When it comes to signings, no team can boast as unusual a track record as Southampton have in recent years.
From success stories like Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk to car crashes like Dani Osvaldo and Guido Carrillo, the Saints have experienced both ends of the spectrum when it comes to a successful or unsuccessful transfer, and on deadline day the south coast side shipped off two players that could be classified in the latter category.
Mario Lemina and Wesley Hoedt both departed the club on loan on the final day of the European transfer window, with the Gabon international heading to Galatasaray and the former Lazio defender making his way to Belgium to play for Royal Antwerp for the year.
Indeed, the duo joined a fairly large list of Southampton players to leave the clubs this summer after joining the Premier League side fairly recently but subsequently being unable to make much of an impact as Transfermarkt shows, with the likes of Mohamed Elyounoussi heading to Celtic on loan.
The summer clear-out of sorts seems to be a smart move from Ralph Hasenhuttl, who appears eager to erase the sins of the past in his first full year with the Saints by shipping off those who have been poor for the club over the years after being signed for a hefty transfer sum.
This can also be seen in the players the Austrian manager brought in this summer, with only Che Adams and Moussa Djenepo the only permanent signings the Saints boss brought in with Danny Ings being confirmed way before the start of the transfer window.
Bringing in two players under the age of 23 as well as trying to offload as much deadwood as possible is an encouraging sign from Hasenhuttl, who appears to be keen on spending Southampton’s resources on players more intelligently compared to his predecessors.
