joint.
00:00:31
Zak
Not the worst team.
00:00:33
Global Sports Podcast Network
Not the single worst, the joint worst.
00:00:37
Zak
But there's there's a lot. There's quite a few things I want to discuss today. I'm not going to lie.
00:00:41
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:00:41
Zak
Once we go through, we'll go through the standard rigmarole of like set up and match and that kind of stuff. But other than that, there's yeah there's some some things that have happened that I'm like, huh,
Match Reflections
00:00:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
Well, we played some football, you know, and we celebrated our last minute equaliser like it was a victory, but it was, it's good to get.
00:00:52
Zak
okay.
00:00:54
Zak
Yeah. Yeah.
00:01:02
Global Sports Podcast Network
We talked before, how about some draws feel like a win and some draws feel like a loss.
00:01:05
Zak
Oh, mate. that was that was That was definitely...
00:01:07
Global Sports Podcast Network
That's a win.
00:01:08
Zak
it considering Considering how upset the West Ham fans were and how at one point we were like, we should have gone for Graham Potter. And I'm kind of there like... He made a 14th place West Ham team end up in seventeen Flynn Downs had James Ward-Prowse his back pocket for a bit of the game.
00:01:27
Zak
It was a very bizarre thing. His free-kick effort sailed over Ramsdale. i What a bizarre game. What a bizarre game. I thought we were going to do standard Saints things, and and we didn't because it turns out if you keep...
00:01:42
Zak
the players on the pitch who do really well on the pitch, i.e. down to Nugachukwu, you get rewarded.
Player Performance Surprises
00:01:50
Zak
i
00:01:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:01:51
Zak
We never thought he'd score a goal, mate. Do you remember that absolute... he like He took a shot off. I want to say against Bournemouth or something. It was like months back now. And we were like, good grief, I hope he never takes another shot.
00:02:05
Zak
And me and you have sat...
00:02:05
Global Sports Podcast Network
There's someone who sits and watches his warm-up and his shooting practice every week at St Mary's. I can safely say I never thought he was going to score.
00:02:14
Zak
For all the players, man.
00:02:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
LAUGHTER
00:02:16
Zak
But then, you know... Because, cause yeah, obviously we had our standard frustration. And I'm pretty sure I predicted the line-up down to a T, apart from... i said that maybe Ross Stewart would start instead of Onoatu.
00:02:25
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:02:28
Zak
And then obviously they brought Onoatu off.
00:02:29
Global Sports Podcast Network
you You did caveat that with if O'Han actually wasn't it to start.
00:02:32
Zak
Yeah.
00:02:33
Global Sports Podcast Network
So I think we can call that a
00:02:33
Zak
if If... So...
Youth Player Exclusion Concerns
00:02:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
win, mate.
00:02:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
I think that's a big tick for you.
00:02:37
Zak
Yeah, but at this point, it's just... It's like, of all of the players we've got who still want to play football, I think my only big surprise was there was none of the sort of youth prospects that we all thought he'd play on the bench.
00:02:50
Zak
We had no Jay Roberts on the bench. i don't know if it's just because he signed a big new contract and had his debut the other day and they just wanted to maybe...
00:02:55
Global Sports Podcast Network
That was it. That was what the debut was. That was just the sweetener to get the contract over the door. Now we won't ever see him until the end of the season.
00:03:02
Zak
Yeah, but maybe maybe that. or like But for me, maybe it's also like, hey, we don't want to do what we did with Dibbling and introduce at the beginning of the season and now we'll have to fight off. like some of some of the some of the Some of the ways that I was watching, because obviously I live in an undisclosed location, which allows me to watch TV.
00:03:20
Zak
but wonder what they were They were very heavy, like, i he needs to go. If he gets the opportunity to go, he needs to
Biased Commentary Rants
00:03:25
Zak
go. And I was getting annoyed at how biased it was.
00:03:25
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, i would think i think I think I was watching from the same country as you this week with our our international jet set where when we can't make away matches, we have to fly out and watch them aboard.
