Few doubted the high difficulties facing Russell Martin at Southampton this season. This lesson on the superiority of the south coast only confirmed that. If the Saints manager is to be believed, his inability to learn from his team's mistakes is starting to hurt.
The best we can say to the Saints is that they may be safe in numbers. This was the promoted team's last chance to win the first six matches of the Premier League.
Bournemouth had won just one of their previous nine games but were superior and, although they wobbled in the second half as Saints took much of the pressure off them, they remained dangerous on the counter.
Two high-minded managers faced each other, neither of them able to press the pragmatic button, but pressing was more dominant than possession. Ahead of kick-off, Martin marched towards the away supporters with open arms. Andoni Iraola was suspended and was confined to the stands as his team missed out on a much-welcomed first home win of the season that would lift them above Manchester United.
Ryan Fraser, a former home hero turned coronavirus hater, was booed every time he was touched. Southampton fans declared the rivalry with Portsmouth a “south coast derby”, influencing apathy towards Bournemouth. With five strikers on the Saints bench, 18-year-old Tyler Dibling led the attack as a false number nine, and the team really started to brighten up. Maxwell Cornet's shot went wide and Fraser also dug when the ball was spilled.
Southampton's Achilles heel throughout the season has been their vulnerability in possession and lack of proper care and attention after losing it. Bournemouth's first goal followed that template. Charlie Taylor's shot from left-back found Antoine Semenyo, Flynn Downs fouled the winger and Marcus Tavernier's quick free-kick found Evanilson. Despite failing to score in five games, including the fateful penalty miss against Chelsea, the Brazilian made no mistakes. His £40m fee and the £15m profit cleared from the simultaneous sale of Dominic Solanke paid the first down payment.
With Bournemouth attacking in numbers, it would be unwise to hold back on possession. As the first half approached, Southampton were unable to play the possession game prescribed by Martin as Bournemouth played a squeeze play. There were also issues on defense. Semenyo ran into the box to check, and Lewis Cook's shot deflected off Dango Ouattara and beyond Ramsdale, leaving the ball-watching Saints onside to score.
Semenyo went on a rampage, burning Taylor in the moment, then turned Leslie Ugochukwu inside out and drilled a low shot beyond Ramsdale's wingspan. Despite Martin's continued encouragement from the bench, the visitors' heads were lowered. Bournemouth had five shots, four of which were on target, exposing the team relentlessly.
Fraser was one of three substitutes from Martin at half-time, with Ugochukwu and Cornet joining Fraser, much to the delight of the home fans. Besides Dibling, most of the starting XI deserved to play after that dreadful 30 minutes, with two forwards in Ben Brereton-Dias and Ross Stewart coming on, with Dibling moving to the right flank. Joe Aribo added some dynamism to the midfield. Was a highly unlikely redemption on the cards? Taylor Harwood-Bellis' stooping header gave the visitors hope.
After newsletter promotion
With all the laser yellow shirts coming out, a comeback wasn't beyond the realm of possibility. Martin and his assistants, whose voices were a hollow shell, peered into their notebooks, searching for a new height to get back into the game. His team began to enjoy an advantage in possession and Bournemouth and their fans were no longer confident in themselves.
Bournemouth replaced Ouattara with Justin Kluivert, and Southampton's momentum began to wane. Semenyo could have ended the match, but went wide after another great move. Cook then intercepted at midfield and arrowed the ball directly to Evanilsson, but this time he was unable to beat Ramsdale. Martin then introduced returning veteran Adam Lallana, giving him 20 minutes to salvage the result.
Lallana dragged a shot wide, but the better chance fell to Bournemouth, with Ryan Christie firing wide and Ramsdale forcing Luis Sinisterra into a save. Even though the Saints showed improvement, it wasn't enough for this game or the challenges ahead.
