Redmond just two good for poor Cherries
Che Adams failed to mark his Scotland call- up with a goal as he had a strike disallowed as he was outshone by Nathan Redmond as Southampton brushed aside Bournemouth 3-0 to book a place in the FA Cup semi-final.
Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl hopes Redmond now builds on his matchwinning display.
Redmond ruined the Cherries’ hopes of an upset, unlocking the Championship side’s defence with a superb ball for Moussa Djenepo’s first- half opener at the empty Vitality Stadium.
The 27- year- old then produced a brilliant solo run and finish similar to Michael Owen’s goal against Argentina at the 1998 World Cup in first- half stoppage time, before he completed a comprehensive quarter-final win.
“I’m happy, not only for coming to the next round, but also for seeing a performance that was by far one of the better ones in the ( recent) past,” Southampton boss Hasenhuttl said.
“I said in January that now is the time to take this chance because it’s always a good chance for a smaller club like we are to write history.
“If you’re good in the league and we had been in a very good position, then you can concentrate on the Cup.
“We took the risk, that cost us a few injuries in January, February. But finally now we get the reward for it and we have now a very, very good game atwembley.”
While nobody put a foot wrong for Saints, Redmond was the undoubted star man as he displayed the kind of quality that has been too often missing from his game this campaign.
“This is what he should do more often, I think, and he knows he can do and can deliver this more often,” said Hasenhuttl.
B o u r n emo u t h boss Jonathan Woodgate was annoyed by Redmond’s goal in first- half stoppage time, saying the throw- in that led to it should have been theirs and was a “blatant” wrong decision.
But he knows his side were second best, when the video assistant referee ruled out an early Cameron CarterVickers own goal and a second- half Adams strike.
“They’re a Premier League team, we were never expected to win the game,” said Woodgate. “They were better on the day.”