Finally, the second leg of the fourth round of the Europa League qualifiers ended with Southampton defeating the Danish powerhouse Midtjylland 4:1 away from home.

In the 80th minute of the second half, Gu Ran and Lallana Chamberlain were replaced, and Midtjylland scored a face-saving goal.

Southampton scored a total of 10 goals in two rounds. This is the first time in Southampton's history that they have entered the Europa League group stage with such a huge total score difference.

After winning this game, Southampton received a share of the prize money of 21,600 pounds for the fourth round of Europa League qualifying.

It's really a bit embarrassing to share this little money among the whole team.

However, as the competition progresses, the amount of prize money will also increase.

On August 27, the Europa League group stage draw ceremony began.

Southampton was seeded and placed in Group G.

Group G is the 7th group, and there is Group H, the 8th group, behind it.

Each group has four European teams that have fought in the qualifiers, including traditional powerhouses such as Roma, Tottenham, Arsenal, Benfica and Porto.

The grouping of Group G is pretty good. Apart from Southampton, the remaining three teams are Lille of France, Atletico Madrid of Spain, and Lesz Poznan of Poland.

The Europa League group stage is a double round-robin format, which means that each team in the group will meet twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 6 games. The winner gets 3 points and the draw gets 1 point each.

Finally, the first place in each group will directly qualify for the Europa League round of 16, while the second place in the Europa League group will compete with the third place in the Champions League group stage for the remaining 16 places.

This cross-competition elimination combination is also unique to the Europa League and the Champions League.

Therefore, it is often seen that a team that is clearly a Champions League team wins the Europa League championship - such as Sevilla.

This competition system also makes the small teams in the Europa League who have worked hard to get to the top complain bitterly, but on the other hand, it also enhances the viewing value of the Europa League.

In the Europa League, small teams may also encounter world powerhouses such as AC Milan, Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Fortunately, there are no strong teams in Group G. The only team worthy of Southampton's competition is Atletico Madrid. This season, the Colchoneros have just put things right. Legendary star Simeone has become Atletico's head coach, and Aguero, who has just become Maradona's son-in-law, is Atletico's top scorer.

Of course, Lille and Lesh Poznan are also very strong and should not be underestimated.

Southampton must win first place in the group and secure a place in the Europa League round of 16 as soon as possible, otherwise they will be caught in a multi-line battle against strong teams in the Champions League.

On August 28, the Europa League began registration for the entry list.

The eligibility requirements for the Europa League are that there must be 3 players who have been trained in the club and have played for more than 3 years, and there must be more than 3 players of the club's nationality.

This request is not a big deal for Southampton.

Southampton successfully submitted a 25-man roster and was successfully registered.

On Tuesday, August 30th at 7:45 pm, in the Championship League, Southampton will face Watford at home.

This is also Southampton's third Championship game this month, and three consecutive home games. Southampton fans feel like they are celebrating Christmas.

In this game, coach Adkins boldly sent out young players, such as Salah, Mane, Sturridge, Ward-Prowse, etc., all started the game and boldly trained the players.

Southampton are in the top three of the Championship standings with one game less.

At 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 10, the Championship League match between Southampton and Queens Park Rangers will begin.

Adkins sent out most of the main players to warm up for the first round of the Europa League group stage.

Queens Park Rangers played tenaciously and in the first half they took a 2:1 lead thanks to an own goal and a penalty from Southampton's defense.

Southampton had one player sent off for a foul in the penalty area and had to play with 10 players in the second half.

However, with Gu Ran, the 10-man Southampton quickly defeated Queens Park Rangers.

At the end of the game, Gu Ran completed the first hat-trick in his Championship career, helping Southampton win 6:2.

After the game, Southampton's main players entered closed training.

On September 14, the Southampton team took a chartered flight to Madrid, Spain, and checked into a five-star hotel in Madrid one day in advance.

At 7:45 p.m. on Thursday, September 15, the first round of the Europa League Group G match, in which the Championship team Southampton played away against the La Liga powerhouse Atletico Madrid, began.

The game attracted more than 54,000 European fans to the Calderon Stadium to watch.

Scouts from major European clubs, especially those from Barcelona and Real Madrid, were also present - all of them came to see Gu Ran's performance.

Atletico Madrid's head coach is the newly appointed legendary star, Argentine Diego Simeone.

It can be said that Simeone is a new generation of Argentine mainstay who grew up under the aura of Maradona. When he was a player, Simeone was a technically comprehensive defensive midfielder. He was very fierce in the field and had strong intercepting ability. At the same time, he also had the ability to attack from the back row. He was an extremely rare attacking midfielder in that era.

He has powerful long-range shots, a very beautiful free kick, and can score with headers.

Moreover, as a South American player, he has extremely good physical fitness, strong confrontational ability, and excellent physical fitness. He is not prone to injuries in intensive and high-intensity competitions.

Simeone looks a bit unkempt, and he has a desperate and iron-blooded temperament on the field, so he is also nicknamed "bandit".

However, in fact Simeone did not win by brute force. He had a high football IQ and was an all-round midfielder of that era.

After retiring, Simeone started coaching. His understanding of football made him stand out quickly, and his nicknames became complimentary names such as The Godfather and The Bandit Coach.

Simeone's coaching style is cautious and independent, focusing on integrity and mainly on defensive counterattacks.

Simeone's tactics are very varied and never rely on any particular player, but Simeone prefers the 442 formation deep down.

Simeone believes that there are only outdated coaches in the world, but no outdated formations.

The 442 formation he understood also led to a period of 442 revival.

…

(End of this chapter)