The most infamous transfer activity took place during November, when the club signed unproven Senegalese striker Ali Dia for a matter of weeks, before releasing him again after one 53-minute appearance.

[3] Southern Daily Echo columnist Graham Hiley wrote that "Twelve years of loyal service were wiped out in a terse two-paragraph statement ...

The man who brought through Matthew Le Tissier, Alan Shearer, the Wallaces [Ray and Rod] and many others appears to have been ruthlessly discarded like litter left on the terraces.

[6] Among three trainee signings in July came left-back Wayne Bridge, who would go on to make 174 appearances for the Southampton first team during a five-year stint, before later spells with top clubs Chelsea and Manchester City.

At the beginning of September, the club signed three players in three days, as they brought in 19-year-old striker Russell Watkinson from non-league side Woking,[13] Norwegian centre-back Claus Lundekvam from Brann for £400,000,[14] and Australian midfielder Robbie Slater from West Ham for £200,000.

[18] Also arriving in loan deals during October were Israeli playmaker Eyal Berkovic, who joined from Maccabi Haifa until the end of the season,[19] and goalkeeper Chris Woods, who came from American club Colorado Rapids until the next March.

[21][22] The most notable transfer activity, however, was the brief signing of Senegalese striker Ali Dia, who would go down as one of the "worst players" in FA Premier League and world football history.

[31] Graham Potter, who had been signed only seven months earlier, left Southampton in February for £300,000 (a profit of £50,000) to join West Bromwich Albion, another First Division side.

Like the previous season, they started their pre-season preparations with a short tour of Ireland, beating both Cork City and Waterford United 1–0, thanks to goals from Neil Heaney and Gordon Watson, respectively.

[39] This was followed by a 3–1 win over Southern League side Cheltenham Town (in which Graham Potter, who had signed just three days earlier, scored one of the Saints' goals) and two matches at Scottish opposition: a 2–2 draw with Dunfermline Athletic and a 0–1 defeat at Heart of Midlothian.

[40] After an opening day goalless draw at home to Chelsea, the Saints lost 1–2 at both Leicester City and West Ham United, reduced to ten men in each game as Barry Venison and Francis Benali, respectively, were sent off.

[41] On the back of picking up three wins in five games, Southampton suffered their heaviest defeat since October 1985 at the beginning of November when they lost 1–7 to Everton at Goodison Park, with Gary Speed scoring a hat-trick for the hosts.

This game became infamous in the history of the club, as it marked the debut and sole appearance of Ali Dia, who Souness signed on a short-term basis of a fraudulent recommendation he received over the phone.

[43] Southampton ended 1996 with a 3–1 win over recently-promoted Derby County, followed by two more defeats against top sides Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool which saw them drop back into the relegation zone – where they would remain for several months.

[44] January started with a 1–0 win over Middlesbrough, when Jim Magilton converted a second-half penalty, which was followed by a 2–2 draw at home to Newcastle United in which Le Tissier scored a "25-yard blockbuster" in the last minute to save his side a point.

[45] Southampton responded to their drop to the bottom of the table with a run of seven games unbeaten, including four crucial "six-pointers" against other sides fighting against the risk of relegation.

The game ended 1–0 to Villa, with Richard Dryden scoring a 12th-minute own goal to decide the tie, while Middlesbrough drew 1–1 with Leeds United and Sunderland lost 0–1 at Wimbledon, leaving Southampton in 16th place, one point above the relegation spots.

[48] Club historians have noted the importance of the signing of Mickey Evans in the closing stages of the season, as he scored four goals in three key games to keep the side's hopes of FA Premier League survival alive.

In the first leg, at The Dell, the top-flight hosts won 2–0 thanks to goals in either half from Matt Le Tissier (a 20th-minute left-footer) and Gordon Watson (a chip from a Claus Lundekvam cross in the 81st minute).

[51] David Farrell pulled one back for the hosts five minutes into the second half, before long-range shots from Jim Magilton and Richard Dryden extended Southampton's lead as they progressed to the next round.

[52] At The Dell, Le Tissier opened the scoring for Southampton after just eight minutes, however the hosts were "outplayed" and conceded twice in the second half – through Brett Angell and Andy Mutch – to face elimination.

[39] The final game took place two days after the conclusion of the league season and saw the club's current first team take on a side of "ex Saints" for defender Francis Benali's testimonial.

[53] 14 players made their debut appearances for the club, including 12 of their 13 first team signings (Eyal Berkovic,[19] Ali Dia,[26] Richard Dryden,[6] Mickey Evans,[32] Claus Lundekvam,[14] Egil Østenstad,[16] Graham Potter,[5] Robbie Slater,[15] Maik Taylor,[30] Ulrich van Gobbel,[17] Russell Watkinson,[13] and Chris Woods[20]), one signing from the previous season (Neil Moss[54]), and one player making the step up from youth to the first team (Steve Basham[55]).