Southampton relegated earliest in Premier League history after Spurs defeat
Southampton secured the earliest relegation in Premier League history after a double by Brennan Johnson sent Tottenham to a comfortable win at home in North London.
The Welsh striker made it 1-0 after a rebound from Djed Spence in the 13th minute, before doubling the lead three minutes before half-time by nodding home a perfect header from James Maddison.
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Mateus Fernandes reduced the score to 1-2 in the 90th minute, but Mathys Tel secured the victory with a penalty goal in injury time – his first Premier League goal for Spurs. Thus, Southampton became the first team ever to be relegated with seven games remaining, an unwanted record that beats the previous one in six games.
Demonstrations and frustration among Spurs fans
A subdued atmosphere hung over Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before the game, following new protests against chairman Daniel Levy and dissatisfaction with manager Ange Postecoglou. Spurs have just one win in their last ten home games in the league and were fifth bottom of the table going into this round.
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Despite this, Spurs started strongly, with Johnson and Lucas Bergvall causing major problems for the Southampton defence. Cristian Romero also tested goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale with a powerful header from a corner.
Southampton close to equalising – before Johnson scored
Kamaldeen Sulemana could have equalised for Southampton when he got a chance deep inside the box, but his shot was saved on the post by Pedro Porro.
Spurs responded immediately by picking up the pace, with Johnson netting his 10th league goal of the season. Romero was again stopped by Ramsdale, while Bergvall thought he had made it 2-0 – but the goal was annulled after a four-minute VAR check for offside.
Postecoglou showed clear frustration on the sidelines, but got a smile on his face when Johnson made it 2-0 just before half-time.
Too little, too late – Southampton are relegated
Southampton controlled more of the second half, but were unable to threaten until Fernandes reduced the score to 1-2 late in the game. Ramsdale kept Spurs at bay with five saves, including good involvements against Spence and Dominic Solanke. But when Welington fouled Johnson in the box, Tel scored the penalty that secured Spurs’ victory – and confirmed Southampton’s relegation.
With only 10 points, Southampton are doomed to be relegated to the Championship. They now need at least two more points to avoid equalling Derby County’s record for fewest points in a Premier League season (11 in 2007/08).
Tottenham’s 11th win this season lifted them to 13th in the table with 37 points.
Dejan Kulusevski was still out of the squad due to his injury. But Lucas Bergvall took his place from the start.
Before the match, supporters showed their discontent by protesting in the streets of London. In the firing line were the club’s owners Enic Group and Daniel Levy.
“Out with Levy” and “Time for Change” could be read on the banners.
The BBC writes that the protest was organized by the group Change For Tottenham. Fans could buy flags and scarves, and the proceeds went to the Tottenham Food Band and Noah’s Children’s Hospice.
In mid-February, supporters staged a similar protest against the owners.
With barely a quarter of an hour played, Spurs took the lead through Brennan Johnson, who was played forward by Djed Spence.
The game started and Tottenham established pressure. After 13 minutes, they were in the lead through Brennan Johnson.
And in the 33rd minute of the game, Lucas Bergvall presented himself – by scoring 2-0 for Spurs. But an offside situation led to a goal – and after an eternity long VAR review, the Bergvall cone was ruled out. The review took a full six minutes.
“This is taking so long. Supporters of both teams are pissed,” said Sky reporter Declan Olley on their broadcast.
Tottenham, however, had to celebrate a couple of minutes later when Brennan Johnson lobbed in 2-0. This goal was approved.
At half-time, Southampton scored a consolation goal through Matheus Fernandes, but shortly afterwards Mathys Tel made it 3-1 on a penalty and then the referee blew the game off.
The loss to Southampton means that the newcomers are the first team to exit the Premier League, although there are seven games remaining. Which is a record. Never before has a club been ready to go out with so many games again.
