26 April 2025
Southampton 1 Fulham 2
It must be a strange feeling playing football with your fate already decided. Motivating players into giving it their all is no easy job in these situations. Southampton welcomed Fulham to St Mary’s hoping to be able to play with a freedom they have yet to find this campaign. However, in reality, they are just swimming in waters with predators they are not equipped to deal with.
Southampton have had twice as many managers as they have wins this campaign. That is never a good formula, whatever level you are playing at. Willian almost got an early goal as he checked onto his right foot and looked to bend one in the far corner. We have seen him score from this position so many times in the Premier League, but on this occasion, it went narrowly wide.
The Saints won a free-kick out wide and Stephens rose to head it home to muted cheers from the home fans. It is quite sad how many empty seats there were in the stadium, with many fans already checked out of this campaign. This is another contributory factor for how their season has gone, it has hardly been a cauldron of noise at St Mary’s.
Things could have gone so differently in this one as Sulemana raced to a ball and got there before Andersen, who collided with the winger. However, instead of going down, he stayed on his feet and fired off a shot to the near post but Leno got down well to make a save. There is no doubting had the Southampton player gone down, it was a stonewall penalty.
It was a half of very few chances but the caretaker managers would have just been pleased to see their side come in at the interval with their lead intact. Add to that a rare clean sheet, something that the fans had seen very little of this season. Fulham really had not got into this game at all and Marco Silva was going to have to read them the riot act to spark them into life.
The Fulham boss opted to bring on Traore at the break and he immediately started to make a difference in this game. His pace and trickery was causing all sort of problems for the hosts. He picked the ball up out wide and drove into the box, finally laying it off into the path of Willian. His first-time shot rattled the post and came back out into play.
Southampton had not given up the ghost in this game and knew that their best form of defence was attack. Sulemana continued to tease the Fulham back line, before scooping a cross into the back post. It was half-cleared by The Cottagers and broke to Walker-Peters, whose shot seemed destined for the net before Leno made an impressive save to claw it out.
Archer then got to the byline but his attempted cross smashed against the outside of the post. It was fair to accept that Leno was not expecting a shot from this angle, neither was the Southampton man. It was a complete mishit but the chances of it sneaking in at that near post were slim to nil. However, the home fans were happy to see their team looking threatening in the final third.
Fulham came forward as Iwobi hit a sweet cross from the touchline towards Smith Rowe. The control from the former Arsenal man was sublime, as he killed it dead in front of him. It allowed him to get a shot away, which took a deflection off Bednarek, looping it over Ramsdale and into the far corner of the goal. Sadly for The Saints fans, their faces said ‘here we go again’.
The visitors grew in confidence from this point and felt this game was there for the taking. Traore did well out wide again before finding Smith Rowe, just inside the box. He got a shot away that was heading into the far corner but Ramsdale made an excellent save to turn it around the post at the expense of a corner for Fulham.
Traore was proving to be a real thorn in the side of The Saints. Manning and Stephens just could not cope with the former Wolves winger. He stood up a cross into the middle and Jimenez attacked it but his header was straight at Ramsdale. You felt that was a huge, missed chance to win this game, either side of the keeper and it was a goal.
Deep into added time Traore was at it again. He clipped in a low cross into the box and Sessegnon’s header went right into the far corner with a full-stretch Ramsdale unable to get anywhere near it. It was a massive win for The Cottagers and the three points kept their European hopes alive. Marco Silva’s side now had their fate in their own hands for the remainder of the campaign.
Did you enjoy this article? Please share to your social media. With one click you can help spread the word and make Solid at the Back the one-stop shop for all Premier League fans.