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MANCHESTER CITY KEEP ATLETICO MADRID AT BAY IN ILL-TEMPERED SHOWDOWN

Manchester City survived a bruising encounter with Atletico Madrid to reach the Champions League semi-finals after a hard-fought goalless draw in the Spanish capital.

Pep Guardiola’s side battled an intimidating atmosphere and a fired-up home side at the Wanda Metropolitano to edge a tense quarter-final courtesy of last week’s equally-draining 1-0 first-leg win.

Atletico finished with 10 men as Felipe – who escaped a booking for a terrible challenge on Phil Foden in the first half – was sent off as home frustrations boiled over in the closing stages.

City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan went close to scoring when he hit the post in the first half but the visitors had to dig deep late on.

Atletico upped the tempo in the closing stages and there were some moments of alarm, not least when Antoine Griezmann shot narrowly wide and Angel Correa tested Ederson in stoppage time.

City withstood great provocation to hold out and book a return to the same city to face Real Madrid in the last four.

A number of players took knocks for their troubles, with Foden needing to be bandaged around the head and Kevin De Bruyne limping off.

The atmosphere was ferocious as Atletico fans did their best to throw City off their game.

Yet after UEFA hit Atletico with a partial stadium closure for this game for discriminatory behaviour by supporters – a sanction suspended by the Court of Arbitration for Sport – the fans did themselves no favours before the game.

First they vociferously booed the competition’s anthem in protest at UEFA’s attempted punishment and then did similar as City’s players took the knee as a statement against racism.

As the action began, Atletico started positively. Manager Diego Simeone was widely criticised for his defensive, damage-limitation tactics in the first leg but, with an onus to attack this time, they looked to get forward more.

Joao Felix made a good run down the right in the opening minutes and fired across a dangerous ball looking for Renan Lodi in the box but Kyle Walker read the situation.

The hosts soon showed their notorious physical side however as Felipe clattered into Foden from behind as the City midfielder went up for a header.

Foden suffered a cut to the head and needed to be bandaged up but remarkably Felipe was not booked by German referee Daniel Siebert who – for not the only time – was surrounded by protesting Atletico players.

Yet if Felipe was let off on that occasion, there was no escape soon after when he clipped De Bruyne. This time Siebert did brandish the yellow card.

Despite finding Atletico tough to deal with, City did look the stronger side. They controlled possession for large spells and did start to threaten.

Gundogan shot wide and John Stones headed over from a corner before they went close to opening the scoring just before the half-hour.

Walker and Riyad Mahrez combined well on the right before Foden teed up Gundogan to crash a shot against the base of the post. The German’s follow-up header was blocked and Atletico scrambled clear.

City managed to restrict Atletico’s openings and Geoffrey Kondogbia failed to make the most of a chance when his shot was deflected and gathered by Ederson.

Atletico looked to step up the pace in the second half and went close to levelling the tie when Griezmann caught hold of a half-volley from a Felix lay-off that drifted narrowly wide.

Another good move then saw Correa flash an effort just wide of the top corner moments after coming off the bench. Fellow substitute Rodrigo De Paul also volleyed wide.

But time began to run out for the hosts and their frustration became evident as Felipe caught Foden again. A scuffle broke out, heavily involving Stefan Savic and Jack Grealish, which ended with Felipe sent off.

Atletico were not quite finished but City held on with Ederson saving from Correa in the closing seconds.

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Muller stunned as Bayern crash out of Champions League

Thomas Muller says Bayern Munich’s elimination from the Champions League at the hands of Villarreal is “difficult to accept”.

The Bundesliga leaders crashed out in the quarter-finals for the second season running, as Samuel Chukwueze’s late strike at the Allianz Arena snatched a 1-1 draw on the night – and a 2-1 aggregate victory for the Europa League holders.

Julian Nagelsmann’s side, beaten 1-0 in the first leg, dominated the game as they sought a ninth win from 11 Champions League quarter-final ties.

But despite Robert Lewandowski drawing them level early in the second half, Bayern were unable to capitalise on their superiority as they could only find the back of the net once from 23 attempts at goal.

