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EPL: LEEDS MOVE TO TOP HALF AFTER THRASHING SOUTHAMPTON

Leeds climbed back into the top half of the table as three second-half goals secured them a 3-0 home win against Southampton.

Patrick Bamford’s 13th Premier League goal of the season, Stuart Dallas and the impressive Raphinha’s free-kick lifted Marcelo Bielsa’s side above Arsenal and up to 10th, one point behind Tottenham.

Southampton were not without their chances and despite being overrun after the interval were still in the game until Dallas made it 2-0 in the 77th minute.

But the Saints’ winless league run was extended to eight matches and had Leeds not been so wasteful in front of goal, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side would have lost by a bigger margin.

The visitors twice threatened to take an early lead as Leeds’ players struggled to keep their feet on Elland Road’s soft playing surface.

Jannik Vestergaard headed James Ward-Prowse’s free-kick wide and Nathan Tella almost marked his first Premier League start with a fine solo effort.

The 23-year-old midfielder skipped around Leeds skipper Liam Cooper, but his curling shot was comfortably saved by Illan Meslier.

Raphinha laid a golden chance on a plate for Tyler Roberts, pulling the ball back after gliding past two defenders, but the Welsh forward blazed over.

Leeds went close again when Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy denied Cooper following a neat set-piece routine and then VAR intervention correctly denied the visitors a penalty.

Tella had gone down too easily under a challenge from Diego Llorente, who was making his home debut for Leeds, and referee Andre Marriner corrected his initial decision after checking the replays.

Oriol Romeu then kept the scores level by producing a goal-saving tackle on Raphinha, who had raced clear from halfway into the penalty area.

Southampton thought they had broken the deadlock just before half-time when Che Adams latched on to Ward-Prowse’s smart free-kick, but Marriner ruled it out after claiming he was not ready.

Leeds made a flying start to the second half and took the lead in the 47th minute.

Bamford raced on to Roberts’ excellent through-ball and clipped a cool left-footed finish into the bottom corner.

Southampton responded through Stuart Armstrong, who forced Meslier into a low flying save, before Leeds spurned chances to extend their advantage.

Roberts fired wide following a sweeping Leeds counter and as the action flowed from end to end, Bamford’s close-range effort was blocked by McCarthy after Dallas’s weaving run.

McCarthy rescued Saints again when keeping out Llorente’s shot from another Raphinha pull-back.

Leeds should have been out of sight, but Southampton threatened when Vestergaard’s close-range effort was blocked by Bamford and Mohammed Salisu fired over.

Dallas then settled any home nerves when he crashed in Leeds’ second from the edge of the area in the 77th minute.

The home side chased a third and Raphinha curled home an excellent free-kick around the wall and into the bottom corner seven minutes later.

Substitute Pablo Hernandez lashed a volley just over in the closing stages as Leeds continued to swarm forward.

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MINAMINO HELP SAINTS END LOSING RUN IN CHELSEA 1-1 DRAW

Southampton ended a run of six defeats as they held in-form Chelsea to a 1-1 draw at St Mary’s Stadium.

Chelsea, on a run of four successive wins, dominated the first half, recording 72.5 per cent possession, but only had Marcos Alonso’s first-time shot in the sixth minute as their best chance.

Southampton went ahead on 33 minutes against the run of play with a cool finish from Takumi Minamino. The on-loan midfielder took Nathan Redmond’s through-ball before dummying Edouard Mendy and Cesar Azpilicueta to stroke in the ball.

The visitors equalised nine minutes after half-time through Mason Mount’s penalty, awarded for a foul on the midfielder by Danny Ings.

Southampton almost led again when Jannik Vestergaard’s header clipped the bar on 71 minutes.

Chelsea continued to dominate but could not find a winner, with Reece James blazing over their best opportunity.

Southampton stay 13th on 30 points, while a sixth match unbeaten under Thomas Tuchel keeps Chelsea in fourth, on 43 points, one ahead of West Ham United having played a match more.

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DANNY INGS STARS AS SAINTS SINKS WOLVES TO MARCH TO FA CUP LAST EIGHT

Danny Ings helped Southampton into the FA Cup quarter finals after a 2-0 win at Wolves.

The striker ended a five-game goal drought as the Saints look to lift the trophy for the first time in 45 years.

Stuart Armstrong settled the game in stoppage time after John Ruddy’s mistake.

The visitors deserved their victory as Nuno Espirito Santo’s selection gamble for the hosts backfired.

Nuno made six changes – including giving captain Conor Coady a rare rest – in a surprise selection considering the FA Cup remained Wolves’ best chance of success – and a return to Europe – this year.

