Southampton closed their pre-season with a 2-1 win over Preußen Münster earlier this afternoon, albeit against a German third-division side. The scoreline flattered a Saints team that looked sloppy at the back at times.
This had the feel of an afternoon for getting minutes into tired legs. Tonda Eckert watched from the stands while Ben Garner stalked the touchline. Could this be a sign of things to come?
A second-string XI had drawn 1-1 behind closed doors earlier in the day as Cameron Archer got on the scoresheet in that one.
The hosts went ahead when a long ball skipped past Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Felix Higl lashed it beyond Daniel Peretz. Leo Scienza levelled soon after. He found a yard of space before finishing coolly.
Dobbin keeps his hot streak going
Lewis Dobbin was the one Southampton player who looked match-sharp. He forced the winner home on 87 minutes, sliding a precise shot in off the far post from a Matsuki pass in front of the away end.
That was Dobbin's third goal of pre-season, after earlier strikes against Eastleigh and Paderborn. He already looks like a shrewd signing after joining from Aston Villa earlier this summer for about £9m.
Dobbin scored ten Championship goals last season, one shy of Finn Azaz's tally. With Azaz still building fitness at Staplewood, the new man has slipped into that role without fuss.
The signing looked smart from the off. Early coverage of the deal made the case, and pre-season has only firmed it up.
Questions at the back and a late worry
The defending will give Eckert plenty to work on. Peretz was busy. He tipped one effort onto the post before Kuryu Matsuki hooked the follow-up off his own line.
Harwood-Bellis thought he had turned scorer with a header from a Scienza free-kick, only for the flag to chalk it off. Ben Brereton Díaz then wasted a decent opening after the break. He fired into the crowd with Matsuki standing free to his right.
The one worry came late, with Scienza appearing to feel a muscle before Yukinari Sugawara replaced him. That is a knock no manager wants a week out from the opener.
Nick Oyekunle gave the side a lift after coming on for Brereton Díaz. He nearly turned in a Welington cross that flashed across the six-yard box.
The trip to Germany has handed minutes to fringe players throughout, and now attention shifts to Saturday's Carabao Cup first-round tie at Colchester United, the season's first competitive test.
Southampton fly home with the win, an in-form Dobbin, and plenty of defensive homework to sort before that trip to Essex.
Add us as a preferred source on Google