Southampton are a decent side but a top four finish is beyond them. Rather than fighting for the Champion’s Leaguethe Saints, who currently sit in seventh behind some of the Premier Leagues heavyweights, should prepare for life in the Europa League as this appears their more likely destination.

Though with Liverpool and Tottenham currently occupying fifth and sixth respectively, manager Ronald Koeman might find himself lucky to even make it to Europe at all next season.

We all like an underdog story, especially when it occurs in the murky and over-inflated world of football, but expecting Southampton to break into those coveted top four places is frankly one dream too far. Southampton did well to bring in ex-Feyenoord manager Ronald Koeman, and since his appointment the club have climbed the table spending precious time in and just out of the top four, generally being a nuisance to the usual big English clubs.

With Chelsea and Manchester City having apparently sewn up first and second place weeks ago, it leaves at least five clubs vying for the last two Champion’s League places. Two in to five doesn’t go, so three teams will miss out and of those five Southampton, who have ben punching above their weight surely can take the hit.

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To finish in the top four, while being quite the coup for the coastal club, has the potential of destroying their Premier League chances next season. Look at Everton. Finishing fifth last year has turned into a bit of a curse now as they struggle six points above the relegation zone. In less than 12 months their survival is now at stake because they couldn’t cope with the added fixtures that European competition brings.

With his eight Premier League goals, Graziano Pelle has proven that he is not the huge goal scorer we thought he’d become, with his form over the last few weeks a big reason why Southampton have been unable to keep up with the league’s big boys.

You can’t deny that Southampton started well, winning all three League games in September, including a 2-1 triumph against Arsenal in the third round of the League Cup. Likewise, further successes against Everton and Manchester United – not to mention holding top of the table Chelsea to a 1-1 draw just after Christmas – cemented the Saints’ position as real contenders for a good finish. But just a few months later, Southampton are now sitting in seventh.

Considering that pre-Koeman they finished in eighth, this season is starting to not look as good as once expected. Now anything above eighth surely should be seen as a triumph, as Koeman has completely revamped the squad with the additions of Pelle, Sadio Mane and Dusan Tadic, which was caused in part by last season’s mass exodus, but the fans reasonably have set their sights higher.

A slowly does it climb over the next few seasons will do the club well in the long term and a Europa League experience in 2015/16 is exactly the step up that can benefit them.

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