Southampton: Great stat shows how underrated Saints legend was
By Marc Walker
Former Southampton striker Rickie Lambert will always hold a legendary status in the eyes of the club’s fans.
After signing for just £1m in 2009, he went on to score 115 goals in 230 appearances in his five years at St Mary’s – a huge factor in successive promotions and then stability in the Premier League.
He was, however, not appreciated as much by those who had not seen him play up close for Saints.
The perception was that he was overweight and an old-fashioned English striker from the lower leagues, but this couldn’t have been further from the truth.
This stat below, released by OptaJoe, shows exactly how well he adjusted to top-flight football.
15 - Rickie Lambert scored 15 Premier League goals for Southampton in 2012-13, the last player to score more in a season for a newly promoted side was Andrew Johnson for Crystal Palace in 2004-05 (21). Super. #OptaPLSeasons pic.twitter.com/485OnIGFHM
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) April 20, 2020
To have the second-highest amount of goals of any player in their debut season in the league after promotion is a superb accolade to hold.
More from Saints Marching
- Grading the Southampton Transfer Window Part 2: Arrivals
- Grading the Southampton Transfer Window Part 1: Departures
- It’s time to talk about Gavin Bazunu
- Rain clouds on the horizon? Southampton beat Plymouth Argyle
- A lament for Southampton legend James Ward-Prowse
His first season in the Premier League came when he was 30 years old – nearer to the back end of his career rather than the beginning.
Natural talent, the help of managers and a hunger to succeed then drove him on to bigger heights and even 11 caps with England.
Most notably, making the step up to the highest level made Lambert adapt his game brilliantly.
In League One and the Championship, his ability in the air along with great finishing saw him bully defenders throughout most games and bag a hatful of goals.
But then as he faced internationally recognised players in the top-flight, he was able to show his creative talent most of all and dropped deeper to dictate play.
This means that he actually has almost as many Premier League assists as he does goals, with 21 to his 31 strikes.
He was still able to show his finishing abilities when given chances by the players around him, but he really started to show just how intelligent his football brain was before moving to Liverpool.
Others may have just seen him as unfashionable, but Saints fans knew exactly how good a player he was.
Next. Saints owner Gao Jisheng lower asking price for club. dark