00:03:30
Zak
Yeah, it's crazy. Yeah,
00:03:35
Zak
yeah.
00:03:38
Zak
Well, you know, it's just it's just part of it. If they made it easier to watch it over here in the UK, it would be so much easier. But, you know, anyway.
00:03:46
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, no, I agree. Actually, that commentator in particular was doing my head in, because the only positive thing he had to say about Southampton and was how good our fans were, which he's not wrong, but also does he need to keep repeating that over and over again?
00:03:51
Zak
it. We're bad.
00:04:00
Zak
Right, good, lord good grief. And it's like, you know, they're so good. Kudus was so good. He was a bright as bright spark last season. Kudus, Kudus, Kudus, Kudus. Kudus, why are they taking off Jadon? Oh, do you realise there's two teams here?
00:04:13
Zak
Like, I understand that you don't
Scoring Struggles
00:04:15
Zak
care because we're relegated. I understand that you don't care, but ultimately we drew. and again, you know, as I...
00:04:22
Global Sports Podcast Network
probably should have won, right?
00:04:23
Zak
Oh, towards towardsing to be to be fair, like first half, the amount of misses we had, I was getting wound up because I was like, this is going to end up being, I think about 80th minute, my wife can attest. I was just sat there screaming like at the tv TV, like, you are paid so much money to score goals.
00:04:43
Zak
None of you can score goals. Getting so infuriated.
00:04:45
Global Sports Podcast Network
and Walker Peters should have done better with his run, right? That should have been a goal.
00:04:49
Zak
Walker-Peters should have done. Suleiman, I should have put him away.
00:04:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
Sulemon and hit the crossbar, that's a bit unlucky.
00:04:53
Zak
Yeah, but you should have put some away. We should have struck.
00:04:55
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, Diblin had one.
00:04:56
Zak
went the
00:04:57
Global Sports Podcast Network
That
00:04:57
Zak
Dippen had one that went over. Jack Stevens even had one, which should have been like, you know, again, it's just, it's a team full of
00:05:04
Global Sports Podcast Network
was a good save, be fair.
00:05:05
Zak
Yeah, but it's a team full of, like, a lack of confidence. But the problem is, it's so funny that, like, years later, managers later, something in the DNA of Southampton's football club is that, like, unless we have a striker that is properly firing, the entire rest of the team collapses. I remember Hassan Hool, of all people, being interviewed, right?
00:05:27
Zak
And he was talking about how... Do remember he was like, we need to start seeing goals from elsewhere? I think this was actually criticism of Pella.
00:05:37
Zak
That was what the criticism was for, right? Graziano Pella was being criticised for for like not scoring as many goals. And him being like, yeah, we need to start seeing more goals from from places like Jordi Classy and Romelu and stuff like this.
00:05:50
Zak
And it's just like, it's something that's existed for years in Southampton's DNA.
00:05:54
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:05:55
Zak
But I guess that's the one thing you can't blame our team for this season. Because with the few goals we've had, they've been just anywhere.
00:06:01
Global Sports Podcast Network
They've been div diverse. They've come from everywhere.
Championship Unpredictability
00:06:05
Global Sports Podcast Network
but if That same commentator at one point was like, West Ham from set pieces have been awful. You'd want at least six goals from a centre-back.
00:06:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
I'm like, mate, Tupul's our top scorer on four.
00:06:16
Zak
yeah Yeah, okay, so we were definitely watching you exactly the same because, good lord, I was like, six goals from our centre-backs.
00:06:19
Global Sports Podcast Network
LAUGHTER
00:06:25
Zak
But, apparently, at one point, that probably was on, but our top goal score was four and it's, oh, man.
00:06:27
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:06:34
Zak
really so i think for me as well, it shows that there seems to be some sort of disconnect with how a lot of the relegation teams actually are quality-wise. and you know
00:06:43
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:06:44
Zak
And all I can say is I look forward to Burnley trying to get nil-nils for the entirety of next season and getting absolutely bad at not scoring.
