EFL Cup: 3 things we clearly learnt about Southampton after their 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United | OneFootball

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Football League World

·1 February 2023

EFL Cup: 3 things we clearly learnt about Southampton after their 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United

Article image:EFL Cup: 3 things we clearly learnt about Southampton after their 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United

Southampton exited the EFL Cup at the semi-final stage after they were beaten 2-1 by Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Tuesday night, with the Magpies winning 3-1 on aggregate.

The Saints made the trip to Tyneside 1-0 down from the first leg, with Joelinton’s late goal at St Mary’s last week giving Newcastle the advantage heading into the tie.


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Nathan Jones’ men got off to the worst possible start when Sean Longstaff gave the hosts the lead after just five minutes before the midfielder then added a second 16 minutes later to seemingly seal his side’s progression.

The Saints responded well and Che Adams halved the deficit in the 29th minute with an excellent 25-yard strike but despite the Magpies being reduced to 10 men in the second half when Bruno Guimaraes was sent off, the visitors could not find a way back into the game as Eddie Howe’s side secured their place in the final.

Here are three things we learnt about the Saints following the game.

Defensive mistakes proving costly

Saints fans will be no stranger to seeing their side concede goals as they are the joint-second leakiest defence in the top flight, having been breached 35 times in the league this season.

But the two conceded to the Magpies will be incredibly frustrating for Jones, with both coming from his side being sloppy in possession.

There is no shame in losing to a Newcastle side that sit third in the Premier League and have lost just once in all competitions since August. It was always going to be an uphill battle after the first leg defeat but the Saints simply did not give themselves a chance with such a poor start.

Jones has been slowly beginning to tighten up the back line in recent weeks, but on this evidence, there is still plenty more work to do.

Signs of improvement

Despite the criticism of the Saints’ defending, the way they performed over the two games should offer some encouragement going forward.

Perhaps the best reference point would be the 4-1 home defeat to the Magpies in November in which the Saints completely collapsed, leading to the departure of then-manager Ralph Hasenhuttl.

It would have been easy for them to do the same here, but after going 2-0 down they did respond and showed fight as they attempted to get back into the game.

They did cause some problems for the Magpies in the second half, most notably when Adam Armstrong drew a crucial save from Nick Pope.

It is an incredibly commendable achievement for a side struggling in the league to reach the semi-finals of a cup competition and while they will be disappointed to come so close to the final, they must take the positives from their run in the tournament into their survival battle.

Better with a back four

Jones opted to switch formation for the game to a three at the back system, with new signing James Bree and Kyle Walker-Peters operating as wing-backs.

But it did not work and by Jones’ own admission, the change back to a four during the game helped his side to get further up the pitch, with the Welshman describing them as “more aggressive” after that, although he did stress the need for flexibility.

While his decision to move to a back three was understandable against a dangerous Newcastle, with his side already 1-0 down, Jones may have been better to be brave and positive from the start to get back into the game and make the hosts anxious.

He should now stick to his regular system after this failed experiment, but it could be an important lesson for him as he continues to learn more about his side’s strengths and weaknesses.

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