They continued to stutter though, having won just four times since November, and will seek instant revenge in the Premier League at St Mary’s on Sunday.

While Ralph Hasenhuttl made five he was still able to recall Kyle Walker-Peters and hand Mohammed Salisu his debut after an £10.9million summer move from Real Valladolid.

The Saints – who also included James Ward-Prowse – tried to make their strength tell early.

Ruddy gathered Armstrong’s drive at the second attempt as Ings lurked before the striker, with one goal in his previous 10 games, was then thwarted by Romain Saiss.

Armstrong continued to cause problems and Max Kilman’s sprawling block turned his drive behind.

Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster was, aside from one hurried clearance, a spectator, although Salisu survived a VAR review when Morgan Gibbs-White tumbled under pressure in the box.

Wolves, with just 23 goals in 23 Premier League games, struggled to pose a threat but Southampton’s early dominance had waned and Saiss lifted Joao Moutinho’s free kick over just before the break.

The hosts then escaped three minutes into the second half when Armstrong missed a glorious chance. The midfielder arrived unmarked in the area but managed to sidefoot Ryan Bertrand’s cross wide with the goal gaping.

Ings saved his blushes a minute later when he fortuitously opened the scoring with his eighth goal of the season. The striker burst through and when his initial shot was saved by Ruddy the ball ricochet back off Ings and rolled in.

It was initially ruled offside but a VAR review showed the forward was onside.

However lucky, it was a lead Southampton deserved and the visitors now had a platform but Fabio Silva came close to an instant leveller when he fired Gibbs-White’s cross over the bar.

It summed up Wolves’ wastefulness and allowed the hosts to pass the three hour mark without a shot on target.

Nathan Redmond should have punished them after 67 minutes when he wasted the chance to finish the tie. The winger raced onto Armstrong’s pass, only for Ruddy’s smart save to turn the ball wide.

Wolves’ still had hope and they pushed to send the game into extra time – with Forster saving from Adama Traore at the far post after Salisu missed Pedro Neto’s cross.

But Armstrong made it 2-0 in stoppage time when Ruddy made a hash of Leander Dendoncker’s backpass and Nathan Tella teed up the midfielder to curl in off the post.

Wolves then avoided further misery when VAR overturned a penalty, awarded by Jon Moss, when it showed Moutinho’s foul on Tella was outside the box.

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WILLOCK, MINAMINO GET DEBUT GOAL AS NEWCASTLE EDGE OUT SOUTHAMPTON

Joe Willock marked his debut with a goal as nine-man Newcastle scrapped their way to a 3-2 Premier League victory over Southampton.

The Arsenal loanee opened the scoring on an eventful afternoon at St James’ Park where his side led 2-0 and 3-1 courtesy of Jan Bednarek’s own goal and a third from Miguel Almiron either side of Takumi Minamino’s strike in his first appearance for the Saints.

However, a fine James Ward-Prowse free-kick dragged the visitors, who finished Tuesday’s 9-0 drubbing at Manchester United with only nine men on the pitch, back into it and they dominated following Jeff Hendrick’s dismissal for a second bookable offence and Fabian Schar’s premature departure through injury.

To their credit, battle-scarred Newcastle managed to hang on to claim just their second win in 14 attempts in all competitions against the odds on a filthy Tyneside afternoon.

Newcomer Willock made the breakthrough with 16 minutes gone with a sizeable helping hand from the returning Allan Saint-Maximin.

The Frenchman controlled Schar’s long ball expertly past Bednarek before sliding an inch-perfect pass into the path of the fast-arriving Willock, who fired home with consummate ease.

Danny Ings passed up two chances to level in quick succession and the Saints were made to pay with 26 minutes gone when Saint-Maximin set up Almiron to shoot and the hapless Bednarek deflected the ball into his own net at the near post.

However, the visitors were back in the contest on the half-hour when they broke from Jonjo Shelvey’s wayward free-kick and Minamimo deftly controlled Ryan Bertrand’s pass to put himself in behind makeshift defender Isaac Hayden before lashing a rising shot into the roof of the net.

Wilson’s departure with a hamstring injury – full-back Javier Manquillo had already limped off – saw Joelinton join the fray and Southampton, with Ward-Prowse pulling the strings, pressed for an equaliser.

But they fell further behind in stoppage time when McCarthy’s ill-judged pass to Bertrand was picked off by Almiron, who took full advantage by drilling a low shot past the keeper to make it 3-1.