00:06:52
Zak
So...
00:06:52
Global Sports Podcast Network
Going down to the best league in the world, mate, in the championship, I don't know if you saw the graphic, but there is not a single team not that confirmed with that's in the championship at the moment that's confirmed with their place in the championship next season.
00:07:04
Global Sports Podcast Network
All of the teams can either go up or down.
00:07:04
Zak
That's nuts, isn't
00:07:07
Zak
That is so mad.
00:07:07
Global Sports Podcast Network
It's...
00:07:09
Zak
But then that's the problem is that then they'll come up. And again, it's not going to be our problem next season, but I think it will be interesting to watch from the sidelines. But, you know, for for today's game, it was just nice to watch us play some football.
00:07:23
Zak
And it was nice to be frustrated us not scoring as opposed to being frustrated at us not even having a shot.
00:07:23
Global Sports Podcast Network
Oh
00:07:30
Zak
The shots mainly weren't on target. Manning was kind of at fault for the goal. There's a couple of things that are just annoyances, but...
00:07:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah. The goal was like just if the piece of individual brilliance from...
00:07:45
Zak
Yeah, it's Jarrah Bowen, isn't it? It's exactly what happened the game before him.
00:07:46
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, and I mean, and and and a good counter-attack. but It wasn't just our bro, either. It was a good counter-attack brought in by good play from Kudus as well. And it's just the difference in quality.
00:07:58
Global Sports Podcast Network
It's the same as it's been all season. Their goal was just a moment of quality from a player of quality. And, you know, we're short of that. So...
Tactics and Management Debate
00:08:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
So let's talk about edits and cuts here so that I have keywords to search for later.
00:08:58
Global Sports Podcast Network
And we're back. OK, Zach, I want to talk to you about the main thought I've taken from this game. And it's something that we've talked about a lot since firing Juric and bringing it back.
00:09:10
Zak
Mm-hmm.
00:09:10
Global Sports Podcast Network
And it's something that I've hopped on about since how Pep Guardiola ruined football, right?
00:09:16
Zak
Mm-hmm.
00:09:16
Global Sports Podcast Network
Now, Simon Rusk has come in and has players playing positions they're comfortable in, in their natural positions and playing football has turned it back to basics.
00:09:20
Zak
Mm-hmm.
00:09:31
Global Sports Podcast Network
And from that has been our most successful manager of the season in the three games he's taken charge. Right. Uh, Should we have just kept him on after Fulham?
00:09:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
What was the point in Jury? This isn't so just fully backed up, right? That philosophies can overcomplicate run football. Because this quality has been in the squad to just play basic football and and grind out, play, you know...
00:09:50
Zak
Yeah. yeah
00:09:56
Zak
Yes. I think that they brought Juric in. Juric was like, yeah, I'm going to do what i can to keep us in the Premier League. And then Juric basically had a punt at the Premier League and failed miserably because he tried to influence the style, upset a lot of people, ruffled a few feathers, both good and bad, as I think some of the players have fed back.
00:10:15
Zak
you know Some of them probably needed to hear your rubbish, but also telling everyone their championship quality week in, week out has got to do anything to a person's mind. If you're told you're rubbish by your boss consistently, that isn't great.
00:10:23
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:10:27
Zak
You might potentially be rubbish, but sometimes it's like knowing when to build confidence and knowing when not to.
Manager Juric's Negative Impact
00:10:33
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:10:33
Zak
So for me, as I pointed out before, it was kind of a waste.
00:10:36
Zak
If they were definitely going fire Martin, then yeah, what was what was the point? Because I think that they expected Juric to come in and do significantly more. That's the only reason I think they did it. So they thought it was a good start that the first time they got rid of Martin, they got a... you know They got a draw, then they would probably thought they would build on that.
00:10:52
Zak
And the West Ham last game was closer.
