12 Nov 2014 06:58:48
Now we have rumours that Spider still wants to leave and Arsenal want him! Also Spurs want our head of recruitment PM.

Tell them both to **** off !

{Ed001's Note - it is not a rumour, he gave a press conference and stated that he still wanted to join 'a big club' to play in Europe. Basically saying if Saints don't make it into Europe he will spend next summer trying to force a move away. Not sure why he thought it was a good idea to state this now when things are going so well at Southampton this season. It really does make you wonder about the intelligence of footballers. Perhaps knuckling down and working harder might make the difference between getting into Europe and not getting into Europe! Perhaps opening your mouth and causing unrest might also make a difference?}

1.) 12 Nov 2014
I think the comments from Spidy are incredibly unhelpful. I'm pretty disappointed that he has done this again (read- AGAIN!!!!). If I were Les, I'd be looking to find a replacement in January and look to move Spidy on, regardless of where we finish in the league, in the summer - for £30m, obviously! That Tielemans kid would fit the bill nicely, someone get Toby to have a word!

2.) 12 Nov 2014
12 Nov 2014 09:32:44
I have seen this splattered all over the place and from what you say Ed it is pretty black and white, what is wrong with the man ? I personally would sell him no matter what in January and if it was possible, drop him now and not let him disrupt the rest of the side. To be honest a few of us thought at the time of begging him to stay, more or less, that it might turn out badly. I have not seen the interview so I truly hope this has been blown out of all proportion. What more can Saints do on this, 2nd in the Premier League seems not only non sustainable with the media and the pundits but actually believed by one of our own key players. Disgraceful.

3.) 12 Nov 2014
12 Nov 2014 14:56:58
Chill out guys!! Morgan has stated the bl**ding obvious, which we all knew about, and the "normal" "persons" have made it seem sinister.

He wants to play European football. So do the majority of he Saints squad. Yes, I suspect he will leave in the summer if he has to for that to happen, but equally he can very likely do that at Saints, so he is keeping his options open. What would you do if you were entering into contract discussions?
He is improving all the time so we will either have a world class player by the summer to help us in Europe, or a world class player to sell at a world class price. So how can this be "disgraceful"?
These quotations happen every time the French media get hold of him. It is the same old story recycled.

4.) 12 Nov 2014
I agree St Martin. The positives here are he is talking about the summer not January and the money we would get for him certainly £25m plus would be enough to buy Jordie Classie, a Koeman favourite, and still bank £10m. let's keep enjoying what we have while we have it and trust the board to do the right things.

5.) 12 Nov 2014
12 Nov 2014 15:25:08
What is disgraceful is that he is saying things that create an imbalance with the rest of the playing squad. You say most players want to play CL or that is their aim, fair enough, but after his outburst in the summer you would think he would be a little more careful with his words or putting it more plainly keep his mouth shut. To be honest if you think his statement will not have a detrimental effect on the squad and as Roko says the " spirit " of SFC I am surprised. I read your posts on a regular basis and most often agree with your views but you have baffled me on this one, surely he knew with the untrustworthy press we have in this country that his words were going to cause a problem and promote vigorous speculation. To me I don't see the difference between him and Lallana over this and look how he has been vilified, remember Morgan was leaving but we forced him to honour his contract but I have a serious gut feeling that there was a big financial incentive given to make him stay.

{Ed007's Note - I've never bought the 'I want to play European football' line, in my opinion it's down to £ and nothing else. If European football was that important to players why aren't they all beating the door down screaming they want to sign for teams like Celtic or Basel who have European football every year?
What they mean is they want the wages associated with big-spending teams who play in Europe every year. Would Schneiderlin have turned down a move to Man Utd last summer, where he was going to be paid say £120k a week, because they weren't in the CL this year?}

6.) 12 Nov 2014
12 Nov 2014 17:12:55
This "disgraceful" player joined Saints when he was 17 and he is now 25, approaching 26 in the summer. Of course he wants to play European football (who said CL?) and as a full French international some of this will be for financial reasons but also to give him the challenge he needs at this stage of his career.
I'm sorry guys, but if you think for one second the rest of the squad are not aware of this you are very mistaken. He has shown a lot of loyalty to the club and I expect he will stay if he can continue to achieve his objectives as a player with the club. If not, he will want to take his career to the next level with another club.
That's life, not unusual and certainly not disgraceful.

