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Sourced from ESPN FC article

Newcomer Gabbiadini continues blistering start in rout of Sunderland

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Manolo Gabbiadini continued his sensational start to his Southampton career by scoring twice in Saturday’s 4-0 rout of bottom club Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

The Saints added a third via a Jason Denayer own goal and substitute Shane Long bagged a fourth late on as the EFL Cup finalists claimed a morale-boosting win ahead of their big Wembley date with Manchester United.

It was only the south coast side’s second Premier League win since mid-December.

Gabbiadini has taken no time to adapt to the Premier League following his £17m transfer deadline day switch from Napoli.

Thanks to the Italian, the Saints have rediscovered the ruthless streak that has eluded them for most of the season.

Southampton now have a two-week break before the cup final, allowing Claude Puel to give his players full days off to recharge their batteries.

The break due to the FA Cup weekend is both good and bad. Part of Puel would love another game quickly to build momentum.

8 – Playing Gabbiadini in tandem with Dusan Tadic and Nathan Redmond got the best out of the Italian. Puel also resisted the temptation to tinker with his backline by not taking left-back Ryan Bertrand up on his offer to move into the middle and the clean sheet will boost the confidence of Maya Yoshida and Jack Stephens ahead of the United game.

Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

GK Fraser Forster, 6 – Jeered by Sunderland fans because of his Newcastle links but had the last laugh with a shutout. Only had one save to make.

DF Cedric Soares, 7 – Will wish he could play Sunderland every week. Given so much freedom to get forward and did not have to worry too much about defending.

DF Jack Stephens, 7 – Bounced back from a poor game in the 3-1 defeat at home to West Ham, justifying Puel’s call to keep faith with him.

DF Maya Yoshida, 7 – Kept Sunderland’s main goal threat Jermain Defoe quiet. Can expect a tougher examination up against Zlatan Ibrahimovic and company at Wembley in two weeks’ time.

DF Ryan Bertrand, 8 – Set up Gabbiadini’s controversial opener and also forced the own goal by Denayer with a pass intended for Long after getting the better of Wahbi Khazri.

MF Oriol Romeu, 8 – Bullied Sunderland in midfield and played a part in the opener with a pinpoint pass to Bertrand.

MF Steven Davis, 7 – This was more like the Davis of old with tenacious tackling and non-stop running.

MF James Ward-Prowse, 7 – The England under-21 captain is benefitting from getting more game time and has put himself in contention for a cup final start.

FW Nathan Redmond, 7 – Linked up well with the in-form Gabbiadini and caused Sunderland’s dodgy defence problems with his pace.

FW Manolo Gabbiadini, 8 – Got a bit lucky with the opener, which went in off his arm, but took the second well and almost claimed a hat trick with a second-half volley.

FW Dusan Tadic, 7 – Has been off colour since breaking his nose during the last international break but was much more incisive and supplied Gabbiadini well.

FW Shane Long, N/R – His late goal and role in Southampton’s third will do him the world of good after a largely frustrating season.

MF Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, N/R – Game was done and dusted by the time he got in with eight minutes left.

Alex Crook is ESPN FC’s Southampton blogger. Follow him on Twitter @alex_crook

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Sourced from Optimus trousers summary article summary

Summary of non-mainstream articles: 13/02/2017 01:35:27

| | Sunderland 0-4 Southampton: Manolo Gabbiadini goal is all it takes to burst Black Cats’ bubbleCHRONICLELIVENEWS |
| | Rumour Mill: Trio chase Lazio star; City ahead in Dybala race - TEAMtalk | Latest Football News & Transfer RumoursTEAMTALK |
| | Saints At Sunderland Dan’s Review - Southampton NewsTHEUGLYINSIDE |

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Sourced from A tweet by BBCMOTD tweet

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Manolo Gabbiadini is the 16th player to score three goals in his first two Premier League games

What a start for h… https://twitter.com/i/web/status/830550127572049921

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Sourced from The Telegraph article

In Manolo Gabbiadini Southampton look to have found a £14m striker to be excited about after another impressive display

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Manolo Gabbiadini does not speak much English, but Southampton’s January signing looks a fluent goalscorer, whose actions, rather than words, suggest the Saints have made another astute signing.

