Southampton FC didn't hit the jackpot on £8m man at all - He left for absolutely nothing | OneFootball

Southampton never saw their £8m signing perform at their best

Southampton were riding high in 2015 after enjoying another successful year of Premier League football, and plenty of money was being spent to try and take them to the next level.

The Saints were promoted to the top-flight in 2012 and impressed immediately, finishing 14th and only eight points shy of eighth place.

The next season saw things get even better, with the south coast outfit achieving that eighth-place finish, six points clear of their closest rival.

Remarkably, Southampton bettered this the year after, coming home seventh in the 2014/15 Premier League standings and just four points behind Tottenham Hotspur in fifth.

With the Europa League qualifying stages now to look forward to, Ronald Koeman decided that his squad needed some reinforcements.

The summer of 2015 saw some important players sign for the Saints, including Virgil van Dijk, Oriol Romeu and Cédric Soares, who would all play an important role in the resulting years, and some would make the club some serious financial profit in years to come.

One of Southampton’s biggest purchases from that summer thogh failed to deliver on his price tag however, and will always be remembered as a major transfer blunder from the St Mary’s side.

Southampton never saw the best of Jordy Clasie at St Mary’s

Koeman acquired Jordy Clasie from Feyenoord for a reported £8 million in 2015, a signing that was much celebrated following his brilliant performances in the Netherlands.

The midfielder had represented his country at the 2014 World Cup and was expected to transform the Saints’ midfield as they embarked on the adventure of European football while maintaining their form in the Premier League.

However, it became apparent that Clasie wasn’t gelling within the South Coast side’s squad.

Whilst fellow new signings such as Van Dijk and Romeu quickly got up to speed, the Dutch midfielder was struggling to adapt to the English game.

Clasie made just 22 Premier League appearances during his first season with Southampton and failed to provide a goal or assist in that time. Koeman led his side to an impressive sixth in the top-flight rankings, highlighting that the rest of the system was working to great effect.

There were hopes that the former Feyenoord man just needed extra time to adapt to his new surroundings and that he would spring into life during his second term with the Saints.

That wasn’t the case however, and Clasie performed at an arguably lower level throughout the 2016/17 campaign. That season was a brilliant one for the South Coast outfit, as they enjoyed Europa League football once more and reached the final of the EFL Cup.

Clasie had failed to show any real signs of promise during his two years with the club and a decision was soon to be made on his future at St. Mary’s.

Jordy Clasie’s Southampton career never got going

After two seasons of disappointment, Clasie was loaned out to Club Brugge for the 2017/18 campaign in an attempt to recover some form, having only appeared 16 times in the Premier League the season prior.

The midfielder didn’t set the world alight during his time in Belgium and was sent on another loan the following season, this time back to Feyenoord - where he'd shown his best performances and the reason why he went for a high seven-figure fee in the first place.

Clasie’s performances didn’t pick back up in familiar surroundings, but it wasn’t enough to revitalise his Southampton career. In 2019, he exited the South Coast outfit to join AZ Alkmaar, where he has remained ever since.

In total, Clasie made just 49 appearances for the Saints, scoring two goals and providing one assist, and that output is nowhere near what would’ve been expected of the Dutchman when he was signed for £8 million, and is why he still remains a major source of disappointment for Southampton supporters.