SOU vs WAT
Match Centre
SOU vs WAT As It Happened
Key moments so far
- Cucho scores twice in opening half to secure victory for Watford
- Elyounoussi's goal not enough for Saints to make a comeback
- Perraud and Smallbone entered the starting XI in place of Livramento and Broja
- HALF TIME: Saints 1-2 Watford
FULL TIME: Saints 1-2 Watford
A disappointing afternoon at St Mary's where two first half goals from Cucho Hernández saw Watford emerge victorious, aiding their survival hopes for this season. Moi Elyounoussi's 45th minute goal wasn't enough for the hosts to claw a result back, despite plenty of opportunities presenting themselves in the second half. On to next Sunday and the FA Cup ...
Watford substitution: Ken Sema replaces Juan Camilo Hernández Suárez
Southampton substitution: Shane Long replaces Armando Broja
Third and final substitution for Saints as Long replaces Broja after receiving a knock to the head.
Watford substitution: Craig Cathcart replaces Kiko Femenía
VAR Decision: Penalty not awarded for Southampton [] was confirmed
A brief pause as VAR is consulted for a potential handball. Seven additional minutes to be played at St Mary's ...
Broja forces fingertip save
A nice delivery from Redmond who works his way into the box before firing the ball into an awaiting Broja in the centre of goal, his header is on target but an outstretched hand from the Watford goalkeeper sends the ball behind for a Saints corner.
Watford substitution: Joshua King replaces Emmanuel Dennis
Hodgson makes his first substitution of the afternoon.
Ward-Prowse edges over
It's a looping effort from the captain who is just inches away from finding the equaliser as his free-kick from the edge of the box skims Foster's crossbar.
Yellow Card for Moussa Sissoko (Watford)
Saints awarded a dangerous free-kick and Sissoko finds himself in the book.
Wasted opportunity?
It looked as though Watford managed to thwart the Saints attack before the ball fell to Elyounoussi but the Norwegian took too long, eventually losing the ball and the advantage.
Ten minutes left ...
Just ten minutes left at St Mary's for Southampton to find an equaliser against Roy Hodgson's Watford.
Yellow Card for Jan Bednarek (Southampton)
Bednarek finds himself in the book for a sliding challenge on Dennis.
Cucho shoots over the crossbar
An opportunity for the Watford player to get his hat-trick evades him as his effort from outside the area goes well over Forster's goal.
Southampton substitution: Nathan Redmond replaces Oriol Romeu
A second substitution for Saints.
Kucka forces Forster save
A lovely effort from the edge of the box sees Kucka strike goalwards but the Saints goalkeeper times it well, jumping to his left with outstretched hands to clear the threat.
Pedro fires wide
While Saints have looked the more likely of the two sides to score in the second half so far, Joāo Pedro does attempt to tries his luck from range. But his weak, bouncing shot edges well wide of Forster's post.
Broja denied
A long ball from Romeu finds Broja charging into the box, the Albanian looks to release a shot but is pushed hard by the Watford defence as the ball heads behind for another Southampton corner.
Yellow Card for Oriol Romeu (Southampton)
Romeu is the next player to be carded for a late challenge on Kucka.
Salisu heads wide
Though Adams does well to get back to his feet, Saints are awarded a free-kick on the right flank with Ward-Prowse sending a beautiful ball into a packed area. Salisu is the man to get his head to it, but his effort falls wide of the post.
Yellow Card for Juan Camilo Hernández Suárez (Watford)
The two time goal scorer finds himself in the book for some persistent shirt tugging on Elyounoussi.
A messy opening to the second-half
Muffled calls from the travelling support as Joāo Pedro attempts to get past Salisu but hits the ground and loses the ball. Dismissed by Graham Scott.
Finding a balance
A rather subdued start to the second-half at St Mary's with neither side making their intent clear. A.couple of corners fall the way of the home side but fail to create any real pressure. More needed.
