From three points off the Champions League to a relegation fight

As it stands, Southampton will be cut loose from the Premier League when the season comes to an end. Currently three points off safety, the South Coast’s red and white army are facing an unprecedented fight for survival.

A daunting six-game run-in will decide Southampton’s fate. Many Saints fans will be taking this time to reminisce about the glory days of old - and they won’t have to delve too far into the past for cherished stories of their beloved side’s winning ways.

Just two seasons ago, Southampton were a force to be reckoned with. In their 2015/16 league campaign, Saints established themselves as giant killers and fans at St Mary’s witnessed David pummel Goliath week in week out. On Boxing Day 2015, Southampton gave their followers a late Christmas delight with a 4-0 trouncing of Arsenal. In the same season, they beat Manchester City 4-2, Liverpool 3-2, Spurs 2-1, Chelsea 3-1 at Stamford Bridge, and even stole three points from Manchester United at Old Trafford thanks to an 87th minute debut winner from Charlie Austin.

This season, however, draws with United, Spurs and Arsenal have seen Southampton claim just three points from a possible 30 against top six opposition.

What’s changed?

Nowadays, the side’s attacking prowess seems like a distant memory. Flashback to 2015: Southampton had the full package in their attacking trident of Dusan Tadic, Sadio Mane and Graziano Pelle. Tadic brought vision and outstanding technical ability, Mane was the wheels, running rampant on opposition back-fours, and Pelle, chiseled like the bust of a Greek god, provided the finesse and power in his bullish approach.

Together, the trio netted 37 goals in all competitions - a tally that rises to 50 when you add in the 13 goals Shane Long had to his name.

Unfortunately for Long, it appears he left his shooting boots back in 2016. After scoring against Arsenal on Sunday, the Irishman brought his record to a miserable two goals in 48 appearances for club and country.

In fact, almost the entirety of Southampton’s strike force has been dismal as of late. Totting up the combined goals of Long, Manolo Gabbiadini, Nathan Redmond, Sofiane Boufal and Guido Carrillo gives you a grand total of 4 goals in 162 games - or the square-root of sod all. It's worth remembering here that Sadio Mane once managed three in under three minutes.

Nevertheless, Charlie Austin gave the fans something to cheer about when he got back on the scoresheet against Arsenal, bringing his tally up to 5 goals for the season. After the game, Austin gave a rousing call to arms: “We can't believe we are down there but that is our own doing. We need to get ourselves out of this situation… We have to go to war now.”

Managerial woes

Southampton’s remarkably successful 2015/16 was spearheaded by a certain Ronald Koeman in the dugout. The Dutchman, who earned himself three manager of the month awards, guided Southampton to their highest ever league finish (6th) and points total (63).

Seeming to have fallen out with the board, Koeman waved goodbye to St. Mary’s at the end of the season for a new adventure at Everton. His successor, Claude Puel, was not of the calibre the club needed to keep progressing.

Although many say axing Puel in 2017 was the wrong idea, it was under his reign that the rot set in at St. Mary’s. The Frenchman’s style of play was characterised by dull sideways passes and a lack of incision. Despite leading them to a League Cup final, Puel’s questionable tactics saw Southampton score a whopping 18 fewer league goals during his tenure. He was sent packing at the end of the season.  

In the summer of 2017, Mauricio Pellegrino was welcomed by fans, but it didn’t take long before they were calling for his head on a spike. His tactics were even more detrimental than his French predecessor. With a ‘Tinkerman’ philosophy of endless squad shuffling, Pellegrino blindly guided Saints to the sword.

Pellegrino’s dismissal last month was long-overdue. His downbeat squad was recently inherited by former Stoke City boss Mark Hughes, who finds himself tasked with the mammoth challenge of keeping a sinking ship afloat.

With just six games remaining, the Saints will need to channel the energy of their formidable 2015/16 campaign and emulate their sprint finish of five wins in their final six matches on the home stretch.

Right now, the atmosphere is gloomy down on the South Coast where smiling faces once frolicked in the sun donning Europa League badges on their sleeves.