And the Bavarian giants were stunned two minutes from time, when Chukwueze rounded off a devastating counter-attack to send Villarreal through to a first semi-final in this competition in 16 years.

Muller knows Bayern only have themselves to blame for lacking a cutting edge.

“If you take just this game into account, without the first game, we should have gone through convincingly,” he told Amazon Prime.

“It’s difficult to accept this; I don’t know what to say.

“It’s bitter to concede after that performance. With the fans behind us, we pushed, pushed, pushed from the start. We have to do more in front of goal.”

Head coach Nagelsmann said the nature of Bayern’s exit left a sour taste in the mouth.

The head coach added: “The first leg was the key. Today, we did very well. It was one of our best games. But we should have made it 2-0 in the second half.

“It’s all very bitter. We had very little space, there was always a danger of getting hit on the counter, and creating many chances against such a deep defence is hard. 

“If you don’t win and get eliminated, that’s just the way it is.”

Villarreal will do battle with Liverpool or Benfica for a place in the final.

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CHELSEA’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIGHTBACK FALLS SHORT AGAINST REAL MADRID

Karim Benzema’s punishing header crushed Chelsea’s remarkable comeback as Real Madrid lost 3-2 at the Bernabeu Stadium but reached the Champions League semi-finals 5-4 on aggregate.

Ruthless France hit man Benzema produced a carbon-copy of the two headed goals he scored in last week’s quarter-final first-leg at Stamford Bridge, where his hat-trick had Real expecting to stroll into the last four.

Champions League holders Chelsea turned up in Madrid with other ideas however, big ideas in fact, of a memorable and odds-defying comeback in this pulsating second-leg.

The Blues shook off their 3-1 deficit from the first leg and took Carlo Ancelotti’s Madrid apart.

Mason Mount, Toni Rudiger and Timo Werner put the Blues 3-0 up and on the very cusp of completing that miracle of Madrid, and that with a Marcos Alonso effort chalked off for handball.

Luka Modric rescued Real though, delivering a sublime raking pass that allowed Rodrygo to race on and volley into the net past a stunned Edouard Mendy.

Chelsea’s fourth stint of extra-time this season duly ensued and after all their efforts and three smart goals, one flick of the head from Benzema brought the Madrid house down.

The 34-year-old turned home Vinicius Junior’s cross with another potent aerial finish to wrestle the Champions League-holders status from Chelsea’s grip.

Benzema now has 38 goals in as many games for Real Madrid in all competitions this season. Such marksmanship invariably yields trophies and Madrid will feel themselves well capable of claiming Champions League title number 14 this year.

Chelsea warmed to their task without delay, with Reece James’ yellow card for a tug on Vinicius the only early concern.

The Blues boasted far more poise and control than in the home leg and duly took the lead when Mount capitalised on a ball falling nicely for him in the area.

Chelsea built steadily in the move for the goal and Mount steered home in style to hand the visitors the perfect start.

Vinicius again threatened on the left but could never cut loose as at Stamford Bridge in a first-half full of frustration for the hosts.

By the time Benzema was booked for an aerial challenge on Thiago Silva, the home supporters’ jeers appeared to have rattled the Madrid men.

Ancelotti’s side seemed jittery and certainly lacking any rhythm or fluency.

Chelsea negotiated pretty much the ideal half from their perspective, taking that 1-0 lead on the night into the interval.

Thomas Tuchel’s side sustained the pressure straight from the restart, with Madrid continuing with their curious ploy of sitting off and allowing Chelsea to dominate the ball.

The hosts’ passivity continued unabated, even after the chance to recalibrate at half-time.

When Rudiger powered home a headed finish from Mount’s corner, the Blues were ahead 2-0 on the night and level in the tie.

Alonso thought he had sent them into dreamland and a 3-0 lead, only for his crisp strike to be chalked off after a VAR review. The Spanish defender was judged to have handled the ball after a ricochet in the area, handing Madrid a major reprieve.

The home side almost took immediate advantage but Benzema struck the bar when he should have scored.

Chelsea kept their cool and set about yet more well-structured attacks and Mateo Kovacic’s fine threaded ball sent Werner through on goal.

