As an International School teacher, it is around about this time of year that I start booking flights for my summer travels.
With one eye on the beach, it may seem that I will coast into July and be done with it, after all, ”It’s been a great year”. Au Contraire. This is the busiest and most important part of the year and a time when everything comes to fruition. With productions, assemblies, final assessments, exams and reports, there is still work to be done.
Now translate this to Southampton’s season. Saints have had a wonderful season. Better than anyone could wish to imagine. They have defied the odds and critics, as well as surpassing the club’s best ever Premier League points tally with games in hand. “It’s been a great year”. But it is the final result that defines how they will be assessed. If they will achieve higher honours or not.
There is still work to be done.
This was not the look of the players on Saturday. There was a distinct lack of intensity and precision, which has been synonymous with Saints this season. Missed passes, panicking on the ball and opposition attackers passing easily through the defense were commonplace in the opening phases of the game. The first goal was from a Foxes throw in, when a flick-on lead to a 50-50 between Harry Reed and Riyad Mahrez. Normal service in such a position would see Reed crunch the tackle and either win the ball or give away a tactical freekick. Instead he went in half-heartedly and lost out, he then chased back and was turned easily, along with a colleague, allowing Mahrez space to look up and belt a shot through Fonte’s legs and into the bottom corner. Sloppy but it can happen.
The second was much worse. After being forced back into the corner again, by a team that a month ago had only 20 points, we laid the ball back to the young keeper trying to prove he is worth a new contract. Instead of clearing it long or making a precise pass, he got caught half way between both and spooned it up in the air. The resulting chaos allowed the Leicester midfielder to cut into the box, where he was inexplicably swamped by all 3 of our scrambling defenders, leaving the eventual goal scorer, Mahrez free to poke home past the red-faced Gazzaniga.
These two goals are all you need to know about the game. They are two things that you would not have read about 2 months ago in any Saints article. The rest of the game followed a similar trend with Leicester showing much more desire (maybe somewhat understandably) and Saints going through the motions. And again, the opposition ‘keeper was rarely troubled.
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