Goals define strikers, it is all they are judged on. It is a position where statistics are cold, hard facts, rather than numbers to be manipulated to suit an argument. With three goals in his first two games for Southampton, following a £14m January move from Napoli, Gabbiadini has made an impressive start.

Remarkably, given Southampton’s misfiring frontline, the Italy international has already scored 11% of the team’s goals in the Premier League this season despite spending just 163 minutes on the pitch.

There have plenty of strikers who have burned brightly when they arrive, only to fade and eventually disappear. Gabbiadini might just be another short-term success who ends up being tossed into the anonymous bin in a few months, although it was the way he scored his goals against Sunderland that adds weight to the argument he will be around for a while.

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Sourced from Daily Star article

Sunderland player Steven Pienaar defends midseason New York trip

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Feet encased in cement, one arm raised in a desperate appeal for offside…the iconic Liberty Island monument only needs a red and white shirt to pass herself off as any of the defenders playing in front of the Sunderland goalkeeper this season. Black Cats boss David Moyes is taking his players to the Big Apple for a mid-season team bonding break, hoping watching some basketball, ice hockey and a more sobering visit to Ground Zero can help lift his side off the foot of the Premier League. Moyes defended the trip after the game amid criticism from disgruntled fans. And midfielder Steven Pienaar said: “Obviously it’s not a holiday - the aim is to get everyone pulling in one direction. You need to get to know your players off the field and it’s really important at this stage. “It’s a battle every day. Every day you have to put everything in on the training ground to make sure you’re ready for Saturday.

“I just want to give everything and help the team to stay in the Premier League” “For me to be here and experience this is totally different from other clubs where you know you might end up in the middle of the table. It’s a great challenge for me and I like it. “Mentally it’s been tough but you come here for a reason and that’s to play and help the club stay in the Premier League. “For me it’s really a great opportunity to experience this kind of a fight. I just want to give everything and help the team to stay in the Premier League.” Despite seeing four goals fly into his net Mannone was still Sunderland’s outstanding performer thanks to a series of second-half saves. After an encouraging 20 minutes at the start, the Black Cats defence was unable to cope with the quality of Manolo Gabbiadini, Southampton’s new £15m signing from Napoli.

Sunderland’s defensive difficulties were a gift for the Gab and the 25-year-old striker cashed in with two goals to add to the one he scored on his debut last week. Gabbiadini’s goals are not all he brings to the side, though, reckons teammate Nathan Redmond. “We’ve seen straight away that his finishing is top-drawer - that’s his big strength,” Redmond said. “But he can come in and link the game as well. “Obviously he’s struggling with the language barrier, but we have an Italian physio here who does a lot of the translating and he’s picked up a few English phrases already. He’s still tactically aware and understood what we wanted to do here. “Three goals in two games is a great return and the language of football is universal. If you go abroad and start kicking a ball around, people understand. He’s hit the ground running.”

Jason Denayar’s own goal and Shane Long’s composed finish in the closing seconds reflected Southampton’s domination once they survived an awkward opening spell when Sunderland looked in the mood to build on last week’s 4-0 thrashing of fellow strugglers Crystal Palace. Moyes’s side collapsed, however, once Gabbiadini put Southampton ahead after 30 minutes and he went on to add his second in the final moments of the half. Pienaar added: “It was the best start since I’ve been at the club. For the first 20 minutes I was sitting on the bench thinking ‘wow, if we can get the first goal it might be an easy afternoon’. “But Southampton are a good side so they got hold of the game and after the first goal I think a few heads went down and the pressure started getting to the players. “When you concede a second one just before half-time you’re chasing the game in the second half. We tried to get out and put it right but we were always going to open up at the back and we conceded another two.”

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Sourced from Mirror.co.uk article

Sunderland star defends their New York bonding trip after Southampton thrashing

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Steven Pienaar has defended Sunderland’s trip to New York , saying it is needed to build team spirit.

The rock-bottom Wearsiders were booed off after Saturday’s 4-0 home defeat by Southampton, and are facing flak from fans who are funding their five-day bonding session and training camp in the Big Apple.

David Moyes’s men put in a dreadful, low-effort last hour as they were demolished by Saints, who had lost six of their previous seven league games.

Moyes refused to cancel the break, saying: “Managers have to make decisions, prepare teams and lead. That’s part of doing the job. Sometimes doing something different…”

And Pienaar, who saw Moyes use New York as a booster for his Everton squad when they were both at Goodison, said: “It’s very important to be with your colleagues off the field as well and get that bond.

