Southampton’s Premier League Exit Confirmed with Seven Matches Remaining
Southampton have been relegated from the Premier League, 11 months after they were promoted following victory over Leeds United in the Championship play-off final
Southampton set an unwanted record on Sunday as they became the first team in Premier League history to be relegated with seven matches left to play.
A 3-1 defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur in north London confirmed Southampton’s fate. A first-half brace from Brennan Johnson and Mathys Tel’s first Premier League goal earned all three points for Ange Postecoglou’s men, while Mateus Fernandes scored for the visitors.
Ipswich Town and Derby County held the previous record for the earliest relegation in league history. They had their relegations confirmed with six matches remaining in 1994-95 and 2007-08, respectively.
Southampton are also on course to finish the campaign with the lowest recorded points tally. The 2007-08 Derby team infamously finished with 11 points — one point more than Southampton has managed so far.
It has been a miserable season for the south coast club, which attempted to change course when it fired manager Russell Martin in December.
The appointment of Ivan Juric failed to halt the club’s downward momentum, with the Croatian coach so far only picking up a single win in his 13 games in charge. Southampton has lost 11 games in that period. Southampton has been relegated from the Premier League, just 11 months after celebrating their promotion through a victory over Leeds United in the Championship play-off final. This relegation has marked an unwanted milestone for the club, as they became the first team in Premier League history to be relegated with seven matches still left to play.
Their fate was sealed on Sunday following a disappointing 3-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in north London. Brennan Johnson scored two goals in the first half, and Mathys Tel netted his first Premier League goal to secure all three points for Spurs. Southampton’s Mateus Fernandes did manage to score, but it was not enough to change the outcome.
Previously, the record for the earliest relegation was held by Ipswich Town and Derby County, who both suffered relegation with six matches remaining in the 1994-95 and 2007-08 seasons, respectively. Southampton is now also on track to finish the season with the lowest points total in Premier League history.
The notorious Derby County team from the 2007-08 season finished with a dismal total of just 11 points. To put that in perspective, they managed to collect only one point more than what Southampton has earned so far this season.
