Ok he saw us train for a couple of days and quite correctly went with the same team that lost but did reasonably well at Burnley just replacing Lee with RLC. Good move to try to keep the spirit shown last week going.
We all agree we were rubbish today so what did the match show Roy.
First I would say Luka stood out like a shining light when he came on. Sclupp is not a full back. Ward and Puncheon are not good enough. McAurther is too slow and Cabye had a " I was not interested game" Benteke is so isolated and he will lose interest if not given the service.
He will have to use the next no pressure games against Citeh Manure and Zchelski to sort out a better 11 for when the winnable games come along.

You are right , I hope he learnt Luka should be in the first XI, Frank did his best to ruin him by playing him at the the back pre season and then making him his favourite player to substitute.
Cabaye has started playing like he did under Pardew again, we can hope if Luka is played in correct position it will help Cabaye get back to how he can play.
I also think he may have learnt TMF is really quick but may well serve us better as a full back when Sakho is fit.
You are also right that he has 3 games with no real expectation to try and get the players drilled into an effective unit and system that will suit them and the premiership like what should have been done pre season.

The real battle ahead in next 3 games is to at least battle it out for three draws working on defence frailties and building up from there. It may not look glamorous but it's about getting points on the board against top teams and gaining confidence to then chalk up key wins afterwards (by which time we should have essential players like Zaha back playing)

If Benteke gets injured then we have had it given that January window is too far away and we'd hardly be an attractive proposition for strikers wanting to join when rooted at the foot of the table.

That Ward and Puncheon shouldn't be anywhere near the first team.

Ward will give you absolutely everything, it was noticeable how in the depths of injury time our RB was playing a 1-2 with our CB and trying to get a shot off, but long term I find it hard to believe we wouldn't be better with Fosu Mensah at right back. Similarly, as bad as PVA might have been against Swansea, I just think he's a better left back than Schlupp. I would also rather have Schlupp coming off the bench than Lee or Sako as I think his pace and determination might be more userful.

Puncheon, really poor today, and on top of that his role as captain was a bit dodgy, on a yellow and having to get a talking to from the referee. If he's not going to be a leader, then what is he bringing?

Despite Luka's poor first couple of games, he showed yesterday why he's so vital. Not just defensively, but when he came on we suddenly had two players in him and Cabaye who have the ability to move the ball quickly and switch play. It also allows both Cabaye and RLC to get forward.

Cabaye can still play, the build up to RLC's first chance was masterful, the way Cabaye played about four short passes and got the ball back, all the while moving to his right. He dragged three Southampton players with him, then when play switched, they were still out of position and RLC had all that space to run in to.

We are still creating chances. How none of those crosses went in I will never know.

Benteke needs someone closer to him. He showed yesterday how good his link up play can be. The lay off for Loftus-Cheek, the flick for Townsend at the end of the first half.

Most worrying thing for me yesterday was the fitness, it's very reminiscent of last season. We started badly, but the 20-40 minute mark was ok. Then we switched off before half time and were lucky not to get caught out again. Second half we came out and looked well on top for 25 minutes, but then it just looked like we ran out of gas. Townsend in particular looked knackered for the last 20. It might be a rather crude indicator, but when Sako made some positive cameos last season he looked much trimmer than he did yesterday. As a team we look unfit, and that contributes to making individual errors.

Employee of the month is a good example of how someone can be both a winner and a loser at the same time.

Very fair assessment. Think you may have hit the nail on the head with the point about fitness as Southampton looked much sharper and quicker to the ball.

I wondered if it was just a case of too many slow 30 yr old players but probably a bit of both.

Sako looked hopeless.