After yet another methodical win the big question now is "Can Saints make the Champions League"

All the talk this season has been about Leicester City and rightly so, but whilst the media has focused elsewhere Saints have been slowly but surely creeping up the table and looking a great side.

Only a month ago some supporters were looking over their shoulders and saying even a top ten finish was out of the question, but now Saints are in sixth and looking upwards.

The first goal will of course to be to secure a Europa League place, we will know how viable that is in just under a fortnight when the Capital One Cup Final takes place, if Manchester City where to win, as the table stands that would mean that sixth would secure a Europa League spot and that is well within the capabilities of Saints.

But it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Saints could be looking beyond the top six and even 5th or whisper it, 4th and a Champions league spot.

There will be many who would stop reading now and say that this is not possible, but they would be wrong.

Manchester United are now only a point ahead of us and they are in turmoil, their season is heading the same way as it did a couple of years back under David Moyes, they are drifting and they can do little about it as they look towards replacing Louis Van Gaal, at best they may get the top manager they are looking for like Mourinho, but they are far more likely to make the change at the end of the season rather than now, I can't see them getting much better and morale is at rck bottom with Van Gaal a dead man walking bar a miracle.

Their noisy neighbours Manchester City are in just as much turmoil, they are being managed by another dead man walking and with pep Guardiola coming in in the summer their squad have no motivation to play for the current manager. Saints might be 7 points behind City, but that could shorten in the coming weeks and making up that ground is not beyond the realms of possibility.

Above that though the top three look bolted on, Spurs are riding their luck, but they are riding it well, likewise Arsenal who like us have come through a bad spell to start to win again, I think they will win the title.

Leicester City have done brilliantly but I think they will fall just short of the title.

But from a Saints perspective we have a great opportunity to make the top four, perhaps a better one than last season when in fairness the six teams that finished above us where all stronger, but that is not the case this season as we head into the last 12 games.

Firstly we have as easy a run in as any of our rivals in the top six, we only have to play 3 of the teams in the top 7, Leicester and Spurs away and Manchester City at home, the City game could be crucial.

Aside from those we meet mainly teams in mid table and that could be a big factor as the relegation battle evens itself out, even now its down to only six clubs and that could narrow as the weeks pass by.

So Saints have perhaps the best chance in their history of finishing in the top four of the top flight in England.

We have only managed that feat once before and that was in 83/84 season, this season has many parallels with that season, like then we are basing our game on defence and breaking, we have a similar make up of squad and play a similar type of game.

In that season we made a late surge to finally finish 2nd and it was when our attacking power came to the fore to see us over the line and that could be the case this year.

So to write off Saints for a top spot would be short sighted, we are the form team at the moment, we are top of the form table for the last six games and crucially we have gained 8 more points than Manchester City in that time, that is a pshycological boost.

Ronald Koeman like Lawrie McMenemy in 1984 will publicly play it all down, but privately he will feel that we have every chance and will be using the momentum of the past month to keep us moving forward.

Leicester have fought their way to the top through self belief and taken their chances when they have come, if we can do that ourselves in the final third of the season then a dream might just come through for not just Leicester City but Southampton Football Club.

Photo: Action Images

steadyeddie added 22:44 - Feb 16 Believe...................
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