Southampton substitution: Armando Broja replaces Will Smallbone
Hasenhüttl makes his first substitution of the match.
HALF TIME: Saints 1-2 Watford
A challenging first half at St Mary's where crucial defensive errors mean Ralph Hasenhüttl's side are trailing at the break. A brilliant performance from a struggling Watford side searching for survival, pouncing on opportunities as and when they appear. A vital goal shortly before the break from Moi Elyounoussi means Saints have a lifeline heading into the second half. Come on you Saints!
Elyounoussi pulls one back
Saints awarded a free-kick on the right hand side of the pitch. A delightful delivery from Ward-Prowse finds the head of Adams who chips the ball onto Elyounoussi at the far post with his dribbling effort finding the back of the net to give Saints a lifeline before the break.
GOOOAL!!!
Mohamed Elyounoussi (44’) | 1 – 2
Perraud's looping effort goes wide
Another corner for Southampton, another opportunity for Ward-Prowse to feed the ball into a packed penalty area. Another strong delivery from the captain who finds Adams inside the box, the Scotland international fails to control it and the ball goes out to Perraud who tries his luck from range. The ball curls down as it nears goal but not enough to find the back of the net.
Kucka denied by Forster
Another counter-attack opportunity welcomed with open arms by the visitors, Sissoko feeds Kucka who drives into the area before releasing a shot in front of an approaching Forster who does enough to clear.
Foster blocks Walker-Peters effort
Walker-Peters looks to pull one back for the hosts as he sends a driving effort but Foster managed to deflect it behind for a corner, which amounts to nothing.
Cucho gets a second
Kucka loops a ball into Cucho who volleys in from close range at the far post. A big effort needed from Hasenhüttl's men now.
GOAL
Juan Camilo Hernández Suárez (34’) | 0 – 2
Salisu comes close
Salisu nearly gets a chance at redemption as Ward-Prowse fires in a tantalising corner from the right but the Ghanaian's header skims over the crossbar.
Pedro fires over
Watford hit the counter once more, this time through João Pedro who makes a promising run before releasing a thunderous shot which fires high and wide into the travelling support.
Walker-Peters shows off his footwork
A dazzling run from Walker-Peters on the right flank sees him dance into the box before releasing a shot at the near post, the ball goes behind for a corner but it's a positive sign for Saints who look to regain momentum.
Break in play
Some time for the Southampton players to regain some composure as Cucho is down receiving treatment.
Watford ignited by goal
The goal has breathed a new lease of life into Hodgson's side, leaving Saints' defence scrambling as they concede yet another corner.
Cucho gives Watford the lead
Another vital error from the Saints defence sees Saints concede early on at St Mary's. Salisu's weak pass falls for Cucho who sends the ball past Forster with ease and while Salisu does his best to get back and clear from the line, it's too little too late and advantage Watford.
GOAL
Juan Camilo Hernández Suárez (13’) | 0 – 1
First sign of life from Watford
A slip up from the Saints defence sees João Pedro presented with an opportunity directly in front of Forster but Bednarek does enough to clear with an outstretched leg to send the ball behind for a corner.
Positive early signs
It's been a good start for the men in red, who are passing the ball around the pitch nicely. Smallbone, playing in a higher position than usual, loses the ball but Walker-Peters does well to recover on the right flank.
Elyounoussi header cleared off the line
Stuart Armstrong delivers a delightful ball into Elyounoussi at the far post, his header is directed goalwards but cleared off the line by Samir. Strong intent in the opening stages from Ralph Hasenhüttl's men.
Saints apply early pressure
The visitors concede a free-kick early on leaving captain Ward-Prowse with an opportunity to loop a ball in from the left, it's a strong delivery but Foster leaves his line and punches clear.
Up and running at St Mary's 😇
Stuart Armstrong get things started in SO14.