“What you do off the field is very important to what you do on it. Hopefully it will benefit the group.

“The aim is to get everyone pulling in one direction. You need to get to know your players off the field but it’s really important at this stage. Obviously we want to be one unit and we’re here for one cause — to stay in the Premier League.”

Saturday’s heavy defeat was more deserving of a trip to the village of New York in nearby North Tyneside than to one of the greatest cities in the world.

It had the feel of Sunderland giving up after Saints new boy Manolo ­Gabbiadini scored twice, albeit once with his arm, in the first half.

Ryan Bertrand made the third with a cross that forced defender Jason Denayer to slide in an own goal, and Shane Long finished the job in stoppage time in a positive warm-up for the EFL Cup final at Wembley in a fortnight – their next match.

Ex-Napoli star Gabbiadini has three in two games since signing, but has yet to pick up any English

However his team-mates have been impressed by his finishing power in training, and efforts to fit in.

Nathan Redmond said: “We’ve seen straight away that his finishing is top-drawer – that’s his big strength, but he can link the game as well.

“He played very well and more than deserved his goals. Obviously he’s struggling with the language barrier, but we have an Italian physio here who does a lot of the ­translating and he’s picked up a few English phrases already.

“He’s tactically aware and understood what we wanted to do. The language of football is universal. If you go abroad and start kicking a ball around, people understand. He has played different tactics abroad, he’s hit the ground running.”

This was the Saints’ last game until the EFL finale and Redmond said: “We can’t think about Wembley. It’s a one-off game and the league is the most important thing.

“That’s why we needed to get a win here. It’s two weeks away, it’s a long way off yet and there’s no point thinking about that now.

“Our cup final was today and winning the game with a clean sheet and four goals, we can’t ask for anything more than that.”

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Sourced from ESPN FC article

Two-goal heroes Mane, Sanchez and Gabbiadini lead team of the weekend

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After each round of Premier League fixtures, ESPN FC brings you its Team of the Weekend. Our panel of experts carefully selects 11 star performers along with a manager.

Do you agree or disagree? You can have your say on those picked or overlooked in the comments section at the foot of the article or on Twitter, using the hashtag #ESPNFCTOTW.

Goalkeeper: Victor Valdes’ string of fine stops in the Middlesbrough goal against Everton helped secure a valuable point for Aitor Karanka’s side. “He really did make some crucial saves in this match,” Paul Mariner points out, with fellow Team of the Weekend panellist Shaka Hislop adding: “He seems unbeatable.” With Valdes between the sticks, it’s no surprise that only Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester United have conceded fewer goals than Boro in the Premier League this season.

Defender: Though his teammates further up the pitch will receive more praise for Manchester United’s complete performance against Watford, Eric Bailly played his own starring role at the back. Be it his strength in the challenge or passing from deep, he ensured it was a frustrating afternoon for Watford’s attack. “When he plays United look very solid,” Mariner says of a player who has helped his side to two clean sheets in two games since his return from African Nations Cup duty.

Defender: Alfie Mawson played his part as Swansea bagged a clean sheet in a vital win over champions – and fellow strugglers – Leicester, but it’s his work at the other end that secured his place in our team. You’ll struggle to see a more sweetly-struck goal all weekend than the one Mawson volleyed in to fire his side in front at the Liberty Stadium. A thing of beauty that our third panellist Steve Nicol described as: “A centre-forward’s strike from a centre-back.”

Defender: Sitting alongside Mawson in the heart of our defence is Liverpool’s Lucas Leiva. He may only be filling in for the injured Dejan Lovren, but he produced a calming performance to help his side storm to victory over Tottenham, doing all the right things and, as Hislop notes: “Never putting a foot wrong.” Nicol adds: “He was positionally excellent and never looked in trouble against a star-studded Spurs attack.”

Defender: Rounding off our back four is Southampton’s Ryan Bertrand, who had a field day as his side smashed four past Sunderland. The 27-year-old was a menace down the left for the Saints, setting up Manolo Gabbiadini’s opener and forcing Jason Denayer’s own goal for the third. “He terrorised Sunderland and going forward was a threat all day,” Mariner says, with Hislop adding: “His two assists and a clean sheet were testament to his efforts.”

