EVERY word Saints manager Russell Martin, head of women's and girls football Marieanne Spacey-Cale, director of football Jason Wilcox and CEO Phil Parsons said at the 2023 BBC Radio Solent fans' forum.

Atlanta Primus joins Saints today, you realise that's a dangerous surname in these parts, don't you?

MSC: I'm hoping she's going to be dangerous when she starts every game for us this season. She's a fantastic player and will add more quality and depth to our squad.

It's good that we are done now in terms of transfers and we have got pretty much everybody we wanted. 

We knew who we wanted to come in and why, so now we are in a strong place before the league kicks off.

Quiet August so far Jason, what is the latest with Romeo Lavia?

JW: I wish I could say that our business is done like Marieanne's, but it's not.

It's well known that we have had significant interest in Romeo and we have accepted an offer from Liverpool, then Chelsea came to the table, so we are currently in negations with Chelsea.

It's a really tricky period for Romeo, but I'm confident something will get done in the next few days.

When we look at what Romeo has achieved I don't think anyone here would want to lose him. But the reality is that we are in the Championship and we need to reinvest.

By buying Shea Charles we have hopefully got another player that we can do the same with. 

Good luck to Romeo, it's not done yet but in the next few days, it will be completed. 

Are you going to let Russell Martin spend any money? What can we say about the ambition?

PP: We have a reinvestment pot, the owners are not silly people. They are very invested in getting Southampton back into the Premier League, but at the same time, we have been tasked with building the foundations across the club in every department. 

The football is with Jason. He has his budget to work with and he can potentially get a bigger budget. The owners are very involved on a day-to-day basis with the spending of the money - they want to get it right.

It's an interesting time and hopefully, in another week, we will have a bit more certainty for Russell.

How is Will Smallbone?

RM: I think it's a bit worse than we feared on Saturday, but I also don't think it's going to be anything too long-term - fingers crossed.

I don't envisage Will being too ready for the weekend, unfortunately. 

I've been really impressed with him since he's been back in, he will be a loss, but hopefully not for very long.

I always thought that he was a very good player, and he is better than I thought. He's been amazing.

Is there a plan to address the current height of the squad?

RM: I think it's important in the Championship. We aren't going to recruit just based on height, that's not the way that we play.

There are teams out there that do that, base their signings on size and set-piece ability. 

The goals are avoidable, but it's not just about height, it's about detail. Andreas (Georgson) has just got into the building and he is very much learning on the job about what the players are capable of.

We have learned a lot over the last couple of games and it is something that we will address. We have scored from a set piece as well. It's something we are aware of.

We have shown the players how important set pieces are in the Championship. Teams have got promoted or reached the play-off final purely with their biggest strength being set pieces. 

Does height come into recruitment or does that not matter?

JW: I think when you are looking at profiles of players, height is crucial in certain positions.

You look at your goalkeeper and two centre-backs, those are key positions where you need height.

But as Russell has said we are not recruiting for height, we are recruiting for players who play a certain way and have the courage to play that way. If they are tall, it's an added bonus. 

We need to be conscious that we are in the Championship and we need to be able to compete physically and that is something that is really important.

The alignment of profiles is a big part of my job. When I look across the squad we have inherited, I don't think there has been a squad with a clear identity. 

Last year when I was reviewing all of our games from January to when I joined, I felt as though the games we won were because we were relying on luck.

We couldn't identify what we were doing well and what we weren't doing well. 

We thought we had a system, but we didn't. My belief is in consistency and alignment on the training ground, which is why we brought Russell in. 

But it's a long process and it will take patience from all supporters to really believe that this was is a fantastic way to watch football matches.

The first second of a goal is just as important as the last second.

You don't know how much courage these boys have got to have to receive the ball in their own goalmouth.

The easiest thing to do is for us all to lose belief and get onto the backs of Russell and the players. That will lead to the players thinking they've got to kick it long, as far from our goal as possible, because that is easier.

