Southampton will travel to Austria and Holland in July as part of their preparations for the 2015/16 campaign.
Ronald Koeman’s players return for pre-season training on Monday 29th June before heading out to Austria just over a week later. Saints’ first pre-season fixture sees them take on German second division side RasenBallsport Leipzig in the Austrian city of Bischofshofen on Wednesday 8th July, with kick-off at 7pm local time. The squad will then have two days of training in Austria before competing for the Audi quattro Cup – a four-team tournament held at the Red Bull Arena in Salzburg. Saints will be joined in the competition by hosts Red Bull Salzburg, German side Werder Bremen and Spanish giants Valencia, with all games lasting 45 minutes. Koeman’s side will face his former club Valencia at 4pm local time in the opening game of the tournament, before Red Bull take on Bremen at 5.05pm. The winners of the two games will compete in the final at 7.15pm local time, with the third-versus-fourth play-off taking place at 6.10pm. Saints will return to England following the conclusion of the tournament, before heading off to Holland for a further three pre-season fixtures. The first game in Holland will see Saints take on FC Groningen of the Dutch top flight at their Euroborg stadium on Saturday 18th July. Kick-off will be at 2.30pm local time. Three days later Saints will face fourth-tier side KVV Quick 1920 at the Sportpark Vondersweijde, with kick-off at 7pm local time. Saints round off their pre-season travels against Dutch giants Feyenoord at their famous De Kuip stadium on Thursday 23rd July. The game will get under way at 8pm local time. The club’s pre-season schedule will conclude with a home friendly at St Mary’s on Sunday 2nd August. Details of this fixture will be confirmed in the near future. Here is how the first team’s friendly schedule is shaping up:
Wednesday 8th July – Sportklub Bischofshofen, Bischofshofen (Austria) Southampton vs RasenBallsport Leipzig (7pm CEST/6pm BST)
Saturday 11th July – Red Bull Arena, Salzburg (Austria) Valencia CF vs Southampton (4pm CEST/3pm BST) Southampton vs Werder Bremen or Red Bull Salzburg (6.10pm CEST/5.10pm BST or 7.15pm CEST/6.15pm BST)
Saturday 18th July – Euroborg, Groningen (Holland) FC Groningen vs Southampton (2.30pm CEST/1.30pm BST)
Tuesday 21st July – Sportpark Vondersweijde, Oldenzaal (Holland) KVV Quick 1920 vs Southampton (7pm CEST/6pm BST)
Thursday 23rd July – De Kuip, Rotterdam (Holland) Feyenoord vs Southampton (8pm CEST/7pm BST)
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