Where will Southampton finish in the 2024/25 Premier League season? Odds, probable finish, signings, best players and full squad
Southampton are back in the Premier League. The question is, can they stay up?
Saints earned their spot back in the top flight through the Championship play-offs, beating Leeds in the final. Having been relegated last summer, Southampton finished fourth in the regular season.
The last time Southampton were a newly-promoted side in the Premier League, they finished 14th in 2012/13, becoming an established team in the division. Last season, all three promoted sides were immediately relegated from the Premier League. This time, Southampton have been given an 87.5% chance of going down per implied probability.
Latest Southampton odds to be relegated from 2024/25 Premier League
Of the three newly promoted sides, Southampton are the most likely to be relegated per their implied probability of 87.5%.
Southampton’s summer transfer window business
Who are Southampton’s most important players?
Southampton’s top Premier League Golden Boot contender: Cameron Archer
Adam Armstrong’s goals contributed significantly to Southampton’s promotion to the Premier League. However, he has struggled to find his scoring form since their return to England’s top division. Goals have been hard to come by for the Saints, with their leading scorer, Cameron Archer, managing just two goals in nine matches. Only four other players—Joe Aribo, Tyler Dibling, Yukinari Sugawara, and Taylor Harwood-Bellis—have found the net, each scoring one goal.
Southampton’s primary playmaker: Yukinari Sugawara
With Stuart Armstrong not re-signing with Southampton, Saints need a new creator. Fortunately, they’ve signed one in Yukinari Sugawara. The Japanese full-back was a good creator for AZ in the Eredivisie last season.
Sugawara, 24, played 30 games in the Eredivisie, only missing four due to his involvement in the Asian Cup. But even with that four-game break, Sugawara was on top form for AZ. The full-back created 53 chances in the Eredivisie, more than any other AZ player. He also created 16 big chances and provided seven assists, both highs for AZ. He also attempted and completed the most crosses for AZ, sitting second and third in the Eredivisie overall.
So far in 2024/25, no Saints player has created more big chances (four).
Southampton’s card magnets & top tacklers: Flynn Downes
Southampton weren’t big tacklers last season, averaging the fourth-fewest per game in the Championship. But they were big fish then. Now they’ll need a lot more fight in the Premier League. Kyle Walker-Peters was the biggest tackler of their squad last season with 84 in total, 15 more than Flynn Downes. But Downes played over 1,000 fewer minutes, tackling at a more frequent wait.
Now signed permanently, Downes averaged 2.2 tackles per 90 minutes in the Championship last season, the second-most among Southampton players with at least 1,500 minutes played. He wasn’t always clean in the tackle, either. Downes committed 48 fouls in total, more than any other Southampton player. He was also one of two Saints to be booked more than ten times, with his 11 only beaten by Jan Bednarek’s 13.
He’s living up to expectations with four yellow cards already received and 16 total fouls. Both rank him number one for Southampton in those metrics.
Southampton’s rising star: Tyler Dibling
Tyler Dibling made his Southampton debut last season, although he didn’t get much playing time with the first team, appearing in five matches across all competitions. This season, he has already surpassed that figure. Dibling has secured a position in Martin’s team and made his first Premier League appearance during a 1–0 away defeat against Newcastle United, coming on as a substitute for Joe Aribo in the 70th minute. He then scored his first professional goal in a 1–1 draw against Ipswich Town.
Southampton’s set-piece specialists:
- Penalties: Adam Armstrong
- Free kicks: Will Smallbone
- Corners: Ryan Manning
Southampton tactical analysis, formation & player ratings
Southampton’s team stats from the 2023/24 Championship season (avg per game):
- Corners: 7.29
- Shots on target: 5.61
- Shots on target conceded: 3.65
- Offsides: 1.94
Southampton 2024/25 player ratings*
- GK: Aaron Ramsdale – 57% – Since his move from Arsenal, he has been kept busy, making 4.14 saves per 90 minutes, with no clean sheets to his name while conceding 17 goals.
- RB: Yukinari Sugawara – 58% – Ranks among the top five Premier League full-backs in big chances created per 90 minutes (0.57).
- CB: Taylor Harwood-Bellis – 48% – Having moved from Man City permanently, Harwood-Bellis has yet to successfully adapt to Premier League football. He is already prone to making an error leading to a goal (0.13 per 90) while winning 34.78% of his ground duels.
