Before Liverpool established themselves as firm title-contenders under Jurgen Klopp, there was a time when Southampton could claim to be something of a bogey team for the Reds following their 2013 return to the Premier League.
Against both the German and Brendan Rodgers ’ side, the Saints picked up surprise victories at both St. Mary’s and Anfield, with a number of recognisable faces impressing against Liverpool in recent years ahead of career-changing transfers.
Rickie Lambert, Dejan Lovren and Nathaniel Clyne would all score for Southampton ahead of future Anfield moves, while Sadio Mane would bag four in one season before his own Merseyside switch.
Such a trait even dates back to the Saints’ final season in the top-flight when suffering relegation in 2005, as Peter Crouch caught Rafa Benitez ’s eye by scoring in a 2-0 win ahead of a £7m move.
And it isn’t even limited to then-current Southampton players with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scoring two and setting up two in his time with Arsenal against the Reds after leaving St. Mary’s behind.
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Given such contributions, it is perhaps no surprise that Liverpool would regularly turn to the South Coast when looking to strengthen their squad.
Throw in Virgil van Dijk and Adam Lallana, and Southampton pocketed £180m from the Reds between 2005 and 2018.
And that’s not including any sell-on clause they included in Oxlade-Chamberlain’s £15m move to Arsenal.
The Reds were often mocked for their frequent purging of the Saints’ best talents, while it was to the chagrin of Southampton fans that they became accustomed to so many of their star players departing for Anfield in quick-succession.
And then there was Liverpool’s questionable pursuit of Van Dijk which prompted an apology to Southampton in the summer before he completed his £75m club-record transfer.
Yet as Liverpool took that final step to becoming European, World and Premier League champions, their shopping at Southampton stopped with that January 2018 arrival of the Dutchman.
In truth, the Reds’ numerous acquisitions had taken its toll at St. Mary’s as eighth, seventh and sixth-placed finishes under Mauricio Pochettino, Ronald Koeman and Claude Puel, and campaigns in Europe, were replaced by mid-table battles and relegation scraps.
As Mane and Van Dijk helped Liverpool rise, Southampton ultimately sank. They had stood alongside the Saints, battling to qualify for Europe when signing their South Coast counterparts’ stars, even finishing behind them in Klopp ’s first season.
But any biased accusations of a sideways step from Southampton fans was quickly silenced by the Reds reaching heights they could only dream of.
As such, the only recent business between the clubs would see Liverpool’s fringe players move the other way with Danny Ings and Takumi Minamino both moving south on loan.
The Reds’ frequent purchases from the Saints might have seen them mocked at the time but they ultimately proved crucial to Liverpool’s elite transformation.
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Mane and Van Dijk proved just that on Sunday as Southampton were dispatched in comfortable fashion at Anfield, falling to a 4-0 defeat with the Dutchman finishing off the scoring and the Senegalese having tormented his former side throughout.
The win would move Klopp’s men back up to second in the table, a point behind leaders Chelsea and two points clear of Man City having played a game more.
In contrast, the Saints sit 14th but could find themselves hovering above the relegation zone if results go against them over the rest of the weekend.
This is where both clubs now stand, having once briefly stood side-by-side and it is perhaps telling that is hard to pick out any current Southampton player who could comfortably claim a place in the Reds’ matchday squad, never mind their starting XI.
How times change.
Tino Livramento is the pick of their players but with the 19-year-old a right-back, Liverpool would have no need for such an addition with Trent Alexander-Arnold in their ranks.
Of the players who potentially could have caught Klopp's eye in difficult circumstances, Mohammed Salisu did an admirable job against Mohamed Salah, but it is hard to judge a defender in a 4-0 loss.
And besides, the German has no need for another centre-back.
Meanwhile, James Ward-Prowse and Alex McCarthy have both been linked with a move to Anfield in the past but such players would only be back-up options, with hypothetical interest in part due to their homegrown status.
The irony being that Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are presented as this ‘Liverpool lite’, a side who look to model their game on how the Reds play.
But they are no match for Klopp’s elite.
Van Dijk remains the last player to join Liverpool from Southampton, coming four years ago, and the Saints can rest easy knowing the Reds are unlikely to come knocking again anytime soon.
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But that is perhaps exactly where they have gone wrong in recent years as their brief dalliance with Europe was quickly ended, with the players they have since acquired not been of the quality to attract interest from the Premier League's top clubs.
Southampton might wonder what could have been had they kept hold of their stars, with their departures perhaps in turn limiting the attraction of playing for the Saints despite the established stepping stone path and transfer fees they were collecting, but a place in Europe or decent cup run was always the limit of their ambitions.
In contrast, Liverpool dreamed of more. They dreamed of Premier League and Champions League glory, even when it once looked unlikely.
With Mane and Van Dijk, Klopp turned doubters into believers and even though Southampton are the Reds’ ‘feeder club’ no longer, they are continuing to pay the price.
