Southampton: Who have Saints opened against in previous seasons?

Southampton will learn who their opponents on the opening weekend of the Premier League will be on Thursday when the fixtures are released.

The Southampton fans, staff and players will be awaiting the 9am announcement, hoping for a home game to kick things off and looking out for when the Premier League’s big boys come to town.

Mark Hughes will be relishing the task of taking his new side forward with a few signings added to create some competition within his squad.

Since returning to the English top-flight in 2012, Saints have started with away matches in four of their six seasons. Clashes with Man City, West Brom, Liverpool and Newcastle came in the first four campaigns after promotion.

Home games against Watford and Swansea have kicked off the last two years, but Saints haven’t been very good starters in these seasons. One win, three draws and two losses have been witnessed in since 2012/13.

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SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Oriol Romeu of Southampton and Leroy Fer of Swansea City during the Premier League match between Southampton and Swansea City at St Mary’s Stadium on August 12, 2017 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Alex Morton/Getty Images) /

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The start of a new season often sees the beginning of a new regime at clubs, and this had been the case at St Mary’s for many years.

Both 2016/17 and 2017/18 saw new managers come in the form of Claude Puel and Mauricio Pellegrino, and this will almost be the case this August as Mark Hughes is welcomed as permanent boss.

2014/15 also saw Ronald Koeman come in following a turbulent summer for the club, and the opening match against Liverpool saw Saints come up against a number of former players who had been sold.

Memories and some of the best games of the season can also be found on opening weekends. Who can forget Saints’ first game back in the big time against Man City where Nigel Adkins’ men went so close to winning and started with a bang.

However, some early season displays are misleading. In 2015/16, Saints had played in the Europa League qualifiers before beginning in the Premier League with a 2-2 draw against Newcastle.

They then went on a late season charge and finished in their highest ever league position in the top-flight in sixth; again qualifying for Europe but this time for the group stages.

It will be vital for Southampton to start on the front foot and express their brand of football from the off. New boss Hughes has given a signal of intent after two years of poor displays and fans will need proof of a bright near future for the club as soon as possible.