Southampton Squad Should They Stay Or Should They Go ! Part 5 Monday, 23rd Jun 2025 09:03 Today we are taking a look at the wide midfielders or wingers, call them what you want, do Saints have enough depth already or should they sell and then look to bring in new faces, lets take a look. It could be that in this department we are already well stocked, but the question will Will Still like what he sees or will he want to clear the decks and start anew, the end result may well be something in between. Ryan Fraser was one of the heroes of the last Championship campaign on loan from Newcastle, Russell Martin fought long and hard to get him in at the end of the summer transfer window last year, but then barely played him and a combination of injuries meant that Fraser would start just 4 Premier League games and then another 4 off the bench. The last of these was in January, a 2 minute cameo off the bench against Newcastle United, so he very much the forgotten man of last season. But at 31 he still has a lot to offer at least at championship level, he offers the guile and experience that is lacking in most of his rivals for a start out wide for Saints. With just a year left on his contract and on big wages, I doubt whether many other clubs will be in for him so I would say utilise him, he could be a big asset this season. STAY. Kamaldeen Sulemana is undoubtably a talent, but in 3 seasons at the club we have only seen glimpses of it, he has pace and he has skill, but he does not seem to be able to supply an end product. At 23 years old and turning 24 in February, he is at the crossroads, by now he should be an established player, in terms of games played that is the case, in two Premier League seasons at St Mary's he has played 44 games with 3 goals and 2 assists, but when you consider that 2 of those goals came in the dead rubber last game of the season two years ago, his tally last season of 1 gaol and 1 assist is a poor return in anyone's book. His season in the Championship saw him play 25 games, but he rarely imposed himself and he failed to score with just 3 assists. Last season showed some promise and he can't say he hasn't been given a chance, but with 69 League games to his total he has misfired on too many occasions to give him another chance. As I say there is a player in there, you can't accuse him of not trying, but he just has no end product. GO Tyler Dibbling was superb in the first part of the season and was being spoken about in the national press as being the next big thing, however in the second half of the season, his influence waned under Ivan Juric and Simon Rusk. He is an enigma, I have put him in the wide men category, but is he a winger or would his best position be behind the strikers or even up front. It would be great to see him stay, but that decision doesn't lie completely in Saints hands, Dibling has shown in the past that his career development is his priority, not jumping at the first Premier League club to offer him a chance. The verdict is of course STAY, but he could well go. Sam Edozie spent last season out on loan at Anderlecht, he had a couple of injuries that restricted his appearances in the regular season to 17 out of the 25 regular season games he could have played with 11 in the starting line up and 6 off the bench, scoring 2 goals with 2 assists. In the Championship play offs he again was a major player scoring 1 and an assist of the 7 games before he missed the last 3 with an injury. Two years ago in the Championship, he is perhaps a player who Saints supporters didn't consider him a major contributor, but compare his 6 goals and 3 assists in 32 games against his rivals for a place in the team and he played a bigger part than most will remember. So he returns to St Mary's aged 22 with some good experience now under his belt, he is nearing 150 games in major competitions in both League & cup, he has the potential and perhaps now the confidence to take the Championship by storm. STAY Sam Amo- Ameyaw went to Strasbourg on loan with the French club obligated to make it permanent if certain conditions were met, however we don't know if that is indeed the case and they have to buy him. Certainly the deal would see Saints get far more than his actual current valuation. In France he doesn't appear to have flourished, he spent the first 5 Ligue 1 games on the bench after joining Strasbourg in January, of the remaining 9 games he could have played he started just 3 and 6 other off the bench, he scored twice, but other than that no assists, bear in mind this is a League where the likes of Sulemana & Sekou Mara have scored for fun, indeed Mara has been a team mate at Strasbourg and has scored 1 and an assist this season. So whether Strasbourg have met the obligations to mean they have to buy him is unsure, so if they haven't will they still want to proceed, the answer might well be yes, but not at the obligated price. Personally I would like to see him STAY Jay Robinson broke into the first team last year and at 18 looks a talent, so I think he is very much a stay. So overall I think that if we sold no one in this department then we would be fine, I think we would not have to buy, we would have players that are proven in the Championship for us two years ago, plus Dibling & Robinson and indeed option to play Ryan Manning & Yuki Sugawara as wing backs. But if Amo- Ameyaw & Dibling do leave, then we will have the money to get in a replacement or two, so we can solve our issues. Like all the positions we just don't know what Will Still's thoughts are and he will probably run the rule over a few players in pre season before making a decision. All Photos Via Reuters Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
You need to login in order to post your comments |
Blogs 31 bloggersDerby County Polls[ Vote here ] |