The 1996–97 Southampton F.C. season was the club's 96th season of competitive football, their 27th in the top flight of English football, and their fifth in the FA Premier League. It was the sole season to feature Graeme Souness as the club's manager, who took over from Dave Merrington in the summer of 1996. After finishing 17th and avoiding relegation on goal difference the previous season, the Saints had another poor campaign as they improved their league position by just one place, finishing a single point above the drop zone. Outside the league, the club were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round, but made it to the fifth round of the League Cup for the first time since 1991. This was the last season with chairman Guy Askham, who left in 1997.
Following his arrival in July, Souness made several changes to the Southampton squad – notable new signings included Norwegian striker Egil Østenstad, Dutch right-back Ulrich van Gobbel and Norwegian centre-back Claus Lundekvam, while major outgoings included the sales of striker Neil Shipperley, centre-back Richard Hall and winger Neil Heaney. The most infamous transfer activity took place during November, when the club signed unproven Senegalese striker Ali Dia for a matter of weeks, before releasing him again after one 53-minute appearance. All the changes brought mixed results, as the club struggled throughout much of the season, before an unbeaten run of seven games in the final weeks of the campaign secured their top-flight survival.
Outside the league, Southampton were eliminated from the FA Cup in the third round when they lost 1–3 to First Division side Reading, who had also knocked the Saints out of the League Cup the previous year. In the 1996–97 edition of the latter tournament, the Saints fared much better, reaching the quarter-finals for the first time since 1991. On the way to the fifth round, they eased past Peterborough United (who were struggling in, and would ultimately be relegated from, the Second Division), beat Third Division club Lincoln City in a replayed third round tie, and made it past First Division side Oxford United (again after a replay). They were ultimately eliminated by another Second Division side, Stockport County, who were on their way to achieving promotion.
Southampton used 31 players during the 1996–97 season and had 15 different goalscorers. After one season off the top of the goalscoring charts, Matt Le Tissier finished as the club's top scorer for the sixth time in eight seasons, with 13 league and three League Cup goals. Jim Magilton made the most appearances for a second season out of three, playing in 46 of the team's 48 games during the campaign. Østenstad, who finished just behind Le Tissier on 13 goals, won the Southampton F.C. Player of the Season award. The average league attendance at The Dell during 1996–97 was 15,099. The highest attendance was 15,253 against Manchester United in October and the lowest was 10,737 against Oxford United in the League Cup in December.
Background and transfers Shortly after the end of the 1995–96 season, manager Dave Merrington was sacked by the Southampton board. The decision was described by club historians in 2003 as an "abandonment" of the manager, who had saved the club from relegation in the final stages of the season, earning him the Premier League Manager of the Month award for April 1996 (during which the Saints had won three out of their six games). In a statement to the media, Merrington commented that "To say it's a great shock is a massive understatement ... I'm leaving with deep regret and sadness". Southern Daily Echo columnist Graham Hiley wrote that "Twelve years of loyal service were wiped out in a terse two-paragraph statement ... The man who brought through Matthew Le Tissier, Alan Shearer, the Wallaces [Ray and Rod] and many others appears to have been ruthlessly discarded like litter left on the terraces." A couple of weeks later, Merrington was replaced by former Rangers, Liverpool and Galatasaray manager Graeme Souness.
Souness' first two signings came courtesy of tips from assistant manager Terry Cooper – left-back Graham Potter, who Cooper had managed at Birmingham City in 1992–93, joined from First Division side Stoke City for £250,000, while centre-back Richard Dryden, a member of Cooper's Exeter City team from 1988 to 1991, signed from Bristol City in the Second Division for £150,000. Among three trainee signings in July came left-back Wayne Bridge, who would go on to make 174 appearances for the Southampton first team during a five-year stint, before later spells with top clubs Chelsea and Manchester City. Souness also sold five players ahead of the league starting – midfielder Tommy Widdrington moved to Grimsby Town in the First Division for a club record fee of £300,000, out-of-contract defender Richard Hall was snapped up by West Ham United for a tribunal-set fee of £1.4 million, winger Mark Walters moved on a free transfer to Swindon Town, who had been recently promoted to the First Division, defender Derek Allan moved to Brighton & Hove Albion in the Third Division, three years since his sole substitute appearance for the Saints, and goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar moved on a free transfer to third-tier club Plymouth Argyle.
Changes to the squad continued throughout the season. At the beginning of September, the club signed three players in three days, as they brought in 19-year-old striker Russell Watkinson from non-league side Woking, Norwegian centre-back Claus Lundekvam from Brann for £400,000, and Australian midfielder Robbie Slater from West Ham for £200,000. The next month, another Norwegian international, 24-year-old striker Egil Østenstad, was signed for £800,000 from Viking, while Dutch centre-back Ulrich van Gobbel, who Souness had signed just nine months earlier at Galatasaray, arrived in a near-record £1.3 million deal. Østenstad was brought in to replace Neil Shipperley, who subsequently moved later the same month for £1 million to First Division side Crystal Palace, whom he chose over Portsmouth. Also arriving in loan deals during October were Israeli playmaker Eyal Berkovic, who joined from Maccabi Haifa until the end of the season, and goalkeeper Chris Woods, who came from American club Colorado Rapids until the next March.
