Southampton’s strategy in the summer transfer window was indicative of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s intentions: out with the old, in with the new.
Kevin Danso and Moussa Djenepo, both under the age of 21, were added to the squad to provide yet more untapped potential, while the precocious Che Adams was recruited from Birmingham City.
Adams, 23, presents as the quintessential Hasenhuttl player. He’s fast, direct, combative and possesses good instincts. Perhaps more significantly, there is vast room for improvement, and the manager relishes the challenge of polishing talents who are somewhat rough around the edges.
These players are as common within the club as they are on the market. Adams, albeit four years his senior, is not dissimilar to Michael Obafemi. Both strikers have a quick turn of pace, thrive with space ahead of them and attempt to put their physical frames to effective use to act selfless focal points for the team.
They both appear to be replacements for Hasenhuttl, too. Adams came through the door before the declining Charlie Austin was rather forcibly pushed out, and Obafemi seems to have quietly climbed up the pecking order to leapfrog an experienced figure himself.
The victim of this altered approach? Shane Long: a player who has polarised the opinions of Southampton fans since moving from Hull City in 2014 for £12 million.
Now 32-years-old and with less than a year remaining on his contract at St Mary’s, Long is at a crossroads. He was left out of Mick McCarthy’s Republic of Ireland squad for their upcoming fixtures in the international break, and can hardly have any complaints.
International squads should be selected on the ethos that players are called up by merit, rather than prestige, and Long hasn’t shown enough this season to claim a place in McCarthy’s squad. How much of this is his fault, though, is unclear.
Upon Hasenhuttl’s appointment in December last year, he was not immediately fancied. Four substitute appearances would precede his first start under the Austrian, which came in a 2-2 draw away at Championship side Derby County in the FA Cup. His first Premier League start was against Leicester City the following weekend – Long scored after slipping the ball past Kasper Schmeichel – as Saints came away with a 2-1 win.
The strike – his first since April, nine months before – largely kept him in Hasenhuttl’s starting line-up. He started in eight of the next 13 fixtures, leading the line as Danny Ings recovered from his hamstring problems, and provided Saints with an adequate deputy.
Long has never boasted a reputation for technical prowess, nor threat in front of goal. His highest return in a Premier League season is only 10 – this came during the 2015/16 campaign under Ronald Koeman – and he is not a reliable goalscorer.
However, he no longer looked like a substandard, erratic striker who’d chase lost causes without any real purpose following Hasenhuttl’s arrival. Under the likes of Claude Puel, Mauricio Pellegrino and Mark Hughes, he was ineffective and underwhelming; his pace was a readily available tool, but it was never utilised, and this mismanagement coupled with dreadful finishing and decision-making in the final third saw him come in for some justified criticism.
Hasenhuttl’s pressing-heavy, high-intensity approach prompted a change in fortunes, though. Long ended the season with five goals – half his best-ever total for a top-flight season – and four of these came in the final seven games, as Saints steered clear of the drop.
His half-season under the boss didn’t come without its flaws, of course, and it just wouldn’t be a typical Southampton performance without a glaring Shane Long miss. He squandered a golden chance against Derby at home before Saints crashed out of the FA Cup on penalties. He also inexplicably missed from just two yards out as a chaotic 3-3 draw against Bournemouth, a game in which he scored as the team secured safety, ensued at St Mary’s.
In April, as quoted by The Daily Echo, Hasenhuttl was full of praise for the Irishman. He said:
I think Shane is an important part of the team.
Hasenhuttl stressed the importance of effectively managing Long’s body as he approaches the twilight of his playing career but again reserved praise for his striker. He continued:
He’s a fantastic character that every manager wants to have in his team and that’s the most important thing for him.
Hasenhuttl claimed that every manager wants to have a player like Long, but his words have proven to be a stark contrast from his actions at the beginning of his first full season as a Premier League manager.
Three games have passed, and Long has not even made the bench in any of them. The likes of Obafemi, Ings and Adams have been preferred, while Nathan Redmond is a mainstay. Sofiane Boufal, Stuart Armstrong and Djenepo have alternated on the bench, with no sign of last season’s third-top scorer.
Even when Hasenhuttl has had the chance to bring Long on, he’s been reluctant. He was named on the bench for the 1-0 win against a weakened Fulham team in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday but was hardly a preferable option.
Obafemi – and perhaps more pertinently, natural winger Redmond – started as a strike partnership at Craven Cottage. When the 19-year-old was forced off with cramp, Ings was summoned, despite playing in each of Saints’ three prior fixtures. It was only when Redmond was forced off that Long was almost apologetically called to the fore by Hasenhuttl.
There has been no mention of Long in this season’s press conferences. Nor has there been a sign of him in Premier League outings. His predicament at Southampton is bizarre, and while it was not thought that he was up for sale in this summer’s transfer window, he appears surplus to requirements.
It will be intriguing to see what part, if any, Long plays on Saturday against Manchester United. Redmond is out, Djenepo is injured, and Obafemi won’t be risked. Hasenhuttl has three senior strikers and one winger at his disposal, as well as Armstrong as a number 10 option.
Shane Long has been out of sight, but not out of mind. Hasenhuttl’s youth-centric approach has been reflected by Obafemi’s move up the pecking order. But with the manager’s hand now forced, perhaps it will be telling of Long’s future at St Mary’s when the team sheets emerge on Saturday morning.
