With the addition of Juanmi Southampton Football Club now have an array of firepower that could move us up a place or two in the league.

Last season was a season of transition for Saints in terms of striking power, we lost two of our top scorers in Lambert & Lallana and a third Jay our top striker Rodriguez missed the entire season through injury.

That meant we had to completely revamp our attacking line up and although overall it was a success, there were hiccups along the way as we evolved the way in which we played.

Our results were based on defence though having the second best defence behind Chelsea, but going forward we were not so potent, the 54 goals we scored made us the 5th top scorers in the league but given that 14 of those came in two games against Sunderland & Aston Villa it somewhat distorted our goals for column.

But with a more settled squad and way of playing from the off and our main strikers now have the experience in the Premier League.

Our five strikers now have the potential to net over 60 goals between them and this could be crucial.

Graziano Pelle scored 12 last season in the Premier League and although some supporters got on his back there were still only 9 players who scored more than him. His scoring drought wasn't all his own fault though, at times especially away from home he was starved of service and with no other options due to injury etc he had to soldier on.

Sadio Mane was another who attracted crticism from the fans at some stages and truth is it was only in the latter stages he convinced many.

Likewise Shane Long, he is one of those that is often an unsung hero and he like Mane finished with a bang.

If we look at those three then they have the potential to net around 45 goals between them , Pelle could have hit 15 himself last season without his barren spell and is well capable of doing so in the current term, Mane scored 10 last season in 30 games and could up that goals per game ration in the coming season, even if he just maintains it a full season would equate to 12.

Shane Long scored 5 in only 16 starts, again although he is not prolific he is a player capable of hitting 10 goals in a season.

Then there is the returning Jay Rodriguez, he scored 15 in 30(3) games before his injury and if he returns to anything like that form is capable of 15 again.

Juanmi is an unknown quantity but again he is a player who should be looking at about 8-10 as a good return.

All in all we have five players who are capable of 60 goals between them, of course they cannot all play at the same time, so that may not be possible, but the fact is now we have different options, effectively in Rodriguez and Juanmi we have two players not available to Ronald Koeman last season so the Dutchman not only has options in his starting line up, but in the way we play and also off the bench.

That means that he can change things around a little in terms of tactics, something he could not do in January and February when Pelle's goal drought began, with Mane away on International duty and Long injured the manager had to stick with a certain formation and with Pelle needing a break, it didn't help our cause.

This season it should hopefully be different and we now have a lot more options.

But of course the key is still going to be making those chances, we have to create chances for the strikers and at one stage last season we were not doing that, but of the four who were at the club last season they can create for others and perhaps Juanmi is the fox in the box we have been looking for, the type of striker as Billy Sharpe was at Championship level and Marian Pahars was 15 years ago for us, who has a knack of being in the right place at the right time when the ball drops, we lacked that last term, and this could be crucial.

Now we have a balance in striking power that we didnt have for much of last season and just as importantly Mane and Pelle have that experience, Shane long will of course do what Shane Long does and that is chase lost causes and bang in the odd goal or two.

What we would have done for another 3 or 4 goals at crucial times, of course its all just speculation now, but a winner against Spurs an equaliser at Anfield would have changed the course of our season, we can't change the past, but we can certainly change the future and our striking options look very exciting now.

Photo: Action Images

StEdmund added 09:59 - Jun 19 Contacts in Spain tell me that Juanmi is fast and skillful player, and think he is a good signing for Saints. But more a Beardsley than Lineker though.
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cheltenhamsaint added 10:15 - Jun 19 Excluding Pelle, our forward line options contains a lot of pace and as the pundits trot out regularly "pace frightens defenders"
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WestSussexSaint added 11:14 - Jun 19 And all of this without counting on Mayuka........ In all seriousness as you said Nick, the bulk of our success last season was based on the defense. Potentially without Toby and half the season without Forster, if their replacements do not replicate last seasons performances then the strike force will have to score more goals just to keep things on par with last year.

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SO50SFC added 11:24 - Jun 19 Totally agree. Up front, very exciting and a manager with the skill/knowledge to make changes. Midfield needs some attention but the Morgan money and transfer rumours indicate we could do OK. But it is our foundation at the back from this year that worries me at the moment. In fairness, it was all under control last season and Ronald and the Black box team came through but when Toby and Fraser were out, we were MUCH weaker. Plenty of time yet though and some early business give me much more confidence than in seasons past.

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IWOZTHERE added 12:21 - Jun 19 No mention of Tadic ? Do you know something we don't? Early on he was outstanding as a provider but largely anonymous towards the end of the season. Was he still carrying an injury? I really rated him but I won't be sorry if he never takes another penalty for us.
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SaintBrock added 12:55 - Jun 19 Fire power is always the key Nick! If you never score the most points you can get is 38 and relegation. We don't need an essay to tell us that grass is green
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