00:10:54
Global Sports Podcast Network
After all, it rustic as well, anyway, right?
00:10:55
Zak
Yeah, brus this so it's russk that's what I mean.
00:10:55
Global Sports Podcast Network
So...
00:10:57
Zak
is They got a draw with Rusk, and then they thought, right, we'll bring this new manager in, and then he'll reinvigorate the squad. And that obviously didn't happen. And we got that one win against Ipswich, which I'm not saying we expected it, but between the two sides, we we were kind of we expected it more of our fans, I think.
00:11:13
Zak
And... yeah Yeah, you've got to the point now that Rusk has been in. So for three games, he has managed to take two points out of nine, which in any other club would be, don't know, not ideal, but pretty bad. But like you look at where we are, in we look at our position.
00:11:29
Zak
Two of the points that he...
00:11:30
Global Sports Podcast Network
like a fifth of our points all season, mate.
00:11:32
Zak
Yeah. two Two of the points that we have got this season have been gotten from this interim manager and not the main manager of the club. And that, when you think about it, is kind of crazy and quite frankly, just upsetting.
00:11:45
Zak
And yeah, it's... What a crazy world.
00:11:47
Global Sports Podcast Network
No, no, don't get me wrong.
00:11:48
Zak
Waste time, mate.
00:11:49
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, and don't get me wrong. don't know I don't know what's going to happen next season, but I would presume that it would be taken very negatively if we carry on with Rusk and Nalana, which fair enough.
00:12:02
Zak
Why?
00:12:03
Global Sports Podcast Network
I mean, okay. it I don't know. the jury's out, right? There's a risk of it you know being overcomplicated, but irrelevant of that, it goes to show that taking it back to basics is important.
00:12:16
Global Sports Podcast Network
What I actually want to ask, Zach, is... If we hadn't have brought Juric in and Rosk just took over for the rest of the season, at that point, they accepted that we were basically down because we were basically down.
00:12:31
Zak
And they said that at the beginning of the season, basically, apparently.
00:12:33
Global Sports Podcast Network
Do you think we'd have more points now?
00:12:33
Zak
so Yeah?
00:12:36
Global Sports Podcast Network
Just playing basic football?
00:12:38
Zak
Yeah, i told I've told you this before. it's I've been harping on about for ages, mate. Some of the games we should have played for maybe draws. Some of the games we should have set up to defend better. It's it's instead of instead of having this, like, you need to stick to this, like, little bit. but Again, like there are loads of problems with Juric in the sense of... you hit the na on the head immediately, playing players in the wrong position and then expecting them to know what to do and then b and then changing the entire way we defend to this weird man-marking thing that we were shipping like three or four goals a game and he was brought in to defensively shore us up. It is insane.
00:13:12
Zak
And again, like I think that they went... well, this is just a guy who's a coach for the youth team. So what we'll do is we'll bring in a real manager. Juric is the one we've got on our books who's our favourite guy. We wanted him in before Jones.
00:13:24
Zak
They brought him in. They thought he would do it. like Yeah, like they've been shown that I'll actually, sometimes the grass isn't greener, which is, I'm not saying we should keep them on for the entirety of the championship season.
00:13:31
Global Sports Podcast Network
and
00:13:36
Zak
I just think that from our extensive debates, I don't think that realistically I'm happy with anyone being in charge.
00:13:43
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, it's hard, right?
00:13:43
Zak
And that's the problem.
00:13:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
There's no right answer.
00:13:46
Zak
People are saying Danny rolls the answer.
00:13:46
Global Sports Podcast Network
And you're right.
00:13:48
Zak
Look at the Sheffield Wednesday track record of the last couple of games. And the problem is is, he starts the season with Saints like that. How quick before we turn on him? Right. We were already, ta some people were already turned on a Martin like two or three games into the championship season.
00:14:03
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:14:04
Zak
Whether or not that would have changed things, probably not. But it's it's a fickle game. And I think that we all forget which Starmchair pundits at the end of the day. None of us are actually... and And watching them play basic football and being able to part put strings together. and so and And again, realistically, the goal that we shipped today was a bit of brilliant, as you pointed out.
