Southampton: Should the Saints really aspire to be like West Ham?

Despite showing some good ambition themselves, a handful of Southampton supporters have called for the club to match the outlay of Premier League rivals West Ham United.

After a month or little-to-no in-comings and only Dusan Tadic heading the other way, Southampton have since signed four players in the past month, with three of those costing the club in-excess of £10 million. The most recent arrival, Jannik Vestergaard, became the Saints’ most expensive defender in history when he signed last week.

However, the club’s ambition in the transfer market has been overshadowed by West Ham’s, especially after the London side signed Felipe Anderson for a record £36 million + add ons late last week. This comes after the Hammers appointed ex-City boss Manuel Pellegrini as manager, as well as signed Jack Wilshere for free and Andriy Yarmolenko for north of £17 million.

Whilst the Irons have shown some serious intent to push for European football next campaign, those who are desperate for Southampton to spend the same amount should first and foremost remember how Everton’s past season has gone.

The Toffees surprised a lot of us last year by spending big bucks on a lot of players, including a £45 million deal for Gylfi Sigurdsson, and £25 million signings of both Jordan Pickford and Michael Keane.

Next: News on moves away for three academy products

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 20: Mason Holgate of Everton guides his wall during the Carabao Cup Third Round match between Everton and Sunderland at Goodison Park on September 20, 2017 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images) /

Despite this, Everton suffered a forgettable campaign, with none of their summer or January acquisitions enjoying particularly impressive seasons. Granted, a lot of this may of come down to the board’s appointment of Sam Allardyce, but sacking Ronald Koeman in the first place after spending as much as they did over summer was just as questionable.

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Granted, the blue half of Merseyside did finish a respectable eighth, but they were also just five points ahead of the promoted Newcastle and were 14 behind any of the top six.

With Chelsea potentially set to lose star player Eden Hazard and Arsenal looking to adapt to their first season without Arsene Wenger, there’s reason to believe that one of the league’s big boys may enjoy a less-successful season than their supporters expect. If one of them do, one team has to fill that gap. If West Ham don’t, their supporters will be disappointed.

Yes, the Hammers could enjoy an impressive campaign, but there’s so much hype around the side that anything less than European football and fans may be calling for Pellegrini’s head.

With Southampton, they have been quietly shrewd with their signings – those who have paid attention expect the Saints to finish in the top half but there’s no pressure to get into the Europa League spots.

Furthermore, adding that many fresh faces to a starting XI can cause issues with squad harmony and gelling as a unit. Everton again are an example of this but the 2013/14 Tottenham team are another after they sold Gareth Bale.

All in all, West Ham’s transfer policy this summer could come good in the long run – they could finish seventh or maybe even sneak into sixth.

However there seems to be just as much risk of it all coming crashing down – Pellegrini getting an early sack, the board appointing a Allardyce-type figure to secure survival, and the Hammers’ creative arrivals struggling in a new system. Southampton supporters should be happy with their own club’s business.