The draw against Stoke City was a case of Deja Vu, it is the same thing happening week in wekk out and unless something changes then it will continue ! The only trouble is that there is now only one thing to change !

I have tried to be the voice of reason this season, although I have made it very clear since November that I do not think that Mauricio Pellegrino is the man for the job, I have tried to look at what the alternatives are, tried to look at how the team might suddenly improve, pointed out that a failing manager doesn't neccessarily mean the club is rotten from top to bottom and in general tried looking at things in some sort of perspective.

But here we are in March and each game blurs into another, we are not a bad side, indeed we have only been beaten once in the last ten games and if not for a cheating Watford player we would be sitting in 13th place, but nothing is changing, we just cannot make the jump from drawing with sides to actually beating them in the Premier League at least.

The squad is good enough, the bulk of it is the side that finished 8th last year and 6th the year before that, we have boosted the team with some good transfers, in short we have changed what we can change and we have given the manager not only the tools to do the job, but unlike some clubs we have also allowed him time to show that he is the man for the job.

Indeed the team seem to be playing for the manager, they can't be accused of lacklustre performances since the turn of the new year, but they cannot seem to win games that they dominate.

But here we are and things are not getting any better, everything is predictable from the team selections, to the tactics to the substitutions, there is no leadership, there is no motivation, you have to ask what is the manager adding to the squad ?

A good manager will make the subtle changes needed and improve things, but there is nothing visible to the naked eye to suggest that Pellegrino is adding anything at all, in short I could go into the dressing room with a team sheet and we would not get any worse results than we are at the moment and that is the core of the problem.

I am very fond of quoting the saying "If you do the same things, you get the same results ! and this is very true in what Pellegrino is doing at Saints, he is just not changing anything, whatever he does ends up in the same result and that is usually a draw.

I don't thin Pellegrino is essentially a bad manager, but he just doesn't appear to have that extra oomph that makes a team go into overdrive once in a while, some would say that it is merely his tactics, if he played two up front then all would magically be solved, that is too simplistic, in the last two games we played two up front, yet never looked much like scoring apart from shots from distance, it is all about the build up play.

I think that Pellegrino can keep us up, he may even win the FA Cup, but the fact is we will do it the hard way and nothing will change next season.

As I say something has to change and that is the manager, if only for the short term burst that a new man in the dressing room would bring.

The board should be considering that change this weekend, they should be looking at making a change now, whilst there is still time to make a difference, but if they don't then surely next week's game at Newcastle will be the defining moment in Pellegrino's tenure at St Mary's, he either wins or he goes, it should be as simple as that.

Yes a draw at Newcastle would not be the worst result in the World in the normal course of events, but due to the lack of wins and points thrown away, normal rules don't apply.

So change is needed at St Mary's and there is now only one thing left that can be changed and that is the manager, it is time to do it !

The ball is now very firmly in Les Reed's court, he is sometimes unfairly criticised, he has done some good work at this football club, but sometimes Directors of Football have to make harsh decisions that define their role at the club and for Reed this is one of them !

Photo: Action Images

SanMarco added 18:16 - Mar 4 Two contrasting 4-1 games before Christmas were key moments - he'd have gone if we had lost to Everton and should have gone after Leicester. When he didn't go after Palace it was obvious he was staying. Just because he should have already been sacked doesn't mean he should be so now. Is there a suitable manager ready to come in and make a difference AT ONCE? If not then we are stuck with MP - who will, of course, be the scapegoat if we go down. The real culprits sit in the boardroom. They have allowed the team to be weakened from top six to bottom six in less than 2 seasons. They also, of course, appointed MP. Nick's mantra that we have a strong squad let down by an inadequate manager is all we have left to cling to. Quality players doing quality things is what we need. I am not optimistic. Brighton today looked far better than us yesterday. Would we have beaten an admittedly poor Arsenal today? - no, I don't think so either.

