Match Reports
MK Dons Away Capital One Cup
We’ll never know whether Ronald Koeman might have adopted a different approach to the Capital One Cup had Saints still been involved in Euro competition, but as it was he continued to treat it with respect by resting just Pelle amongst the regular starters in his XI to face the absurdly named Milton Keynes ‘Dons’. […]
Manchester United Home
Manager Koeman may not admit it, but fixtures against the Champions League elite clubs usually mean a bit of tinkering to our line-up, so in came Romeu and Yoshida (at right back) to face Manchester United. I think it worked pretty well, but we all know Yoshida’s game has a mistake waiting to occur, and […]
West Brom Away
Oh dear, another game when we have to spend as much time discussing line-ups as action on the pitch! This was at West Brom, where local awkward squad member Berahino was given time on the bench to contemplate why a move to Tottenham was not going to be in anybody’s best interests, a ploy given […]
Norwich Home
There is a school of thought that says Southampton would not have been too disappointed at being dumped out of the Europa League before it had really begun. I don’t believe that for a minute, so the coaches had to raise morale before taking on Norwich at St. Mary’s. They would have been helped by […]
FC Mitdjylland Away
It all seems a long time ago when the Europa League play-off round draw paired Saints with a club we’d never heard of, never mind our being able to pronounce their name. Turns out that Mitdjylland, Denmark’s refugees from the Champions League, were more than capable of giving Saints a tough time and eventually booked […]
Watford Away
A season that began so brightly (impressive in friendlies, big European win, decent enough away point) hasn’t exactly reached crisis point, but radical changes were made for the trip to Watford: defensive players Soares, Yoshida, Fonte, Caulker and Targett all included, Steven Davis restored and only Mané and Pellè up front. That lasted for 25 […]
FC Midtjylland Home
I can’t readily think of an earlier occasion when Ronald Koeman has been out-thought tactically, but the consensus seems to be that the starting team against Everton was too weak physically in key areas. So to Midtjylland (who have, not surprisingly, completely fooled my spell-checker), and the considerable speculations about their strategies – and all […]
Everton Home – Not a great day at the office for anyone wearing sensible colours.
Transfer activity by our rivals meant Southampton’s own actions in the summer window had to include the replacement of Schneiderlin and Alderweireld. Romeu has arrived to satisfy the first requirement, but too late to be a realistic starter against Everton at St. Mary’s; Caulker is more likely eventually to be a squad member than a […]
Newcastle Away
Soarez and Targett both returned after missing the European adventure so it was a different back line for the domestic opener at Newcastle – arguably a more distant destination than Arnhem! More surprising was the inclusion of Rodriguez in the starting line-up, mainly because Koeman (R) had said he wouldn’t be fit… but then again, […]
Vitesse Arnhem Away
Arnhem is a place name synonymous with a famous British rearguard action, dating back to when airborne troops were dropped (literally, by the RAF) into an impossible position. That was never going to be repeated in Southampton’s visit, and especially after Pelle turned neatly and finished decisively in just the fourth minute. That left the […]
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