'No Derby fan expected anyone to come close' - will Saints make history?

Southampton are seeking to avoid Derby's Premier League low of 11 points, set in 2007-08

"If we didn't laugh we'd cry."

When Derby County completed the 2007-08 campaign with a mere 11 points - the lowest tally in Premier League history - it seemed like a record that would never be broken.

The club have since become the answer to a commonly-used pub quiz question: Who are the worst team in Premier League history?

But that unwanted tag could potentially become someone else's burden as Southampton sit bottom on 10 points with eight games to go.

While the Saints have a few more weeks to pick up the points required to avoid that unwanted statistic, their relegation could be confirmed as early as Sunday if they lose at Tottenham.

"It's baffling," admitted Derby supporter Jake Barker. "I don't think any Derby fan ever expected anyone to come close, let alone this close."

BBC Sport looks at how close the Saints really are to becoming the worst-ever Premier League team - and how Rams fans would feel to give up their crown.

What was it like being the worst-ever Premier League team?

During Derby's torrid season, they won one game, scored 20 goals and finished with a goal difference of -69.

They suffered some heavy defeats, losing by five goals or more to Liverpool, Arsenal, West Ham, Chelsea and Aston Villa.

Derby player Andy Todd later said many players "threw the towel in" during that campaign, while manager Paul Jewell revealed he was advised never to take the job.

"The atmosphere was almost pantomime-like at times with chants of 'let's pretend we scored a goal' and 'you're nothing special - we lose every week'," Derby County fan Amelia Warren told BBC Sport.

"Those kinds of things are obviously not what you want to hear your fans chanting, but ultimately we had to make our own fun. If we didn't laugh we'd cry!"

It was such an awful season that Jewell, who arrived in November 2007 and left in December 2008, said his managerial career "never really recovered".

Yet Derby fans made the most of a bad situation.

"Weirdly, I think Derby fans have worn the 'worst team in history' tag as a badge of honour," said Barker, the host and creator of Derby podcast RamsTalk.

"The team was awful, got battered most weeks, won one game all season, which I missed, and yet still sold out every week, which in my eyes shows how good this fanbase was and still is."

How does thought of losing that tag feel?

While there are some Derby fans out there who have seen it as an "honour" to be recognised as the worst team in Premier League history, it seems the majority would be relieved for Southampton to take the unwelcome title off their hands.

"It would be the monkey off the back," Derby fan Nick Webster said.

"Down in the Midlands, we have our fingers crossed that they [Southampton] don't pick up any more points."

Barker added: "That 07-08 team was such a shambles on and off the pitch that it felt almost impossible that any team in the modern era, especially with the money that's now in the game, would come anywhere close.

"If it happens, I'd argue it's far worse than Derby's 11-point season."

Derby are currently 20th in the Championship, having never returned to the Premier League since the 2007-08 season

What do Southampton think?

In the aftermath of Southampton's 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace on Wednesday, defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis said talk of trying to not be the worst Premier League side ever is "embarrassing".

"We just want to get over it," Harwood-Bellis told BBC Radio Solent.

"It pains us to even say that is the case. It's not somewhere we expected to be and it's embarrassing - we're not going to shy away from that."

Southampton have, at least, bettered Derby's 2007-08 win record, with two victories to the Rams' one.

However, Ivan Juric, who took charge after Russell Martin was sacked in December, has challenged his players to prove they are not "the worst team in the history of the Premier League".

So how likely is it to happen?

Southampton's draw against Palace means they have exactly the same amount of points Derby had after 30 matches in 2008.

Juric's side need two points in the next eight matches to pass the 11-point mark set by Derby 17 years ago.

The good news for Saints fans is that stats experts Opta expect they will do just that, predicting them to finish with at least 15 points.

The club will take confidence from November's win against Everton when facing them again in their penultimate match, while they also picked up a point against Fulham, who they face at St Mary's Stadium on 26 April.

However, Fulham, along with Manchester City and Aston Villa, have Champions League places to play for at the other end of the table.

Southampton's final Premier League games

6 April: Tottenham (a)

12 April: Aston Villa (h)

19 April: West Ham (a)

26 April: Fulham (h)

3 May: Leicester (a)

10 May: Man City (h)

18 May: Everton (a)

25 May: Arsenal (h)