After such an active, promising start to his career with Southampton, newly-positioned Italian striker, Graziano Pellè, has rather let the side down of late. The man who boasted a stellar work ethic, claiming it is but his job within the team to score, has been poor recently in the Premier League. In Turin, Italy faced an eager England; the threat (believe me, calling England a ‘threat’ is both complimentary and oxymoronic) was neutralised by Roy Hodgson’s men themselves (or rather, Andros Townsend), no doubt in the hope that they could lure more goals out of the Italians as the match unfolded.
Within 29 minutes of action, Pellè had stormed ahead and earned his country a goal to levy against England. The 29-year-old has performed in all thirty league matches for Saints, yet only bagged eight goals and two assists; for both a chap upfront and one tipped for great things this season, these statistics are concerning and remarkably low. It’s no admission here that I pinned high hopes on his shoulders, and I still feel he can rise from the ashes, but this Phoenix, if you will, could have a long stretch before he regains his prior accolades at the club.
The once formidable duo of Pellè and Serbian Dušan Tadić has been far from firing on all cylinders for some time; however, both men are still considerably strong when on the ball. The less co-operation between the pair, the less potential Pellè has in the box, it would seem. No red cards and only four yellows to tally, this is a man who conducts himself largely well, but just seems to have strayed from the pack a bit.
With 53 points, Saints are sitting somewhat worryingly sandwiched between an ambitious Tottenham Hotspur, and Liverpool; both teams have clambered up rather well in recent fixtures. Saints have been slightly yo-yoing around the top four cusp in the past few months, but around sixth seems to be comfortable for Ronald Koeman’s squad.
Pellè hasn’t scored since 20th December, which is not fantastic by anybody’s standards; could this be due to increasing pressure to charge back up the table? After all, Saints are definitely the underdogs. There has never really been much need to mount any real expectations upon them, as they are not the sort of team who teeter on the edge of top four-style success; I have more memories in the bank of relegation woes and fears than I have of excitement and triumph. I’ve seen first-hand the thrill of the James Beattie era and obviously relish witnessing some semblance of a decent comeback for my club, but I certainly never anticipated the sort of finery that’s been on display this season. Particularly after so many of the team members that glued the side together last run of the division fled so quickly.
After Pellè’s success for Italy, could this reignite his original skill, and see him gain more goals in upcoming matches? Could this be his return to form? I certainly hope so; not simply for league table points (although a part of me is becoming greedy for that possibility), but for Pellè himself. His future at the club would be carved out suitably, and he would feel fulfilled again. Fingers crossed, tightly.
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