In every season, across Europe there is always a club or three that enjoy a season above expectations.
These clubs are harvesting their years of long-term planning and meticulous implementation of a footballing vision.
However, these clubs are never left alone to enjoy the fruits of their labours. The bigger clubs waltz in, a cart full of money in tow, and leave with all their best players and sometimes their manager too.
The implications of this mean that any club wishing to challenge the established clubs, have a season or two at revel in (relative) success, before returning to the mediocrity from whence they came.
Even Atlético Madrid and Dortmund, two well supported and financially strong clubs, lost some of their best players despite winning their domestic leagues and reaching the finals of the Champions League in recent seasons. Names include Diego Costa, Filipe Luis, Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski.
In America, the term ‘dynasty’ is used to describe a clutch of great players at a club. No club now, apart from the top-tier or billionaire-bankrolled side, can hold onto one for more two seasons. Some clubs now can’t even hold onto the single world-class player on their books like Luis Suarez at Liverpool, or Gareth Bale at Tottenham.
In the Premier League season just past, Southampton were the pick of the overachieving clubs. In the summer, Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert, Dejan Lovren, Luke Shaw and Calum Chambers all left Hampshire to join various Premier League heavyweights.
Lallana, Shaw and Chambers had all been brought through the club’s academy, and in a single transfer window they were yanked from Southampton’s hands.
Since 2009, when they bought out of administration by the Swiss Liebherr family, Southampton has steadily established a vision of attacking, possession football fed by a brilliant academy system. Graduates include Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Shaw, and Chambers, as well as current first-teamer James Ward-Prowse.
In fact, this vision has been followed so attentively that Nigel Adkins, despite performing adequately, was replaced by Mauricio Pochettino in a rather swift and brutal action last season.
They grew up from the comparative doldrums of administration and League One in 2009 to win promotion to the Premier League for the 2012-13 season – a rise of two divisions in two seasons. Aided by their ambitious and well-implemented vision, they managed to reach the oxygen-sparse heights of eighth – and subsequently fell into the sights of the big clubs.
Coming into this season, the club didn’t have a manager and had only half a squad. They also had to deal with some board shenanigans. Their chairman for the past five years Nicola Cortese fell out with Katherina Liebherr, the owner. The club also had the impending second-season syndrome to look forward too.
Southampton received a truckload of money for the outgoing transfers – Luke Shaw was the biggest, at £31m. The year before, Spurs had gone through a major squad reconstruction after they received a small nation’s yearly output for Gareth Bale, but they showed no signs of progress despite signing many quality players.
First of all, they brought in Ronald Koeman, unattached after finishing his contract with a relatively successful three years at Feyenoord. Last time the Dutchman coached outside the Netherlands, he’d also just found success in his native country (with PSV).
Valencia picked him up, and despite having a talented squad (Villa, Mata, David Silva, Joaquin and Raul Albiol were all there, for instance) he was sacked after about a year in the job. Koeman managed to revive his reputation at Feyenoord somewhat, but considering his past experiences, it was a rather risky move on Southampton’s part.
After bringing in Koeman, the Dutch connection didn’t stop just there. Graziano Pellè (Feyenoord), scorer of 50 goals in 59 appearances in the Eredivisie, and the Serbian playmaker Dusan Tadic (Twente) followed Koeman to Hampshire. Toby Alderweireld (Atletico Madrid, loan), Ryan Bertrand (Chelsea, loan), Fraser Forster (Celtic), Shane Long (Hull) and Sadio Mané (RB Salzburg) were other notable arrivals.
Such an upheaval (8 first teamers in, 6 out) meant that the signs were pointing to a struggle for Southampton this season. However, much to the delight of those of us who enjoy good competition, Southampton has rocked up this year with a swashbuckling swagger not seen since the days of Johnny Depp.
The Saints are currently riding high after eight games. They are in third place, above their vultures Liverpool and Arsenal, as well as Man United and Spurs. News greeted us on Sunday morning of their 8-0 trouncing of Sunderland, with Tadic scoring his first goal for the club, and with four assists, already surpassing Adam Lallana’s total (6) for the whole of last season.
Tadic has indeed been a run-away success. The focal point of most of his assists has been the Italian Pellè, who has already banged in six goals in eight games. Much pressure and superstition had been placed on Pellè in pre-season, what with the Dutch/Eredivisie scoring sensations fizzling out whenever they came to England in recent times – the Italian has put paid to that notion with his performances so far.
So far, Koeman and Southampton haven’t appeared to put a foot wrong. Perhaps the only one was their performance at White Hart Lane where they lost to Pochettino’s new team 1-0. Their team and, most importantly, their new signings have shot off from the start like bride’s nightie on the wedding night.
Yes, it is still early days, and the Saints haven’t played any of the Manchesters, Arsenal or Chelsea – though they’ll play City, Arsenal and United consecutively, in a month’s time. It’s also inevitable that the squad will suffer injuries and a loss of form, and the whole host of assorted footballing things that always drag a team down over the course of a season.
However, from this early vantage point, it is fantastic to see a club managing to kick-on after being customarily pantsed by the big clubs for having the temerity to have and execute an ambitious plan.
Hopefully, their lack of European commitments will allow Koeman and co. to sustain a push up the table, like Liverpool did last year, and with their careful planning, manage to stay there for a few years to come.
Although Tadic, Pellè, Koeman and the other high-performing others will inevitably be picked off Southampton next year.
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