Europa League Group Draw Day concluded yesterday, with Southampton being drawn into Group K alongside Inter Milan, Sparta Prague and Hapoel Be’er Sheva.
The draw was concluded at 1 PM British Summer Time yesterday afternoon and seeded clubs according to four pots, based upon UEFA club coefficient. Southampton were in Pot 3, with a coefficient of 16.756.
The UEFA Coefficient is a number used to rank club teams based on their prior performances in international tournaments, as well as a fraction of the team’s national association coefficient. It is unscaled, with no upper limit; the highest ranked club in this year’s tournament, Germany’s Schalke 04, enters with a coefficient of 96.035.
Southampton’s draw prominently features Italian giants Inter, who won 5 straight Serie A titles from 2005-2010 as well as 3 Coppa Italia, 4 Supercoppa Italia and one Champion’s League title in that time.
They find themselves in the Europa League this year having finished 4th in Serie A last season, and are tipped as early favourites to progress deep into the competition. The Saints will get their first taste of the Nerazzurri on 20 October in the famed San Siro stadium; the reverse fixture at St. Mary’s is scheduled the following week on 3 November.
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The club’s fellow group-mates, though not as decorated as pot 1 entry Inter Milan, are no slouches either. Hapoel Be’er Sheva comes off an historic season in the Israeli Premier League, capturing its first title since 1976. Sparta Prague, meanwhile, finished 2nd in the Czech First League and were winners as recently as 2013-14.
For Southampton, Europa League group stages represent uncharted territory; the club failed to make group last year after losing to Danish side Midtjylland in qualifiers. The campaign ahead will see the team traverse nearly 16,000km and test the depth and endurance of a side that has never seen anything like it before.
Coming as it does in the critical months of September through December, the group stage will be the ultimate test of Southampton’s ability to build on a successful last season and thrive on the international stage.
For the fans, it promises new opportunities to see their team establish itself as one worth talking about, and an exciting winter of watching the beloved Saints keep marching on through Europe and beyond.