Summer on the south coast was pretty dreary to be honest. That’s if you’re a Southampton fan, anyway.

The mass exodus was accompanied with derision and laughter from the footballing world - THAT tweet from Ronald Koeman depicting an empty training ground - and despair from Southampton fans who were gearing up for a season towards the bottom of the table.

That was until they saw who Koeman brought in with the money accrued from the sale of some of their best players.

That was when Saints fans knew they could do alright this season and even build on the progress they made under Pochettino.

What they probably couldn’t have foreseen though, is just how much progress they would make. Now they’re in a straight fight with their old manager for a Europa League spot, so the Saints are doing very well indeed. So much so that they’re perhaps in danger of losing some of their best players again this summer.

But let’s assume for a second that they don’t lose the players and they do finish in a Europa League spot for next season.

There is still some confusion over the qualification for Europe, so let’s clear that up first.

Because Chelsea won the FA Cup, 6th place will definitely enter the Europa League along with 5th place this season. At the moment, that’s Spurs and Liverpool. Of course, that could still be Southampton too.

But if Arsenal win the FA Cup, the final place for the Europa League will not go to the beaten finalists. Arsenal will qualify for the Champions League, so their place will go to 7th place in the league. Which is Southampton. So it may not matter if they’re in a fight with Spurs or not, they might just get it anyway.

One word of caution though - Arsenal may win the FA Cup as expected and 7th place may qualify for Europe, but with three games to go, Swansea are only four points behind Saints. No one has been talking about Garry Monk’s men, and they might just sneak up on the blindside. Stranger things have happened.

Whatever happens though, it’s been a great season for Southampton. But qualification for Europe might be detrimental to them in the longer term. Having to play Thursday - Saturday and travel to exotic destinations seems to take it right out of the teams playing in the Europa League, and Southampton would be no different.

In fact, if they were to lose Victor Wanyama and Morgan Schneiderlin, or Nathaniel Clyne and Fraser Forster in the summer Southampton’s squad would be even lighter than it is now. And that’s certainly a worry if they do qualify.

The very act of having a good season means your players are sought after. If you’re a club like Southampton, more powerful clubs may come calling. And qualifying for the Europa League would certainly be considered a good season.

So if Saints do qualify for Europe, this summer is going to be just as big as last summer. If they manage to keep a hold of their players, they’ll still need to supplement their squad with more talent to make sure that their league form doesn’t suffer next season. European qualification can be a good thing, but it’s only good if it’s in the context of progress. If Southampton qualify and then they fall away in the league next season, the progress could stop very quickly.

And if they do qualify and they have a summer similar to last time, then Koeman will need to do more than just supplement his squad. He’ll have to replace what he has lost and then add to it.

Even if they don’t qualify for Europe, Southampton will do well to hold onto those players. Without the draw of Europe to keep them at St Mary’s, they might look to bigger teams.

So whatever happens, this summer will be huge for Koeman and Southampton. But that’s the price you pay for success. Wherever they finish, and whatever the reward, the feelgood factor is back at St Mary’s, and European football would only enhance that.

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