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aceofthebase added 18:16 - Mar 4 If you do the same things, you get the same results, as proved like changing managers?. The players in the first half were plain lethargic and very unfair to criticise MP for their lack of effort. You can only motivate donkeys so much. ah well more minus ticks! I'm going for the record
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Jesus_02 added 18:44 - Mar 4 I think the headline is quite right... the rest is all about MP2 and s defence piece for our bloated management structure. I hate to admit it but when we lost MP2 and sold half our squad to Liverpool Brendon Rogers was right "Maybe Southampton's objectives have changed. They were looking to be a Champions League club, I believe." The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result Keeping MP2 till the end of the season and replacing him with another yes man who will play 1 up front regardless is not the answer. Reed must go

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rjh added 19:45 - Mar 4 It is just so depressing. Puel was sacked for his boring football and poor record at home. This guy makes CP seem like Pep. He is just not up to the job. Why on earth would anybody renew for next season? Just bought tickets for Newcastle and West Ham - it is the hope that kills you.........
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rjh added 19:46 - Mar 4 Just bought tickets for Newcastle and West Ham - it is the hope that kills you.......
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Cjay80 added 22:09 - Mar 4 He needs to go but we have just missed the boat on my no.1 choice Gary Monk. There's not a lot out there. Carvahal has gone, I would like Eddie Howe but why move to us at this stage of the season? I don't want Hughes so really what else is left? I think we're stuck with what we have until May 14th and can only hope we finish 17th. It's been a tough year.
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amsterdamsaint added 22:10 - Mar 4 Ok. I do not post much on here but i love the site.... If we stay up. Foster out. Bertrand good. Houdt ? Not convinced. Stefan de Vrij for a couple of million extra. Stephens? Gets better and better. Cedric? I think he is good . JWP? His best season in 5 years of PL. 3 goals. This season. Is that good? Romelu? Worst season for us. Lemina? Liverpool in 18 months. Not this year but looks good for us. Tadic? Boufal? Dear lord, Redmond? Bertrand clearly hates playing with him, last season also, Gabby, no service, Long too, although if he, or the midfield understood what playing the damn ball on time was itwould work. Hodjberg in Romelu out for next game . Mostly because of the 2 game ban if he gets another yellow b4 ? 21 March? Simms good, Austin good. But injured. Gabby needs a partner! We bought Carillo! 4-4-2 ! We have a 4, we have a selection of central midfielders, we have wingers, we have strikers! 2 upfront!

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amsterdamsaint added 22:15 - Mar 4 Ffs. 2 strikers! Go down fighting! Old school. We have a 4 - 4 - 2 team there ! Really.
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dovif added 06:26 - Mar 5 I think Les Reed have done a great job assembling a team for next year .... we are a hope of getting promoted next year
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underweststand added 10:36 - Mar 5 What sort of knee jerk analysis is it that prompts fans to say sack Reed, sack so-and-so? In the last two seasons (under Reed's tutalage) we have signed around a dozen players, so was Hojbjerg a bad signing?..or Lemina, or Hoedt?. Gabbiadini's lightning start shows he's got somehting in him. Boufal and Redmond both showed they could be game-changers last season, but sadly haven't found any sort of form this.. I won't comment on Carrillo who is so new it's unfair to make judgements. For those of you who hate statistics here's one you can't ignore. Saints' squad is one of the youngest in the Prem...even younger when we play JWP and Redmond...and even though Josh Sims is a breath of fresh air. What we lack now is experienced heads on the pitch and at present they are all in the treatment room. Steven Davis (I'm sure) would say he's nearing the end of his career, and the same might be said of Shane Long. Neither found the net so often either, but along with Austin and Yoshida there is a quartet that can chalk up over 1500 games between them, and although they may not be World-beaters, their presence of the pitch has a steadying influence on what is essentially - a very young squad for this level. Many of the teams above us in the table has their own " veterans " still turning out in games every week and encouraging " their youngsters " and showing the skills that have make the difference between " men and boys " Never underestimate the speed of a veteran brain - even if his legs can't match it. What we need now is the like of the 1980's McMenemy sides when we could boast FIVE former England captains in our squads. They may have peaked by then, but the young players who grew up around them had an object lesson they willö never forget. It needs that sort of experience to guide us through the next dozen games.

