The Southampton squad for 2024/25 season is all set, with the Saints aiming for survival upon their return to the Premier League.
Survival is priority one for Southampton, but having bigger ambitions wouldn’t be unreasonable either. They are Premier League news boys but not like Ipswich, who might snap your hand off if offered 17th. Southampton spent just one season out of the top division before bouncing back via the Championship play-offs, and as a result still possess their fair share of top-tier experience.
Don’t mistake that for them being the same side that went down, however. Saints return a very different one thanks to the arrival of ex-MK Dons and Swansea City manager Russell Martin and his distinctive passing philosophy, while another reason for optimism is the momentum they bring into the new campaign after promotion.
Martin’s approach isn’t unique but can be divisive. Indeed, that’s the word he used to describe one of the features of it: playing out from the back. Passing and possession – Southampton topped the Championship table for both – being brave and risk-taking are others, but last season showed it’s worth sticking with.
It would have been very easy for Martin to have a wobble and abandon his plans at different points, especially during an early, error-strewn run of four successive defeats. Two other spells of consecutive losses – in February and, alarmingly, late April – invited further criticism but all ended well with promotion under the Wembley arch, in the ultimate vindication of Martin’s methods.
Three defeats in three games isn’t the ideal reintroduction to the Premier League, especially given Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and Brentford won’t strike anyone as the most difficult schedule possible.
Comfort will be taken from the fact that the first two were narrow 1-0 losses, but Martin quickly needs to work out where the points, and the goals, are likely to come from if they are to avoid an intense relegation battle.
Southampton squad for 2024/25
Southampton squad for 2024/25: Russel Martin's full team
- GK: Gavin Bazunu
- GK: Joe Lumley
- GK: Alex McCarthy
- GK: Aaron Ramsdale
- DF: Jan Bednarek
- DF: James Bree
- DF: Ronnie Edwards
- DF: Taylor Harwood-Bellis
- DF: Juan Larios
- DF: Ryan Manning
- DF: Jack Stephens
- DF: Yukinari Sugawara
- DF: Charlie Taylor
- DF: Kyle Walker-Peters
- DF: Nathan Wood
- DF: Armel Bella-Kotchap
- MF: Sam Amo-Ameyaw
- MF: Joe Aribo
- MF: Tyler Dibling
- MF: Flynn Downes
- MF: Samuel Edozie
- MF: Adam Lallana
- MF: Will Smallbone
- MF: Kamaldeen Sulemana
- MF: Mateus Fernandes
- MF: Lesley Ugochukwu
- MF: Ryan Fraser
- FW: Adam Armstrong
- FW: Cameron Archer
- FW: Ben Brereton Diaz
- FW: Maxwel Cornet
- FW: Paul Onuachu
- FW: Ross Stewart
Southampton squad numbers for 2024/25
Southampton manager
Russell Martin
Russell Martin will be one of the Premier League’s managers to watch, partly due to the approach he insists on and is fiercely loyal to, but also his personality: endearingly self-deprecating, but straight-talking when required.
Southampton's key player
Adam Armstrong
There is no doubting Adam Armstrong’s ability to plunder EFL goals, but his most recent efforts in the Premier League have yielded just four across two seasons. After 21 Championship goals last term, Saints will need Armstrong to pick up where he left off.
One to watch
Taylor Harwood-Bellis
Promotion triggered a £20 million permanent move to St Mary’s from Manchester City for centre-back Taylor Harwood-Bellis, 22. If he becomes the England defender he is tipped to, that will look an absolute bargain. A City upbringing makes him tailor-made for Martin’s modus operandi, but he’s a more than competent defender, too.
The mood
Hopeful? The change of manager and introduction of a new way of playing has freshened things up and given Southampton a different feel ahead of their comeback. There will inevitably be quiet concerns about whether their style can successfully translate after several teething problems last term, though.
View from the stands
Robert Hudson (@JustSaints_)
Last season was a rollercoaster full of highs and lows, including a club-record 25-game unbeaten streak before finishing with the ultimate high, winning at Wembley!
The big talking point is whether Adam Armstrong can carry on where he left off. Prolific in the Championship, not so much in the Premier League. Can that change?
This season will be different because Southampton won’t be a relatively big fish in a small pond. It’s going to be harder to dominate the ball like we did last season, so we’ll need to see a different side to Russell Martin’s Saints.
I won’t be happy unless VAR is improved. After a blissful season without it, I’m not looking forward to its return.
Our key player will be Flynn Downes. He was Southampton's best player while on loan last season. In the 18 games he didn’t start, Saints won five; in the 34 he did, Saints won 25.
Our most underrated player is Will Smallbone, an academy graduate and hometown hero who broke through last term. If he played in the snow, he wouldn't leave any footprints.
Look out for Tyler Dibling, another one off the academy production line who dominated matches for the under-21s last season, aged 17.
The opposition player who grinds my gears is Chris Wood, simply because he always seems to score against us.
The active player I'd love to have back is Virgil van Dijk. The best centre-back in the league would help to shore things up at the back.
The thing my club really gets right is not being afraid to give youth a chance. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough.
The one change I'd make would be the lager on offer in the stadium! Kingfisher is currently the beer sponsor within St Mary’s and is not popular among fans.
I'm least looking forward to playing Nottingham Forest. I still have nightmares about our fixtures against them the season we were relegated. They seem to be our bogey team.
The fans' opinion of the gaffer is positive. He plays a lovely brand of possession football and comes across as a relatable, down-to-earth character off the pitch.
If he left, he should be replaced by Kjetil Knutsen, who transformed Bodø/Glimt on a small budget and used the academy while playing an attack-minded, possession-based 4-3-3. Similar to Russell Martin, but less extreme.
We'll finish 14th.