We are not going to change and we want to give you a team that you are really proud of. Not just the way we win, but the way we play with the courage that they show. 

The profiles of the players that we will bring are players that want to play for us.

There are a lot of players who want to come and play for Southampton because of the project that we are building.

That's super exciting but we've got to go on now and build. We are going to have a clear identity and we are going to know why we have lost and why we have won.

Has the delay in selling players had an impact on the players Saints are trying to recruit?

PP: We don't necessarily have to wait. We are fortunate to have owners that are willing to put more cash into the club.

But we have a responsibility to meet certain regulations as well.

When you do sales it's not like the money hits the bank straight away. Sometimes you've got to wait for the money to hit over several years, and you've also got payables that you've got to pay for transfers in previous windows.

Cash flow is important for all businesses, not just football clubs.

We will look at the cash flow, but we also need to talk with Jason on a day-to-day basis about where conversations with players are at. 

Have we missed out on any players? I don't think so.

It's been about getting in the right profiles as Jason has explained. We need to make sure that the players coming here want to be here and don't just want to use the club for their careers. We want them to be a part of the journey.

It's very complicated when it comes to how much cash is coming in and how much cash is going out.

When you get relegated you have different payments coming in. Don't get me started on the amount from advertisements. There are lots of factors, but nothing is holding us back.

JW: Just to touch on Phil's point, it's really dangerous for us to sign lots of new players.

We are desperate to sign new players, all of us, but it's very dangerous to make high-level assumptions that we are going to sell five or six players and that we will get a certain amount of cash. 

It's quite a tricky balancing act and we don't want to put Southampton at any risk. We need to be sensible in our approach and to be really disciplined in our approach.

Russell wants his team fixed. I want the same thing, but I also have to work with Phil on budgets. We are not always going to agree with each other.

We will sign players and sell players at the right time. The survival of Southampton Football Club is very important.

Can we have a note to the stewards to be more mindful of the action on the pitch for their changeovers?

PP: I can't talk about individual situations but we will take the feedback.

I think it links into the culture we are trying to create here. If we have problems let's talk about them and then let's fix them and get them done.

The team are at the back taking notes. I sit nearby so I shall shout at them.

Kameldeen Sulemana, Nathan Tella, Che Adams have all got interest from other clubs? Is there a point where you say that these are players that we need, and even if they say they want to go do you put your foot down?

JW: I think when myself and Russell sit down there are certain players we think have got a natural Premier League market.

When you look at James and people like him, you are expecting offers to come.

But sometimes there are also offers that come in that are unexpected. You have to consider those from a business perspective.

You look at it to decide whether it's good value for the player and if can we reinvest that money into the football club. It becomes a business decision. Can we replace? If we can't replace, then we need to try and find some replacements.

It's all about if we getting the correct value for our players and if we aren't getting the right value then they will stay.

We are a business at the end of the day and we can't buy a player for £20million one year and sell them for £5million the next.

But there are certain situations where we have too many players in a position and we can now offload wages.

There's a lot of context around it, but myself and Russell are really aligned because we are constantly talking about the squad and we know that there will be a lot of movement between now and the end of the window.

The values that we bring are aligned with this football club. That is why we came.

How do you deal with that uncertainty in the dressing room?

RM: We have tried to be really conscious of everyone's situation because everyone is different.

We had some guys that were adamant they were leaving five or six weeks ago and now they are not. They are happy to be here.

We have had some guys that have had so much uncertainty that it's been really difficult for them to deal with it.

You have to really empathise with them at that moment. Some of them have children and for some of the younger guys, there's the expectation from their families around them.

We have gone down the road that we as coaches will give everything we have got to everyone in case they are here.

When they leave we can look each other in the eye and know we have given them everything, and, hopefully, we have had the same back.

They have all been brilliant. They've all got a willingness to learn and try new things.

There are days where some find things a bit tough because perhaps there has been a bid come in and they are not sure what's happening or maybe they want to leave.