00:14:26
Zak
But also on top of that, it was They able to... they were able to you know That was just, again, like a mistake from an individual a little bit. and And again, the fact that we we got hit on the counter as good as we did.
00:14:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:14:40
Zak
So, yeah. I don't know. I don't know what the answer is. We keep saying. we we keep We keep talking about it because, my word, we can speak about it for hours. But when everyone is going like, you know, when when people are saying, Danny Roll, because he's been here before, and look what he did for Wednesday.
00:14:55
Zak
And then the flip side is you being like, we're going to bring back Sam Allardyce, which just gives me horrible heart palpitations and nightmares. And then I'm um'm sat there in the middle, like, who would I ideally want in? And then you've got people going, Gary O'Neill, ex-Portsmouth player. And I'm like, no, no to any of these.
00:15:14
Zak
I don't know what will make me happy. And part of me, I think I said, like when we brought George, it's maybe somebody that has been scouted extensively for like nine months in the background by Spores to come in and we've never heard of him and he does really, really well in the championship. Or you bring through a new manager that nobody's ever heard of before.
00:15:35
Zak
somebody like Rusk, maybe somebody like Kalana. I don't know what the answer is. I just don't think that there's going to be an answer that any Saints fan is happy with.
00:15:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
There's no one unifying answer. that There's no one there no one single truth.
00:15:46
Zak
There isn't. And I think but I also don't think that we are any closer to knowing.
00:15:49
Global Sports Podcast Network
It is...
Choosing the Right Manager
00:15:53
Zak
And just because everyone's like, oh, Danny Roll's been in negotiations, that's fantastic. There are still six games left. That's at least six weeks before even anywhere near preseason. I think that if you think that they're just signing up the first name they had in their list, you're you're nuts because that's what we've done the last couple of times.
00:16:11
Zak
And that didn't go too well. So, well, at least you'd like to think.
00:16:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
mean but What that means is that we have got the easiest six weeks of content available to us. Don't worry about it. Anyway, we've got some more talking points and some more thoughts on the game.
00:16:26
Zak
that i
00:16:26
Global Sports Podcast Network
But first, a message from our partners at Zencaster.
Podcasting with Zencaster
00:16:30
Global Sports Podcast Network
Here at the Global Sports Podcast Network, we spent a lot of time selecting our delivery platform.
00:16:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
Zencaster came out the clear winner. With 4K video recording from your phone and AI editing that automatically removes all those ums and ahs, it's super easy to start a podcast that sounds great and is delivered efficiently.
00:16:48
Global Sports Podcast Network
If you're ready to tell your story, check out the link in the show description and learn more about Zencaster.
00:16:55
Zak
Right, so i do I do actually remember my points this time around, mate. and I know, wait, you won't notice this, listeners. Anyone that watches probably will, because there's just going to a massive jump cut where Greg said, all right, we're back.
Defensive Play Analysis
00:17:08
Zak
So, Zach, what's your point? And I stared into oblivion for about 30 seconds with no idea of what I was going to say. And what I actually was going to say, but got distracted by a message from Greg during the advert.
00:17:19
Zak
well was one of the things that I thought was very interesting was that West Ham did almost a Saints. And it reminded me almost, again, talking of throwbacks to the Hasenhool days, of like, when we go 1-0 up against poor opposition and then go, we've got to defend this lead of our life.
00:17:36
Zak
And then we take off everybody, chuck on all of the defenders. And then all of a sudden they equalize. And then you're sat there with like Yoshida, Stephens and everybody at the back.
00:17:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
But I mean, like, 17th to a reason, though, aren't they, mate? Like, it's not not surprising in anyone that West Ham aren't, like, the top level of opposition, like, absolutely hammering us 6-7-0.
00:17:50
Zak
yeah
00:17:57
Global Sports Podcast Network
Like, it's just...
