The Saints finished 16th in the Premier League table this term, the second consecutive season they ended in the bottom five.
Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has made it clear that “there is a lot of work to do” at the club to improve the team and ultimately avoid a repeat of the relegation battles of the last two seasons.
The Saints began the Premier League campaign poorly under Mark Hughes and were stuck in a battle against the drop but the December arrival of Hasenhuttl proved an inspired move by the club.
Southampton improved slowly but steadily under the Austrian and on 27 April they sealed a 3-3 draw with Bournemouth which ensured their top division status for another campaign, going on to finish 16th in the table.
However, 2018-19 is the second season in a row in which the Saints have finished in the bottom five, with 2017-18 yielding a 17th-placed finish, while the seasons prior to that saw top-ten finishes.
While Southampton have certainly improved under Hasenhuttl, they did not sign any players in January and there were some nervy moments in the following months as the wear and tear of the long season began taking its toll.
Speaking ahead of his first close season as Saints boss, he told the club website: “It’s big because there is a lot of work to do. We know this, and it is important that we change the team a little bit and bring new players in. Having a few new inputs, also for our mind, is what we will do this summer.
“We’ve made a few very good steps with good results. We also see that if we are 100 percent in shape, focused and concentrated… we do not have this high individual quality, we have to work for the team. This is something we have to work on every day.”
Hasenhuttl’s comments appear to have alarmed some Southampton fans, as can be seen on Twitter:
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