Midfielder: Tottenham’s defenders will be having nightmares about Sadio Mane following Saturday’s events at Anfield. Two goals in as many minutes blew Mauricio Pochettino’s men away and, in truth, the Liverpool man could have had three or four before the first half was done with. “Spurs just had no answer for his pace,” points out Mariner. Nicol adds: “He’s a superstar in the making.” Oh how the Reds could have done with him in January.

Midfielder: As has often been the case this season, Jordan Henderson was the beating heart in Liverpool’s all-action display against Tottenham. This was a real captain’s performance from the Anfield captain, offering protection to his back four while helping the team drive forward. Nicol sums it up nicely: “Quite simply, the most influential midfielder in the Premier League this weekend.”

Midfielder: Henderson lines up alongside a former Liverpool teammate in the heart of midfield, with Joe Allen securing a spot after his match-winning display against Crystal Palace. A number of promising runs into dangerous areas from the Wales international was capped when he eventually found the back of the net with a ruthless hit. “Yet another winning goal for Stoke,” Nicol says of a man who is now up to a career best of six strikes for the season.

Midfielder: Jose Mourinho has been demanding more from Anthony Martial during what has often been a frustrating campaign for the forward and, against Watford at Old Trafford, the Manchester United boss got exactly what he was looking for: A match-winning performance that brought with it a clever assist for the opener and a well-taken finish for the second. “He’s taken a lot of stick, but that should shut a few people up,” says Nicol.

Forward: It wasn’t pretty but Arsenal got over the line against Hull and, for that, they can thank Alexis Sanchez. The Premier League’s top scorer bagged a crucial brace – albeit one seemingly came via his hand and the other was from the penalty spot – to secure a much-needed victory. There’s a general consensus that the Gunners might struggle without their star man, with Nicol declaring him: “Arsenal’s one-man team,” while Mariner labels him: “The club’s saviour again.”

Forward: If scoring a goal on your debut wasn’t quite enough to win over the Southampton faithful then how about following that up with a brace on your second appearance? Manolo Gabbiadini did just that against Sunderland on Saturday and, while his first strike may have been a tad fortuitous, there was nothing lucky about his superb second. “The Saints bought him to score and that’s what he does,” says Mariner, with Nicol adding: “He smells out goals for fun.”

Manager: Jurgen Klopp could well have got the nod to take charge of our team after overseeing a Liverpool masterclass, but it’s Paul Clement who edges him out of the dugout. Victory over champions Leicester on Sunday made it four wins from six Premier League matches for Swansea since their new boss was appointed, to take the club four points clear of the drop zone. As Nicol points out: “Swansea have been totally transformed since his arrival.”

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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 13/02/2017 07:36:48

| | Gabbiadini lets his boots do the talkingIRISHINDEP |
| | Premier League Good Weekend/Bad Weekend: Liverpool roar at Anfield, Swansea climb into the lightFOURFOURTWO |
| | Rumour Mill: Trio chase Lazio star; City ahead in Dybala race - TEAMtalk | Latest Football News & Transfer RumoursTEAMTALK |
| | Southampton fear losing another defenderTHISISFUTBOLCOM |

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Sourced from A tweet by SouthamptonFC tweet

@SouthamptonFC - Southampton FC

#MondayMotivation from #SaintsFC’s @Mgabbia23…

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Sourced from Reuters.co.uk article

Gabbiadini settling in well at Southampton

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Britain Soccer Football - Sunderland v Southampton - Premier League - The Stadium of Light - 11/2/17 Southampton’s Manolo Gabbiadini celebrates scoring their second goal Action Images via Reuters / Lee Smith Livepic

The 25-year-old has made an explosive start with Southampton, scoring three goals in two matches since his arrival from Napoli for a reported 14 million pounds at the end of last month.

Gabbiadini, who has also played for Atalanta, Bologna and Sampdoria, scored 58 club goals in 215 appearances in Italy and has six caps for the national side.

“Everyone played a very good game,” he told the club’s website (www.southamptonfc.com).

“My second goal was a good one because of the team’s play. The build-up from my team mates was very good. It was a hard match in the beginning, but then we scored the two goals. The team then worked very hard to keep the lead.”

