Playoff semifinalists Bristol City have included previous Saints interim boss Ruben Selles on their coaching shortlist which might make Southampton's Championship journey more trickier than it feels on the surface.
Since yesterday, Southampton fans have a wide smile on their face as they are assured of no Russell Martin intervention in their promotion ambitions. As is always the case with going down, a handful of the Championship favourites want as much of a stress-free campaign as they can get without overspending their transfer resources.
Similarly, Southampton are no different to this notion. Plus, they know that the more efficiently they can navigate this entire year-long phase, without any buying regrets or a shambolic fitness record, the better it will be for their future Premier League objectives.
But a smooth progress is always next to impossible to retain, as there are some previous playoff high-flyers who are capable of delivering regular upsets every year.
Selles can inspire Bristol City to give tough competition to Southampton
For the next season, Bristol City will be among those "ones to not underestimate" opponents for the Saints and they can get even stronger next season.
That's because Bristol World has suggested that Southampton's former interim boss Ruben Selles could be the one steering their ship.
It's not a frightening speculation at the moment but it's definitely a tricky one if Selles eventually agrees to coach them. Firstly, he knows Southampton and is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of a good amount of current players, thus, it will be challenging for Still to plan those matchups against him.
Secondly, Selles introduced a more goalscoring oriented playstyle in his short stay at St. Mary's and with a few good attacking signings, Selles might turn Bristol into one of the division's best scoring teams.
Naturally, this will strengthen Bristol and it goes without saying that the playoff route is always tough. Hence, Southampton aren't guaranteed to pass that test again if Bristol holds an upper hand on them in the Championship table.
Optimistically, the transfer window is still present and let's hope that Southampton assemble a well balanced squad so these opposition fears don't materialize in the future.