Southampton Fan View: Saints’ near-catastrophic season must act as a wake-up call

Following four consecutive top-eight finishes in the Premier League, optimism was infectious surrounding Southampton ahead of the 2017-18 season.

Claude Puel had been replaced by Mauricio Pellegrino, much to the dismay of opposition supporters. Why should a manager who has led a mid-table club to a top-eight finish and a cup final be relieved of his duties?

The answers were visible only if they were magnified. Saints players had grown agitated with Puel’s methods, the fans had lost patience with his overly cautious style of play and the team ended up 17 points worse off than the season before.

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Fast forward around nine months and ‘be careful what you wish for’ was being blurted out by pundits and supporters alike, with Saints facing the bleak inevitability of relegation from the Premier League.

Although, sacking Puel wasn’t necessarily the catalyst for Saints’ downfall. Appointing Pellegrino certainly contributed to the club’s demise.

It was quite the shock to see a club of Saints’ structure and prestige fall from European nights to relegation fights. However, complacency from those within the top brass at St Mary’s coupled with incompetence at management level led the Saints to the edge of the abyss.

Pellegrino’s methods were unclear. His tactical approach didn’t resonate with the key men in the Saints team and his in-game management prevented the team from picking up and seeing out valuable results.

Players such as Oriol Romeu, Maya Yoshida and Cedric Soares who had been nothing short of excellent in the previous season were underperforming to the extreme. Several members of the squad had regressed from reliable options to liabilities.

The division between Southampton supporters was prevalent throughout the campaign and the only unity that had formed was behind the belief that Pellegrino simply had to be given his marching orders. This was by Christmas, yet his dismissal came months later in March when it appeared as though Saints were beyond saving.

Mark Hughes was then appointed as the club’s new first-team manager with only eight games to spare. The Welshman helped the team to a semi-final of the FA Cup against Chelsea but in truth, there were far more pressing matters at hand.

Saints played with more freedom in attacking sequences under Hughes during his first few outings but there were clear deficiencies, notably in the team’s inability to defend and see games out.

Given the arguably low quality of the Premier League this season, it was clear for all to see that a simple run of results would catapult Saints out of the drop zone. However, the team had failed to win consecutive games all season and had only accumulated five wins in the Premier League.

However, Hughes came in and galvanised the team. A new lease of life was provided and Saints were able to pull themselves away from the relegation zone with wins over Bournemouth and Swansea, along with an impressive performance in a draw at Everton between the two victories.

Southampton secured 17th place in the Premier League and although this was no cause for celebration given the club’s previously high standards, only elation and relief prevailed after the persistently grim viewing Saints fans had been subject to throughout the campaign.

The players were given a phenomenal send-off following their narrow final-day defeat against Manchester City, which was somewhat peculiar given the barrage of arguably deserved criticism they had come in for from sections of the club’s angered supporters.

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In truth, only a few players stood out for Saints in what was a horrendous season. Alex McCarthy claimed the number one spot from Fraser Forster midway through the campaign and was instrumental in keeping Saints afloat.

McCarthy was Saints’ Player of the Season and a string of fine saves towards the very end of the season was arguably as important as Hughes’ influence on the team or Manolo Gabbiadini’s late winner in the decisive outing at Swansea.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was another who enjoyed a significantly improved season, proving his worth and establishing himself as a vital player for Southampton.

Aside from that, however, it was a considerably disappointing campaign on an individual level for Saints’ players. Too many players failed to play to their potential and were unable to produce quality performances on a regular basis, contributing to Saints’ demise and lucky escape.

Blame can be directed towards the group of players from the 2017/18 season and also to the previous management staff. However, the board truly do have questions to answer.

The recruitment was not good enough in neither the summer transfer window nor in January. The failure to replace Virgil van Dijk almost cost Saints’ dearly, with one of the best players to ever wear the shirt departing without a replacement ready and waiting. It was a recipe for disaster.

Southampton’s near-catastrophic 2017/18 campaign should not be forgotten. It was a lucky escape for all involved in the club and it must act as a wake-up call for the chiefs at St Mary’s. A season like this must never happen again.