Southampton 1-3 Bournemouth: Premier League – Three Match takeaways
By Erik Franzo
Southampton were unable to comeback from a 0-2 halftime deficit despite 25 attempted shots. Eventually losing to Bournemouth 1-3, and recording the first ever home loss to the Cherries.
Ralph Hasenhuttl is taking significant criticism from Southampton fans following the disappointing loss. Since arriving in 2019, the Austrian has been heaped with praise for reinvigorating the team and fanbase. However, it was pretty clear he got the team selection wrong, particularly reinserting Kevin Danso as a right back and shifting Cedric Soares to an unnatural left. The team was off balance from the get go, and it clearly upset possession and caused confusion in transition.
Nathan Redmond returned from injury, and played opposite of Sofiane Boufal. Both looked dangerous on the Hasenhuttl counter-attack, but neither provided the finishing product. A theme that would haunt the Saints as they dominated the second half.
Hasenhuttl admitted his mistake by bringing Ryan Bertrand back into the fold at half time. Cedric was shifted back to his preferred side, but it was too little too late. James Ward-Prowse converted a penalty kick, but Bournemouth stood strong for 40 minutes. It was a significant amount of time to apply pressure and get a goal, but only 6 shots of the 25 total ever hit that target.
Southampton fans are disappointed by the result, but the game will quickly be swept aside by the anticipation of the derby. Not looking ahead is an impossible task for the players, especially when the fans have been saving the date since the EFL Cup draw on August 28th.
Here are three takeaways from the Southampton loss to Bournemouth: