The Champions League dream is over for Southampton this season – realistically, it has been over for a fair while. Koeman and his side will have to rue over what might’ve been for this term. However, it is widely, and rightly, believed that this season, even without a top four finish, has been an astonishingly successful one – as they began the season with many tipping them for relegation. However, now that the Saints are where they are, it would be a huge disappointment for them not to make it into Europe at all.
Saturday’s loss at Sunderland highlighted Southampton’s major flaw this season – a lack of ruthlessness against a team who were there for the taking. Both penalties were correct decisions but even so, Saints had enough of the ball to do more damage to a mediocre (at best) Sunderland defence. Two shots on target from 57per cent possession is a measly return and this summed up the second half of their campaign.
Since the turn of the year, many of the points gained by Southampton have been grinded out rather than free flowing and stylish – away at Manchester United and Chelsea for instance; or at home to Crystal Palace and Hull. None of these results really showcased the Saints at their exciting, early season best – they felt routine or pragmatic. Some may argue that this is a good thing, that a team can win when not at their peak, but Southampton’s slip down the Premiership table has shown that they can’t do this regularly. Dropped points against Swansea, West Ham, Stoke and most recently Sunderland have frustrated Koeman who knows his side have played well enough to win those games.
Koeman has undoubtedly done a fantastic job pulling together a completely new forward line – and the Dutchman’s style is attractive, but the key to Southampton’s success this season has been their efficiency rather than their attacking prowess. No piece of writing talking of Southampton this season is complete without an honourable mention for their back four; led by the ever-present Jose Fonte, the Saints have kept the second most clean sheets (15 – to Chelsea’s 17) so far, but in attack the Saints have been guilty of a lack of cutting edge – especially during games where they have dominated possession.
They have scored less than each team in the top six and have failed to kill off teams that they should have; after losing an attacking trio of Rickie Lambert, Adam Lallana and Jay Rodriguez (for this season), this is understandable but nonetheless frustrating. Graziano Pellè’s initial form was a revelation; Dusan Tadic was settling in dreamily and all this, built on the foundation of a sound defence – the season was looking ever so rosy.
However, over Christmas the goals were gone for Grazi, Dusan’s form dipped and results ran dry – since then consistency has been hard to come by. A constant run of positive results since the turn of the year has evaded Koeman’s men – in the last six matches they have won two, draw one and lost three – hardly an example of form worthy of a European place.
A lack of alternatives up top meant, inevitably, that points were dropped but also that Koeman’s style, playing fast and vibrant football appeared to slow – Saints couldn’t maintain the zest that had seen them fly up the table during the early months of this campaign.
Pellè, in his first season in English football, couldn’t be solely relied upon to get the goals throughout and he didn’t get much adequate help from behind him – James Ward-Prowse and Steven Davis, in particular, have been particularly wasteful in front of goal despite generally performing well. If it hadn’t been for Sadio Manè popping up at vital points, Saints could well have been in a much less appealing position.
Europa League is still not guaranteed for Southampton; they’re remaining three games are awkward – a trip to the Kingpower Stadium, which will no doubt be rocking, to face a Leicester team very much in form, a home fixture against a resurgent Aston Villa under Tim Sherwood and a daunting last day at the Etihad.
Koeman and his side will really have to show character to guarantee European football before the season is out – unless they want to wait to see if Arsenal do them a favour in the FA Cup Final; in which case Europa League football is extended to seventh place.
With the upcoming tricky trio of fixtures, Saints fans could be forgiven for looking over their shoulders at Swansea, who are now only four points behind them. It would pain anybody associated with Southampton for the cynics to be proved right – that Saints did not have the staying power to break into the top six elite, that the glass ceiling had been reached for the fairytale football club. And if Southampton were to lose touch with the top six, something they will be desperate not to do, it would leave an exceedingly bitter taste at the end of what has been a splendid season.
