MATCH OF THE CHE
Adams goal puts Saints on top as lacklustre Toon fail to find reply
WHISPER it, but this may not be a flash in the pan.
Southampton are not going to win the Premier League – but they may not be going away quietly either.
Just the way it should be for a bunch of swashbuckling pirates – which is what manager Ralph Hasenhuttl ( right) had called for his men to be this season.
And so there they sit thi s morning, t op of t he pi l e i n England, for the first time since September 1988. Since the days of Danny Wallace, Jimmy Case and Matt Le Tissier.
Who would have believed it, j ust ove r a ye a r s i nce t h e humiliation of that 9- 0 thrashing by Leicester at St Mary’s?
An d , t h a n k s t o C h e A d a m s ’ a n d S t u a r t Armstrong’s goals, it was a win the Saints thoroughly deserved. Newcastle could have gone into the top four had they won last night – but Steve Bruce’s team were punchless and uninspired.
It may well only last until just after lunchtime today, if Ev e r t on b e at Manchest e r
United at Goodison. But Saints fans will enjoy this moment.
The f act th ey managed i t without top- scorer Danny Ings, ruled out for up to six weeks with a knee problem and having s u r g e r y y e s t e r d a y, m a d e Southampton’s feat all the more impressive.
And as well as Adams stepping into the breach, it was the old hand, 31- year- old Theo Walcott, who was the inspiration. First. he set up Adams for the opening goal – and t hen i t was hi s hassling that saw Armstrong hit the second.
Saints were at it right from the start, despite the injuries w h i c h h a d r a v a g e d Hasenhuttl’s i n- f orm si de. Fi r st , Walcott pressured the Newcast l e defence i nto an e r r o r, a n d A d a ms tested Karl Darlow with a stinging shot.
But Toon did not clear and Miguel Almiron, dithering on the ball, was robbed by Walcott. He fed in a fine ball to Adams, who simply buried it past Darlow with a thundering volley.
T h e e x- B i r mi n g h a m striker then saw another shot saved by Darlow, and Walcott fired over after the Newcastle midfield gave the ball a w a y f o r t h e umpteenth time. Bruce’s side were being overrun, though Callum Wilson worked hard up front, and Sean Longstaf f went close with a header. But, just before half time, Saints should have grabbed their second goal, as a brilliant f lick f r om Moussa Djen e p o s e nt Walcott clean through.
But t h e f o r mer E n g l a n d forward, on his 350th Premier League appearance, shot wide when he should have scored.
The chances kept going the Saints’ way, as Jan Bednarek saw his volley cleared off he line – and then Oriol Romeu’s shot was brilliantly tipped onto the bar by keeper Darlow.
Saints dominated but only had one goal to show for all their good f ootball . Walcott might have had a penalty when he was b r o u g h t d o w n b y J a ma a l Lascelles ( far left), but VAR said no. And Newcastle were indebted to Darlow again when Bednarek f lashed in a header.
Br uce’s t eam had creat ed a l mo s t n o t h i n g , b u t we r e somehow still in the game.
That changed eight minutes from the end when, after another swift Walcott run, Sean Longstaff h e s i t a t e d o n t h e b a l l , a n d Armstrong pounced to drill a low shot into the corner ( left). The skull and crossbones is flying high.