When Anders Svensson arrived at the club, he started playing on the left hand side of midfield.
He wasn't really convincing there and said "I am not really a left-sided player but I did my best when I was asked to play there. I prefer to play in the middle and, for the national side, I have a more central role in a 4-4-2 formation."
Chris Marsden was moved across so that Anders could move into the middle. Now, Marsden soon became Chris Marsden Football Genius as a result of the switch. Anders' move into the centre still had some problems though.
It takes time to settle into the pace of the Premiership and this was no different for Anders. He has genuine skill, but did look exposed when caught on the ball in the centre.
Strachan is ideally looking for two box to box players for the centre of his team. He should have one in Rory Delap while Anders, Matt Oakley and David Prutton fight for the other place. With a lack of goals and the worst of the three defensively, it's hard to find a place for Anders in the starting eleven.
Anders is a quality international player and he summed up Saints well, saying:
"I am feeling okay at Southampton. We play a real physical play and that might not suit me the best.
"Many times it is a matter of kicking up the ball and working hard to win the second balls. It's not there I got my strengths a footballer."
A more skillful, passing Saints side would be playing to Anders' strengths. All too often we run out of ideas and just lump it up to Beattie.
While the Saints side has improved a great deal this season, some old habits are hard to kill and Anders is still bypassed far too often. "It probably suits me best to play on the left," said Anders. "Then, I can turn inside and shoot with my right foot. "The role is free and that suits me perfectly," he continued. "There are possibilities to to turn inside and thereby get more central."
I dont know about you, but I detect the hint of Strachan's coaching here. It's clear that Chris Marsden (Football Genius) can't go on forever. With competition tough in the middle, Anders would be first choice out left, should Marsden begin to wane. Strachan would also have a balance side with both Fernandes and Svensson, capable of cutting in and creating goal scoring chances. Theoretically, both are skillful enough to get to the byline and put in decent crosses, but this has yet to be seen.
Anders still has to work on his defending more. Fans are keen to see Wayne Bridge get forward more and we know he can cross the ball. Anders is going to have to drop back and cover.