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LATE CHUKWUEZE GOAL SENDS VILLARREAL THROUGH TO UCL SEMIS

Samuel Chukwueze snatched a dramatic 88th-minute equaliser to send Villarreal through to the UEFA Champions League semi-finals at the expense of Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena.

Four minutes after coming on as a substitute, Chukwueze swept home a cross by Gerard Moreno to cancel out Robert Lewandowski’s 52nd-minute opener and send the LaLiga side through by virtue of a 2-1 aggregate scoreline.

Villarreal had withstood mounting Bayern pressure in the second half, with Lucas Hernandez and Thomas Muller among those who had a chance to win it before the visitors sealed the deal with extra-time looming.

The hosts had looked listless for much of the first period and it took until just before the half-hour mark for them to muster a shot on target when Jamal Musiala headed straight at Villarreal keeper Geronimo Rulli.

Villarreal were coping comfortably with Bayern’s one-dimensional approaches and looked increasingly confident of clinging onto the hard-fought single-goal advantage they had forged in the first leg.

Lewandowski’s frustrations got the better of him when he was booked for a foul on Raul Albiol in the 33rd minute, then Arnaut Danjuma and Moreno both came close for the visitors.

But it was a different story after the break as Bayern finally got into gear, and Dayot Upamecano should have scored from a clever cut-back by the busy Leroy Sane in the 51st minute.

Lewandowski ended a strong spell of pressure by poking Bayern in front on the night moments later, sparking a spell of pressure that saw Hernandez shoot straight at Rulli, and Muller miss a glorious chance with a close-range header from another Sane cross.

In the midst of the chances, Moreno had served a warning by flashing the ball across the face of the Bayern box on a swift counter-attack, and that danger became a reality four minutes after Chukwueze’s introduction.

The Nigerian kept his cool to fire another Moreno cross past Manuel Neuer and the ‘Yellow Submarine’ saw out the dying moments to secure a famous aggregate win and a place in the last four.

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Bayern will not replicate poor first-leg display against Villarreal

Julian Nagelsmann has promised that Bayern Munich “will not play badly against the same opponent twice” ahead of his side’s Champions League clash with Villarreal.

Bayern welcome Villarreal to the Allianz Arena trailing 1-0 from last week’s first leg.

The Bundesliga leaders are looking to avoid being eliminated in the quarter-finals in consecutive seasons. Prior to last term, when they lost to Paris Saint-Germain in the last eight, Bayern had only been eliminated in one of their last nine quarter-final ties in the competition, against Real Madrid in 2016-17.

Villarreal coach Unai Emery said after the first leg that he regretted his side not being able to make the most of further opportunities to extend their advantage.

It was the first time Bayern have failed to score in a Champions League since Liverpool in February 2019, and Nagelsmann insisted the poor display will not be replicated on Tuesday.

“We played a bad game and they played their best game,” Nagelsmann told a news conference.

“This will not happen again, to play badly against the same opponent twice.

“We delivered in the past and it should be like that. We have to, we must, we want to. It is normal when you win so many titles and have such success for so many years that you maybe need this pressure sometimes to get the maximum out.

“Maybe it will be a sparkling game from our side. We must turn up our complete intensity level. We did not take the last steps, the last metres in the first leg. We have to play more uncomfortable football.”

Bayern actually finished the first leg with a higher expected goals (xG) of 1.6 in comparison to Villarreal’s 1.5, though that will have been helped by a higher quantity of attempts (22 to 12).

Nagelsmann added: “We made many mistakes. They made one to keep us alive. They could have scored more goals but we are still alive and we should show it on the pitch.”

Bayern are aiming to progress from a Champions League knockout tie after losing the first leg for the first time since the 2014-15 quarter-finals, while the defeat was their 20th against a Spanish team in European competition, their most against sides from a specific nation.

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Atleti ordered to close part of stadium for City clash

Atletico Madrid will be forced to close a section of their stadium when they host Manchester City due to the “discriminatory behaviour” of their supporters.

City secured a 1-0 advantage in the Champions League quarter-final first leg last Tuesday at the Etihad Stadium.

Supporters of the Spanish club were caught on camera performing alleged Nazi salutes during that game and UEFA subsequently charged the LaLiga champions with discriminatory behaviour and throwing of objects last Friday.

