From League One to the EPL: The meteoric rise of Southampton

Not since the glory days back at The Dell, when Lawire McMenemy sat in the dugout and Peter Shilton and David Armstrong were running the show, have Southampton had it this good.

As Steven Davies trotted off the bench against Hull City and added the gloss to what had been a stunning performance at St Mary’s, he had ensured third spot as well as the Saints’ best ever start to a Premier League season.

The last time Southampton were this good after 11 rounds was back in the old first division in the 1989/90 season, when their endeavours eventually found them finishing in second spot behind Liverpool in what was the last league title won at Anfield.

The rise has certainly been a meteoric one as only four years ago, the Saints had entered administration and where starting the League One season with a 10-point deduction.

Famed for their excellent production of youngsters such as Theo Walcott and Gareth Bale, the Hampshire club had hit rock-bottom.

But with the appointment of Nigel Atkins from Scunthorpe came a glimmer of hope, and after a shaky start, he led them to back-to-back promotions in 2011 and 2012 and had them back where many thought they belonged: the Premier League.

But with promotion had come the typical bumps and bruises a new side and in January, Southampton found themselves teetering precariously only three points above the relegation zone when Adkins was finally sacked.

Up stepped former Espanyol boss Mauricio Pochettino and, fast forward 10 months, the relatively unknown Argentine has the Saints flying high and fighting for a coveted Champions League spot.

The introduction of Pochettino has given life to the club as the style he has imposed has been revolutionary.

Citing noted tactician Marcelo Bielsa as one of his main influences, his has set up his side relatively similar to some of those that were led by his fellow Argentine.

Pochettino’s team has been heavily praised for their defending which has seen them provide the stingiest defence of the Premier League this season.

He employs a high-pressing style game not to dissimilar to that of Borussia Dortmund in which they defend from the front and crowd out teams, although they don’t have the counter attacking ability that the yellow submarine possess.

Key to this has been a relatively unchanged back four with highly rated English youngsters Nathaniel Clyne and Luke Shaw filling the fullback slots and José Fonte and summer signing Dejan Lovren deployed at the centre halves.

Their midfield has been relatively strong with Morgan Schneiderlin and Victor Wanyama deployed in holding midfield.

Schneiderlin has been exceptional already this season and has claims, alongside Aaron Ramsey, to be one of the best holding midfielders in the league.

Wanyama, on the other hand, has been relatively poor, especially against Hull on the weekend, since his £12.5m move from Celtic.

While his breaking up of play has been above good, he has a tendency to get caught in possession too much and his distribution has been shaky.

But while the defence has been the headline-grabber, their attacking play has only recently garnered attention as the form of their young, English attacking trio of Ward-Prowse, Adam Lallana, both of whom are youth academy graduates, and Jay Rodriguez in behind the bullocking Rickie Lambert has been rather exceptional.

When in attack, Pochettino has his side playing an up-tempo style of football with sharp, direct pass and move football and continual positional interchange between the three deployed behind the striker.

The understanding between the trio of Lallana, Lambert and Rodriguez has been particularly note-worthy and its little surprise to see all three called into England’s squad for the upcoming friendlies.

On the flip side, there are also the curious cases of record signings Gaston Ramirez and Pablo Osvaldo who have yet to feature heavily under Pochettino.

Ramirez has been relegated to the bench and Capital One cup appearances, while Osvaldo has struggled linking up with Lambert and, despite the heft price paid, is clearly not in their best eleven.

Both are handy impact players however and could become crucial during the latter parts of the season.

With this in mind, their excellent early season form makes for an interesting proposition as to where they sit in regards to the other big players in the title race.

Results such as those against Liverpool and Manchester United, in which they won 1-0 and drew 1-1 respectively, has given indications that they can match the traditional powerhouses.

Their next four games, however, should give a clearer picture as to where they sit with trips to both the Emirates and Stamford Bridge to come followed by two tricky home ties against Aston Villa and Man City.

While it would be silly to cast them genuine title contenders, their delightful play so far has been simply impossible to ignore.

Plus, with the notable managerial changes at the top and struggles of some of the other big teams, the Saints have picked a good time to be performing well.

And with Pochettino at the helm and a core of young English talent, it’s fair to say that their swift rise from League One strugglers to Premier League high flyers is not just a flash in the pan, but rather a statement to let the rest of the league know to watch out for when the Saints come marching in.