Counting down to kick-off ⏰
13.56HOME ❤️
13.45
Watford line-up confirmed
Starting XI: Foster, Louza, João Pedro, Kamara, Sissoko [c], Femenia, Samir, Dennis, Kabasele, Hernández, Kucka.
Subs: Bachmann, Troost-Ekong, King, Cleverley, Masina, Sema, Cathcart, Kalu, Kayembe.
13.05Saints line-up confirmed 😇
Starting XI: Forster, Walker-Peters, Bednarek, Salisu, Perraud, Romeu, Ward-Prowse [c], Smallbone, S. Armstrong, Adams, Elyounoussi.
Subs: Caballero, Stephens, Valery, Diallo, Redmond, Walcott, Broja, A. Armstrong, Long.
13.00STAT ATTACK 🔢
Ché Adams has scored in five of his last six Premier League games against promoted sides, netting in all four such appearances this season.
12.45
12.25Unfortunately, defeats hurt and defeats leave scars, so we’ve got to do our best to put that behind us and prepare for the next game, because we do start 0-0, we do start on a level playing field."
roy hodgsonon bouncing back at southampton
11.43Two teams are meeting each other who haven't been the most successful during the week, so it will be important who makes it better, analyses better and finds better answers for the weekend. Hopefully we are."
ralph hasenhüttlon watford visit
FLASHBACK: Watford 0-1 Saints
Saints emerged victorious in the reverse fixture back in October, where a 20th minute goal from Ché Adams was the difference at Vicarage Road.
11.28
❤️ MATCHDAY 🖤
It's back to St Mary's for Ralph Hasenhüttl's men who will be looking to bounce back from their midweek defeat to Newcastle United, ending their impressive home run in all competitions. It won't be an easy task, though, as Watford continue their bid for Premier League survival. Come on you Saints!
08.10SOU vs WAT Line Ups
Southampton
| 44 |
Fraser Forster (GK)
|
|---|---|
| 35 |
Jan Bednarek
|
| 22 |
Mohammed Salisu
|
| 15 |
Romain Perraud
|
| 2 |
Kyle Walker-Peters
|
| 17 |
Stuart Armstrong
|
| 24 |
Mohamed Elyounoussi
|
| 6 |
Oriol Romeu
Nathan Redmond (74′)
|
| 8 |
James Ward-Prowse (C)
|
| 20 |
William Smallbone
Armando Broja (45′)
Shane Long (94′)
|
| 10 |
Che Adams
|
Substitutes
| 5 |
Jack Stephens |
|---|---|
| 43 |
Yan Valery |
| 27 |
Ibrahima Diallo |
| 13 |
Willy Caballero |
| 9 |
Adam Armstrong |
| 7 |
Shane Long |
| 11 |
Nathan Redmond |
| 18 |
Armando Broja |
| 32 |
Theo Walcott |
Watford
| 1 |
Ben Foster (GK)
|
|---|---|
| 21 |
Kiko Femenía
Craig Cathcart (91′)
|
| 22 |
Samir
|
| 14 |
Hassane Kamara
|
| 27 |
Christian Kabasele
|
| 19 |
Moussa Sissoko (C)
|
| 6 |
Imrân Louza
|
| 33 |
Juraj Kucka
|
| 29 |
Cucho Hernández
Ken Sema (97′)
|
| 25 |
Emmanuel Dennis
Joshua King (87′)
|
| 10 |
João Pedro
|
Substitutes
| 7 |
Joshua King |
|---|---|
| 39 |
Edo Kayembe |
| 8 |
Tom Cleverley |
| 5 |
William Troost-Ekong |
| 28 |
Samuel Kalu |
| 26 |
Daniel Bachmann |
| 12 |
Ken Sema |
| 15 |
Craig Cathcart |
| 11 |
Adam Masina |
SOU vs WAT Match Stats
Head to Head Stats
-
Possession (%)6238
-
Shots139
-
Shots on target75
-
Corners113
-
Passes Complete386203