European football’s governing body has since ordered Atletico to close part of the Wanda Metropolitano, so at least 5,000 fewer supporters will be able to attend the game against Pep Guariola’s side.

UEFA has also ordered Atleti to implement a #NoToRacism banner when they clash with City on Wednesday.

Atletico were previously ordered by UEFA to close part of their stadium in the 2018-19 Champions League campaign, after a racist banner was unfurled during the 2018 Europa League final in Lyon.

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BENZEMA HAT-TRICK LEAVES CHELSEA’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HOPES IN TATTERS

Karim Benzema bullied Chelsea to the brink of relinquishing their Champions League crown with a stunning hat-trick in Real Madrid’s 3-1 triumph at Stamford Bridge.

The prolific striker moved his competition goal return to 11 in just eight matches after hitting back-to-back trebles as Madrid overwhelmed the Blues in Wednesday’s quarter-final first-leg.

Benzema took his season’s tally to 37 goals in 36 matches for Real, handing his side a major chance of making the semi-finals in their bid to land a 14th Champions League title.

The 34-year-old stalked the beleaguered Andreas Christensen like a heavyweight prize fighter closing off the ring to a frenzied and frazzled foe.

Kai Havertz dragged Chelsea back into the contest from nowhere before half-time, but the luckless Edouard Mendy gifted Benzema his hat-trick goal with an undersold pass.

Chelsea will now need a performance to trump perhaps all others from Thomas Tuchel’s highly-decorated reign to overturn this deficit in Madrid’s intimidating Bernabeu Stadium.

The Blues, who dazzled Europe by toppling Manchester City 1-0 to swipe the Champions League trophy in May last year, will head out for the return leg on Tuesday, where a generational showing for this talented squad could well be required to keep their title defence alive.

Madrid meanwhile will head home in total control of this tie, with former Chelsea manager and figurehead Carlo Ancelotti particularly buoyed.

The urbane Italian coach almost did not make it to his old Stamford Bridge stomping ground due to Covid, but returned a negative test in time to link up with his players on the morning of the match.

April showers left the 60-year-old’s coiffured locks requiring a towelling-off, before he donned a beanie hat to ward off the weather.

Benzema’s three-minute, one-two punch left Chelsea flailing on the canvas.

The France striker must have thought the Blues were out for the count after delivering two thumping headers.

First he nodded home by racing onto Vinicius’ cross, then the Real talisman showed the other side of his aerial prowess, hanging in the air to dispatch Modric’s delivery.

A dazed and confused Chelsea found themselves staggering around the Stamford Bridge pitch. None more so than the hapless Christensen, who wound up continually exposed by Chelsea’s first-half system.

The Denmark defender could not decide whether to tuck in tight on the inside-right, or pull out to the right-back area.

James’ advanced right-sided role left Christensen with too much ground to cover, but the Dane should still have avoided the comprehensive work-over he received for his troubles.

Vinicius and Benzema doubled up on Christensen, with Ancelotti clearly identifying the Denmark centre-back as the weak link in Tuchel’s system on the night.

Benzema should have completed his hat-trick before half-time too, only to drive a low shot wide of the goal.

That let-off seemed to clear Chelsea’s punch-drunk haze and in a flash the Blues were on the scoreboard and back from the dead.

Jorginho’s sumptuous lofted ball bisected the Real defence, allowing Havertz to steal in at the far post and nod home.

Hakim Ziyech and Mateo Kovacic replaced Christensen and N’Golo Kante at half-time, with Tuchel well aware the shape had to change.

The Blues went to a flat-back four, but had not even settled when disaster struck.

Mendy underhit a pass to Toni Rudiger when out of his area and Benzema pounced, rolling the ball home to complete his devastating treble.

Proactive boss Tuchel emptied the bench in a bid to claw another foothold, but £98million striker Romelu Lukaku could in no way follow Benzema’s lead.

Where the Real marksman had proved unerring, instead Lukaku could only nod wide from a glorious chance.

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UCL LAST EIGHT: DE BRUYNE GIVES MAN CITY ADVANTAGE OVER ATLETICO MADRID

Kevin De Bruyne struck 20 minutes from time as Manchester City grabbed a slender advantage in their Champions League quarter-final against Atletico Madrid.

