Southampton: Hasenhuttl gives relegation warning after Cardiff defeat
By Marc Walker
Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl warned his side about the improvements they will have to make after watching them fall to a 2-1 defeat to Cardiff on Saturday.
The Austrian – clearly furious after seeing late points dropped at Burnley and at the weekend – mentioned that the club’s chances of staying up will be slim if they cannot return to doing the simple things well.
Saints thought they had salvaged a late point against Cardiff through Jack Stephens but there was still time for the visitors to break away and steal the win through Kenneth Zahore.
With his side now back in the Premier League’s bottom three, Hasenhuttl said (speaking to the BBC):
"“Losing in that way is a brutal thing for me. It’s unbelievable how easy we gave those points away. Last week, last minute, this week again; if we don’t stop this, we have no chance to stay in the league.“It’s very narrow, very close, but that was clear in December and that doesn’t change in February.”"
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In a bid to prepare themselves for the remaining 12 Premier League games, Saints have travelled to Tenerife for a week-long training camp and started training there today.
Hasenhuttl outlined the main focus of their work abroad as being on the defensive areas of the team (via the Daily Echo) and that looks to be key as the team continue to leak goals and struggle to keep clean sheets.
Whilst the overall outlook under the Austrian has been positive since his appointment back in December, Saints find themselves in a real scrap against the drop again this season.
They were unbeaten in five league games before the loss to Cardiff and now sit a point inside the bottom three with tough fixtures upcoming.
Saints next face Arsenal on the 24th February before a crucial clash with Fulham the following Wednesday.
However, two further games against top-six sides then arrive with a trip to Manchester United and a home meeting with Spurs.
One thing that could prove tricky to deal with is the lack of new signings in the January transfer window.
Four first-team players were allowed to leave the club and it was a surprise for many to see no new arrivals at Right-Back or in attack following the departures of Cedric Soares to Inter Milan and Manolo Gabbiadini to Sampdoria.