Southampton extend Leicester's miserable away record with comfortable win on south coast
Southampton 3 Leicester City 0: The hosts' recent struggles in front of goal seemed like a distant memory as they eased past Claudio Ranieri's sorry champions
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Leicester City have still not won an away league match as Premier League Champions and on this evidence they never will. Facing another team struggling for consistency in the lower reaches of mid-table, Claudio Ranieri's men allowed Southampton the freedom of St Mary's, and Saints gleefully accepted the chance to rebuild their own confidence after four successive league defeats. James Ward-Prowse put Claude Puel's side ahead after 26 minutes, Jay Rodriguez added a second after an error by Leicester's Robert Huth and Dusan Tadic made it 3-0 with a late penalty.
Southampton will feel they still let the hapless Foxes off lightly, but will be pleased to have kept a clean sheet without the departed Jose Fonte, now with West Ham, and after losing Virgil van Dijk, who limped off with an ankle injury after 55 minutes and is a doubt for Wednesday's visit to Liverpool in the EFL Cup semi-final second leg
In contrast Huth and Wes Morgan in the Leicester rearguard looking as clumsy and uncertain as they had been sure-footed and dominant last season. In front of them, the midfield offered little protection against wave after wave of attacks from the home side. They have now conceded more goals than they let in all last season and Ranieri admitted that relegation is a possibility. “Yes, it is realistic and for this reason I want 40 points,” he said. “Our target was 40 points from the beginning of the season and I don't change that.”
He also blamed his own change of the team's familiar 4-4-2 formation to a midfield diamond for yesterday's display, but that did not explain all the below-par individual performances as the chances for Southampton began to mount up. Nathan Redmond, unchallenged after Fuchs mistimed his jump, nodded over the bar, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg half-volleyed high and Redmond's first time shot from ten yards was undernit just enough for Schmeichel to save after Leicester allowed a low cross from the left to travel all the way across their penalty area.
A Saints goal was coming and after 26 minutes Redmond fed Cedric Soares down the right and he pulled the ball back to the edge of the penalty area, where Ward-Prowse hit a first-time shot that curled away from Kasper Schmeichel and into the far corner of the net for his second goal of the season.
Ward-Prowse then turned creator in the 38th minute. His inswinging free kick from the left was aimed towards Maya Yoshida but although Huth got his head to the ball first, he could only nod it down to Rodriguez, who thrashed it past Morgan and Schmeichel with his left foot.
Last season Leicester had come back from a similar deficit here to snatch a draw thanks to two late goals by Vardy, and their chances seemed to improve when Virgil Van Dijk, reportedly a target for a number of clubs, fell awkwardly after the forward trod on his foot, eventually being replaced by Jack Stephens, 22, making only his second Premier League appearance. But instead of taking advantage, the visitors sloppily offered Saints a third as Christian Fuchs' misdirected pass was easily intercepted by Hojbjerg, who had only Schmeichel to beat but shot wildly and well wide.
Eventually Leicester threw enough men forward to get a sight of Fraser Forster's goal but to no avail. Danny Drinkwater, another player struggling to recapture last season's imperious form, sent a dipping volley over the crossbar before Morgan squandered their best chance, half-volleying over when unmarked after Huth had headed down.
That might not have been Morgan's most embarrassing moment as he headed the ball into his own net from a free kick two minutes later only for Michael Oliver, the referee, to rule Yoshida offside. But his miserable day still managed to take a turn for the worse when he was outpaced by Shane Long and brought the Irishman down, Tadic slamming home the penalty with relish. “I am happy to stop the losses in the Premier League,” Puel said. “It was a game between two teams in difficulty and it was important to play with confidence and good spirit.”
Teams
Southampton (4-3-3): Forster; Cedric, Yoshida, van Dijk (Stephens 55), Bertrand; Hojberg (Clasie 73), Romeu, Ward-Prowse; Redmond, Rodriguez (Long 79), Tadic.
Subs not used: Taylor, Martina, McQueen, Sims.
Leicester City (4-1-2-1-2): Schmeichel; Simpson, Morgan, Huth, Fuchs; Ndidi; Drinkwater, Mendy (Albrighton ht); Okazaki (Musa, 63); Gray, Vardy.
Subs not used: Zieler, Chilwell, King, Kapustka, Benalouane.
Referee: M Oliver
Attendance: 30,548
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