Gabbiadini appeared to chest Ryan Bertrand’s cross into the net on the half-hour mark to open the scoring at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light and he added another 15 minutes later with a smart turn and shot.

He said his second goal had given his side the platform to go on and win the match.

“The second goal gave the whole team lots of confidence in the dressing room at halftime, and that was very important,” he added. “In the second half we could have scored more. It was a very important victory for the team.”

Defender Jack Stephens said the decision to sign Gabbiadini was already paying off.

"It’s been a great start for him and hopefully he will carry on that form,” said Stephens. "You can’t argue with what he has done so far.

“The second goal came at a really good time, just before the break. I would imagine it really put Sunderland on the back foot. The timing more than anything was important, but it was a fantastic goal.”

The win moved 11th-placed Southampton onto 30 points from 25 matches in the Premier League, while Sunderland prop up the table on 19 points.

Southampton’s next fixture sees them face Manchester United in the League Cup final at Wembley Stadium on Feb. 26.

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Sourced from Daily Echo article

Ward-Prowse: now it’s time to recharge ahead of Wembley

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JAMES Ward-Prowse admits that Saints’ trip to Spain is the perfect opportunity to “recharge” ahead of the League Cup final.

Saints are heading for a warm weather training camp at the end of this week to prepare for the final against Manchester United on February 26.

Claude Puel has ordered his squad to have four days off to rest and recover with their families, before they return to Staplewood in the middle of the week to begin the build-up for Wembley.

Saints managed to break a miserable run in the Premier League at an “ideal” time in the 4-0 drubbing of lowly Sunderland on Saturday, and head in to a break in play with their confidence up.

"We wanted to end that run and this was the ideal time to do it,” said Ward-Prowse.

“We can go away and recharge and get ready for a massive game at Wembley.

“We’ve spoken about a cup run and getting to Wembley for a while, so it’s a great chance for us to win a trophy, which is what we want to do.”

Saints played their 39th game of the season at the Stadium of Light and, after a non-stop campaign so far, Puel finally has a window of opportunity to drill his team on the training ground.

As Saints take aim for their first major silverware in 41 years, the trip to Spain won’t be used as downtime.

In fact, it will be the very opposite, with Puel planning intensive training sessions.

Academy graduate Ward-Prowse is pleased that Saints go abroad off the back of a vital victory at the Black Cats, in which they changed the formation to a 4-2-3-1.

"We were hoping before kick off to get a result like this,” he said. “It was important going into a two week break to pick up a win and build a little bit of momentum before the cup final.”

“We played a slightly different formation and it helped - they struggled to deal with it and we were very clinical in front of goal,” he added.

“We only had a few chances but we put them away when he needed to.”

The 22-year-old has been delighted with the impact of January signing Manolo Gabbiadini, who has now scored three goals in his first two games for Saints.

"Gabbiadini has made a big impact and he’s settled in really quickly,” he said.

“You can see he has a lot of knowledge about the game and he’s a clever footballer.

“We’re delighted for him and hope he can continue in the same way that he’s started.

“When a new player comes in everybody is excited, especially when he’s a goalscorer and we’re excited to have him around.

“He adds to the competition and he’s great to have around the squad.”

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Sourced from Daily Echo article

Gabbiadini can’t talk the talk yet … but can certainly walk the walk

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STEVEN Davis has hailed the impressive way new boy Manolo Gabbiadini has settled in at Saints – despite not being able to speak English.

The £14m striker signing from Napoli has scored three goals in his first two appearances for Saints, including a brace in the 4-0 win at Sunderland on Saturday.

The 25-year-old has been communicating through Saints’ Italian speaking masseur, but clearly the language barrier has not been an issue – at least not on the pitch.

“I think he (Gabbiadini) feels comfortable every time he goes out on the pitch to play and obviously that’s what he’s here to do,” said Davis.

“At the minute he’s finding it difficult to communicate because we don’t really have any Italian speakers, and he obviously doesn’t speak English.

“We’ve got a masseur who speaks Italian and he can translate a little bit whenever we need to.

“Anyway, he’s settled in well judging by his performances on the pitch. I’m delighted for him.

“He’ll be having English lessons, so I’m sure he’ll pick it up soon.

“He’s only been here for a short period of time anyway and he’s certainly settled in nicely on the pitch.”

