Carlton Palmer believes Southampton will challenge for promotion in the Championship next season.
It was an incredibly disappointing campaign which saw the club’s 11-year stay in the top flight come to an end, with Ralph Hasenhuttl, Nathan Jones and Ruben Selles all fail to turn around their fortunes.
Russell Martin has taken over at St Mary’s and optimism is high that the 37-year-old can lead a challenge for an instant top flight return, although there is significant uncertainty over the future of a number of the club’s key players.
The likes of James Ward-Prowse, Romeo Lavia, Che Adams and Tino Livramento have all been linked with a move away from the club and the squad could look considerably different by the end of the transfer window.
But the Saints have made two impressive signings so far, bringing in defender Ryan Manning, who excelled at Swansea City under Martin last season and midfielder Shea Charles from Manchester City in a deal that could be worth up to £15 million including add-ons and with sizeable transfer fees expected from player sales, Martin will have funds to strengthen his squad further.
Southampton get their season underway with a trip to face newly-promoted Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough on Friday 4th August.
What did Carlton Palmer say?
Palmer stated exclusively to Football League World that he expects the Saints to be among the Championship promotion candidates next season.
“I predict that Southampton will be in the play-offs,” Palmer stated.
“They have a very good manager in Russell Martin, and they have a very strong squad.”
“They have the same problem as Leeds and Leicester in that they don’t know which players they will be able to work with until the transfer window closes.”
“However, they have already bought well; they have players like Nathan Tella, who excelled on loan in the Championship last season, making 38 appearances, scoring 17 goals and adding five assists in a Burnley side that romped the league.”
What will Southampton’s performance in the Championship be like next season?
It is difficult to disagree with Palmer that Southampton will be in the top six.
Martin is an exciting appointment after his work at MK Dons and Swansea and with greater financial resources available than at his previous clubs, he should be able to deliver success, although there will be much higher expectations than what Martin will be used to and the squad will need time to adapt to his possession-based style of play.
It is tough to make too much of a concrete prediction on the Saints with many departures likely over the coming month and the risk for Southampton is that they lose players late in the window without sufficient time to replace them.
But Martin will be hopeful of keeping hold of some of his key players and there could be some high-profile additions, with Southampton said to be leading the race for Sunderland striker Ross Stewart.
There are some question marks over the Saints heading into the new season, but they look set to challenge towards the top of the Championship.