7.) 12 Nov 2014
If we get 5 months to start a background bidding war for him. We will at least get enough to further strengthen and i trust the Management to do that. Look at the positive, he is doing a great playing job and he will likely make the following season a great one with the 35m that spuds will pay, so long as Pochettino still has a job. Why the negative. Think positive and enjoy the ride.

8.) 12 Nov 2014
It just happens that CL teams are generally those who pay the high wages from Arab funders etc. so it is easier for a footballer to say CL football than salary increase. It is something that their agents tell them to say so as to keep fans on their side. Otherwise they run the fear of becoming another Cashly Cole. Ed. As always you are right on the button with this. Why wouldn't anybody consider moving their job, if they were being offered double money and more. I would.

9.) 12 Nov 2014
The interview is with L'Equipe, and covers lots of areas.
http://www.lequipe. fr/Football/Actualites/Schneiderlin-la-coupe-du-monde-m-a-libere/514200

He talks about Koeman coming in and about inspiring him to work harder to be a better player, how the new style allows him more freedom and that things are going well at SFC.

He answers a direct question "does your progress depend on a move to a big club?" He answers he's 25, with a short career. He has a desire to play for a big club. But that we're 2nd in PL, if we stay in the CL spots, the indication is he'd stay - but that he'd make the decision with the club.

Sorry if I'm being naive, but I can't see too much wrong with his answer (let's not kid ourselves as Saints' fans, who wouldn't want to play for one of Europe's elite), or his interview.

On the training field & pitch, he's the model professional wanting to play for Saints. I'll cheer him now and also even should he move for big money should we not qualify for Europe.

10.) 12 Nov 2014
12 Nov 2014 18:08:26
I had the wife calling me to dinner so had to leave my post half done.

We really need to remember the context of Morgan's situation. When he was first brought into the French squad it was made very clear to him that to become a regular he needed to be playing in European competitions as his colleagues were doing this. This came from the French Football authorities and the French media. They have continued to push this one from before the WC, so his recent interview in France should be seen against this background. Yes, it is connected to finance because obviously if the French public recognise you as a central part of the national team there will be loads of opportunities to secure marketing revenues.

Can't really see him joining Spuds in the summer. He will now see how insecure that club and coach are, and I certainly can't see them coming up with the money needed.
I hope he stays after next summer, and if we continue to progress I expect he probably will. I also suspect the club has an understanding with him already about next summer if we fail to reach the levels that would satisfy his career aspirations.

11.) 12 Nov 2014
12 Nov 2014 18:51:59
I must be missing something here. He has singled himself out as being a bit of a superstar and more or less implying we are lucky to have him. He says he will make his mind up at the end of the season, what, can you imagine going to your boss and saying you'll let them know whether you want to keep your job in a few months time. I think P45 and no reference comes to mind.

12.) 12 Nov 2014
Since a move in the summer didn't happen for him I think his attitude has been superb. The timing of this isn't great however. Just hopes he keeps playing to the same level as it's in his and the clubs interest and the worse that can happen for us is that we'll sell him to a big club for sizable money in January and pull out abit of magic again bringing someone in.

13.) 13 Nov 2014
Ok so sider didn't leave after chucking toys out of pram. Think most of us understand he will prob go next summer but why has he got to open his mouth and put himself in that situation? Seems like he thinks he's more important then he is, top player yes, but as saints have shown last summer all have be replaced and improved. 25+ for him and well if recruitment is anything like the summer then happy days and he's replaced with someone of equal quality and money left over. When will he learn to just do what he's very very very good at and just play football !!

