North of £150m in player sales and a new manager lined up since mid-May, Southampton were supposed to be the relegated side turning the screw on Leeds United this season. Sadly for Russell Martin and the Saints, they now await the Whites on the back of four consecutive defeats and 19 goals conceded, the most in the Championship.
Southampton were consigned to the Premier League drop before the Whites or Leicester City and the narrative was spun about how that could be an advantage to them. It allowed the club and its owners to get a jump on the competition and start preparing for second-tier football faster than their rivals, supposedly.
The first reports about Martin’s arrival from Swansea City being a done deal emerged on May 19, more than a week before the top-flight season had even finished. Even if he was not confirmed in the job until June 22, it was an open secret Martin was measuring up his squad weeks before the announcement was made.
This would, theoretically, give Martin more time to work out what he was going to do with that set of players and get a head start on how he would look to remould it in the summer window. Meanwhile, United were navigating their way through the politics of a takeover and ratification.
Daniel Farke would not be in the building until July 4 and the takeover would not be green-lit by the EFL until another 13 days had passed. As the German began to see the long, slow trickle of loan exits, his transfer war chest unhelped, Martin was watching former Leeds winger Jason Wilcox drive multiple eight-figure sales.
While Leeds fans grew impatient with the lack of incomings and total absence in income for those players leaving, Southampton were flogging Romeo Lavia, Tino Livramento and James Ward-Prowse among others for more than £150m.
Southampton were the model held up as an example for relegated clubs in the summer, but having their new manager ready nearly three months before the start of the season, pulling in nine figures in transfer sales and acquiring a raft of top-flight loanees has, going into their Saturday meeting, them lagging behind the Whites.
There is still a long way to go and a lot of time for this to turn around for Martin, if his bosses give him that chance, but this already feels like a six-pointer for the hosts. They were pumped 4-1 at home by Leicester 10 days ago and anything remotely similar from Leeds could already spell the end for Martin.
A home win would take Southampton level on points with Leeds. That’s how quickly narratives can change in this league, especially in the autumn.