Man City 3-1 Southampton
by James Nalton
at Eastlands

SOUTHAMPTON faced Manchester City in the EFL Cup as they looked to recover from last week’s 9-0 drubbing at the hands of Leicester City.

It seemed inevitable that Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side would be knocked out, and a goal from Nicolas Otamendi plus a brace from Sergio Aguero made sure they were, but there were signs of hope for Saints in the second half.

Southampton didn’t sell out their ticket allocation, but it was testament to their supporters that any made the trip north at all. 

They will have to do the same on Saturday when they face City again in the league — a cruel twist of fate on the back of that record-breaking loss.

“It was a defeat, but it was a reaction and after a very difficult night on Friday,” said Hasenhuttl. 

“To come here and play against one of the strongest sides on the planet, you can think of easier challenges, but the guys were good and committed.”

Southampton fans tried to raise their spirits, and those of their side, just as Hasenhuttl has had to do in the past few days.

They celebrated their first shot on target with a song dedicated to it and aimed a chant at Aguero suggesting he wasn’t as good as Jamie Vardy, the Leicester striker who put three past them on Friday.

The visitors improved in the second half when they finally made inroads into opposition territory. Sofiane Boufal created a chance for himself, forcing Claudio Bravo into a save, before Jack Stephens gave the travelling fans a goal to cheer, heading in James Ward-Prowse’s corner.

“We feared it would happen again,” Hasenhuttl admitted.

“We looked a bit passive but defending was the most important thing today. 

“The players are tired because they invested so much, but they have shown they want to get back on track.”