Southampton are joint-first across England’s top four leagues for most substitute goal involvements and the credit has to go to Russell Martin.
Southampton have one of the best squads the Championship has ever seen.
With a plethora of Premier League quality players, including Kyle Walker-Peters, Che Adams and Jan Bednarek, to name a few, Russell Martin has the luxury of selecting a star-studded squad every week.
The Saints can field a team that is far too good for the second tier which means their bench is also stacked with class in abundance.
In the modern era, substitutes are becoming more important than ever. With matches lasting longer and managers able to make five subs in league matches, players coming off the bench have made an incredible impact this season.
Southampton top English football for most substitute goal involvements
In their hunt for automatic promotion, Southampton have seen their loan signings pull off several rescue acts.
Ryan Fraser, who is currently sidelined with an injury, has scored four goals and supplied one assist from the bench while January arrival Joe Rothwell isn’t far behind.
The 29-year-old, currently on loan from Bournemouth, has come on as a sub twice to net braces in wins over Huddersfield Town and Sunderland.
Without the impact of their subs, the Saints would be much further away from the division’s summit but instead, they are nine points behind second-place Leicester City with two games in hand to put a dent into that deficit.
According to Opta Analyst, Southampton are joint top for substitute goal involvements (28) with fellow promotion rivals Ipswich Town.
Martin is indeed rivalling Kieran McKenna for his excellent use of substitutes.
Russell Martin is getting it right
Decision-making in management is a balancing act that is difficult to get right, but in terms of timing substitutions to perfection, the Saints boss has been spot on.
A manager can often come under scrutiny from fans for taking a certain player off, however, Martin’s decisions late on in matches have given his side every chance of winning promotion automatically.
In the 2-1 victory over Hull City in October, Fraser came off the bench to score the winner and against Huddersfield in February, he brought Rothwell on for Will Smallbone, who scored a brace to get his side back into the game.
It’s these moments, particularly in a promotion race, that can prove pivotal.
And if Southampton do go on to reach the Premier League, supporters have Martin to thank for his well-timed substitutions.