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Southampton: Hasenhuttl’s influence growing at Saints with new B team

By Marc Walker

Southampton's Austrian manager Ralph Hasenhuttl looks on during the warm up the English Premier League football match between Bournemouth and Southampton at the Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth, southern England on July 19, 2020. (Photo by Mike Hewitt / POOL / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by MIKE HEWITT/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Southampton's Austrian manager Ralph Hasenhuttl looks on during the warm up the English Premier League football match between Bournemouth and Southampton at the Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth, southern England on July 19, 2020. (Photo by Mike Hewitt / POOL / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by MIKE HEWITT/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Southampton are set to replace their Under-23s side with a B team that would involve youth and senior players.

According to a report from the Daily Mail, Saints will take the restructuring of their academy to the next level by making this move – one that has been introduced by a number of teams across Europe.

Teams such as Barcelona, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund already have this in place, whilst Brentford have also implemented it in England.

The move – if it comes about – will further show the influence of Ralph Hasenhuttl on the club and point towards a sustained, long-term spell at St Mary’s.

Introducing a B team model would be another step towards improving the link between the academy and the first-team – something that Hasenhuttl clearly wants to do.

Will Smallbone of Southampton (Photo by Robin Jones/Getty Images)
Will Smallbone of Southampton (Photo by Robin Jones/Getty Images) /

Saints’ youth setup is famous for the number of high-quality players it has produced in the past and for the number that have gone on to play senior football, but that production has slowed somewhat in the past few years.

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Part of that has been a lack of faith from previous managers, but the players will feel that they have real chance to impress with Hasenhuttl now at the helm.

Will Smallbone and Jake Vokins both made an impact in the 2019/20 season and have now been rewarded with new contracts after coming through the ranks. Both players look set to be important options for Saints in the upcoming campaign.

Adopting the B team model is often due to cost-cutting and some clubs have scrapped their academy setup completely to just have one team below senior level, but this does not seem to be the case at St Mary’s.

This move is to improve the chances for young players to make it and will also aid the new “SFC playbook” that Hasenhuttl has created to adjust youth talent and new signings to his pressing style of play.

The B team will be a straight swap with the current Under-23s setup and will play in the same Premier League 2 division. As before, the matches that the team plays will also be chance for senior players to get valuable minutes under their belt if they are just returning to fitness.

Next. Saints targeting transfer for impressive Chelsea youngster. dark

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