Football: ‘Flat’ Newcastle hammer Saints, who sack Hasenhuttl
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Manager Ralph Hasenhuttl's future at Southampton is under threat, following a slump in form that has left the Saints in the relegation zone.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – Expectations at St James’ Park have changed so much that, two days before the one-year anniversary of his arrival at a then relegation-threatened Newcastle United, manager Eddie Howe said his third-placed Magpies were “flat” and “not at our best” despite a 4-1 away win over Southampton on Sunday.
That “flat” performance, however, sealed his opposite number’s fate as Ralph Hasenhuttl was sacked by Southampton hours later on Monday. The loss, the Saints’ sixth in nine games, left them in 18th spot on 12 points.
“Hasenhuttl departs having made a significant contribution to the club. However, we now believe it is an appropriate time to make a change,” Southampton said in a statement.
The 55-year-old Austrian had said after the match that he was not concerned about his future despite the club’s dismal run and position in the table.
“I’m never concerned, I always try to do my job,” said Hasenhuttl, who was appointed in early December 2018.
“I have taken a lot of decisions in my job since I’m here. The good thing is, I don’t have to take this one.”
The mood is completely different over at Newcastle, who produced another ruthlessly impressive display at St Mary’s Stadium, with Miguel Almiron bagging his seventh goal in as many games.
Quickfire second-half goals from substitute Chris Wood and Joe Willock all but sealed a fourth straight win for Newcastle, with Bruno Guimaraes adding a late flourish after Romain Perraud’s consolation goal for the hosts. The result lifted the Magpies, who extended their unbeaten run to nine matches, to third place on 27 points from 14 games.
“I’m very pleased with the result,” Howe said.
“The performance wasn’t our best but I’m not going to pick it to pieces. We were not at our best but we scored four wonderful goals.
“It was a tough game for us, Southampton dropped into bottom three yesterday, so we knew they would show a reaction.
“It feels a little flat because we didn’t hit the heights which we have in other weeks but we were clinical when we needed to be.”
After four straight defeats, Southampton had strung together a three-match unbeaten run before losing 1-0 to Crystal Palace on Oct 29.
And they desperately needed a response against Newcastle but were clearly second-best throughout the contest.
Southampton have won only once since the start of September – a 1-0 victory at Bournemouth – and, perhaps presciently, Hasenhuttl had conceded he did not see a way out of the slump in form.
“At the moment, no,” he said.
“I cannot say the effort was not there. Until the last minute, we tried and we put in a lot of effort on the pitch.
“You cannot say the team is not fighting for it but, in the moment, we are not taking the reward for the effort on the pitch. It’s a reflection of what we’ve done so far. It has not been good enough.”
Southampton host Sheffield Wednesday and Newcastle welcome Crystal Palace in the League Cup on Wednesday. REUTERS
