Southampton are struggling to maintain form in the Premier League at the moment, though their fans here in the Tavern are confident that they might be able to sneak into the Europa League come the end of the season!

Under Claude Puel, the Saints have been pretty consistent all season and a place in the top-six come the end of the campaign isn’t out of reach in the slightest.

But a good run this month will be imperative if Southampton are going to be there or there abouts, as well as making some good signings in January.

And with the January transfer window here, it’s crucial that the Saints have a definitive plan in place when it comes to new recruits.

They’ve made mistakes in the past and Claude Puel will need to ensure that doesn’t happen again – and it seems like the whole Southampton contingent here in the Tavern agree too!

So with that in mind, here’s 3 mistakes Southampton must avoid in the January transfer window…

Stop losing key players

Southampton have an absolutely fantastic academy and most football fans in England know that, especially Liverpool supporters.

But this time round, it’s more important than ever that the Saints keep hold of their big names, despite a handful of them being linked with moves away once again.

Virgil van Dijk is the man that sticks out and despite the astronomical price tags being thrown around, he’s a man mountain in the Saints defence and he needs to stay at the club.

Bring in players for more than a league campaign

More than ever, Southampton are becoming a team that are competing for European football season-after-season and it’s absolutely imperative that the club now brings in players to deal with the extra games.

The Saints crashed out of the Europa League last 32 this season and it was clear from the offset that they didn’t have the depth to cope with such a long campaign.

They need some players to come in for all competitions these days, not just domestic matters.

Allowing their manager to be tempted away

Southampton have been getting through their fair share of managers in recent years and it’s clear if they want any long-term success, they need to keep hold of manager Claude Puel.

He wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea when he first came in but he’s gotten off to a good start and now looks like he could build on the club’s fortunes long-term.

Southampton can’t lose him in January and let all of that good work go undone yet again. Sustainability and longevity in his reign is what’s going to get the Saints far this time.