Charlie Austin backed up his midweek brace in the Europa League with another goal to secure Southampton’s first win of the 2016-17 Premier League season.
It was a slow start to proceedings with neither side able to create any meaningful chances early on, yet it was the home side who were getting on top in the latter stages of the opening period.
Nathan Redmond missed a golden opportunity in the final minutes of the opening half and the trend continued into the second half, with the home fans frustrated and anxious.
It would be Austin who would grab the game’s only goal, pouncing on a deflected Dusan Tadić cross to break his drought of 10 league matches without a goal. The visitors pushed after going down but were unable to get on top of a superior Southampton outfit.
Saints finally break their duck
It’s been a frustrating season for Southampton so far, falling short of expectations and struggling to put together anything near a 90 minute performance. This match was not to the level that would be required to see the Saints replicate last season’s sixth place finish but it was enough to finally earn a much needed three points.
Confidence seemed more evident in the side after a comfortable 3-0 win over Sparta Prague in the Europa League on Thursday, but there were still patches in which creativity was lacking. The win will lift some pressure off of manager Claude Puel, who was starting to face criticism over the slow start to the campaign.
Swansea missing their departed stars
The absence of Ashley Williams and André Ayew is growing by the week. Williams’ defensive leadership and organisation was pivotal to Swansea last season and could have been invaluable against a Saints team who quickened the tempo and played with swift ball movement.
Fernando Llorente operated as the lone striker and was isolated, with his side sitting back and looking to exploit the hosts on the counter-attack. The introduction of Jefferson Montero sparked the Swans’ attack into life but his pace and creativity was not compliment by a fellow teammate in the attacking third.
However, Swansea fans will be buoyed by the debut of Borja Bastón with the club-record signing joining the fray for the final 10 minutes. The £15 million centre-forward didn’t have time enough time to make a decisive impact, but the supporters will be hopefully he can start in Swansea’s next match against Manchester City in the League Cup on Wednesday night.
Puel sticks with rotation policy
Rotation remains a clear ploy from Puel, and after making seven changes for their comprehensive win in the Europa League, there were a further six changes for this match.
Ensuring a fresh starting XI is a shrewd policy, however pundits and fans are questioning the regularity and large number of changes each week. Form and continuity is a general rule of thumb in football which has worked well for a number of Premier League managers, but Puel is going against the grain. If he continues with this method, only time will tell whether it pays off in the long-term – it will be intriguing nonetheless.
Austin, who retained his place from the win against Sparta Prague after his two goals, is an example of staying true to form and it will be intriguing to see whether Puel is willing to abandon the strike partnership of Shane Long and Nathan Redmond in coming weeks.
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