It's a really tough moment for everyone, we have been really honest and asked for the same back. Everyone has been brilliant in training, but you have to accept now and again that someone might be having a tough day.

It's also about how good your agent is at managing the noise around you and how much pressure he puts on you.

It's so difficult. I was never good enough to have any of that noise. That's when you get called loyal, but really you're crap. 

Marieanne, you've brought a lot of new faces in. How do you stop that unsettling your dressing room? 

MSC: I think it's really important that you have a clear vision.

I think it's important that every player understands what their strengths are so that when they walk out onto that pitch they know what you want from them.

If they are coming into the game they need to know what impact you want from them.

If they are not in the squad it's about the lead into the game during the week because they need to train as if they are playing. They are very good at accepting that their role might be one thing on the weekend, but during the week their role is to ensure that we are ready.

It's about having a vision of what you want to achieve and having everyone buy into that.

But it's also about what the players' strengths are. We have a starter, finisher and supporter model.

I want them to be annoyed if they are not in the team and I want them to use that in a positive way, not to use it in a way that is detrimental to the squad.

Conversations are really important to make the players understand who they are and what they bring.

Football is a very competitive sport and everyone wants to be in that first 11, but it's not just the 11 that win anything, it's the whole squad.

As long as you have that vision and that mindset. The rhetoric around the dressing room is all about 'if I do this today it means we will be better tomorrow.' 

The spine of the team has been an issue for a while now. Can we get some reassurance that we are addressing those, especially in goal?

RM: We don't have a problem with the goalkeeper in my opinion.

We have a full international who is 21 years old and will take some unbelievable learning from playing in the team that finished bottom of the Premier League last season.

That's not easy for a goalkeeper, especially a young goalkeeper. 

Alex McCarthy is a really experienced number two and Joe Lumley is a really experienced number three. We have great strength in those positions.

I've been made aware of this narrative around Gav. Last season has happened, you can't impact that.

If I was looking to sign a goalkeeper, I would want to go and sign Gavin Bazunu for the way that we play.

His mentality and the way he trains. I said after the game against Norwich that he didn't deserve to concede four goals, it was the guys in front of him. We will learn from that.

I can only speak from my short time here but Gavin is going to be a great goalkeeper. He is also going to be a huge asset to this club both on the pitch and financially.

As long as he maintains the standards that he's had over these past six weeks, we will be more than fine. He has really capable people pushing him in training to make sure we get the best out of him.

He's had a really difficult time and he will be so much better for last season. As will Sam Edozie and the other young guys that we have in the building.

In terms of the rest of the positions, we want to improve every position we can while also understanding that some positions are more important than others.

We have two number nines who have scored three and two goals in just two games. We have Sekou Mara waiting in the wings as well, so unless someone comes up that is way better than those, or we lose one, then it won't be something that we address.

It's our job as coaches to make you guys see the best versions of these players because you haven't for the past year or two.

Adam Armstrong for example has been here for two years and you haven't seen the best version of him because the style of play didn't suit him and he hasn't been given a huge amount of opportunity.

You worked with Gavin at Manchester City Jason, he's got some steel hasn't he?

JW: Absolutely. I signed Gavin when he was 16 at Man City and he is the same humble guy now that has played in the Premier League and was probably frustrated with his own performances last season.

He's really reflective and he's a winner and I agree with Russell that there won't be a better goalkeeper in the league. 

He's a tremendous representative of what we are as a club. I think he's an amazing boy who shows real courage. He's not going to get it right every time. We are backing him 100 per cent.

You are welcome to have your opinion, but I think we just know Gavin a lot closer. While he made mistakes last year he is going to learn from them.

Are we going to sign more experienced players rather than just youngsters?

RM: We will be bringing in one this week with really good experience in this division and has played hundreds of games in the football league.

We are looking at players who can add experience from this division or from the one higher. I also feel like there is a balance.

