James Ward-Prowse’s brilliant free-kick in first-half stoppage time gave Southampton a massive 1-0 win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday night.
The relegation-threatened Saints, bottom of the Premier League table, secured victory having lost three consecutive league games.
Interim manager makes a perfect start
This was also the first game in charge of caretaker manager Ruben Selles after the club sacked Nathan Jones last week following a losing spell.
However, the result is a major blow for Chelsea in their aspirations for a Champions League spot.
The Blues have just won 2 of their last 14 games in all competitions. Graham Potter’s side are in turmoil despite huge spending in the January transfer window.
Despite dominating the first half and making changes at half-time, the hosts looked disjointed, barely playing as a team and never advancing over the course of the game.
The away team took the lead minutes before kick-off when Ward Prowse’s signature free-kick sailed past Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arizzabalaga near the post.
Raheem Sterling, who came on as a first-half substitute, was guilty of missing out on three glorious chances to level the game, but each time the Englishman was turned away by Southampton’s last-minute defence.
First Ainsley Maitland-Niles blocked Sterling’s shot on 68 minutes and 3 minutes later Romeo Lavia deflected the winger’s shot off the line.
Kai Havertz and Mykhailo Mudryk came on, but Chelsea failed to score, showing how badly they miss a renowned striker in their squad.
Southampton could have closed the game on 73 minutes, but Kepa blocked Stuart Armstrong’s close range well to spare Chelsea blushes in front of their hometown faithful.
César Azpilizueta had to be stretchered off with six minutes to go after sustaining a serious head injury.
Despite 12-minute injury time, Potter’s side failed to restore parity as Southampton held on to an improbable victory to give themselves a chance in the relegation battle.
Meanwhile, Chelsea are 10th with 31 points from 23 games, 10 behind Newcastle United in fourth.
Photo credit: IMAGO / Colorsport
