Nicola Cortese Does A Rupert Lowe

The email in full as is follows.'Well, it seems Saints are on yet another bonkers magical journey! Arguably the best manager in League One, Alan Pardew, is sacked following the death of Marcus Liebherr. Is no-one else suspicious?

It seems to me that Saints FC has become the plaything of Nicloa Cortese, a la Rupert Lowe. With Liebherr gone, Cortese can do as he wishes. According to an inside source, Alan Pardew is a very strong character - perhaps too strong. Apparently, he and Liebherr worked well together but often challenged each other.

It would seem that, after Liebherr's death, Cortese was threatened by Pardew and perhaps saw him as an expensive option. Therefore, getting rid of this threat seems logical. Saints are now left at the mercy of Nicola 'Rupert Lowe' Cortese, the players seem dazed and confused and the fans have already given up on promotion. Why does this always happen at South! ampton FC?'

I was going to leave the email as I believed it was perhaps a shade blinkered, but then decided that as Saints fanbase an opinion is just that.

Whether we agree or not is not really the prime concern at this unstable moment in our club. Nicola has been shown to be an intelligent man.

The sacking of Pardew was not in my book planned because if it was we would already have a new manager ensconced safely at the helm.

There has been a few incidents of note lately that to me don't completely add up. Pardew we don't know the cause but I can imagine them having a major row over somethimng like incoming players.

Guly was maybe an addition that Pardew had no hand in. we don't know and can only surmise. Whatever the problem was we shall probably never hear.

We also know that there has been a lot of money spent on the training facilities. We have also had several changes of staff relating to that and only time will tell if they have been good.

The image problem though is another matter. I for one am now hampered as I can no longer get up to date images of players etc as the press association where this network gets them have none available.

Right or wrong, this move by the chairman has affected several by the inability to obtain the new images required.

I personally have emailed the club on two occasions requesting information. None has been returned. I have also phoned the Saints reception to try to find out the information needed to get the same.

This time I was passed on and then cut off. For Nicola to change options I fail to see how the club can operate unless giving out the required information when it is asked for.

Nicola can only make decisions and then ask for them to be implemented. If the staff are unable to do this I am not going to slag Nicola off because of it.

My problem is small though when we go back to our team and its needs. If Nicola felt Pardew was not up to the job why on earth didn't he remove him at the end of the last season?

I still have faith in our chairman and am hoping for a name to be pulled out of the hat imminently. Someone that we can all get behind and someone that will unite us in the fight to get out of this league.

Timing apart I have no problem with Pardew being removed. Now we wait to see who replaces him and re-ignites our missing spark and sends us chasing back up towards the leaders in our division.

Nicola will make mistakes, I know of nobody that doesn't. To tar him with the same brush as Rupert Lowe in my mind is a cheap shot. We have spent considerably over the last year and will, I imagine, continue to do so.

So how do you see our chairman at this moment in time? I see a man who wants to move our club forward and is not scared to change things around. How do you see him?

There are several people laughing at us and our club right now but will we have the last laugh?

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