Matt could be Southampton’s saviour

If anyone can save Southampton Football Club, it will be Matt Le Tissier.

That’s the view of fans who have always regarded him as “Le God” and he will take on even greater Biblical proportions if an ambitious bid comes off.

Le Tissier is one of the key supporters behind a possible take-over of troubled Southampton by the Pinnacle Consortium. Saints’ administrator has formally granted the group three weeks to put forward their case which has solid foundations. The consortium has already put its money down, paying a non-refundable undisclosed fee which was enough to make sure staff wages were paid in May. Le Tissier has the pedigree to ensure the take-over succeeds.

Now aged 40, he has always shown his undivided loyalty towards Southampton and is widely regarded as the club’s greatest ever player. As an attacking midfielder, he played 540 games in total and scored 209 goals, second only to Mick Channon, now a horse racing trainer. One of the incredible records Le Tissier held was to slot home 47 out of 48 penalties. Fans came to believe he would never let them down and the same will be true during the next three weeks.




If Le Tissier was a string of rock, he would probably have Southampton written through and through.Born on Guernsey in the Channel Islands, he had trials with Oxford but only ever played for Southampton which, even in those days, was not financially well off. He could have earned a fortune elsewhere but rejected moves to both Chelsea and AC Milan and tore up a deal with Tottenham at the last moment.

He was known as a player who could score goals from nothing at crucial times and although he played only eight times for England, his name is forever engraved in Southampton folk-lore. He was given the freedom of Southampton and has had developments named after him, including a plane.

Having carved a niche for himself as a football commentator, no-one should under-estimate Le Tissier’s passion for his former club. This is not a whim. Soccer is in his blood and all three of his brothers played football, if not professionally. One of his brothers is chairman of the Guernsey Football Association.





Le Tissier doesn’t want the glory of saving Southampton FC. If vanity was part of his make-up, he would have left Southampton at the height of his playing career to seek a greater stage and bigger rewards.

This is about doing what he believes is right. He couldn’t see Southampton go to the wall, any more than loyal fans could. Perhaps when this bid succeeds, they will name something else in honour of Le God, perhaps the stadium or a stand or a statue at the least.