In a season filled with struggles, Southampton find themselves staring down one of the grimmest records in Premier League history. With a paltry 6 points from their first 21 matches, Saints are threatening to sink below even Derby County’s disastrous 11-point campaign in 2007-08, widely considered the worst team performance the league has ever seen. The south coast club are averaging a meager 0.29 points per game, identical to Derby’s futile pace that year.
Southampton’s return to the top flight, having earned promotion via the playoffs last season, has proven a baptism by fire. Their attacking play has completely dried up, with just 13 goals scored – 3 fewer than their own games played. The defense has been just as leaky, shipping 47 goals for a staggering -34 goal differential. Only lowly Ipswich Town’s -36 is worse.
Desperate Times, Desperate Measures
Sitting dead last in the table, Southampton opted for a managerial change in December, sacking Russell Martin and turning to the notoriously pragmatic Ivan Juric. The former Hellas Verona boss earned plaudits for guiding the provincial Italian side to a 9th place Serie A finish in 2020 on a shoestring budget, making him an attractive candidate to oversee an unlikely great escape.
The early returns have been mixed at best, though. While Southampton have looked more compact, they’ve still lost 4 straight under the Croatian, including an embarrassing 5-0 hammering at Brentford. Individual errors continue to plague the side, with center back Taylor Harwood-Bellis’s gaffe on Thursday leading directly to the decisive goal in a 3-1 defeat to Manchester United.
We cannot hide from our position in the table. The task is massive but we will fight until the last day, the last minute. This club has been in the Premier League a long time and we want to keep it there.
– Ivan Juric, Southampton manager
No Margin for Error
The unforgiving nature of Southampton’s predicament is illustrated by the 16 errors leading directly to opposition goals they’ve committed this year, most in the league. For a team scratching and clawing for every result, such self-inflicted wounds are close to fatal.
Juric will need to shore up the basics and fast to have any chance of steering Saints to safety. Upcoming clashes with European hopefuls Nottingham Forest and Newcastle could see the club equal or surpass Derby’s 21-game mark of futility.
- 2007-08 Derby through 21 games: 6 points, 7 goals scored, 43 conceded, -36 GD
- 2025-26 Southampton current: 6 points, 13 goals scored, 47 conceded, -34 GD
Small Causes for Hope
If there are glimmers of optimism for the Saints faithful, it’s in the performances of starlet midfielder Tyler Dibling and underlying numbers hinting the attack is underperforming its expected output by some distance – their xG of just over 25 is nearly double their actual goal tally.
Juric will also draw on his Verona miracle for inspiration – he’s shocked the world with unfancied sides before. But it will take a herculean effort to drag Southampton out of what’s shaping up to be the worst Premier League season we’ve ever witnessed. The margin between safety and infamy has never felt so razor-thin.
