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With the departure of Mauricio Pochettino, an exodus at Southampton FC looks imminent. With Liverpool already having completed the signing of Rickie Lambert and Luke Shaw keen on completing his move to Old Trafford before the World Cup, the outflow of players from the St. Marys Stadium have already begun.Despite claiming to be under no financial pressure, the Saints will have to let go off most of their priced assets; Adam Lallana, Morgan Schneiderlin, Jay Rodriguez, Victor Wanyama and Dejan Lovren have all attracted bids that are likely to lure them away from St. Marys.After a remarkable season that saw Southampton finish at the eight spot, it would be a huge task for the owners to repeat such a performance in the 2014/15 season. It would take a lot of intent and the right signings to replace the outgoing stars, in order to make a mark this time.Let us take a look at the possible replacements that might help Southampton keep up with their performance from last season, in the worst case scenario where all of the rumored players do move out.
#1 Manager: Michael Laudrup
Michael Laudrup’s rather unceremonious exit from Swansea City in the middle of the season failed to give him due credits for the role that he played in Swansea’s majestic 2012/13 season, when they finished 9th in the Premier League. He was the manager that helped Swansea get their first major silverware since its inception, when they won the Capital One Cup in February 2013.
But the 2013/14 season never really worked out for him, with his star player from the previous season, Michu, struggling with injuries and form. Although Swansea’s record signing Wilfried Bony proved his worth, it came a bit late as he struggled to adapt to the Premier League initially, making it an awful start for the season and Laudrup was eventually sacked.
Under Pochettino, Southampton played a very similar style of football to Laudrup’s - with an emphasis on possession and quick passing and in which the full-backs were given the license to dash ahead. The arrival of Laudrup would mean that Southampton would have someone who could continue the same brand of football they have been playing. Laudrup also prefers the same 4-2-3-1 formation that the Saints usually opted. Laudrup has shown his ability to work with smaller teams in the past and have delivered as well.
The latest reports suggest that he has refused the manager role at Southampton in order to manage a bigger club. But hopefully, the officials at Southampton could convince him to change his decision and bring him in, as he looks the right man for the job by far.
#2 Kurt Zouma (Chelsea)
Undoubtedly, Chelsea has one of the finest sets of reserve players in the whole of Europe. One among them is the towering young centre-back Kurt Zouma. Zouma signed for Chelsea from AS Saint Etienne last winter, but was immediately loaned back. Gifted with abundant strength and technique, Zouma is still developing and is touted to be one for the future.
With John Terry and Gary Cahill forming a formidable partnership at the heart of the Blues’ defense and Brainslav Ivanovic also providing cover, Zouma is likely to be loaned out again this season. But Jose Mourinho would really want him to get a taste of English football before he wears the Chelsea jersey in later years. Southampton can cash in on this opportunity with a loan move, thereby covering up for Dejan Lovren, if his move away from St. Mary’s happens.
TRANSFER FEE: LOAN
#3 Ben Davies (Swansea City)
Ben Davies played an integral part in Michael Laudrup’s excellent debut season at Swansea. Davies came into the side as a replacement for injured fellow Welshman Neil Taylor, but he soon displaced Taylor and cemented his place as first choice. Davies now has 85 appearances for Swansea in the league and various cups, and is now well experienced with the pace and physicality of the Premier League.
Solid at the back as well as dangerous going upfront, Davies would be an ideal replacement for Luke Shaw at Southampton. Davies was excellent under Laudrup, and it would be interesting to see the both work together again.
TRANSFER FEE: 6-8 MILLION POUNDS
#4 Gary Medel (Cardiff City)
Gary Medel would be fuming over his move to Cardiff City as his former club Sevilla FC went onto win the UEFA Europa League this season while he had to face the shame of relegation. Medel was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise disastrous season for Cardiff. Medel put up solid performances in front of the defensive line, but he was found to be at fault himself a few times. Medel could only have improved, but the untimely sacking of Malky Mckay and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s poor management skills neither helped him nor the team.
As of now, Cardiff has decided to sell him and Valencia FC are the forerunners in the hunt for signing Medel along with Malaga and Beskitas. But Medel deserves one more shot in the Premier League and Southampton looks a decent option, where he could replace a Spurs-bound Victor Wanyama, thus benefitting both him and the club.
