Saints Marching
Fansided

Southampton 0-2 Brentford: Carabao Cup – Three Key Takeaways

By Erik Franzo

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 16: Che Adams of Southampton reacts during the Carabao Cup Second Round match between Southampton FC and Brentford FC at St. Mary's Stadium on September 16, 2020 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 16: Che Adams of Southampton reacts during the Carabao Cup Second Round match between Southampton FC and Brentford FC at St. Mary's Stadium on September 16, 2020 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
Moussa Djenepo of Southampton (Photo by Robin Jones/Getty Images)
Moussa Djenepo of Southampton (Photo by Robin Jones/Getty Images) /

We’re Short on Attacking Midfielders

This is a problem many Southampton fans did not expect.  Stuart Armstrong was injured on International duty, Nathan Redmond was injured in the match, Sofiane Boufal looks like his time is up at St. Mary’s, Will Smallbone is not playing in his natural position, Josh Sims has become a U-23 player and Moussa Djenepo is still recovering from his long absence.  Yikes!

Nathan Tella drew the start and looks like a capable midfielder, but a Premier League impact midfielder is a very tall ask.  He flashed some good footwork, but played at an unsustainable pace, made some immature decisions and did not deliver that key moment we were hoping for.  We all love academy developmental players, and they need to get in the side, but this early in the season speaks volumes.

The team needs to buy, but we did not expect in 11 and 7.  Some very crafty wingers have joined PL sides in this transfer window, while Saints have sat on their hands trying to offload bad business of yore.  Without playmaking attacking mids in the side, we will increasingly need to rely on Ryan Bertrand and Kyle-Walker Peters to produce a forward spark in the upcoming weeks.