Southampton v Fulham Live Commentary & Result, 13/05/2023, Premier League

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	PTS	Form
1	MCI Manchester City	38	28	5	5	94	33	+61	89	L D W W W
2	ARS Arsenal	38	26	6	6	88	43	+45	84	W L L W W
3	MUN Manchester United	38	23	6	9	58	43	+15	75	W W W W L
4	NEW Newcastle United	38	19	14	5	68	33	+35	71	D D W D L
5	LIV Liverpool	38	19	10	9	75	47	+28	67	D D W W W
6	BHA Brighton & Hove Albion	38	18	8	12	72	53	+19	62	L D W L W
7	AVL Aston Villa	38	18	7	13	51	46	+5	61	W D W L L
8	TOT Tottenham Hotspur	38	18	6	14	70	63	+7	60	W L L W L
9	BRE Brentford	38	15	14	9	58	46	+12	59	W W W L W
10	FUL Fulham	38	15	7	16	55	53	+2	52	L D W W L
11	CRY Crystal Palace	38	11	12	15	40	49	-9	45	D D W L W
12	CHE Chelsea	38	11	11	16	38	47	-9	44	D L L D W
13	WOL Wolverhampton Wanderers	38	11	8	19	31	58	-27	41	L D L W L
14	WHU West Ham United	38	11	7	20	42	55	-13	40	L W L W L
15	BOU AFC Bournemouth	38	11	6	21	37	71	-34	39	L L L L W
16	NFO Nottingham Forest	38	9	11	18	38	68	-30	38	D W D W L
17	EVE Everton	38	8	12	18	34	57	-23	36	W D L W D
18	LEI Leicester City	38	9	7	22	51	68	-17	34	W D L L D
19	LEE Leeds United	38	7	10	21	48	78	-30	31	L L D L L
20	SOU Southampton	38	6	7	25	36	73	-37	25	D L L L L

That's all for today, goodbye!

Southampton are now officially relegated to the Championship with two games to go. Fulham, meanwhile, boost their hopes of finishing above west London rivals Brentford and Chelsea and sealing a top-half place on their return to the Premier League. Saints face Brighton in their next game while Fulham host Crystal Palace in a London derby.

The first half was an evenly-contested affair. Fulham started on the front foot but Southampton grew as the minutes ticked by. Willian had the best chance in the first period, but his shot was cleared off the line by Lyanco as the game was goalless at the break. The visitors got off to the perfect start in the second half as Carlos Vinicius scored an easy tap-in following a good tackle from Reed. Mitrovic then marked his return with a goal in the 73rd minute, which was enough to seal a 2-0 win for Fulham.

90' + 4' FULL-TIME: SOUTHAMPTON 0-2 FULHAM

90' + 2' Ward-Prowse tries to play a lofted pass to Armstrong in the box, but Leno collects the ball for Fulham. Southampton's fate is very much sealed as fans hold their heads in their hands.

90' There will be a minimum of four additional minutes.

88' Fulham are running the clock down at every opportunity they get as they look to secure all three points on the road.

86' The physios are on the field to help Solomon with an injury. It looks like the Fulham player will be able to continue.

84' Sulemana shoots on the swivel from the edge of the box, but he drags his effort wide of the left post. Some home fans are making their way out of the stadium.

A. Armstrong

A. Maitland-Niles

82' Forward Armstrong comes on for defender Maitland-Niles as Southampton have just a few minutes to try and avoid relegation today.

80' Southampton are committing almost every player forward when attacking as their relegation to the Championship is 10 minutes away from being confirmed.

N. Kebano

H. Wilson

78' Kebano is Fulham's fifth and final change as he replaces Wilson.

M. Solomon

Willian

78' Solomon comes on for Willian in the visitors' attack.

S. Lukić

João Palhinha

77' Lukic replaces Palhinha to add fresh legs to the Fulham midfield.

M. Djenepo

Yellow Card

77' Djenepo receives a yellow card as he fouls Reed on the right side of the pitch.

75' Mitrovic has scored his 12th goal this season, more than any other Fulham player in the Premier League.

M. Elyounoussi

C. Alcaraz

73' Elyounoussi comes on for Alcaraz as the Saints throw everything they have at this game.

