Aaron Ramsdale: return to Southampton confirmed

[nufcjmc]

7 hours ago, r0cafella said:

I'm hoping the decision to loan him was a can kicking exercise and not a trial period. We will back him whilst he wears our colours but he isn't the answer long term and this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. 

 

Fwiw I don't think he did anything wrong against Bayer however he's a bomb scare from corners. 

The reported fee of 16/20m which is a good chunk of money for a keeper who doesn't seem to be clear no1 despite how poor pope has been should also be a nail in the coffin for keeping him.

[Big River]

I'm all for upgrading on Pope, but this lad is properly shit  there's no way we'll sign him permanently

[Gawalls]

I wonder if pope was playing with an injury hence his drop of form recently and we bought him partially to give us breathing space to allow pope to recover. Not saying we still shouldn't buy a new keeper (not Ramsdale imo) buy a fully recovered pope Back to his best form for us if always a bonus.

[r0cafella]

Just now, Big River said:

I'm all for upgrading on Pope, but this lad is properly shit  there's no way we'll sign him permanently

You say that but sunk cost fallacy is a bitch

[TRon]

2 minutes ago, Big River said:

I'm all for upgrading on Pope, but this lad is properly shit  there's no way we'll sign him permanently

 

 

Agree. I think we signed him as cover and probably figured £4m for a loan fee was worth it. We won't be keeping him. I think the criticism for yesterday was harsh, but in general he just hasn't commanded his area well enough to inspire confidence. 

[jackyboy]

Yesterday was his best game and hopefully restores some of his confidence which seems to be lacking 

[AyeDubbleYoo]

Can’t see him being the answer sadly, even though he’s a decent player and his passing is very good. 
 

We need a level above, which won’t be easy to find. 
 

I would keep him as backup and let Pope go if it works for everyone. But I’m not leaning towards starting next season with Rambo as number one. 

[Wallsendmag]

He's exactly what I expected him to be. 

 

And I don't mean that in a positive way.

[Ronaldo]

1 hour ago, jackyboy said:

Yesterday was his best game and hopefully restores some of his confidence which seems to be lacking 

We easily could’ve conceded 4 goals yesterday, directly due to his limitations. If that’s his best game God help us.

[Lotus]

He hasn’t performed to a level above Dubravka so far for us. Not saying he won’t, but he’s been a step down on Pope overall for me.

Was a moment last night you could see the defender was expecting him to come out a clear it like Pope would’ve (or at least tried to ) but Ramsdale was stuck to his line, á la Dubravka.

 

Maybe he’s just lacking some confidence. Dunno.

[The Prophet]

Part of the risk free element of this deal means that he won't need to be hounded out, thankfully.

[Wallsendmag]

6 minutes ago, Lotus said:

He hasn’t performed to a level above Dubravka so far for us. Not saying he won’t, but he’s been a step down on Pope overall for me.

Was a moment last night you could see the defender was expecting him to come out a clear it like Pope would’ve (or at least tried to ) but Ramsdale was stuck to his line, á la Dubravka.

 

Maybe he’s just lacking some confidence. Dunno.

 

If it's the bit I'm thinking of

it was in the 1st half and he hesitated twice. Looked absolutely horrendous at the match not sure if it looked just as bad on TV.

[JT24]

I always end up signing Diogo Costa for us on FM. He always ends up being class. 

 

Howay Andy, sort it out. 

[andycap]

He was canny yesterday I thought like. After a couple of poor games for us in the league. 

[Ed Vinegar]

Feels like between Ramsdale and Pope there exist the elements of one good goalkeeper. 

[The College Dropout]

Upgrading Pope is going to be a difficult challenge.  
If the Gk Isn’t close to being as commanding as Pope we will struggle to take to them.  
 

Even keepers most think are better overall like Pickford (obviously not him) have significant drawbacks. 
 

You lot will appreciate Popey one day. 

[nemtizz]

42 minutes ago, Ed Vinegar said:

Feels like between Ramsdale and Pope there exist the elements of one good goalkeeper. 

 

Yet Pope is clear. Ramsdale only has his distribution, and it's not even that good. It's just a massive upgrade on Popes'

[Amir_9]

Can't say this guy has inspired me to have a lot of confidence in him on latest appearances. Nothing personal as seems a decent personality.

 

Would have been nice to keep Dubs as number 2 if he would have still been happy with number 2

 

I would have been more confident about Sunday if Pope was starting

 

 

Edited December 11, 2025 by Amir_9

[McCormick]

6 minutes ago, The College Dropout said:

Upgrading Pope is going to be a difficult challenge.  
If the Gk Isn’t close to being as commanding as Pope we will struggle to take to them.  
 

Even keepers most think are better overall like Pickford (obviously not him) have significant drawbacks. 
 

You lot will appreciate Popey one day. 

100 per cent. He may not be any good with his feet but he’s an amazing goalkeeper and super underrated imo. 

[gbandit]

I’m not knocking Pope, he’s been absolutely amazing for us. However, his time is pretty much up, been one of our best ever keepers 

[Ronaldo]

6 hours ago, Amir_9 said:

Would have been nice to keep Dubs as number 2 if he would have still been happy with number 2

You’re not serious, surely? We just need a solid backup.

[Zero]

My reference line, albeit a bit old, is Steve Harper. If a gk is worse than him, we should find another one.

 

and yes sorry Aaron you does look even worse than Harper.

[Gawalls]

15 hours ago, The College Dropout said:

Upgrading Pope is going to be a difficult challenge.  
If the Gk Isn’t close to being as commanding as Pope we will struggle to take to them.  
 

Even keepers most think are better overall like Pickford (obviously not him) have significant drawbacks. 
 

You lot will appreciate Popey one day. 

I appreciate him now, he has his flaws but I keep repeating myself when I say nobody in our reach can shot stop like him.

[Coffee_Johnny]

9 hours ago, Zero said:

My reference line, albeit a bit old, is Steve Harper. If a gk is worse than him, we should find another one.

 

and yes sorry Aaron you does look even worse than Harper.

I always thought Harper was a good keeper and one who would have been even better if he had left and been number 1 elsewhere; once the initial tussle for the position with Given was lost. 

[Novocastrian]

Pope/Ramsdale is the epitome of Rafa’s short blanket. That being said I think Pope would have saved a couple of the goals Ramsdale has conceded in the last couple of games.

 

He’s got the obvious deficiencies but he’s a great shot stopper.