Southampton Back Four For Peterborough

Saints have a good goalkeeper for the division and I believe he is clear of blame for the poor showing at Carlisle on Saturday.

The back four selected for the game was, Frazer Richardson, Jose Fonte, Radhi Jaidi, and Dan Harding.

Richardson looked solid enough especially as our midfield didn’t help as much as they maybe should.

Fonte looked uncomfortable for long periods of the game and was well beaten for one of the goals. He didn’t seem to gel with Jaidi either which is cause for concern.

Jaidi played in his usual bulldozing manner but for me was too often left behind by the speedier forwards and midfielders of Carlisle. He seems to be getting slower to me and could well be a liability.

Dan Seaborne is starting to work well with Fonte and is quick enough to help out his left back when required. A lot of supporters were surprised by his inclusion.

Aaron Martin was becoming an ever present under Pardew and was looking good. Strong in the air and fleet enough to recover most of the time if and when beaten.

He had become a usefull partner to Fonte and was often able to make interceptions to clear danger.

Since Nigel Adkins arrived though he has not had a look-in and we are left wondering whether Nigel doesn’t rate him. Maybe he feels that Aaron still needs time to gain some more experience.

I am not here to have a go at anybody but Dan Harding had a nightmare against Carlisle and his limitations were savagely exposed. Worst performance fom him since arriving at St Mary’s.

Ryan Dickson came on for the last half-hour and did much better and may have done enough to warrant a start at home to Peterborough.

The big question though is who plays at the centre of our defence when all are fit. Do we bring back Seaborne or Martin, or do we give Jaidi another game in case he just needed match fitness?

Let me know what you think because I know from reading posts on several of our sites that a lot of fans were disappointed by the team selection and the performance.

Perhaps you feel that with more cover the defence would have been ok and it is the midfield that needs to be sorted once and for all. Let us know.