I, like many others, thought that Southampton were going to have a long, painful season in 2014-2015, with the Saints’ fortunes declining faster than Manchester United last season, lurching from one disaster to catastrophe with embarrassing inevitability.
The sales of Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw and Rickie Lambert looked to have left Southampton’s squad looking emptier than a list of Mario Balotelli’s greatest Liverpool goals. The loss of manager Mauricio Pochettino and further departures made it look like the Saints were in for a hellish campaign. To make matters worse, many of the replacement players were relative unknowns, with Ronald Koeman coming in, a man with no Premier League experience and a Twitter account. I mean seriously, which manager has a Twitter account?!
Shows what I know.
After an unlucky defeat at Anfield – ironically, the destination for many of their departing players – and a scrappy draw at home to West Brom, Southampton have won seven of their last eight games in all competitions. An 8-0 win over Sunderland at the weekend is the highlight, but a 2-1 win at The Emirates in the Capital One Cup is another notable victory.
Of course, Southampton made a similarly good start last season before they tailed off slightly, before finishing 8th. However, they look better equipped this time around to really challenge for a European place. With Graziano Pelle resembling…well, Pele by firing in the goals, and an excellent defence including the brilliant recruitment of Toby Alderweireld, there is no reason why the Saints can’t continue this rich vein of form. Well, except for bad luck, injuries and the fact that I have now comprehensively put the mockers on them with this blog. Sorry.
It is important to note than less than four years ago, Southampton were still in the murky, scary waters of League One, still reeling from going into administration just a couple of years before. Now they are frolicking in the crystal clear Premier League waters, splashing the likes of Man City and pulling down the trunks of Man United (just a metaphor, guys). Without wanting to jinx them, with a fairly young side and excellent academy, there is a chance this success can continue for a long time.
So, while column inches will continue to be dominated by Chelsea’s excellent start to the season, or the struggles of Liverpool and Man United, we should also recognise the achievements of the clubs operating on much smaller budgets. That includes West Ham and Swansea who, at time of writing, sit in fourth and seventh places respectively in the Premier League.
The fledgling Premier League table always throws up these surprise positions for some clubs, but as the season approaches quarter distance, we hope Southampton continue to act as an inspiration to clubs in both the Premier League and the whole Football League. With patience, time and luck, any team can make a splash in the Premier League.