Saints had really struggled for goals after top-scorer Charlie Austin was ruled out with a dislocated shoulder in early December.

But, with the addition of Gabbiadini on transfer deadline day last month, Shane Long picking up form and Jay Rodriguez also chipping in with goals, Saints have become more formidable in attack.

Impressively, Italian international Gabbiadini has now scored three goals in two games, while Long has netted four in his last seven outings.

“He’s got a lot of quality,” Davis said, referring to Gabbiadini. “Obviously his debut goal was a half chance if anything and he’s managed to stick it in the top bin.

“Today he’s turned on a six pence and stuck it in. He’s got a lot of quality. You can see that.

“His movement’s really good and he offers a good attacking outlet.

“There’s now good competition for places up there with Longy coming on and scoring a good goal and Jay Rodriguez too.”

Claude Puel’s men reverted to a 4-2-3-1 formation against Sunderland, which is the system that the Frenchman’s predecessors Ronald Koeman and Mauricio Pochettino used to great effect.

Puel admitted that he changed the tactics to make the most of a blossoming relationship between Gabbiadini and Dusan Tadic.

It worked too, with the Serbian assisting the former Sampdoria man for his exquisite second at the Black Cats.

Davis, who played alongside the outstanding Oriol Romeu in deep midfield at the Stadium of Light, was pleased with the change back to a system more familiar to many of the Saints lads.

“It’s worked well today,” he said. “We feel comfortable in that formation, but we have to be adaptable anyway and at certain points in the game you might have to change it.

“We’ve played more of a 4-3-3 up until this point and you need to be adaptable in the Premier League.

“We felt we could control the game from that shape and it’s been a good day.”

Saints have rarely had a full week’s training this season, with Europa League responsibilities as well as the League Cup run forcing them for much of this campaign into playing twice a week.

Davis revealed that it was “evident” at Sunderland that Saints had a decent amount of preparation time.

“As great as it is to have games every three days, it’s definitely been beneficial to have a full week’s preparation going in to the game,” he said.

“With games every three days you don’t really get the opportunity to work as much as you’d like on the training ground.

“We’ve had a good week in terms of getting work done there and ironing out a few things.

“It was evident today, so hopefully it stands us in good stead, and we’ve got another couple of weeks in terms of getting good preparation in for the League Cup final.”

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Sourced from Daily Echo article

THE VERDICT: What a difference a 4-2-3-1 makes

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There is not a lot of pleasure to be taken from ‘I told you so’ in football but there probably were quite a few thousand Saints fans thinking exactly that following the fantastic victory over Sunderland.

If there have been two consistent themes in the vast majority of conversations since the beginning of the season it has been frustration over the lack of a clinical striker – a feeling heightened by Charlie Austin’s long injury lay-off - and Claude Puel’s change in formation, and, therefore, style of play.

Saints moved for a forward in January, splashed out more than £14m, and have instantly reaped the benefits with Manolo Gabbiadini looking every inch the player that so many supporters have been calling for.

Puel has stuck fairly rigidly to his plans, his formation and style, and it seemed he would resist calls for change no matter how things were going.

But, having had the rare treat of a full week to work with his side on the training ground, he switched to the much missed 4-2-3-1 formation for the game at the Stadium of Light.

Let us just remember this was the formation used for the vast majority of the three previous seasons as Saints finished eighth, seventh and sixth. It is a formation the players are used to and have been successful with.

While Puel has come in for some unfair stick, it has felt perfectly reasonable to criticise the decision to change a winning formula, especially when it has had such mixed results.

So it was a very warm welcome back to the 4-2-3-1, and what a difference it made.

The players looked so comfortable playing it. They really did thrive.

It produced a team that looked balanced, defensively solid and able to find different routes towards goal.

When you then put Gabbiadini’s clinical finishing into the mix, and his link-up with Dusan Tadic, it was a winning formula.

At this stage we cannot be sure whether we will see it continue – hopefully so - or if this was a special plan for Sunderland, but Puel deserves credit for getting this correct.

We should also reflect that it is probably no coincidence this came after that full week to work with his squad.

For all the ups and downs, it really does feel like the time to judge Puel will be after the next few months.

He really needs the chance to show what he can produce when he doesn’t have the ridiculous fixture pile-up we saw in the first half of the season.

If what we witnessed at Sunderland was anything to go by it can be really positive.

