Southampton won their fifth game in six yesterday as goalkeeper Fraser Forster kept his sixth clean sheet in as many games. Our recent run of form has been rather commendable and has brought heaps of praise on the team, which has been fully deserved.
I am writing this article in light of sitting in the away end yesterday on my third visit to the Liberty in as many seasons and I have to say, I did enjoy it. However I still believe that in spite of our recent run of form, there is still room for improvement. In the last six or seven weeks during our unbeaten run, we haven’t played the most attractive of football and have won ugly. This has been highlighted as of late, which is not to be complained about, but if we are looking to compete with the likes of West Ham and Man United for that fifth and sixth spot, then goal difference may be a key factor with just one point and one goal separating the three teams. This means that we may have to turn these 1-0 victories into three or four-nil victories and with the capability our team possesses, this should not be difficult.
I have also seen some fans complain about Koeman’s tactics and I happen to agree with them. We set out yesterday with a false right wing-back position meaning James Ward-Prowse and Steven Davis were getting pulled out wider, leaving Virgil van Dijk to cover when needed. I feel this left us quite exposed in the first half especially, as Swansea attacked down the left wing numerous times, whipping in some dangerous balls; maybe a better side would’ve punished us. Another decision Koeman made was to bring Oriol Romeu off midway through the second half and replace him with Cedric Soares. Romeu was on a yellow card but didn’t look in any danger of picking up another one and at 0-0, the decision was highly contested in the away end with many moans and groans considering the Spanish midfielder put in yet another solid performance. Would Koeman have done that if Wanyama was playing?
Furthermore, we were sat watching Saints play mediocre football with not much attacking threat, watching the minutes tick down waiting for Charlie Austin to be brought on. In many fans’ opinions, he should be starting now and building up that match fitness he so desperately needs. I feel it was clear to see that anybody at the game yesterday will have seen just how poor Graziano Pellè was despite some fans at home still trying to defend him.
I’m afraid his performances as of late have not warranted anything near a first team spot yet Koeman insists on playing him week in week out. We had Sadio Mane and Dusan Tadic both on the bench and even though Mane’s form as of late has been poor, we missed that attacking sharpness in the side. Austin eventually came on and ended up having as many shots as Pellè did all game in 5 minutes. I’m aware that it is not all about shots and goals but people argue that Pellè’s hold up play is superb, however, after yesterday’s game I beg to differ.
Countless times he would fail to control it on his chest in the middle of the park and would give away possession a dismal 12 times in 70 odd minutes. I also saw him have a go at other players when they didn’t give him the ball instantly, however when others give the ball away there’s a hand up and they go again. Pellè throwing his arms up in the air is starting to wear the fan’s patience thin. On a more positive note, even though he didn’t have his best of games, I think Shane Long ran his socks off as per and got his deserved winner. It was great to see Steven Davis back in the side too, and I feel Jordy Clasie had a quiet but very effective game. Van Dijk was just the usual rock that he is and made the game look simple as usual, and Ward-Prowse’s work ethic has to be pointed out, also.
To finish I would like to make it clear that I am not moaning about recent results or anything as such, but I believe that through this excellent run of form we still have room to improve which would be excellent. A top six spot is looking more than likely now with our remaining fixtures and let’s hope for more of the same results wise. What did you make of yesterday’s performance? Where do you think we will finish? COYR!
