When manager Mauricio Pochettino jumped ship for Tottenham in the summer, many people predicted doom and gloom for Southampton. However the new man in charge Ronald Koeman appears to be a perfect fit for the Saints.
The Dutchman has done an excellent job of rebuilding the squad, after a nightmare summer saw them lose stars players Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert, Dejan Lovren, Calum Chambers and Luke Shaw.
Rickie Lambert
One of the first to go was talisman Rickie Lambert. The 33-year-old was offered his dream move to hometown club Liverpool for £4million, but the move hasn’t worked out as the striker would have hoped.
On reflection Lambert will probably feel he should have stayed at Saints. The Englishman scored 17 goals for club and country last season – earning him a call up to the World Cup squad.
While Southampton fans would have been sad to see him go, new manager Ronald Koeman appears to have found the perfect replacement in Italian forward Graziano Pelle.
At 6ft 4in tall, the 29-year-old, appears the ideal replacement for Lambert. The £8million signing from Feyenoord is a strong, powerful centre-forward with a good touch.
Pelle has an exceptional record under Koeman at Feyenoord, where he scored 55 goals in 66 matches over his last two seasons for the club and he has already found the net 12 times for the Saints this campaign.
If he can recapture the form he was in at the start of the season, Southampton may yet be able to secure European football.
Adam Lallana
Next go to Liverpool was captain Adam Lallana for £25million. Given the quality of those around him, Lallana was expected to take his game to the next level at Anfield, but so far he has only shown rare glimpses of the quality he showed for the South Coast side.
Koeman appears to have found the perfect replacement for Lallana – left-sided Serbian international midfielder Dusan Tadic, a £10million signing from FC Twente. In Tadic, Southampton have acquired one of the most creative and technically accomplished players in the Dutch league.
He scored 32 goals for Twente from midfield over his last two seasons with the club. He is an outstanding player, who possesses superb vision and creative ability and is fast becoming one of the best creative players in the Premier League.
Though he has not scored many goals for Southampton, you cannot underestimate his value to the side.
Dejan Lovren
Central-defender Dejan Lovren became the latest Saints player to move to Anfield – and at £20million, he could turn out to be the transfer of the summer, for Southampton that is.
He joined the club for £8.5million and after just one season at St Mary’s he was sold for more than double that price – so Southampton can reflect on the trade with satisfaction. Despite his departure Saints have maintained a solid defensive record in the Premier League.
On transfer deadline day Koeman secured a potential replacement for Lovren with the loan signing of Belgian international Toby Alderweireld from Atletico Madrid. The 25-year-old is a solid, experienced defender (26 on Monday) who knows Koeman from their time together at Ajax.
He will serve as a good replacement for Lovren, but can also play at right-back, offering additional cover after Calum Chambers was sold to Arsenal.
