The media seems to think it's a done deal that Adam Lallana is going to Liverpool. In case Adam happens to be reading SaintsWeb here are my (unbiased!) reasons why he shouldn't. It may be overly optimistic and some reasons may appear to contradict each other but let's forget about that for now!
1. You've just got to the World Cup playing for and captaining Southampton. That's Roy of the Rovers stuff!
2. The Saints fans love you!
3. You're captain of the greatest Southampton team in a generation that's full of young English players and will only get better.
4. Saints have improved year on year for the last five years. You've been integral to that growth. Who's to say this is the limit? If you stay, we can keep pushing on!
5. Four or five Saints players could play at a higher level. In that case, if we add one or two quality players rather than sell our best players we could become that higher level!
6. We improved by 15 points on last season, who's to say we can't do the same again now we have an extra year's experience of Premiership football? 71 points would put us right in the mix for European football and would have got us third place in 2011/12!
7. There were lots of games we had regrets in this season where we played better than the result we achieved, but lapses in concentration or wayward finishing cost us. If these could be ironed out next season we could be fighting for the Champions League! This is a simplistic way of looking at things but from BBC possession / shots stats we probably should have got more from the following games:
i. 1-1 vs Sunderland (55% possession, 17 shots to
ii. 0-0 vs West Ham (58% possession, 15 shots to 6)
iii. 1-1 vs Man U (54% possession, 18 shots to 12)
iv. 0-2 vs Arsenal (51% possession, 10 shots to 9)
v. 2-3 vs Villa (78% possession, 21 shots to 6!!)
vi. 2-3 vs Tottenham (57% possession, 12 shots to 13)
vii. 1-2 vs Everton (56% possession, 12 shots to 9)
viii. 2-2 vs Sunderland (64% possession, 17 shots to 10)
ix. 2-2 vs Arsenal (53% possession, 13 shots to 7)
x. 2-2 vs Stoke (60% possession, 18 shots to 5)
xi. 2-3 vs Tottenham (49% possession 12 shots to 15 – stats are slightly in Tottenham's favour, but we threw that game away!)
xii. 0-1 vs Cardiff (68% possession, 19 shots to 6!!)
xiii. 1-1 vs Man U (58% possession, 16 shots to
Had we have turned those losses into draws and draws into wins we'd have got 21 more points! Had we just won the games where we had twice the amount of shots than the opposition we'd have 14 more points! Ifs and buts, but fairly legitimate ones!
8. When you signed your five year contract last summer you said "If someone was to say that I'd end my career playing for Southampton in the Premier League then I'd snap your hand off for it." One incredible season where you achieve a world cup call up shouldn't change that :-)
9. Is the grass greener on the other side?
10. Is Liverpool the right team to go to to win trophies? They haven't won the Premiership in 24 years. They've only won the league cup in the last eight years.
11. Last season Liverpool only got five more points than we got this season. Maybe it's our turn for a meteoric rise?! We're a team of young players and have the best possession stats in the Premier League! Slightly more effective use of that possession and we'll be up there!
12. Luis Suarez will leave for Real Madrid. Do you want to be associated with a team going backwards (like Tottenham this season)? He scored / assisted / dived for a penalty for half of Liverpool's goals and is irreplaceable. If he leaves, Liverpool's morale will drop. Is the rest of their team any better than ours? If we'd had Suarez in our team this season we'd probably have come 2nd!
13. Liverpool this season remind me of Reading the season they beat us to the Championship title. They massively overachieved and were riding the crest of a wave during an incredible run. Teams will have worked out how to play them next season. Take Suarez out of the equation and they really will be a one season wonder.
14. Much has been made of their attacking flair but 36 of their goals have come from set pieces or penalties. Ten more than any other team and 25 more than Arsenal! That's an anomaly that's unlikely to happen again. They only scored five more goals from open play than Man United*.
15. Saints' defence is better than Liverpool's. They concede 33% more shots at their goal per game than we do*.
16. This is Liverpool's first season in the Champions League for five years. Their co-efficient will be low so they'll be put in a difficult group. If Suarez leaves it's unlikely they'll get there next season. Is playing one season in the Champions League (where Liverpool will most likely get knocked out in the first round) worth giving up everything you've got at Southampton for?
17. Pochettino's a better manager than Rodgers. Rodgers is lucky to have Luis Suarez (I might have already mentioned the Suarez factor once or twice!).
18. A lot of English players who were in a Premiership side that was on the up have joined a “big” club and flopped. Many end up warming the bench or their careers end up going backwards
i. Scott Parker
ii. Scott Sinclair
iii. Andy Carroll
iv. Steve Sidwell
v. Francis Jeffers
vi. Jack Rodwell
vii. Joe Allan (he has played at Liverpool but has received his fair share of stick).
I'm sure there are lots of other examples!
19. Staying at Southampton will set a precedent and show that there is romance left in football, that a smaller side can rise up to challenge the elite without selling their best players the moment they become successful!
20. Next season will be our turn to ride the crest of a wave and take the league by storm. Don't ruin that by leaving now!
In summary, life's amazing at the moment. You're the captain and star player for the Saints. Saints are on an incredible journey that could get even better. You're in the world cup squad and may well be a star of the world cup in Brazil. Why risk that happiness for a move to a team where you won't be the star player, will probably find yourself on the bench more often than at Saints and that's going to have their fans on their backs because they're most likely going to be a one season wonder? :-)
Finally, I'm off to the World Cup in Brazil. I've been waiting for the squad to be announced so I can buy my "Lallana" England shirt. Don't spoil that for me by joining Liverpool!
*source: http://www.whoscored.com/Regions/252/Tournaments/2/Seasons/3853/Stages/7794/TeamStatistics/England-Premier-League-2013-2014
