Southampton 1-2 Burnley: Clarets beat Saints in battle against conditions

Southampton put in a below-par performance against Burnley on Saturday that resulted in an ugly 2-1 loss.

Incoming Storm Dennis had seen wet and windy conditions expected during the game and this certainly didn’t help to create a spectacle that was pleasing on the eye.

A bizarre goal straight from a corner saw Burnley take the lead after just two minutes, but Danny Ings produced a typically instinctive finish to level the score for Saints before half-time.

Clear chances were few and far between in the second-half, with the only bit of quality coming from Matej Vydra’s left foot as he arrowed a strike into the top corner and handed Sean Dyche’s Clarets a narrow win.

The team that Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl fielded saw the Austrian make some interesting calls – Jannik Vestergaard came in for Jan Bednarek to deal with Burnley’s aerial threat, James Ward-Prowse had recovered to start in midfield and Kyle Walker-Peters made his debut after signing on-loan from Spurs.

A fast start to the match was what both teams would have been looking for but, unfortunately for Saints, it was Burnley who grabbed the lead just two minutes in.

Ashley Westwood’s corner delivery looked tame but was left at the near post by Danny Ings, meaning the ball went straight over the goalline with Alex McCarthy given no time to react in goal – a strange opener, and one that saw Saints not helping themselves at all.

Television replays showed that it was a poor misjudgement from Ings, but as he so often does, he got his side back level on 18 minutes.

Tight play around the Burnley penalty area saw possession surrendered momentarily, but Ings was quick to steal the ball off an opponent and open up the perfect angle to fire low inside the near post with clinical precision.

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His 18th goal of the season here was put away with style – like everything he did during the game, apart from his crucial defensive lapse that handed Burnley the lead.

After getting themselves back on level terms, Saints started to move the ball quicker and looked set to go ahead before the half time break.

Their best chance to do so saw Sofiane Boufal cut inside and bend a delightful cross into the centre of the box towards the head of Jack Stephens, but the defender’s effort cannoned off the crossbar despite him making decent contact with the ball.

Into the second-half, conditions saw the flight of the ball becoming more unpredictable and both teams were forced to keep passes on the floor as much as possible – any attempt at a lofted pass over either defence became easy for both goalkeepers to deal with.

That was until one found the chest of substitute Matej Vydra inside the area just before the hour-mark.

The striker hadn’t scored for 15 months but brought the ball down here perfectly, shifted it past a Saints challenge and smashed home brilliantly – the best piece of quality from the afternoon and perhaps a worthy winning goal in the end.

Saints tried to work their way back into the contest again in the last 30 minutes but created little until very late on.

A cross from the left came all the way through to home captain Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg at the back post and gave the Dane a clear shot on goal, but his effort was smothered well by Nick Pope and showed why Saints fans would probably have preferred the chance to drop to Ings.

With the final score giving Burnley the three points, Saints still have a little way to go to fully secure their place in the Premier League – and they will only have themselves to blame if they do not get over the line in the ideal run of upcoming fixtures.

Saints team

McCarthy, Walker-Peters (Obafemi 73), Stephens, Vestergaard, Bertrand, Ward-Prowse, Hojbjerg, Boufal (Djenepo 39), Armstrong, Long (Adams 86), Ings

Subs not used: Gunn, Bednarek, Romeu, Smallbone,

Burnley team

Pope, Bardsley, Mee, Tarkowski, Taylor, Westwood, Cork, Hendrick, McNeil, Rodriguez, Wood (Vydra 22)

Subs not used: Hart, Long, Pieters, Brownhill, Brady, Lennon