The older, more experienced players definitely help the younger ones to really be the players they need to be. Every day, not just on the match day.

We have some really brilliant experienced players. Also, the young players have helped the club hugely this summer.

Romeo, Tino. It's part of who we are. Sam Amo played against Gillingham and was amazing.

We had the youngest team in the league last season at Swansea. We are really not worried, if you are old enough you are good enough.

Shea Charles come on at the weekend and was really outstanding, but we also need to help them with our own experience and with some experienced players.

By the end of the window, we will have enough experience for sure.

Also for the young players who were already here, to have that pain from last season will be really great for their development.

The balance of the squad is quite nice, we will add some experience for sure.

We are trying to build a team for the future. It's not all costs for promotion this year without understanding how you get there or why you get there.

We are going to try and get there in a sustainable way with players that are going to grow with us.

It's a really difficult balance because you want to get promoted, but you don't want to get there with players who aren't quite ready to compete at the next level.

It's a conversation that we are constantly having.

Southampton has a history of developing young talent but surely there has to be some short-term plan because you want to get back up?

PP: There are no conversations going on about how much we will make from signing a player.

The main objective is how do we get up? That's the conversation. If we do make £50million on a player it's a bonus and it does help us reinvest and replace players that we have spent money on.

Our revenues as a club are a lot different to the big clubs and we have to think differently about what we want from how we bring players through from our academy.

Equally, we have to think differently about our revenue streams across different departments of the club.

It's my job to challenge our team to think differently in some areas.

We have some of my team in the room and we are really talking about how we make money in areas that we haven't done before. We can't just rely on just a playing strategy because it's not sustainable.

If you have two years where you don't get a player out of the door then you can be in a bit of trouble.

Are there plans to agree on a mutual away ticket cap with any of the other clubs?

PP: I do agree that some of the ticket prices I have seen are far too high.

I can't tell you that we have a solution today, but we are looking at all options.

I haven't been around for all too long, but I am so happy with what I'm seeing from the fans. The atmosphere at the away games, like Sheffield Wednesday, you felt proud to be a part of it.

All I can do is thank people. The home match on Saturday was also superb. Sorry, I'm moving away from the ticket prices, but what summed it up for me was all the fans signing when we went a goal down.

It was 4-4 and everyone was still there in the 97th minute. A few people will have been in the bar by then, but everyone was still around.

We are focusing on the tickets and what we can do, but we don't have a solution just yet because we have still got a few battles to do.

Is it unrealistic for fans to think the club can help with ticket prices that now we are in the Championship? 

PP: I don't think it's unrealistic when it costs a lot of money to travel to an away game and support the team.

We are looking at every penny at the moment because we do need to put it back into football.

We look at new revenue streams as I mentioned earlier. If I'm being honest, some requests that we get are unreasonable. We can make no money if we do everything that way.

We do need to be blunt in some things we do because we do need to grow. Some things are reasonable to be asked.

We do talk to sponsorships about what they can help with going forward. But unfortunately, Southampton are a big club and other clubs do to tend to whack the tickets up.

Which players do you think have the best work ethic, Russell?

RM: They all work really really hard. They do genuinely, and I've been really impressed with their willingness to work.

They are taking out their frustrations towards last season on the training pitch which is brilliant for us.

They worked really hard today - I probably let the session go five minutes too long because they were really tired by the end of it.

I've been really impressed by their culture together and their willingness to run and learn.

They do a lot of work, not just in the training pitch but also in the video room and in the gym.

It's tough for them. It's not always easy. The hardest part should be Sunday to Friday and the Saturday should be the easiest part for them.

We as a coaching staff spent our careers doing the opposite. We had it where Monday to Friday was really easy and then you got to Saturday and it was really tough.

Our job is to make Monday to Friday really difficult for them so that when you get to Saturday hopefully the instinct will kick in when they play.

But Charly Alcaraz works really really hard.

I say to the players that the style of play can be quite divisive because it's a bit different, but the one thing that you never ever want to get questioned on as a football player is your character and how hard you are willing to work.

Everyone is going to have a different opinion about your ability. I think you should always show that you are willing to fight and battle for your team.

It's the most important bit, and they need to enjoy it and smile.

Are you easing off on a Friday? 

RM: We try to taper it. Their three working days are Monday, Tuesday and a Wednesday. There is an open training session tomorrow and we are told there will be huge numbers which is amazing.

Usually, Friday is the one day where, they can't take it easy, but physically it's a bit less for them.

Can we carry on with the friendly atmosphere for the women's matches and can we put more information on the board?

PP: First of all we can be very friendly, no problem. We can take that feedback on board very easily and things like that can be sorted.

I am actually working quite closely with Marieanne behind the scenes and it's not just about women's football and playing.

It's also about how we can make it a sustainable women's football programme for the next five years, make sure we get promoted and that we are competing.

Marieanne is working on more than just the football side. She works closely with her staff on the financial side and what we can do differently.

I have a daughter and I am very much behind women's football.

How are you looking ahead of the start of the season Marieanne? 

MSC: We have had a very good pre-season so far.

Take the results out because every pre-season you plan for different things. Everything has kind of gone to plan.

The players are just chomping at the bit to get to the first game of the season against Lewes because that's the first real test.

Pre-season is planning and the old cliche about getting minutes into the legs and finding things out about new players.

The first game against Lewes is in two weeks time and we are really looking forward to it.

Russell, you've already brought in Ryan Manning and it looks like Flynn Downes is coming in - how useful is it to have players who already know the system?

RM: The system can be very different for a lot of players, so the amount of detail that they need to have to play can be different from player to player.

When you've worked with something before you know their character.

Ryan was a really important signing and I'm really grateful that we got supported to make that move.

Look, he made a mistake on the weekend, but I think he's been great. Having that previous experience means that you can put them straight in because they already have the detail.

When they have such a good understanding, I think it helps the players around them too. It's not like we can just pick a player up and play them. It takes a lot of repetition on the pitch.

For Flynn, as and when that gets done, will be another really important one because he knows the work and what we expect.

He did brilliantly for us at Swansea and there is real trust with us, which will be beneficial to the group.

Is Flynn Downes happening this week?

JW: Yeah 

Question for Jason, what was it like to be stood at Ewood Park when Matt Le Tiss went past three Blackburn players and stuck it in the top corner?

JW: I can't give a one-word answer for that. Maybe two words.

How much does your experience as a player help in your role? 

JW: I think you want to be treated how you want to be treated. When you have your own values and work ethic you attract yourself to these people.

It's all about people. Not just the players. Not just the staff.

It's about people in that organisation. We have some amazing people here that are now going to grow and are going to have room to grow.

They are going to make mistakes along the way. We always focus on the on-the-pitch performance, but there is a team behind this and it's really important that they are recognised as well for their work.

How do you replace the heartbeat of the Southampton Way, James Ward-Prowse and how do you keep that going?

RM: You don't replace James Ward-Prowse because he is a very unique situation in modern football with the amount of affection and love he has for the club.

How he has gone from 16 years old all the way through is incredible. But it will happen less and less unfortunately if we are being realistic.

You also have the players who understand what Prowsey felt.

Jack (Stephens) has been here for a long time, and although he went away last season, it's only made him more hungry and desperate to do well for the club.

Will Smallbone is the same.

That's why bringing in people like Jason who understand being an academy and being on that journey through a club is important.

It's our job to make them ready for us and it's our job to be ready to put them in.

Sam Amo's development came from a different club, but he is now here and he has been brought up in the culture. It's our job to make sure he can give us as much as he can.

In terms of Prowsey, it's a really unique situation because I can't come out here and say we can replace him without a problem.

He's been just incredible, even in the six weeks I've been here.

How hard it was for him to leave can never be understated. But we also have a lot of people who care as much as him and have been on a similar journey.