Saints Marching
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Marching On: 7 Keys to Southampton’s Success This Season

By Aaron Preston

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - MAY 15: General view of St Mary's Stadium as the teams walk out prior to the Barclays Premier League match between Southampton and Crystal Palace at St Mary's Stadium on May 15, 2016 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images)
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - MAY 15: General view of St Mary's Stadium as the teams walk out prior to the Barclays Premier League match between Southampton and Crystal Palace at St Mary's Stadium on May 15, 2016 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images) /
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Nice’s Brazilian midfielder Carlos Eduardo (L) vies with Guingamp’s French midfielder Jeremy Pied (R) during the French L1 football match between Nice and Guingamp on March 13, 2015, at the Allianz Riviera stadium in Nice, southeastern France. AFP PHOTO / JEAN CHRISTOPHE MAGNENET (Photo credit should read JEAN CHRISTOPHE MAGNENET/AFP/Getty Images)
Nice’s Brazilian midfielder Carlos Eduardo (L) vies with Guingamp’s French midfielder Jeremy Pied (R) during the French L1 football match between Nice and Guingamp on March 13, 2015, at the Allianz Riviera stadium in Nice, southeastern France. AFP PHOTO / JEAN CHRISTOPHE MAGNENET (Photo credit should read JEAN CHRISTOPHE MAGNENET/AFP/Getty Images) /

4. Develop From Depth
Depth was a watchword of this transfer season for Southampton, and for good reason. With at least 44 matches, and potentially more if the team progresses through the F.A. Cup and Europa League, being able to rotate players off the bench and into the starting XI seamlessly will be more important than ever. Any injury, suspension or drop in form could spell disaster, so the bench are going to need to step up and show that they have what it takes to start when called upon.

To that end, Southampton manager Claude Puel and football director Les Reed have been working overtime. The transfers-in this season aren’t the glamourous, headline-winning names that dominate news and social media. Rather, the club have played their familiar brand of pragmatic moneyball: £12.5m for 21 year old former Bayern Munich product Pierre Hojbjerg stands as the team’s top summer signing at press time.

Clearly, Puel and Reed feel that the squad they’ve got is capable of keeping up the pace set by the last two years, with few additions necessary. In a quiet, unassuming window in spite of some big holes to fill, the Board sends a clear message to its much-celebrated academy: now is your time to step up, or shut up.

Time will tell how this pans out.

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