M. Djenepo

S. Armstrong

73' Djenepo replaces Armstrong on the left win for Southampton.

H. Wilson

Assist

72' Wilson runs by Maitland-Niles to byline and cuts the back into the middle of the box. Mitrovic dives in front of his marker and heads the ball into the bottom corner.

A. Mitrović

Goal

72' GOALLL!!! 2-0 FULHAM!!! MITROVIC!!! Fulham double their lead as Mitrovic bags on his return for the visitors! Wilson runs to the byline and chips the ball toward the six-yard box, where Mitrovic scores a diving header.

B. De Cordova-Reid

T. Cairney

69' Cairney makes way for De Cordova-Reid as Fulham add more pace to their attack.

67' Southampton are on the front foot now as they push for a leveler. Fulham seem happy enough to sit back and look for a counter-attack.

A. Mitrović

Carlos Vinícius

65' Mitrovic returns from his eight-game suspension as he replaces Carlos Vinicius.

64' Fulham's attack is starting to look a bit tired as Silva is ready to bring on Mitrovic.

S. Mara

P. Onuachu

62' Mara replaces Onuachu as Southampton try to find an equaliser.

K. Sulemana

T. Walcott

62' Sulemana comes on for Walcott in the Southampton attack.

61' Southampton win the ball high up the pitch with Alcaraz, but Onuachu fails to find Armstrong with a lofted pass as Fulham regain possession.

59' Fulham are frustrating Southampton as they move the ball around with a lot of composure. The Saints are pressing a lot higher up the pitch now.

57' Southampton are not panicking on the ball as they know there is still a long time left in this game. Although the sooner they equalise, the easier the final few minutes will be.

55' Selles is preparing to make a change for Southampton as they now need two goals to keep their hopes of staying in the Premier League alive.

R. Lavia

Yellow Card

53' Lavia goes into the book for a foul on Wilson.

52' Walcott tries to drive at Diop, but the Fulham defender makes a strong tackle and wins the ball back for his side.

50' Fulham have a record of W12, D1, L3 when scoring the opening goal in the Premier League this season.

H. Reed

Assist

48' Reed makes a sliding challenge to block Bednarek's clearance, and the midfielder reaps the rewards of his hard work as he ricochets the ball into the path of Carlos Vinicius, who taps Fulham into the lead.

Carlos Vinícius

Goal

48' GOALL!!! 1-0 FULHAM!!! CARLOS VINICIUS!!! Fulham take the lead early in the second half as Carlos Vinicius taps home for the visitors! Bednarek’s clearance goes straight into the foot of Reed, and the ball lands kindly for the Fulham striker in the six-yard box.

47' OFFSIDE! Alcaraz puts the ball in the back of the net, but the linesman raises his flag for offside! Ward-Prowse took too long to release the ball to his team-mate.

46' Ward-Prowse gets the second half underway for Southampton!

Selles won't be too displeased with how his team performed in the first half, but he knows that scoring the goal to keep their survival hopes alive is the priority now. Silva may think about bringing on Mitrovic as Fulham are struggling in the final third.

Fulham started the match on the front as Southampton were pinned inside their own half, but the hosts eventually found their feet in what was a fairly even first 45 minutes. The best chance of the first period fell to Willian as he shot on the half-volley at the back post, but Lyanco made a great block on the line. Neither goalkeeper had to make a testing save as the game is goalless at the break.

45' + 1' HALF-TIME: SOUTHAMPTON 0-0 FULHAM

45' There will be a minimum of one additional minute.

43' Both teams are being patient with the ball as they do not want to risk conceding this close to half-time.

41' OFF THE LINE! Lyanco makes an incredible block to stop Willian from scoring! The ball goes through to the winger and he steadies himself before firing the ball at goal, but Lyanco gets himself on the line and heads the shot away.

39' Cairney's in-swinging corner is dealt with easily by Southampton, who are growing in confidence as the game goes. However, they will want a goal sooner rather than later.

37' Willian manages to draw a foul off Walker-Peters, but the away side are still finding it difficult to reach the Southampton box now.

35' Fulham are struggling to find the rhythm they started this game with. Southampton look more likely to score before half-time now.

