Last season was a rather underwhelming one for Southampton and culminated in manager Claude Puel being sacked, ensuring the club went into this campaign with another new man at the helm. It has been a rather difficult start for Mauricio Pellegrino so far, with just one victory from the first four matches, but can Southampton start to pick up better results in the games to come?
Having emerged as a strong Premier League side under former managers Mauricio Pocchetino and Ronald Koeman, Southampton slipped backwards last season under French boss Puel – who struggled to match the entertaining, attacking possession-based football of his predecessors. This led to him being removed from the manager’s chair at the end of the season, but so far the latest manager is also struggling to replicate the results and quality achieved by those two old bosses. Southampton began the season with a dull 0-0 home draw against Swansea, before securing a win – and three goals – at home to West Ham in the second game.
This has not really kick-started their campaign though, as they went on to lose at home to lower league opposition in the League Cup before suffering another goalless draw and defeat in their next two league games. That leaves them sitting in 13th position in the table and a troubling sign for supporters is that they did not have the hardest opening run of fixtures – meaning more points would have been expected. It is possible that the summer transfer saga surrounding centre back Virgil Van Dijk – who wanted to leave only for the club to refuse all offers for him – has unsettled things, but if Pellegrino can get his mind focused on the club again he will once more be a valuable player for them. However a lack of creativity and goals was a real problem for Southampton last season and there is little in their transfer activity during the most recent window to suggest that they have addressed these problems – which is further supported by the fact that they have only scored in one competitive match so far.
Alongside the two league defeats and a draw in the Premier League, the Saints were also dumped out of the League Cup at home by Championship side Wolves, ensuring that there is already a bit of pressure on Pellegrino to turn things around over the next couple of months. Southampton’s next game is away to Crystal Palace, who have just sacked manager Frank De Boer after four matches, which gives some indication of the demands on Premier League managers. It is set to be an absolutely crucial game for both teams, even at this early stage, with Southampton captain Steven Davis making the point that the sacking of De Boer will have the Palace fans and players up for the game. We should remember that there is plenty of time for the Saints to turn their season around, but it is unlikely that even fans will be betting on them at 250/1 to pull off a shock Premier League win.
If you like betting on football then playing a themed casino slot game like Soccer Safari, or just wagering on the individual Southampton matches at sites mentioned in casinoonline.co.nz, will probably be a better bet.