The Belgian playmaker fired home from a tight angle after Phil Foden came off the bench to stunning effect in a tense and tight first leg at the Etihad Stadium.

Atletico were their usual dogged, defensive selves for most of the game and frustrated City despite the hosts’ dominance of possession.

Yet the introduction of Foden as part of a triple substitution by Pep Guardiola in the 68th minute paid almost immediate dividends.

Within moments he had slipped in De Bruyne with a delicate through ball and he finished firmly to put City in control heading into next week’s second leg in the Spanish capital.

Atletico boss Diego Simeone had promised Atletico would play their usual cagey game and he was as good as his word, forcing City to play patiently.

The first half was played at a slow tempo with City controlling most of the ball but, despite having all their outfield players in the final third at times, being unable to create openings.

De Bruyne and Joao Cancelo both had efforts deflected wide and Aymeric Laporte missed the target with a header.

Raheem Sterling felt he should have had a free-kick on the left edge of the area after a good run and Bernardo Silva went down in the box moments later but nothing was given.

Ilkay Gundogan shot well over and Rodri had a long-range effort blocked before De Bruyne had a penalty appeal turned down and John Stones also missed.

Yet still City were not greatly threatening and it was not until the second half they tried to inject more pace into their play.

This did open the game up slightly and Atletico almost capitalised with a couple of breaks from deep. Antoine Griezmann wasted one opening with a poor pass and Marcos Llorente chipped tamely at Ederson from another.

Yet it was a move that paid off as City began to threaten more. Gundogan had an effort deflected wide and City’s first serious chance came when De Bruyne forced Jan Oblak to save a low free-kick. Laporte then went close when he headed over from a corner.

City appealed for another penalty for a push by Reinildo on Sterling as he attempted to latch onto a De Bruyne through ball but referee Istvan Kovacs was not interested.

That proved Sterling’s final involvement as Guardiola took him off in the move that changed the game.

His decision paid off as Foden, who came on alongside Jack Grealish and Gabriel Jesus, teed up De Bruyne.

De Bruyne was quick to latch onto the opportunity and drilled a low shot past Oblak.

Foden created another chance for De Bruyne soon after following a tricky run to the byline but this time Atletico had enough players back to block.

Atletico then became the frustrated side and the game became scrappy and niggly before finally ending after several stoppages.

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LIVERPOOL TAKE FIRST-LEG LEAD OVER BENFICA AFTER LATE LUIS DIAZ STRIKE

Winger Luis Diaz marked his return to Portugal with the crucial late goal which gave Liverpool a 3-1 lead over Benfica to take back to Anfield for their Champions League quarter-final second leg.

The former Porto star, signed in January, was booed relentlessly but he responded perfectly in the 87th minute to spare the blushes of Ibrahima Konate, whose mistake just over half an hour after scoring his first goal for the club had gifted the hosts a goal they had barely deserved.

Jurgen Klopp’s side had been coasting at half-time in the Estadio da Luz after Sadio Mane’s goal doubled the advantage given to them by their centre-back’s header but having squandered numerous chances, Konate’s legs got tangled as he tried to make a clearance early in the second half and Darwin Nunez capitalised.

It was a goal which significantly changed the game for a long period, as Benfica suddenly looked the better side with Liverpool completely out of sorts, but Diaz had the final word to make the return look slightly more comfortable than it had done.

Victory saw Liverpool, who had lost on their last three visits here, equal a club record of five successive away victories in Europe.

The omens had not been great for Benfica, third in Portugal’s Primeira Liga 15 points behind leaders Porto – whom Liverpool had hammered 5-1 and 2-0 in the group stages this season.

Of the six changes Klopp made, the best one was bringing right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold in after almost three weeks out with a hamstring injury.

His pass for Diaz to head into Mane’s path for the second goal was a thing of wonder, while the one he delivered for a strangely off-colour Mohamed Salah to race onto but shoot straight at goalkeeper Odisseas Vlachodimos was almost as good.

It was the first time Klopp had started the midfield trio of Fabinho, Thiago Alcantara and Naby Keita, with the latter impressing in attacking areas.