TRANSFER FEE: AROUND 11 MILLION POUNDS
#5 Gueida Fofana (Olympique Lyon)
The scouts at Southampton have done a remarkable job in the recent years, with Gaston Ramirez in the season before and Dejan Lovren and Victor Wanyama this season proving to be major impact signings, providing them the quality and firework to fight it out with the bigger teams in the league. If the scouts can repeat their good work and sign Gedioua Fofana from Olympique Lyon this summer to replace Morgan Schneiderlin who is keen on leaving for a team with European football, it would be nothing short of spectacular.
The highly rated box-to-box midfielder has completed 68% of take-on this season, and also have been a threat going upfront. A regular for France at the youth level, this 23-year old has been on Newcastle United’s radar for quite some time, with Marseille and Stuttgart also reportedly having an eye on him. Despite a meager market value of 4.18 Million Pounds, it is unlikely that Lyon would sell him that cheap.But if Southampton can still convince and sign him for what would likely be their new record fee, it would be a real boost for their chances next season.
TRANSFER FEE: 15-20 MILLION POUNDS
#6 Robert Snodgrass (Norwich City)
Norwich’s three summer signings upfront- Gary Hooper, Ricky Van Wolfswinkel and Johan Elmander- together managed just 8 out of the 28 Norwich scored this season.The fact that Robert Snodgrass scored 6 from much withdrawn or wider positions indicates how much of an impact he has had for Norwich. With the forwards consistently failing, the responsibility of finding the goals has been mostly on Snodgrass and he has seldom disappointed, with 6 goals apiece in each of the last two seasons.
The Canaries are trying their best to hold onto Snodgrass, but being at the peak of his career Snodgrass would prefer playing in the Premier League rather than the Championship. With Jay Rodriguez out injured indefinitely, Southampton could use Snodgrass’ skill and pace on their flanks of the 4-2-3-1 formation.
TRANSFER FEE: 6-8 MILLION POUNDS
#7 Gylfi Sigurdsson (Tottenham Hotspur)
Currently, there is a lot of uncertainty regarding who stays, leaves and arrives at White Hart Lane after the arrival of Pochettino, especially after he hinted that Lewis Holtby, a peripheral figure under Vilas Boas and Tim Sherwood, is going to be an important player under him. But one player that Southampton should snap up before things settle down at Spurs is Gylfi Sigurdsson.
An instrumental figure in Swansea’s debut stint in the top flight, Sigurdsson moved to Spurs in the summer of 2012 with high expectations. But even after two seasons, Sigurdsson has not been able to cement a starting berth in the Spurs’ midfield, despite impressive performances off the bench.Pochettino’s arrival might reignite Sigurdsson’s hopes, but again, the abundance of players in the Spurs midfield might hamper Sigurdsson’s chances.
At Southampton, Sigurdsson could be a guaranteed starter as a replacement for Adam Lallana, slotting either into his preferred role in ‘the hole’ or on the left flank, depending on the position of Gaston Ramirez. A price tag of 10 million pound looks likely, but if Spurs are keen on getting Wanyama, then Sigurdsson could easily be brought in a swap deal with a few million pounds coming Southampton’s way.
TRANSFER FEE: 10 MILLION POUNDS OR A SWAP DEAL WITH VICTOR WANYAMA
#8 Javier Hernandez (Manchester United)
Despite being a fan-favorite, ‘Chicharito’ never succeeded in being a regular starter at Manchester United. After being used mostly as a substitute by Sir Alex Ferguson, the arrival of David Moyes diminished his chances even further. The Mexican international’s woes at Old Trafford are unlikely to end with the arrival of Louis Van Gaal, as the Dutchman has openly proclaimed his admiration for Robin Van Persie.
With Wayne Rooney already in the mix and the possibility that Van Gaal may bring yet another striker, Hernandez is poised to leave Old Trafford this summer.
Quick on his feet and a clinical finisher, Hernandez already has 59 goals from 152 appearances for the Red Devils. Rickie Lambert has already left for Liverpool, so Hernandez can easily slot in as his replacement at Southampton. If the rumors of an attempt to make Hernandez a make-weight for the Luke Shaw transfer works out, Southampton would have a winner on their hands.
TRANSFER FEE: 10+ MILLION POUNDS OR LESSER IF UNITED USE HIM AS MAKE-WEIGHT FOR LUKE SHAW
