| Club: | Southampton F.C. |
| Season: | 1990–91 |
| Manager: | Chris Nicholl |
| Chairman: | Guy Askham |
| Stadium: | The Dell |
| League: | First Division |
| League Result: | 14th |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | Fifth round |
| Cup2: | League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | Quarter finals |
| Cup3: | Full Members Cup |
| Cup3 Result: | Quarter finals (Southern Area) |
| Cup4: | Player of the Year |
| Cup4 Result: | Alan Shearer |
| League Topscorer: | Le Tissier (19) |
| Season Topscorer: | Le Tissier (23) |
| Highest Attendance: | 21,405 vs Tottenham Hotspur (29 Dec 1990, First Division) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 5,071 vs QPR (20 Nov 1990, Full Members Cup) |
| Average Attendance: | 15,413 |
| Pattern La1: | _red_stripes |
| Pattern B1: | _redstripes2 |
| Pattern Ra1: | _red_stripes |
| Pattern Sh1: | _whitesides |
| Pattern So1: | _2 red stripes |
| Shorts1: | 000000 |
| Prevseason: | 1989–90 |
| Nextseason: | 1991–92 |
During the 1990–91 English football season, Southampton competed in the Football League First Division.
In the 1990–91 season, Southampton had a disappointing campaign, finding themselves at the bottom half of the table for most of the season. On 16 March they lost 4–3 at home to Everton and sat only four points clear of the relegation places, but four wins from their final nine league games of the season saved them from relegation. At the end of the season, their manager Chris Nicholl was sacked and was replaced by Ian Branfoot, who was assistant to Steve Coppell at Crystal Palace.
Southampton's score comes first[1]
| Win | Draw | Loss |
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 August 1990 | Aston Villa | A | 1–1 | 29,542 | Le Tissier | |
| 28 August 1990 | Norwich City | H | 1–0 | 17,206 | Polston (own goal) | |
| 1 September 1990 | Luton Town | H | 1–2 | 13,538 | Rideout | |
| 8 September 1990 | Nottingham Forest | A | 1–3 | 18,559 | Rod Wallace | |
| 15 September 1990 | Sheffield United | H | 2–0 | 14,340 | Le Tissier, Rod Wallace | |
| 22 September 1990 | Manchester United | A | 2–3 | 41,228 | Rod Wallace, Rideout | |
| 29 September 1990 | Everton | A | 0–3 | 23,093 | ||
| 6 October 1990 | Chelsea | H | 3–3 | 16,911 | Shearer, Rod Wallace, Ruddock | |
| 20 October 1990 | Coventry City | A | 2–1 | 10,040 | Billing (own goal), Le Tissier | |
| 27 October 1990 | Derby County | H | 0–1 | 16,328 | ||
| 3 November 1990 | Wimbledon | A | 1–1 | 5,485 | Le Tissier (pen) | |
| 10 November 1990 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 3–1 | 14,970 | Le Tissier, Rod Wallace, Rideout | |
| 17 November 1990 | Arsenal | A | 0–4 | 36,229 | ||
| 24 November 1990 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–3 | 15,851 | Rideout, Shaw (own goal) | |
| 1 December 1990 | Leeds United | A | 1–2 | 29,341 | Rideout | |
| 8 December 1990 | Norwich City | A | 1–3 | 11,705 | Le Tissier | |
| 15 December 1990 | Aston Villa | H | 1–1 | 16,604 | Le Tissier | |
| 22 December 1990 | Liverpool | A | 2–3 | 31,894 | Rod Wallace (2) | |
| 26 December 1990 | Manchester City | H | 2–1 | 16,029 | Le Tissier, Horne | |
| 29 December 1990 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 3–0 | 21,405 | Le Tissier (2), Rod Wallace | |
| 1 January 1991 | Sunderland | A | 0–1 | 19,757 | ||
| 12 January 1991 | Luton Town | A | 4–3 | 9,021 | Le Tissier (2), Rod Wallace (2) | |
| 19 January 1991 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1–1 | 16,044 | Walker (own goal) | |
| 2 February 1991 | Sheffield United | A | 1–4 | 16,887 | Moore | |
| 23 February 1991 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 1–2 | 11,009 | Le Tissier (pen) | |
| 2 March 1991 | Leeds United | H | 2–0 | 16,585 | Cockerill, Rideout | |
| 9 March 1991 | Crystal Palace | A | 1–2 | 14,529 | Cockerill | |
| 13 March 1991 | Manchester United | H | 1–1 | 15,701 | Ruddock | |
| 16 March 1991 | Everton | H | 3–4 | 15,410 | Newell (own goal), Shearer, Ruddock | |
| 23 March 1991 | Chelsea | A | 2–0 | 13,391 | Shearer, Le Tissier (pen) | |
| 30 March 1991 | Manchester City | A | 3–3 | 23,163 | Le Tissier, McLoughlin, Osman | |
| 1 April 1991 | Liverpool | H | 1–0 | 20,255 | Le Tissier | |
| 6 April 1991 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 0–2 | 24,291 | ||
| 9 April 1991 | Arsenal | H | 1–1 | 21,200 | Le Tissier | |
| 13 April 1991 | Sunderland | H | 3–1 | 16,812 | Shearer, Le Tissier (pen), Rod Wallace | |
| 20 April 1991 | Coventry City | H | 2–1 | 15,461 | Rod Wallace (2) | |
| 4 May 1991 | Derby County | A | 2–6 | 11,680 | Le Tissier (pen), Rod Wallace | |
| 11 May 1991 | Wimbledon | H | 1–1 | 17,052 | Case |
See main article: 1990–91 FA Cup.
| R3 | 5 January 1991 | Ipswich Town | H | 3–2 | 15,101 | Shearer, Le Tissier (2) | |
| R4 | 26 January 1991 | Coventry City | A | 1–1 | 14,013 | Shearer (pen) | |
| R4R | 29 January 1991 | Coventry City | H | 2–0 | 17,001 | Case, Rod Wallace | |
| R5 | 25 February 1991 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1–1 | 18,512 | Ruddock | |
| R5R | 4 March 1991 | Nottingham Forest | A | 1–3 | 26,633 | Rod Wallace |
See main article: 1990–91 Football League Cup.
| R2 1st Leg | 25 September 1990 | Rochdale | A | 5–0 | 3,855 | Shearer (2), Rod Wallace, Horne, Ruddock | |
| R2 2nd Leg | 9 October 1990 | Rochdale | H | 3–0 (won 8–0 on agg) | 6,754 | Banger (3) | |
| R3 | 30 October 1990 | Ipswich Town | A | 2–0 | 15,573 | Le Tissier, Rod Wallace | |
| R4 | 27 November 1990 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–0 | 13,765 | Shearer, Le Tissier | |
| QF | 16 January 1991 | Manchester United | H | 1–1 | 21,011 | Shearer 71' | |
| QFR | 23 January 1991 | Manchester United | A | 2–3 | 41,093 | Shearer 53', pen 87' |
See main article: 1990–91 Full Members Cup.
| SR2 | 20 November 1990 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 4–0 | 5,071 | Shearer (2), Horne, Law (own goal) | |
| SQF | 20 February 1991 | Norwich City | A | 1–2 | 5,920 | Ruddock |
| Date | Pos | Name | From | Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 December 1990 | MF | Alan McLoughlin | Swindon Town | £1,000,000 | |
| 13 February 1991 | DF | Richard Hall | Scunthorpe United | £200,000 | |
| 28 March 1991 | DF | Jon Gittens | Swindon Town | £400,000 |
Transfers in: £1,600,000
Transfers out: £0
Total spending: £1,600,000