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bstokesaint added 12:58 - Mar 5 Good post Underweststand. Personally I don’t think we have a bad team. We have some really good players, but they are not being played to their strengths and look disinterested. The formation and tactics are surely down to the manager. The board are obviously culpable for letting us get into this position with two dubious manager recruitments and a lack of transfer window spending, but I’m convinced a better manager would have us up well inside the top 10 right now. It’d be a big gamble to make a change now. As much as I’d like to see an improvement I can’t think who is available! What a mess.

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dovif added 15:07 - Mar 5 Underwear stand You can try to blame this all on the manager if you want and say reed has no fault but fact is it was his decision to replace a manager last year. It was also his decision to hire the current manager and it is also his decision to not fire him. He has been a complete failure on that side of his duties. I note that he blamed a lot of the woes this year on VVD when he left. Guess whose decision it was to not sale him at the start of the year? We currently have 2 problems. Our attack is horrible and was horrible last year. Apart from a few fluke results. We have been under 1 goal per game for 1.5 years now. Most fan knew we need to bring a forward in and an attacking midfielder. At the start of the year. Yet reed did nothing and that has been our main issue We also sold 2 starting central defenders, so reed decided to replace him with one only and so far he has been mediocre at best. Slow do not use his height well makes horrible mistakes. Apart from those, I guess he has done an job

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dovif added 15:07 - Mar 5 Underwear stand You can try to blame this all on the manager if you want and say reed has no fault but fact is it was his decision to replace a manager last year. It was also his decision to hire the current manager and it is also his decision to not fire him. He has been a complete failure on that side of his duties. I note that he blamed a lot of the woes this year on VVD when he left. Guess whose decision it was to not sale him at the start of the year? We currently have 2 problems. Our attack is horrible and was horrible last year. Apart from a few fluke results. We have been under 1 goal per game for 1.5 years now. Most fan knew we need to bring a forward in and an attacking midfielder. At the start of the year. Yet reed did nothing and that has been our main issue We also sold 2 starting central defenders, so reed decided to replace him with one only and so far he has been mediocre at best. Slow do not use his height well makes horrible mistakes. Apart from those, I guess he has done an job

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underweststand added 17:50 - Mar 5 I didn't suggest that Reed was without fault, but I also think (and thought at the time) it was a tough call judgement on Claude Puel. A Cup Final , (where we can honestly say " we wuz robbed R ef ") and a creditable 8th place wasn't good enough for some fans. I think Reed gave into the same type of vociferous outcry that we are seeing again now. Saints fans (and I've been one for almost 60 years) are used to seeing goals - especially at home whether win , lose or draw . So where did it go wrong ? After losing "some of our best " 2 years ago, we gave many players longer, more secure contracts to dissuade any more "poaching ", the problem being the strikers who were good then, haven't delivered since. You can sack a manager easily but you can't just write off 3 or 4 strikers who are in poor form, and expect to replace them with better. I've been quick to criticise a lack of creativity , but surprised myself when reading that we had the best shots records outside the top 6 . The problem has been the conversion rate and there is little that the manager can do once they are out on the pitch. Pellegrino has given everyone chances, he has used all 3 subs. in almost every game, and starting , or coming on later has little to do with selection when a striker plays 90 mins. without making a shot, and a sub. comes on for 15 mins. and has 3 chances. In the end - neither of them has scored. Given the squad we have now, I defy anyone to say what is a better selection than those that have been made recently. Who are the players we are ignoring..? Many strikers are "confidence " players , when things go poorly they wilt, whereas others like the Kane's , Austins and Vardys in the game just go out and get stuck in and make it happen. There is no one factor that goes to aportion blame, especially when you see that half of the League are treading water and trying to scramble over each other to safety.

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Jesus_02 added 09:49 - Mar 6 undwestand the fact that Les has signed "around a dozen" players in 2 years is NOT a good sign. Football is a game of fine margins and while I agree that Hoeberg is not a bad player he isn't a world beater and because we have signed "around a dozen" players he doesn't get enough game to develop either. Its a pot mess
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