Is Southampton’s season over?
Written by @Will_Turner71
APATHY has been an incredibly rare emotion in my following of Southampton Football Club over the years however it has began to pop its head up as the current season has drawn on.
When Jay Rodriguez rolled home against Crystal Palace to give Saints the lead I cheered loudly and punched the air but for no more than the fact that my team were winning.
FA Cup
Nothing rode on the goal and the eventual win, I don’t hate Palace too much to enjoy turning them over and keeping in touch with Newcastle in the battle for 8th hardly gets the juices flowing.
But this is what our season has boiled down to after limping out of the FA Cup to Sunderland, a result that continues to frustrate when looking at the calibre of teams who have reached the semi finals.
Perhaps I should be more grateful, at the beginning of this campaign most Saints fans would have bitten your hand off for a solid mid table finish, myself included, but the ease in achieving this is making for a rather dull finish.
Early results were good
Early results and performances promised far more from this year as Saints ran out quickly to occupy a Champions League spot with the tightest defensive record in the league.
Victory at Anfield and a dramatic last minute equaliser at Old Trafford saw pundits lord the work being done at St Mary’s under the eye of Mauricio Pochettino.
Again, with the departure of Chairman Nicola Cortese thrown into the mix I might be encouraged to take stock and cherish safety rather than bemoan what could have been.
No cup competitions
With no cups to compete in and little to fight for in terms of league standing all that is really left to cheer and hope for is a strong finish from our international hopefuls to book their places on flights to Brazil this summer.
Escaping any injuries it would seem that Adam Lallana should have his passport ready but question marks still remain for Rickie Lambert, Luke Shaw and Jay Rodriguez as to whether they will represent England.
Roll on next season
Lambert’s form has certainly tailed off while Shaw and Rodriguez have been consistently impressive and will provide Roy Hodgson with a severe headache should their form continue.
After racing out of the blocks and talk of European football, a missed opportunity in the FA Cup and a yawn jerking mid table finish left the footballing appetite wanting.
Roll on next season.