Shelvey might have netted within seconds of the restart, but miskicked horribly in front of goal from Willock’s pass, and Newcastle were made to pay when, after Hayden had felled Che Adams 25 yards out, Ward-Prowse curled a stunning 48th-minute free-kick beyond Karl Darlow to reduce the deficit.

Hendrick’s dismissal as the home side tried to regroup added a fresh dimension to a topsy-turvy contest which might have been all square with 27 minutes remaining when Ings curled a shot past Darlow, but saw it come back off the post and into the keeper’s arms.

The tiring Saint-Maximin departed to be replaced by defender Paul Dummett, who slotted into a hastily convened back five as the game entered its final quarter with the visitors dominating and Nathan Redmond in particular threatening from wide on the right.

But an astonishing rearguard action somehow got Steve Bruce’s men to the final whistle with their lead intact as they claimed the grittiest of wins.

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DANNY INGS REPORTEDLY EYEING A CHAMPIONS LEAGUE CLUB.

Ralph Hasenhuttl has issued a message to striker Danny Ings amid reports he is stalling on signing a new contract at Saints in the hope he can play Champions League football, stating: “Score 10-15 goals more for us this season and then we have a chance to go there.”

Saints have been hoping to tie down their star striker to a new deal, with his current contract set to expire in the summer of 2022.

Reports this week claim Ings is reluctant to commit his long-term future to Saints just yet, in the hope a club competing at Europe’s elite level might try to sign him.

Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with a move for the England international.

There is also a suggestion Ings is eyeing a potential release clause in any new deal he does agree to at Saints, which could keep his options open if a top club came calling.

Saints currently sit ninth in the Premier League table, five points off the top four.

Hasenhuttl has always maintained his desire for Ings to stay at the club, with the 28-year-old having netted 40 goals in 81 appearances since joining from Liverpool, initially on loan, in 2018.

Asked if he is confident of keeping the Winchester-born ace this summer, Hasenhuttl replied: “Yes.”

Pushed further on reports of Ings wanting to play European football, Hasenhuttl added: “I think if he wants Champions League football he must score 10-15 goals more for us this season and then we have a chance to go there.

“It’s not impossible I think.”

Speaking earlier in the week about negotiations with Ings, boss Hasenhuttl said: “I think Danny shows us that he wants to be with the club, we know that he is an important player for us. I hope that we find an agreement and finally he stays with us.

“If not, life will go on and this club will also exist and hopefully we can find a way that we can both live with.”

Ings did not feature in last night’s 2-0 win over Shrewsbury in the third round of the FA Cup as he continues to get up to full fitness after recovering from coronavirus, but could return to take on Arsenal in the same competition on Saturday.

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MAN UTD MATCH CITY’S GOAL WINNING RECORD WITH 9-0 BATCHING OF SOUTHAMPTON.

Manchester United equalled the biggest winning margin in Premier League history as they triumphed 9-0 against a Southampton side who finished with nine men.

Southampton made a nightmare start at Old Trafford as 19-year-old Alexandre Jankewitz was sent off just 79 seconds into his full Premier League debut for a high challenge on Scott McTominay.

Man Utd took advantage with Aaron Wan-Bissaka tapping in Luke Shaw’s cross before Mason Greenwood teed up Marcus Rashford to double the lead 25 minutes in.

Jan Bednarek then scored an own goal and Edinson Cavani headed in from a second Shaw assist to make it 4-0 at half-time.

After the break Bruno Fernandes set up substitute Anthony Martial to score before McTominay netted a fierce drive from long range.

It got even worse for Southampton when Bednarek was sent off for a denial of a goalscoring opportunity and Fernandes converted the resultant penalty.

Martial then struck his second before Daniel James rounded off the scoring with the last kick of the match, converting Fernandes’s header across the box.

United tie their own 9-0 win over Ipswich Town in 1995 and Leicester City’s victory by the same scoreline at Southampton in 2019.

It means they are behind Man City on goal difference alone but have played two matches more. Southampton drop to 12th after a fourth consecutive loss.

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SAKA INSPIRES ARSENAL TO 3-1 WIN OVER SOUTHAMPTON AT THE ST. MARY’S STADIUM.

Bukayo Saka scored one goal and assisted another as Arsenal’s strong Premier League form continued with an assured 3-1 victory over Southampton.

Stuart Armstrong’s first-time finish from James Ward-Prowse’s corner put Southampton ahead after just three minutes at St Mary’s Stadium.

Five minutes later, Granit Xhaka’s excellent pass picked out Nicolas Pepe, who finished smartly to equalise.

Arsenal went ahead six minutes before half-time when Saka was played in by Alexandre Lacazette and rounded the stranded goalkeeper to score.