00:17:59
Zak
But i just just thought it was interesting.
00:17:59
Global Sports Podcast Network
This is one of the closer games that we can expect. I mean, we've got a couple more coming up, right, there where we could expect it to be pretty close, but...
00:18:09
Zak
our substitutions didn't hurt us as much as they had previously. And I guess what I can't figure out is because of the, they didn't do anything either.
00:18:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
didn't really do anything either, though, did they?
00:18:17
Zak
Don't get me wrong. But where I'm at is they didn't lose the ball as much. Apart from that one, i think it was Wellington took a strike and it just hit a West Ham player and let them go on a counter.
00:18:28
Zak
And I can't remember who made the interception, but fair play to them. But yeah, I guess that was a bit of a hairy moment, but like, I think that's, again, is it to do with the quality of West Ham's off quality off the bench, or is it to with the fact where Potter went, let's chuck a bunch of defenders on?
00:18:43
Zak
I don't know. One of the two.
00:18:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
i lee Yeah, I mean, like that's why it's i mean the we're at the point of the season where the table doesn't hide any truths.
00:18:45
Zak
but a Bit of column A, bit column B, but yeah, again, again maybe maybe you West Ham are there for a reason, mate. and I feel bad, but
00:18:58
Global Sports Podcast Network
like If you're 17th, it's because the entire season of form has put you in 17th. It's not...
Positive Tactical Changes
00:19:06
Zak
But it also shows you how brutal turnarounds can be.
00:19:06
Global Sports Podcast Network
I don't know what to say. In the same way that the same way that you know, we're 20ers because we have been bad. What did you think of the positive change and change in shape that comes with Harwood Bellis off for Ross Stewart?
00:19:24
Zak
I mean, we kept attacking towards the end and then eventually we scored a goal. So it can only, for me, be a good thing. Again, like after that, we did have a lot of attacks.
00:19:36
Zak
They didn't manifest into anything, but that's because we're bad at scoring.
00:19:40
Global Sports Podcast Network
going to say something, Zach, that's going to immediately make you laugh.
00:19:40
Zak
In fact...
00:19:44
Zak
Oh, no.
00:19:45
Global Sports Podcast Network
Is it a so positive sign of, like, versatility and adapting tactics in a match? Like something that we might have been saying is like the 101 of managing teams?
00:19:59
Zak
but but you should so So what you're saying is that if we're going to bring off a defender and go to a back four, we don't we don't just randomly bring on Jack Stevens and then put him in striker position or whatever.
00:20:09
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah. Crazy, right?
00:20:11
Zak
I'd...
00:20:11
Global Sports Podcast Network
Look, you adjust to the tactics of the team playing you. You play players in their positions and you kick the ball at the goal and sometimes it pays off.
00:20:21
Zak
not Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah.
00:20:23
Global Sports Podcast Network
Mad, isn't it?
00:20:24
Zak
Nah, that's... but you You haven't... It's too complicated for that, mate. That's... that's
00:20:30
Global Sports Podcast Network
I saw an interview with, I think it was the Cardiff City manager this weekend. And I don't know if the particular member of the press who was interviewing him had done something prior to the interview to upset him. But what the interview went was, what happened today then? And he's like, well, we didn't score as many goals as they did, so we lost.
00:20:50
Zak
yeah but Look, look,
Back to Basics in Football Strategy
00:20:54
Global Sports Podcast Network
game, isn't it? If you don't kick the ball into goal, you don't win.
00:20:54
Zak
observations...
00:20:58
Zak
Observations like that are observations we have also made multiple times throughout the season. If they were the be-all and end-all of football, we wouldn't have a daily podcast about football.
00:21:08
Global Sports Podcast Network
But when Yeah.
00:21:09
Zak
that is that is how That is how your mate who hates football talks about football.
00:21:09
Global Sports Podcast Network
But
00:21:13
Zak
Just boring, isn't it?
