Southampton’s place in the Premier League next season was confirmed on Sunday despite their cruel, late defeat against Manchester City.
The Saints headed into the game three points ahead of Swansea City, with a 10-goal swing required for the pair to swap places and subsequently land Mark Hughes’ side in the relegation zone on the final day of the season.
Swansea succumbed to a 2-1 defeat at home to Stoke City, however, whilst Saints were harshly beaten late on by Pep Guardiola’s champions.
Southampton’s encounter with City was a cagey one in large parts, with the visitors enjoying large spells of possession throughout but failing to truly penetrate a strong back-line from Saints.
Wesley Hoedt came closest for Saints in the first-half as his header ricocheted off the crossbar.
Gabriel Jesus netted the decisive goal in the game and it came in the dying moments. The young Brazilian forward latched on to Kevin De Bruyne’s impressive lobbed through ball to delicately place the ball above Alex McCarthy and into the net.
City reached the 100-point mark on the day and consigned Saints to another defeat. However, Hughes’ men won’t mind all that much, as they look ahead to another season of Premier League football.
Here are our player ratings for Southampton following their 1-0 defeat.
