Leaving the club were several first-team starters, including two-time Player of the Season winner Peter Shilton, 15-year veteran Nick Holmes and key centre-back Mark Wright.

Additions to the squad included returning midfielder Graham Baker, new first-choice goalkeeper John Burridge and left-back Derek Statham.

In the FA Cup, the club edged past Second Division strugglers Reading in the third round, before suffering elimination at the hands of top-flight rivals Luton Town in the fourth.

[3] Also released in the summer were David Armstrong, who had been a mainstay for the team for six years, but moved on a free transfer to Bournemouth for their first season in the Second Division;[4] Jon Gittens, who had struggled to break into the Saints first team and moved on a free transfer to Swindon Town, another new arrival in the second flight;[5] and George Lawrence, who ended his second spell at The Dell to join Millwall a division below for a fee of £160,000.

[7] In July, centre-back Kevin Moore made the step up from Second Division side Oldham Athletic in a deal worth £150,000,[8] and in August the club signed goalkeeper John Burridge from Sheffield United and left-back Derek Statham from West Bromwich Albion.

[14] Also in October, Saints veteran Nick Holmes left the club for a year with East Cowes Victoria Athletic, although he would later return as reserve team manager.

[21] Southampton started the 1987–88 league campaign with a 2–2 draw against Manchester United (both goals scored by Danny Wallace), followed by a 1–0 away win over Norwich City, which put them in the top six of the table.

[1] The game at Fratton Park ended as a 2–2 draw, with Southampton's top scorer of the previous season Colin Clarke scoring a brace for the visitors.

[25] A 3–0 home win over Oxford United (who eventually finished bottom of the First Division) during this period was followed by a "deserved" 1–0 victory over Arsenal at their own ground, after the Gunners had won ten games in a row and established their place at the top of the table.

[27] The club started 1988 poorly with two defeats against Queens Park Rangers and Portsmouth, during which they failed to score, although this was followed by a 2–0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford.

[28] After a 1–1 draw with Nottingham Forest on 13 February 1988, it was announced that Southampton chairman Alan Woodford had died; he was replaced in early March by Guy Askham.

The first half was relatively evenly matched between the two sides, but it was the First Division visitors who struck first just before the break, when Matt Le Tissier scored his first FA Cup goal after an assist from Colin Clarke.

A testimonial against Grimsby Town in November saw the top-flight side beaten 3–1 by the Third Division hosts; two friendlies in March saw Southampton and a Danish Olympic XI draw 2–2 and later beat an "all stars" team arranged by former player Steve Mills 7–3.

[21] The final friendly game of the season was a testimonial at Basingstoke Town, which the Saints won 4–0 thanks to a Danny Wallace hat-trick and a Matt Le Tissier goal.