- CB: Jan Bednarek – 43% – He has struggled this season, recording 0.45 tackles won per 90 minutes, and has succeeded in 50% of his aerial duels.
- LB: Charlie Taylor – 56% – This season, no full-back in the Premier League has registered more clearances per 90 (8.26), while he has won 2.17 tackles per 90, placing him in the top 10 full-backs regarding this metric.
- CM: Flynn Downes – 40% – Disciple has been a concern for Downes, having already picked up four yellow cards. He is also performing below par in other metrics, such as completed take-ons (0.11) and possession won in the middle third (1.56) per 90 minutes.
- CM: Lesley Ugochukwu – 41% – Ugochukwu has underperformed, ranking in the 20th percentile among central midfielders for metrics such as interceptions (0.64), tackles won (0.64), and final third entries (0.64) per 90 minutes.
- RW: Tyler Dibling – 62% – Southampton’s campaign has been highlighted by the emergence of a surprising young talent, whose speed and skill make him a challenging opponent for defenders. Dibling is fouled an average of 0.91 times in the final third per 90 minutes, placing him among the top five wingers in the Premier League in this statistic.
- AM: Mateus Fernandes – 50% – Although he is performing well in winning tackles (2.03 per 90 minutes), Fernandes has struggled with creating big chances (0.17 per 90 minutes) and has yet to score.
- LW: Ryan Fraser – 27% – Having yet to create a single big chance, score a goal, or complete any take-ons, this has been a disappointing return for the former Scottish international.
- CF: Cameron Archer – 61% – Southampton’s leading scorer after the first nine matchdays has two goals. Archer also averages 1.86 lay-off passes completed per 90 minutes, highlighting his effectiveness as a target man.
Although he occasionally deviated last season, Russell Martin was a strong proponent of the 4-3-3 formation at Southampton. Given its success, even with the higher competition level in the Premier League, it would be surprising to see Martin make significant changes. However, he has utilised no fewer than four different formations, with the 4-2-3-1 being the most commonly used.
Southampton’s full Premier League 2024/25 squad
| PLAYER NAME | POSITION | AGE |
| Aaron Ramsdale | Goalkeeper | 26 |
| Gavin Bazunu | Goalkeeper | 22 |
| Joe Lumley | Goalkeeper | 29 |
| Alex McCarthy | Goalkeeper | 34 |
| Taylor Harwood-Bellis | Defender | 2225 |
| Armel Bella-Kotchap | Defender | 22 |
| Jan Bednarek | Defender | 28 |
| Ronnie Edwards | Defender | 21 |
| Nathan Wood | Defender | 22 |
| Jack Stephens | Defender | 30 |
| Juan Larios | Defender | 20 |
| Ryan Manning | Defender | 28 |
| Charlie Taylor | Defender | 31 |
| Kyle Walker-Peters | Defender | 27 |
| Yukinari Sugawara | Defender | 24 |
| James Bree | Defender | 26 |
| Lesley Ugochukwu | Midfielder | 20 |
| Flynn Downes | Midfielder | 25 |
| Mateus Fernandes | Midfielder | 20 |
| Joe Aribo | Midfielder | 28 |
| Will Smallbone | Midfielder | 24 |
| Adam Lallana | Midfielder | 36 |
| Kamaldeen Sulemana | Forward | 22 |
| Maxwel Cornet | Forward | 28 |
| Ryan Fraser | Forward | 30 |
| Tyler Dibling | Forward | 18 |
| Samuel Amo-Ameyaw | Forward | 18 |
| Adam Armstrong | Forward | 27 |
| Cameron Archer | Forward | 22 |
| Paul Onuachu | Forward | 30 |
| Ben Brereton Díaz | Forward | 25 |
| Ross Stewart | Forward | 28 |
Southampton FAQs
Where did Southampton finish in the 2023/24 Championship season?
Southampton earned their spot in the 2024/25 Premier League by winning the 2023/24 Championship play-offs. Saints had finished fourth in the table in the regular season.
Who is the Southampton manager?
Russell Martin is the Southampton manager, taking charge at the start of last season.
Who is the current Southampton captain?
Jack Stephens is Southampton captain, taking the armband from James Ward-Prowse last season.
What is Southampton’s best Premier League finish?
Southampton’s best finish in the Premier League came in the 2015/16 season when they placed sixth.
More Premier League 2024/25 content:
