It might seem as though Oriol Romeu’s return to Southampton is just a shot of nostalgia-infused dopamine for a club desperately in need of some joy. But at this point, I’m prepared to ignore my overwhelming negativity about anything Southampton-related and relish the opportunity to watch Romeu for us again.
Even despite the star-studded teams of the Koeman era, with a scarcely believable cast of talent which included Virgil van Dijk and Toby Alderwiereld, Romeu is the player who I probably have the most affection for in my 21 years supporting the club.
He was a part of Koeman’s team in the 2015/16 season, but it was subsequently, when things descended from excellence to mediocrity, and then quickly into farce, when he endeared himself to me most. Despite flashes of form from Gabbiadinis, Tadićes, and Leminas, Romeu was the only consistently brilliant presence throughout.
Fantastically dirty, but surprisingly good on the ball, especially turning in tight spaces, Romeu, was like a more limited Moussa Dembele, and excelled despite his increasingly difficult job as the teams around him got noticeably worse. It is no surprise that his leaving before the 2022/23 season precipitated the first of two humiliating relegations from the Premier League in the past three seasons. Romeu’s presence in midfield somehow managed to paper over some gaping chasms in the side, which became apparent immediately after he left.
As a Champions League winner, and former Chelsea and Barcelona player, Romeu boasts a strong resume, and one which, were he slightly more mobile, could have had far more top-level success. This was the main vacancy in his arsenal as a holding midfielder, which was otherwise pretty full.
Now, in all seriousness, I’m not expecting a 34-year-old Romeu to catapult us out of the Championship this year. Neither am I expecting him to secure us a place in the tranquil seas of Premier League mid-table mediocrity in the coming years. But enough of that defeatism; what’s the point if we can’t dream.Let’s go one step further. Get the band back together. I doubt Graziano Pellè or Morgan Schneiderlin have particularly pressing engagements at the moment. José Fonte would surely be up for another season. Maybe Rickie Lambert can be persuaded to abandon talking to water (yes, really) for a year or two. Hell, give Le Tissier and Keegan a call, I’m sure they’d be up for it. As long as we don’t get James Ward-Prowse back I don’t care.
“Oriol Romeu 2017” by Solent Creatives from Southampton, United KIngdom is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
