Brighton v Southampton: The Saints view with St Mary’s Musings
The success story at St Mary’s has been one of the most underrated tales of the 2020-21 season so far – here we are with over a quarter of the campaign gone and Southampton will arrive at Brighton just four points off the top of the Premier League.
It is all a far cry from what the Saints were going through just over a year ago. Back in the final throes of autumn 2019, they were sat in the relegation zone and had just been beaten 9-0 at St Mary’s by Leicester City, a joint-record heaviest home defeat in English top flight history.
Ralph Hasenhüttl was under pressure, yet the Southampton board stuck with him. That proved to be an inspired decision as the Austrian has turned things around spectacularly with their form in the second half of last season enough to leave them well clear of the drop. They have continued that into 2020-21 to sit sixth in the table.
What has been the secret to their reversal in fortunes under Hasenhüttl? And why do Brighton have such a poor record against Southampton in the Premier League with the Albion yet to beat the Saints since winning promotion in 2017, including last season’s 2-0 defeat at the Amex and 1-1 draw at St Mary’s?
Ahead of Monday night’s 97th meeting between the teams, we spoke to with Allen Gunn from St Mary’s Musings to find out.
Southampton are flying so far this season. What is the secret behind the Saints’ success and what do you consider a realistic target for the campaign?
I still consider finishing in the top 10 to be realistic target – it all hinges on Saints not fizzling out and going on a run where we don’t pick up any points.
Certainly the 4-4-2 formation and the level everyone has risen to has contributed to our success and that sounds really simple, but to have success on the level we want to see, everyone has to play above their potential and that has been the case.
How big an impact do you think Covid-19, the lack of a proper off and pre-season and the fact that matches are being condensed into a tighter schedule is having?
I don’t think it is having really any impact on Saints at least… we are not in Europe and we are out of the League Cup, so our only focus is the Premier League – until the FA Cup starts in January.
Our squad isn’t very big, but it has stayed relatively healthy and it gives us the ability to name unchanged sides match in and match out.
Comparisons have been made between Ralph Hasenhüttl and Graham Potter as young managers charged with overhauling their club’s playing style. It has not really clicked on a consistent basis for Potter yet, just as it took Southampton some time to adapt to Hasenhüttl. What is the secret to making that leap from promising football to delivering results?
I think what Hasenhuttl has done will be different to say if he was at Brighton or even Manchester United, for example. His style takes time to implement because of the level of fitness the players have to be at to execute it correctly and for extended periods in the match.
It took him realising that five at the back wasn’t going to work and when he finally made that change, we started to see the right results.
It is all about finding where the squad’s strength is and if you are not spending loads of money, you have to rely on what you have got and getting the most out of those players. He has certainly done that as we’ve seen thus far with Jannik Vestergaard turning into a proper player.
Who have been Southampton’s star players so far this season? Any disappointments?
I would say Che Adams has finally arrived, as well as Vestergaard. Both really took time to adapt, whether it was to being at a higher level than they were ready for or adjusting to being in a new environment, but both have finally started to be crucial to the squad and what Hasenhuttl is trying to accomplish with his game plan.
I think Nathan Redmond has been disappointing given how important he has been in recent years for us. I think injuries have halted his progress this season but he also has competition – if you have got a fit Danny Ings, then Theo Walcott or Moussa Djenepo are the best in-form options down the left and Redmond would be third choice.
Brighton cannot defend set pieces for love nor money, which is a slight concern ahead of facing James Ward-Prowse. What other threats do we need to be aware of?
Don’t give away set pieces, that’d be the best advice! I would be wary of Djenepo, who has some quick feet and on his day can get forward and cause problems for the defence who in turn leap in poorly, giving away needless free kicks for Ward-Prowse to take advantage of.
Southampton took four points from our two meeting last season. What did you make of those two matches?
I hardly even remember last season! It was just such a bizarre year, but I expect us to take care of business when Saints play Brighton. We have the quality to challenge – at least challenge – any team in the league and if we are serious about our ambitions to finish in the top half and get back into the Europa League at some point, then fixtures like this need to be ones we aim for maximum points.
With four draws this season for Brighton, I expect a tight match, but if our system works, it will create opportunities for Adams and Walcott to take advantage of up front.
Ben White was released as a 16-year-old by Southampton and we obviously have a former Saints captain in Adam Lallana on our books. Is there any particular interest in those two for Saints fans?
I would say none. Lallana is marmite – or something similar – at Saints now, you either hate him still or are indifferent. I am pretty indifferent. Anyone who leaves Saints whether it be on good or bad terms, I hope they do well as that’s a reflection of the club.
Finally, what is the St Mary’s Musings prediction for Brighton v Southampton?
I will be bold and say 2-0 to Saints.
Thanks to Allen for speaking to us ahead of Brighton v Southampton – you can all about Saints excellent season so far over on St Mary’s Musings and they are also on Twitter.
