The big screens intermittently advertising tickets for Southampton’s season finale appeared wishful thinking. Southampton remain rooted to the bottom of the Premier League after a feeble defeat at home to Bournemouth extended their winless run to eight matches.
Was this the night Southampton finally ran out of lives? Mathematically they are still in with a shout but with five games to play they are six points from safety. The boos at the final whistle suggested supporters are resigned to their fate. At this rate, Southampton will be relegated to the Championship long before they host Liverpool on the final day of a miserable campaign.
By the time an ashen-faced Rubén Sellés trudged down the tunnel, this ground had practically emptied. Bournemouth’s travelling supporters, though, were going nowhere fast. “We are staying up,” they boomed on loop.
Marcus Tavernier scored the only goal of the game to hoist Bournemouth into 14th. Southampton were lifeless but would have equalised had the substitute Che Adams not strayed a toenail offside before finding the net with a minute of normal time left to play.
The goal was initially awarded but overturned following a VAR check. Adams looked on in disbelief at a replay on the big screen. “I’m pleased we had a VAR check go our way for the first time this season I think,” said the Bournemouth manager Gary O’Neil. “It is a big win for us, of course.”
As hard as it may be for the locals to stomach, how Southampton must wish they were in Bournemouth’s shoes. Bournemouth, now seven points above the bottom three, are on the verge of securing their top-flight status. Southampton, who visit Newcastle on Sunday, look doomed.
“It was a hard night,” Sellés said. “We are going to try and put a performance in every game. We need to make the best of it. We can’t do anything. We are professionals and we will fight until the very last point. I know the table looks difficult but we are going to give it a try.”
The noises from Sellés after Southampton had to settle for a draw at Arsenal were unsurprisingly upbeat but failure to see out a precious victory only meant this game doubled in significance. The belief Sellés trumpeted before kick-off appeared in short supply and large pockets of empty seats in home areas suggests supporters are voting with their feet.
Perhaps, then, it was no surprise that this game was light on quality. Southampton were lacklustre, naturally short of confidence as well as the thrust synonymous with their teams of yesteryear.
The reverse fixture, in November, was Ralph Hasenhüttl’s last win as Southampton manager and it is a damning indictment that the Saints have tasted victory on just three occasions since. The closest the hosts came to taking a first-half lead was when the Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi’s headed clearance looped towards his own goal and spiralled against the bar.
Bournemouth were superior in all departments and aside from Neto denying Theo Walcott and Adam Armstrong inside the opening 13 minutes, they were comfortable and in control. Matias Viña had a first-half goal disallowed after Dominic Solanke, whose initial shot was repelled by Alex McCarthy, was ruled offside but it always seemed only a matter of time before they struck.
“We spoke a lot in the afternoon about showing a calmness in what was a big pressure situation and, beneath that, can we show a real grit and steel and a refusal to leave here without what we came for?” said O’Neil. “It was a good performance but there is still room for improvement.”
Sellés’s bold tactical call to withdraw Carlos Alcaraz at half-time against Arsenal was the subject of much intrigue but his hand was forced here as his captain, James Ward-Prowse, was forced off ill at the break. Five minutes into the restart a brittle Saints defence was broken. Tavernier cut in from the right flank and beyond Duje Caleta-Car and his left-foot shot trickled into the far corner via a deflection. McCarthy, making his first league start of the season, had no chance.
Bournemouth smelt blood and Southampton went into their shells. A club-record 11th home league defeat seemed a formality from the moment Bournemouth struck. The apathy in the stands and on the concourses said everything about what has been a sorry campaign. Those tickets for the two remaining home matches will surely prove a tough sell.