Victory was confirmed on 72 minutes as Cedric Soares’s raking pass to the right picked out Saka, whose instant cross found Lacazette to convert at the far post.

A fifth win in six league matches sends Arsenal up to eighth on 30 points, a point and three places above Southampton.

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DANNY INGS SET TO MISS TRIP TO LEICESTER DUE TO SELF ISOLATION.

Southampton forward Danny Ings is expected to miss Saturday’s trip to Leicester after recently testing positive for coronavirus.

Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl confirmed England international Ings had tested positive for Covid-19 following the 1-0 Premier League win over Liverpool and has been self-isolating.

If he returns a negative test then Ings, who scored the only goal against the Reds inside two minutes and went off late on, could rejoin training on Friday but would likely remain a major doubt for the Leicester game.

“We have had one positive test since the Liverpool game, Danny Ings is out, he has been 10 days now in self-isolation,” Hasenhuttl said.

“That meant in this game (Liverpool) he was also maybe contagious, I think it is 48 hours before you can be before you have a positive test.

We have had no further positive tests so far, that means our protocols (which) we are sticking to and our guidelines that we really follow are very disciplined.”

Hasenhuttl feels if clubs follow to the stringent regulations, then there should be no dampening down of goal celebrations.

“When you stick to the guidelines you can also work, as we do everyday together, celebrate together like we did after the Liverpool game and I think this is enough,” the Southampton boss said.

“You never know, but this showed me that when you stick to the protocols you have to control the risk.

“There is a reason why the Premier League decided to let us play football, this is what we are doing.

“For me, part of football is the duels, with the players playing together, and part of football is celebrating when you score a goal.

“I think the protocols and experiences we made so far shows that it works.”

Goalkeeper Alex McCarthy has now ended his period of isolation after a positive Covid-19 test and is available for Saturday’s 8pm kick-off at the King Power Stadium, along with forward Che Adams, who has recovered from concussion.

Southampton’s injury problems, though, continue to mount.

Forward Nathan Tella, 21, has picked up a muscle problem, while Moussa Djenepo, Nathan Redmond and Jannik Vestergaard are also sidelined, with Michael Obafemi having thigh surgery.

“We have a few muscle problems at the moment that give me some headaches,” Hasenhuttl said.

“I think it’s a combination of not having a normal pre-season, having a tough schedule in the past, not having a chance to use all the recovery facilities we have here in the building.

“We are not allowed to use them so this also causes us issues I think, so therefore we must pay attention.”

Southampton’s FA Cup third-round tie against Shrewsbury, which was postponed because of a coronavirus outbreak at the Sky Bet League One club, has been rearranged for January 19, with next week’s Premier League fixture at Leeds called off.

Despite facing a potential fixture pile-up, Hasenhuttl will take things as they come.

“We have to play this game, if it is now or later, we will have three games a week, so it does not make a big difference,” the Saints boss added.

“It can be have nine games in four weeks, this is maybe the most busiest time of the year.

“We have to play these games, they may have been pushed back, but it does not make it any easier.”

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FULHAM 0-0 SOTON: BARREN DRAW AT CRAVEN COTTAGE ON BOXING DAY.

Southampton twice thought they had scored second-half goals only to be denied each time for offside in a 0-0 draw at Fulham.

In a first half of few chances, James Ward-Prowse came closest to a goal but his free-kick hit the crossbar before Che Adams was unable to convert on the rebound.

After the break, Ivan Cavaleiro headed over a fine cross from Antonee Robinson following a swift counter-attack by Fulham.

Shane Long thought he had put Southampton ahead on 76 minutes but the striker was offside when Ryan Bertrand had passed to him.

Theo Walcott then suffered a similar fate with five minutes remaining, as his effort was ruled out following a VAR review after Adams was offside in the build-up.

Fulham remain 18th, on 11 points, while Southampton drop to ninth with 25 points

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SOTON 0-1 MANCITY: STERLING EARLY STRIKE GIVES CITIZENS LONE EDGE AGAINST STUBBORN SAINTS.

Raheem Sterling scored the only goal as Manchester City beat Southampton to move right behind them in the table.

City took the lead after 16 minutes when Sterling converted Kevin De Bruyne’s pull-back for his fourth league goal of the season.

Southampton responded well, with Theo Walcott and Jannik Vestergaard having the best of several first-half chances, but they could not beat Ederson.

The hosts were hit by the early departure with a hamstring injury of leading scorer Danny Ings and, despite second-half pressure, could not find an equaliser.

Having extended their unbeaten run to five matches, City sit sixth with 23 points.

Southampton are a point and a place ahead, having played a match more.