Wesley Sneijder Would Strengthen Southampton Attack, but Not Solve Its Problems
With Southampton tentatively linked with a January move for Galatasaray midfielder Wesley Sneijder, this signing would significantly strengthen a stretched Southampton attack, but would not solve the problems manager Ronald Koeman has faced of late.
The report, courtesy of the Daily Mirror's Neil McLeman, claims that "Koeman shares an agent with his fellow Dutchman and Saints are ready to buy as five straight losses threaten to take the shine off their strong start."
As this suggests the Saints have lost their last four Premier League games, as well as their recent Capital One Cup quarter-final against Sheffield United, in a run that has seen their stock dwindle.
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Southampton now sit fifth in the Premier League table on 26 points, having relinquished their hold on the top four to Manchester United (31) and West Ham United (28).
A timely transfer window, then, and as McLeman claims "[Sneijder] is one of several Galatasaray players to have had issues with the club over their pay in recent weeks," Koeman can capitalise on a unstable situation in Turkey.
Furthermore, Sneijder "is willing to be realistic about any wage demands in the Premier League."
Although The Independent have since claimed "there is no chance Sneijder will be leaving Galatasaray for Southampton," the move still remains an intriguing prospect.
This would surely sound like an attractive prospect to Koeman as he heads into the January transfer window, as Sneijder is a formidable talent with a pedigree in European football.
Wesley Sneijder
Sneijder was reportedly targeted by a plethora of top sides before making the move to Galatasaray in 2013.
The then-Inter Milan midfielder was highly touted with a transfer to Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool, for example, with the Liverpool Echo reporting the club's interest.
At the time, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard called Sneijder a "top player," again per the Echo.
Gerrard continued: "I think we’ve seen at every major tournament he delivers. He’s done it in the Champions League for years."
With this serving as one of the highest levels of praise, coming from such a successful and widely lauded contemporary, Sneijder has supplied the performances to back this up in the Super Lig.
Last season Sneijder scored 12 goals in 28 league games, per SoccerBase.com, including a hat-trick in Galatasaray's 6-0 victory over Bursaspor.
This season, Sneijder has scored just three in 14, but still possesses that flourish, as evidenced by an exceptional free-kick goal in the side's 4-1 home loss to Arsenal in the Champions League.
A moment of pure brilliance, this is what a player of the calibre of Sneijder is regularly coveted for.
Furthermore, Sneijder is a capable creative talent, with his average of 1.8 key passes per Super Lig game this season second to only Dusan Tadic and James Ward-Prowse in the Southampton squad.
Despite now being 30 years old, Sneijder can still cut it at the highest level, and would provide a welcome addition to an area of Koeman's system that has contributed to their recent poor form.
Supporting Graziano Pelle
Southampton's early Premier League surge was aided by a great run of goalscoring form from striker Graziano Pelle, one of many summer signings which saw Koeman take to English football comfortably.
Pelle scored six goals in his first eight Premier League games, and Southampton soared.
But with the striker facing a major slump in form, with just one goal and one assist in the following eight league games, this points to a jaded lone figure lacking vital support.
Tadic, another summer acquisition, was a huge factor behind Pelle's early success, as the midfielder made six assists in those first eight league games, including a phenomenal showing in Southampton's 8-0 mauling of Sunderland, where he created three goals and scored another.
But with the No. 11 failing to create anything of note since—with his zero assists in the last eight league games evidence of this—it is abundantly clear that Southampton cannot rely solely on the pair when it comes to goals.
Support from elsewhere came largely in the form of Shane Long, Steven Davis and Sadio Mane in the attacking-midfield positions, but each of these has suffered a dip in form that has coincided with the Saints' overall slump.
Sneijder, with his abundant creative abilities and a knack for finding the back of the net, would both take the pressure off Pelle and Tadic, and could spark a return to form.
With Sneijder adding to the likes of Tadic, Long and Davis in supporting Pelle as Southampton's lone striker, Koeman would expect a return to form in the new year; however, this doesn't address one glaring issue.
Covering for Graziano Pelle
At this juncture, Pelle stands as Southampton's only recognised, and trusted, centre-forward option.
Long started for the Saints in their recent 1-0 loss to Sheffield United and, despite the No. 7 being arguably the side's best player on the night, he failed to truly cover for Pelle's absence.
The 27-year-old ably compensated for the lack of Pelle in terms of aerial prowess, winning an astonishing eight duels in that area, but he failed to make his mark on goal—Long made no attempts on goal on Tuesday night.
Long has proven to be an able foil for Pelle, and when played together they generally prosper, but he is an unlikely solution for when the Italian is out of the side or out of form.
In January, Southampton should make signing a back-up centre-forward a priority, and the signing of Sneijder fails to address this.
With Ward-Prowse impressing despite that cup loss this only further bolsters Koeman's midfield ranks, perhaps highlighting a need for focus elsewhere, although Mane will join the Senegal squad for January's African Cup of Nations.
Either way, a player like Sneijder is hard to pass up, and he would surely boost Southampton in January.
With Koeman aiming for European qualification in the Premier League this season, claiming, per the Daily Mail that "maybe [the Europa League is] the realistic situation for our team," such a signing would underline Southampton's credentials.
But if Southampton are to sign Wesley Sneijder in the January transfer window, manager Ronald Koeman must add to his considerable creative, attacking talents with the signing of a back-up centre-forward to take the load off struggling striker Graziano Pelle.
Statistics via WhoScored.com, unless specified.
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