00:21:13
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah,
00:21:14
Zak
Just kicking a bag of air in the goal and you're like, yeah, there's so much.
00:21:16
Global Sports Podcast Network
ahve but yeah
00:21:18
Zak
But also, look at that Man you United game the other day where me and you were sat there at the edge of our seats. Neither of us Manchester United fans. I was kind of hoping that they would lose considering how many ex-saints they have at Lyon.
00:21:28
Zak
But towards the end, when Harry Maguire goes up front and scores with his head, man. Well, that's for, that you're trying to explain this. And even Charlotte, my wife was at the end of seat bouncing off, go, this is crazy.
00:21:40
Zak
This is such a crazy game. I'm like, I know, right? Mad. And yet, you know, but if you, yeah, but I guess if you've, you know, it does boil down to is a sport there, there is a goal.
00:21:50
Global Sports Podcast Network
But that's the thing, right? You want to add these complex layers in fine, but you've got to start with the basics. And the basics are players are set in a position because they have played in that position for a number of years to get to the point where a professional Premier League level club has signed them to play in that position.
00:22:12
Global Sports Podcast Network
So to then think, nah, he might be better at... I know that he's our top goal scorer. Let's just play him at centre-back because he's got a left foot. Like, you've got to do the basics first before you get to that added layers of complexity.
00:22:26
Global Sports Podcast Network
And I think that's been our story all season, really, right? We've just tried to run before we can walk.
00:22:33
Zak
everything's been fun and complicated. And as Russell Martin said, if i I'll live by the door sword, die by the sword.
00:22:36
Global Sports Podcast Network
You know who else always used to try to run before they could walk, Zach?
00:22:37
Zak
You're
00:22:40
Global Sports Podcast Network
Musa Janapo.
00:22:41
Zak
not wrong. Oh, bless him.
00:22:46
Zak
they're not wrong oh bless him he so He cared. He cared, though, which is like Lianco.
00:22:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:22:53
Zak
He cared. He looked like he was going to knock somebody out more often than not.
00:22:54
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:22:57
Zak
And he really did sign his own X out of the club in that game. We were knocked out by, it Gillingham?
00:23:04
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:23:04
Zak
I don't want to but but want to mug off the club by not remembering who they were. But when but you're knocked out by like a League Two side like a Wednesday night when you have Premier League players, and that's the last...
00:23:15
Zak
think that was the last appearance for both of those players, actually.
00:23:17
Global Sports Podcast Network
well yeah
00:23:18
Zak
oh So there you go. maybe maybe Maybe things will get better. Who knows? But like I watched a game of football today. it actually looked kind of similar sort of skill levels across the board.
00:23:30
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:23:31
Zak
it It was like watching a game from sort it was like watching a normal Premier League game from way back when, right?
00:23:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
let my Most importantly, and the key piece of optimism we're going to take from this episode as we swiftly run out of time is that we've watched Saints today. didn't ruin our weekend and we are no longer the single worst Premier League team in history.
00:23:46
Zak
and they It did not.
00:23:52
Global Sports Podcast Network
We are the joint worst Premier League team in history.
00:23:57
Zak
you Que sera, sera, mate. We go into Coventry. It's
00:24:03
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah I mean, I've looked at the championship table, mate, and they might come up above us, so anything can happen.
00:24:09
Zak
going to be exciting.
00:24:11
Global Sports Podcast Network
right roll on next season. and Look, we will be back on Tuesday. We're going to take the bank holiday off and enjoy a sweet, sweet draw from Saints.
00:24:23
Global Sports Podcast Network
Until then, what did you think? he Was that the the last positive moment to come of the season or is it just onwards and upwards from here? Is Russ going to do enough between now and the end of the season to take over for next season?
00:24:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
I'm sure that we will find out in due course. Zach, thank you very much for joining me. Thank you everyone for listening.
00:24:43
Zak
Thank you, mate.
00:24:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
in Hit us up on all the socials. Happy Easter, everyone. And we will be back on Tuesday. by