During November, winger Neil Heaney and striker Frankie Bennett moved to Manchester City and Bristol Rovers, respectively. The most notable transfer activity, however, was the brief signing of Senegalese striker Ali Dia, who would go down as one of the "worst players" in FA Premier League and world football history. After an uneventful early career in mainland Europe, Dia joined English non-league club Blyth Spartans in November 1996, before days later making the five-division jump to Southampton just a few days after his only game for the club. According to reports, Souness was convinced to give Dia a trial after receiving a phone call from someone purporting to be George Weah, the most recent winner of the FIFA World Player of the Year award, who claimed that the pair had been teammates at French side Paris Saint-Germain, and that Dia had played (and scored) for the Senegal national team. Dia made an "embarrassing" appearance as a substitute when several strikers were out injured, before he was released after just two weeks.
After Christmas, the club spent £500,000 on Northern Irish goalkeeper Maik Taylor, who joined Souness' side from Third Division side Barnet on the recommendation of recently departed manager Ray Clemence. In the new year, striker Gordon Watson moved for the same fee to Bradford City, who were fighting against relegation from the First Division having recently been promoted. Graham Potter, who had been signed only seven months earlier, left Southampton in February for £300,000 (a profit of £50,000) to join West Bromwich Albion, another First Division side. In March, Souness spent another £500,000 to sign Republic of Ireland striker Mickey Evans from Plymouth Argyle to help with the closing stages of the campaign. The same month, Christer Warren – who had earlier in the year spent a week at Brighton – joined Fulham on loan until the end of the season.
Players transferred in NameNationalityClubDateFeeRef.Graham Potter Stoke City23 July 1996£250,000Wayne Bridge Olivers BatteryJuly 1996FreeKevin Gibbens LordswoodJuly 1996FreeGarry Monk Torquay UnitedJuly 1996FreeRichard Dryden Bristol City6 August 1996£150,000Russell Watkinson Woking1 September 1996FreeClaus Lundekvam Brann2 September 1996£400,000Robbie Slater West Ham United3 September 1996£200,000Egil Østenstad Viking3 October 1996£800,000Ulrich van Gobbel Galatasaray15 October 1996£1,300,000Ali Dia Blyth SpartansNovember 1996FreeMaik Taylor Barnet31 December 1996£500,000Mickey Evans Plymouth Argyle3 March 1997£500,000Kevin Davies Chesterfield8 May 1997£750,000
Players transferred out NameNationalityClubDateFeeRef.Tommy Widdrington Grimsby Town11 July 1996£300,000Richard Hall West Ham United19 July 1996£1,400,000Mark Walters Swindon Town31 July 1996FreeDerek Allan Brighton & Hove Albion1 August 1996FreeBruce Grobbelaar Plymouth Argyle12 August 1996FreeNeil Shipperley Crystal Palace25 October 1996£1,000,000Neil Heaney Manchester City23 November 1996£500,000Frankie Bennett Bristol Rovers29 November 1996£50,000Gordon Watson Bradford City15 January 1997£500,000Graham Potter West Bromwich Albion14 February 1997£300,000
Players loaned in NameNationalityClubDate fromDate toRef.Eyal Berkovic Maccabi Haifa9 October 1996End of seasonChris Woods Colorado Rapids31 October 199625 March 1997
Players loaned out NameNationalityClubDate fromDate toRef.Christer Warren Brighton & Hove Albion11 October 199619 October 1996Frankie Bennett Shrewsbury Town25 October 199612 November 1996Paul Tisdale Huddersfield Town29 November 199614 December 1996Christer Warren Fulham7 March 1997End of season
Players released NameNationalityDateSubsequent clubRef.Ali DiaNovember 1996 Gateshead
Players retired NameNationalityDateReasonRef.Barry VenisonOctober 1996Retired due to a back injury, subsequently became a television pundit.
Notes
Pre-season friendlies Ahead of the 1996–97 campaign, Southampton played eight pre-season friendlies. Like the previous season, they started their pre-season preparations with a short tour of Ireland, beating both Cork City and Waterford United 1–0, thanks to goals from Neil Heaney and Gordon Watson, respectively. This was followed by a 3–1 win over Southern League side Cheltenham Town (in which Graham Potter, who had signed just three days earlier, scored one of the Saints' goals) and two matches at Scottish opposition: a 2–2 draw with Dunfermline Athletic and a 0–1 defeat at Heart of Midlothian. Another 0–1 loss at Wycombe Wanderers of the Second Division was followed by a 1–2 defeat to Oxford United (as part of the Oxford Benevolent Cup pre-season tournament) and a 0–2 loss at Greek side PAOK.
FA Premier League
Southampton had a dreadful start to the 1996–97 season, dropping into the relegation zone immediately after failing to pick up a win in their first seven fixtures. After an opening day goalless draw at home to Chelsea, the Saints lost 1–2 at both Leicester City and West Ham United, reduced to ten men in each game as Barry Venison and Francis Benali, respectively, were sent off. Another home draw, 2–2 against Nottingham Forest (the point saved by a last-minute Matt Le Tissier goal), was followed by three straight defeats which saw the South Coast side descend into the drop zone – they lost 1–2 at Liverpool thanks to a goal in the last minute from Steve McManaman, lost 0–1 at home to Tottenham Hotspur thanks to a Chris Armstrong penalty, and went down 1–3 at a high-flying Wimbledon side.