In the opening 45 minutes the midfielder almost operated as a fourth forward, joining the attack to have four shots of his own before the break to underline the visitors’ dominance.

That they only had a two-goal lead to their name was nothing short of criminal considering the opportunities which fell to Keita, Diaz, Salah – three times – and Alexander-Arnold.

Konate eventually made the crucial 17th-minute breakthrough when Diaz won a corner which Andy Robertson swung to the far post, where the defender easily out-jumped Everton to beat the goalkeeper with a downward header.

But better was still to come as Alexander-Arnold’s crossfield ball was laid on a plate for Diaz to nod into Mane’s path and the Senegal international could not miss from close range, going past Steven Gerrard’s total of 22 Champions League goals.

Half-time brought another club record as Liverpool went 19 matches without conceding a first-half goal, although they had barely been troubled with Everton coming closest with a shot into the side-netting.

Four minutes into the second half that all changed after Konate’s calamity trying to deal with Rafa Silva’s low cross.

The goal altered the mood in the stadium and the momentum on the pitch and Klopp’s triple change of Roberto Firmino, Diogo Jota and Jordan Henderson for Mane, Salah and Thiago attempted to restore control.

Further Konate misjudgements caused more problems with Alisson Becker first having to parry Everton’s low shot and then, after the defender went chasing a ball he could never win, Nunez had a penalty claim rejected after tumbling under Virgil Van Dijk’s challenge.

The pressure seemed to be getting to even the best, with Van Dijk’s air-kick in the centre-circle a brief moment of concern while Alisson also duffed a couple of clearances.

But just when it looked like frustration would get the better of them, Keita’s perfect through-ball allowed Diaz to round the goalkeeper and slot home an angled shot.

On the last two occasions the teams met in the quarter-finals of this competition, in 1978 and 1984, Liverpool went on to lift the trophy and Diaz’s goal put them well on their way to the last four this time.

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GUARDIOLA PLAYS DOWN MANCHESTER CITY’S TREBLE CHANCES

Pep Guardiola wants his side to return injury-free from the international break but played down talk of Manchester City’s chances of winning the treble.

Phil Foden scored a stunning strike as City booked their place in the FA Cup semi-finals with a 4-1 win over Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday.

Raheem Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne (penalty) and Riyad Mahrez were also on target for the visitors, with Aymeric Laporte’s own goal levelling the scores just before half-time.

Guardiola believes winning the treble would not be an easy feat, and remains focused on the more short-term goals of his side.

“How many times has it happened in this country? Once in this lifetime, once. It’s not easy, I would love to tell you it’s not easy,” the Manchester City manager said.

“It’s better to hopefully pray that the players come back from the national teams fit because it’s tough to fight, fight, fight for many things.

“Now the players have 15 days off and they arrive (back) two days before they have to play Burnley, Atletico Madrid, Liverpool, then Atletico Madrid.

“When you have 10 points clear to the second (placed team in the Premier League) with three games to play and are in the finals of the Champions League and the FA Cup, after (that) we can talk about that (the treble).

“But in the position that we are (in) it’s far, far away (from the treble), the best intention is to be focused on Burnley.”

Guardiola admitted that everyone needs a break, with City not due to play again until April 2 against Burnley after they secured an enticing FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool at Wembley.

“We are there so I think everyone needs a little break, to not see each other for a while would be good, to see new faces for the manager, some players will go on holiday for one week,” Guardiola said.

“And after we come back we know what we have, we have the quarter-finals of the Champions League, we have the Premier League, we have the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

“The nice thing for the team is that fact, the last few weeks of the season and we are fighting for it, we are there for the titles and this is so nice.

“I would have signed (up for that) at the start of the season – to be here in front of you, in the later stages, in this position. We’ll see what happens.”

Ralph Hasenhuttl also is welcoming the international break, as his side head into it on the back of four successive defeats in all competitions.

“The international break always comes at a good time. It is an intense time. It is good to have,” the Southampton manager said.

“(We will) recover. Recharge the batteries. We have nine games to go.

“(We) have work to do to finish as high as possible. We need this break now to get a bit of rest and we come back with full batteries ready to go.”