Southampton, who finished bottom of the Premier League last season, have a strong chance to return to the top level this season.
Although Southampton’s chances of finishing in the top two are dwindling due to Leeds United’s recent form, Russell Martin remains optimistic about his team’s chances in the playoffs, given the high quality available on the South Coast.
Martin’s players, including Adam Armstrong and Flynn Downes, have excelled in the second tier, with the former Newcastle United striker leading the way with 18 goals in 36 games.
Despite many of the current Saints squad excelling and enthralling fans at St. Mary’s, there is no doubt some lingering regret from a Southampton perspective about how things ended up with this dud when he was sold nearly three years ago in 2021.
Mario Lemina’s tenure at Southampton
In 2017, Southampton paid a club-record amount of £18 million to recruit Mario Lemina, a former Juventus center midfielder.
The deal was hailed as a coup by the Saints, with then-vice-chairman Les Reed describing the new Gabonese recruit as “outstanding.”
However, much like other bodies through the door in that summer transfer window and later in January – with Wesley Hoedt and Guido Carillo never really settling at St. Mary’s in other major flops – Lemina would struggle to ever show why the Saints spent so much money to sign him.
| Lineup for Lemina’s debut | |
|---|---|
| Southampton 3-2 West Ham (Aug 2017) | |
| 1. GK – Fraser Forster | |
| 2. RB – Cedric Soares | |
| 3. CB – Maya Yoshida | |
| 4. CB – Jack Stephens | |
| 5. LB – Ryan Bertrand | |
| 6. CM – Mario Lemina | |
| 7. CM – Oriol Romeu | |
| 8. RW – Dusan Tadic | |
| 9. CAM – Steven Davis | |
| 10. LW – Nathan Redmond | |
| 11. ST – Manolo Gabbiadini | |
| Sourced by Transfermarkt |
After making 52 appearances for Southampton in two dismal seasons, the former Juventus player moved to OGC Nice in France.
Southampton would suffer a devastating loss on their one-time record-breaking purchase, but would have been grateful merely to have him off their books after two loan spells at Galatasaray and Fulham demonstrated Lemina’s unwillingness to stay with the Saints and battle for his place.
According to Football Transfers, the Ligue 1 team was able to secure the Saints dud for a reduced sum of €5.5 million (£4.7 million), a far cry from the hefty £18 million needed to get the Gabonese midfielder from a Southampton perspective.
To his credit, the 6-foot holding midfielder has turned around his stuttering career, which began when he moved to France after leaving St. Mary’s.
Mario Lemina’s redemption following Southampton
Lemina made 32 appearances and scored two goals in his first season in Ligue 1 following a slow start in England.
One of those attempts was a delightfully executed first-time shot that helped his new employers win 2-1 against RC Lens, and Lemina was enjoying his game again in an eclectic Nice lineup that included Kasper Dolberg and Justin Kluivert, to name a few.
Wolverhampton Wanderers made a winning bid of €11 million (£9.4 million) for the ex-Saints flop in January last year, convincing Nice to sell their redeemed star player.
Lemina would join the Wolves midway through the 2022/23 season, and his importance to the cause at Molineux would only grow at the end of the season, when players such as Ruben Neves in holding midfield left the club amid sweeping turmoil.
Under Gary O’Neil, Lemina has transformed into a true midfield machine in the West Midlands, with any demons from his Southampton move now a distant memory.
Mario Lemina’s time with Wolves
Described as a “unbelievable” footballer by football scout Umir early in his Wolves career, Lemina is likely one of the first names on O’Neil’s teamsheet when pondering his Old Gold starting combinations.
This season, the former Saints midfielder has appeared in 25 of Wolves’ 28 league games. The team is now ranked ninth in the Premier League.
The imposing presence of Lemina in the middle of the park has allowed Wolves to dream big, with the Old Gold number five becoming into a resilient defensive option for his West Midlands employers as well as a consistent goal scorer.
Lemina has scored five goals in all competitions this season, more than double his previous total of two for Southampton.
The midfielder ended up netting in back-to-back games last December as Wolves picked up two wins in a row against Chelsea and Brentford, heading home against the Blues to make it 1-0 on Christmas Eve during that mini purple patch.
Lemina will just be grateful that he has managed to find his stride in English football with Wolves, after a rocky time of it on the South Coast had left many doubting his star quality.
The vital cog in the Wolves machine could well be reminded of his past Southampton connections head on next season though, if Martin’s men end up jumping back up into the promised land of the Premier League at the first try.
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