Brighton added a touch more to Southampton’s season-long misery with a 4-0 drubbing of their south coast neighbors at St. Mary’s Stadium on Saturday.
WATCH – Southampton v Brighton full match replay
Joao Pedro opened the scoring the 23rd minute and though Brighton were in complete control from the very beginning, it wasn’t until the second half when the floodgates opened on Saints (yet again). Once they did, Georginio Rutter (56th minute), Kaoru Mitoma (71st) and Jack Hinshelwood (82nd) got in on the goal-scoring fun in the second half. The victory pushes Brighton (40 points) up to 8th in the Premier League table, now just three points behind Bournemouth in 5th place (expected to be a Champions League place this season).
After a promising start to the campaign (despite all of the defeats), Southampton have now given up four goals in a game four times since December began and the writing on the wall is very clear for all to read now. With 12 games left to play, Saints (9 points) are 13 points adrift of safety after Wolves beat Bournemouth on Saturday.
From 0-7, to 7-0 (in two games), Brighton on a wild ride
If you can think back that far, it was only three weeks ago that Nottingham Forest demolished Brighton 7-0. It was the kind of result (and performance) that could have tanked the Seagulls’ season and seen them slump their way to a comfortable mid-table finish and miss out on the chase for European football altogether. But Fabian Hurzler’s side has responded magnificently, beating Chelsea 3-0 last weekend and putting four past Saints this weekend. Yankuba Minteh has done his part with 2 goals, 1 assist and Kaoru Mitoma looks a constant threat with a pair of goals himself. Brighton have so much attacking talent that it’s typically not a question of, will they score, but when and how many? That said, their next four games are all against teams in the top half of the table, including three others also in the race for Europe. Four points currently separates 5th from 10th, which should provide an incredible run-in between now and May 25.
Player ratings - Southampton vs Brighton
What’s next?
- Brighton vs Bournemouth — Tuesday, 2:30 pm ET
- Chelsea vs Southampton — Tuesday, 3:15 pm ET
Southampton vs Brighton live updates - by Andy Edwards
Southampton vs Brighton final score: 0-4
Goalscorers: Joao Pedro (23'), Georginio Rutter (57'), Kaoru Mitoma (71'), Jack Hinshelwood (82')
GOAL! Southampton 0-4 Brighton: Hinshelwood hooks home another for the Seagulls (82')
GOAL! Southampton 0-3 Brighton: Mitoma is faster than everyone and scores (71')
GOAL! Southampton 0-2 Brighton: Rutter taps home Minteh’s cross (57')
GOAL! Southampton 0-1 Brighton: Pedro lifts it over Ramsdale with ease (23')
Southampton starting lineup
Ramsdale - Bree, Bednarek, Aribo - Walker-Peters, Dibling, Ugochukwu, Welington - Fernandes, Archer, Sulemana
Brighton starting lineup
Verbruggen - Lamptey, Van Hecke, Webster, Hinshelwood - Baleba, Ayari, Rutter - Minteh, Mitoma, Joao Pedro
How to watch Southampton vs Brighton live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 10am ET Saturday (February 22)
Venue: St Mary’s Stadium — Southampton
TV Channel: Peacock
Streaming: Premier League on Peacock
Ivan Juric’s side lost 3-1 at home to Bournemouth last weekend to remain 10 points from safety with 13 games to play. The Croatian coach has failed to turn things around since replacing Russell Martin in January and Saints are now fully focused on trying to restore some pride between now and May.
On the other hand Brighton are back in form as they battered Chelsea 3-0 last week and have responded well to their 7-0 hammering at Nottingham Forest. Fabian Hurzeler’s side are full of talented attackers and they should have plenty of chances against Saints as they aim to stay in the hunt for European qualification.
Southampton team news, focus
Saints have totally changed their style of play and their risky man-for-man system is very much a work in progress. Especially in midfield. They’ve had some joy creating more chances with Paul Onuachu and Kamaldeen Sulemana linking up well in attack. Aaron Ramsdale kept the score down against Bournemouth and Saints will be hoping Harwood-Bellis can return in defense.
OUT: Taylor Harwood-Bellis (ankle), Ryan Fraser (undisclosed), Ross Stewart (lower leg), Adam Lallana (hamstring)
Brighton team news, focus
Mitoma, Minteh, Rutter and Welbeck ripped Chelsea to pieces last Friday and they’ll be licking their chops at facing the worst defense in the Premier League. It’s all about balance for Brighton and if Baleba can control midfield and win the ball back early, the Seagulls will soar.
OUT: Lewis Dunk (abdominal), Igor Julio (hamstring), Jason Steele (shoulder), James Milner (thigh), Ferdi Kadioglu (toe)
Southampton vs Brighton prediction
This game should see plenty of chances at both ends and it feels like the Seagulls will get the job done. Southampton 2-3 Brighton.
