Southampton: Three hopes, one fear

Hope #3-That Steven Davis has the legs for another Premier League campaign

For the past five seasons Steven Davis has been the heart and soul of Southampton. The Northern Ireland midfielder has seen the club during the highs and lows of their latest Premier League run. Every match it seems as if he is either part of a series of passes that leads to an important goal or the player who makes a point saving tackle or clear. The term consummate professional gets thrown around a lot but with Davis it seems appropriate.

The problem with Davis is that he is 31 years old and has played a lot of matches in recent years. It would be one thing if he were thirty and had played maybe 200 or 250 matches. But starting this season Davis will have played in 492 matches since beginning his professional career with Aston Villa nearly twelve years ago.

With that amount of wear and tear on his legs Southampton supporters have to be concerned about his long-term health. Not that there is anything medically wrong with him but that there should be some concern over the minutes that he is logging in.

Davis still has a very important role with this side. Although it is no longer the group of young upstarts they are still a bit thin in the midfield. The key will be for Puel to rest Davis from time to time so that his strengths can be maximized and his legs can be preserved.

Next: The big fear: That the club will be unable to replace Mane and Pelle