14.) 13 Nov 2014
We will see how much we will miss him when he gets booked against Villa. Its a pity that it will against one of the so called big teams. I agree with a number of above comments - if only he would keep his mouth shut when he goes on international duty. Maybe he is trying to sound as though he wants a big club to help his French team ambition. Maybe to keep Spuds and Arse interested. I am sure Ronald will smack him when he gets back and Roko will solve the problem if he goes or if he stays. The one thing you can be sure of Roko and Irwin will still be with us in the Summer and that is what is most important.

15.) 13 Nov 2014
13 Nov 2014 10:02:30
People seem a bit split on this one and I respect everyone's opinion. Morgan has to me committed the cardinal sin and put himself above the football club. He is a very good player but I wish he could remember that when he joined us at 18 years old when we were in the 1st division he was part of the 5 year plan. He was helped with his development by our outstanding coaches and training facility. The spirit of the club is paramount and he is making waves which I think may unsettle players like Tadic. When Rickie left we were gutted but we appreciated everything he did for us but he was honest and on the video about the academy he said that he " owed everything " to Southampton. Morgan should listen to his words and just for a moment think about it and maybe he will see that he couldn't be the player he is today without the support and dedication of SFC. It is all about greed and he mentions that he is 25 and a career is short, so what, he will earn in one year what most people on the average wage will earn in a lifetime. So to sum up he is making noises and making out playing for Southampton is restricting his chances with the national team, if this is true how come he is in it now and remember we have 17 players away on international duty. I think that makes us a big club and if he doesn't think so we are better off without him. If he was that good why aren't the likes of BM, Barca, Real Madrid, Man City etc. after him, it seems the speculation has always just surrounded Arsenal and Tottenham and let's face it they can't afford him, so what happens next. I wonder if he has thought this out properly, don't think so.

16.) 13 Nov 2014
Morgan Schneiderlin has been with Southampton a long time, but to suggest he owes us anything is preposterous. Yes we have played a part in developing him in to the player he is today, but we should be grateful that he has put in so much effort and hard work and produced such quality for us so consistently. He is the player he is today because of his hard work and I for one am glad that the team I support has been able to benefit from his talent. The fact that he is ambitious is great for our club and let’s just hope the big club he seeks will be the club that Southampton grows into. We should not blame our players for being ambitious or for lacking loyalty. Without ambition we will never attain success and if every player were to remain loyal then how would we ever acquire new players.

17.) 13 Nov 2014
13 Nov 2014 17:02:07
So Rickie was wrong in what he said then?

18.) 16 Nov 2014
Just realised that the above question might have been directed at me, so I will answer it. Joining Southampton was certainly the best thing Ricky did in his career and what he said is very nice; it’s nice that he is grateful to the club for the success that he has achieved. But what he said is just football talk for saying thank you, just hyperbole to emphasis his gratitude, and to help promote Southampton. All of the success he had at Southampton was enjoyed by all of us. If he owes Southampton “everything” then Southampton owe him everything, as do we, the fans. His wish was to play for his boyhood club, and to allow him that move was the best thing to do, irrespective of the outcome. Better to try and fail than to never try at all.

19.) 17 Nov 2014
17 Nov 2014 11:37:00
Just seen that Paul Mitchell has put in his resignation to Saints. So football is all about money after all ( ho! ho! as if we didn't know already) but an article I have just read did make me chuckle a bit. Spurs are desperate for our mercurial chief scout to get their show on the road. I suppose that it is pretty obvious why they would want him, I mean he has been responsible for promoting some great players - Forren, Taider, Osvaldo, Ramirez, Mayuka, Gazzaniga. De Ridder etc. so it goes without saying that they need him desperately. Where would we be without him LOL. . maybe the Champions League, I think we'll manage just fine without him don't you ?

20.) 17 Nov 2014
17 Nov 2014 14:57:31
What bothers me is that he knows all our targets.

21.) 21 Nov 2014
21 Nov 2014 15:50:08
How is this all about money??? Resignations happen for a lot of other reasons.

What is his contractual period of notice???
Could be three months so would it matter he knew our targets??? He would not be able to discuss such matters whilst he was still contracted to Saints.