Southampton 0-1 Bournemouth: Southampton finished sixth in the Premier League in 2016 under the reign of Ronald Koeman. However, the club is now in dire straits. The club seems to be heading for the Championship, where it was last active in 2012.
Relegation is approaching: courage is sinking in the shoes of ailing tradition club
Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane, Graziano Pelle and Dusan Tadic. Only four players were part of Koeman’s successful formation in 2016. Several players have found the top of international football via St. Mary’s Stadium over the past decade, but a glorious period at the highest level seems to be coming to an end soon. Especially after the home defeat against Bournemouth last Thursday.
Southampton was actually the better team. Last weekend’s draw at leader Arsenal (3-3) had given the citizens courage. There had been no winnings since March 4, making the situation dire. It had to happen against Bournemouth, but appearances were deceiving. The visit to North London had thrown sand in the eyes of the fans. One lunge was enough to push Southampton even further to the brink of collapse.
Full of disappointment, The Saints went home. Manager Ruben Selles was also disappointed: “We didn’t see the team we wanted to see. It’s simply not good enough. That while we had shown against Arsenal that we can offer a match against any opponent in the Premier League.”
Selles refuses to throw in the towel
“Actually, the last games were writing on the wall. There were always small moments that prevented us from winning,” Selles added. “The chances of getting out of this situation are getting smaller and smaller.” And such a moment, with a deflected ball after a counter, there was again against Bournemouth. Southampton, however, was unable to respond.
Still, Selles refused to throw in the towel. After all, as long as there is hope, Southampton is still alive. “We are still breathing, not defeated yet. Our game is more than good enough to win more games. We need a miracle, but there is still a scenario where we can escape. We do everything for that,” he concluded.
Southampton’s gap in the safe seventeenth place is now six points. The gatekeeper has five more games to avoid relegation. However, with duels against Newcastle United, Brighton & Hove Albion and Liverpool ahead, the program is very tough.