33' Alcaraz tries his luck from a long way out, but the ball rolls wide of Leno's left post. A very disappointing effort from the forward.

31' Following their 2-1 win in December, Fulham are looking to complete their first-ever league double over Southampton in what is the 32nd different campaign in which they've met.

29' The game is a lot more even now as Southampton hold a higher line and try to take the game to Fulham, instead of sitting back and soaking up the pressure.

27' Bednarek takes a long throw for Southampton and Onuachu wins the header in the box. Unfortunately for him, his flick-on goes straight to Leno.

25' Walker-Peters gives away a foul on the right side of the pitch. The cross comes in and Fulham players appeal for a handball by Lyanco, but the referee does not give a penalty.

23' Armstrong bursts down the left wing and tries to find Walcott with a low cross, only for Leno to catch the ball. The home side are showing a lot more quality on the ball now.

21' Onuachu takes the ball off Diop and tries to catch Leno off-guard with an early shot, but the goalkeeper reacts quickly to make the save.

19' Southampton are finally coming out of their shells in this game as they try to test Fulham's defence.

17' Willian tries to find a team-mate with a cross from a deep free-kick, but McCarthy catches the ball with ease. The home side need to start taking more risks.

15' Fulham have had 79.4 per cent possession in the opening 15 minutes of this match. They will want to get a goal to make the most of their early dominance.

13' Willian takes a corner from the left side for Fulham and floats the ball to Cairney on the edge of the box. The midfielder's volley is quickly closed down by Southampton defenders.

11' Southampton are trying to pose a bigger threat, but they are really struggling to retain possession against the Fulham press.

9' Willian sends in a good cross from a free-kick, but Adarabioyo is an offside position when he gets on the end of the pass.

7' Southampton are doing well to force Fulham to go down the wide areas instead of attacking through the middle of the pitch. The Saints will want to start building attacks of their own soon.

5' Cairney takes a short corner for Fulham, but it comes to nothing for the visitors. They are however off to a very good start in this match.

3' Southampton are already sitting deep in their own half as Fulham apply early pressure onto the hosts.

1' Fulham get the game underway at St. Mary's Stadium!

The players are making their way out of the tunnel and onto the pitch!

Fulham’s Leno has conceded 45 goals in the Premier League this season (excluding OGs), despite facing an xG on target total of 56.6. Indeed, according to our expected goals model, Leno has prevented more goals (11.6) than any other goalkeeper this term based on the quality of shots on target faced.

Selles makes two changes to his Southampton side as Onuachu and Lyanco replace the injured Che Adams and Armel Bella-Kotchap. Silva keeps the same starting 11 that beat Leicester on Monday.

SUBS: Marek Rodak, Shane Duffy, Neeskens Kebano, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Manor Solomon, Cedric Soares, Bobby De Cordova-Reid, Sasa Lukic, Luke Harris.

FULHAM (4-2-3-1): Bernd Leno; Kenny Tete, Tosin Adarabioyo, Issa Diop. Antonee Robinson; Joao Palhinha, Harrison Reed; Harry Wilson, Tom Cairney, Willian; Carlos Vinicius.

SUBS: Gavin Bazunu, Duje Caleta-Car, Joe Aribo, Adam Armstrong, James Bree, Sekou Mara, Moussa Djenepo, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Mohamed Elyounoussi.

SOUTHAMPTON (4-4-2): Alex McCarthy; Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Jan Bednarek, Lyanco, Kyle Walker-Peters; Stuart Armstrong, James Ward-Prowse, Romeo Lavia, Theo Walcott; Carlos Alcaraz, Paul Onuachu.

After a poor run of games, Fulham got back to winning ways with a 5-3 win over Leicester last time out. Marco Silva’s team do not have a lot to fight for as a European place will be very hard to attain. They will be boosted by the return of Aleksandar Mitrovic, who is available following his suspension.

Southampton come into this game knowing that anything other than a win would see them relegated from the Premier League. Ruben Selles’ side have not won in their last 10 league matches, and it is unlikely that record will change today. The Saints truly have nothing to lose as their fans will hope for a brave performance today.

Hello and welcome to the live commentary of the Premier League fixture between Southampton and Fulham.

Southampton v Fulham Live Commentary, 13/05/2023

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