The win not only eradicated any sense of unease that was starting to take hold after the bottom three edged a little closer to Saints in recent weeks but, crucially, provided some much needed confidence and momentum ahead of the EFL Cup final.

The last thing Saints needed was two weeks without a game to stew on another poor result or poor performance.

Instead what they have is two weeks of feeling great about themselves, confident and upbeat, with a chance to recover and properly prepare while Manchester United play another three games in the meantime.

The scoreline at the Stadium of Light accurately reflected the game.

After seeing off some early Sunderland enthusiasm, Saints turned the screw in empathic fashion, while the Black Cats first mentally cracked and later totally capitulated in embarrassing fashion.

The new formation saw Oriol Romeu and Steven Davis paired together and providing a great base to build form.

The full backs were able to attack, there was width, and Tadic dropping into pockets of space. Sunderland just didn’t know how to handle Saints’ quality, which was truly unleashed by the set-up.

Saints’ first goal on the half hour mark was a mixture of great play and a slice of luck.

Ryan Bertrand, again superb at left back, put in a cross which found the near post run of Gabbiadini.

Lamine Kone tried to head clear just ahead of him but didn’t make contact and the ball cannoned off of Gabbiadini’s body, most likely his arm, and gave Vito Mannone little chance of keeping it out.

Saints doubled their lead before half time in more convincing fashion as Tadic and Gabbiadini linked up.

Kone made a grave error in standing off of Gabbiadini in the area and paid the price as he saw the Italian quickly turn and then finish past Mannone.

Sunderland made attacking changes as the game went on but it only served to make them worse.

They never seriously tested Saints who were so comfortably on top the only question seemed to be how many they might run in.

The biggest surprise was that it took them until the closing minutes to add further to their tally with Mannone well worked, but the goals were well deserved when they arrived.

Bertrand was again involved in the third on 88 minutes, his ball into the six yard box proving impossible to handle for Jason Denayer who turned into his own net.

It got even better in stoppage time as Sunderland appeared to throw in the towel and allow Saints to pass through them with no charity shown as James Ward-Prowse and Shane Long exchanged passes before the sub steered the ball into the bottom corner.

What a difference one game, one week on the training ground, one signing, one formation change can make.

Now it’s all eyes on the EFL Cup final and with a quiet sense of confidence around the Saints camp.

Wembley, here we come.

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“They like to get it down and play football.”

#SaintsFCU23s forward @olomola on this evening’s #PLCup tie: http://sfcne.ws/OOSwansU23s

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The last two times #SAINTSFC scored four goals away in the #PL, the other side was relegated (Wolves in 03-04 & Vil… https://twitter.com/i/web/status/830551302212034560

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Sourced from Daily Star article

Brendan Rodgers makes big revelation about Virgil van Dijk to Liverpool

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Where will Chelsea and Liverpool target Virgil van Dijk end up?

The Southampton star has impressed since his move from Celtic in 2015.

Van Dijk is reportedly wanted by all the Premier League big boys, with Chelsea, Manchester City and the Reds all keen on the 25-year-old.

And according to former Liverpool boss Rodgers, the Holland international would already be at Anfield if he had his way.

But the club’s scouting network had doubts whether the defender could make the step up to the Premier League.

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Saints star visits college to present award as excitement builds in the run up to Wembley cup final

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HE IS one of the Saints stars who has helped the club get to Wembley.

With the league cup final day edging ever closer, midfielder Pierre-Emile Højbjerg was the star attraction at Woodlands Community College.

The Dane was there to present Saints futsal coach Andrew Powell with an award for being the club’s Premier League Kicks Hero.

The event celebrated the tenyear anniversary of the Premier League’s youth community outreach scheme, which is aimed at 11-16 year-olds.

Andrew, who grew up in nearby Harefield, is one of more than 180,000 young people who have benefited from the scheme over the last decade.

He said: “I’m very grateful for Premier League Kicks.

“I wouldn’t be where I am without it.”

The popular 23-year-old was presented with a framed comic strip illustrated by Marvel Comics artist John McCrea, charting his path to a career as a full-time futsal coach for the Saints Foundation.

Denmark star Højbjerg said: “Congratulations to Andrew and everyone involved in this fantastic scheme.”

Now the midfielder is getting ready with his team for the league cup final.

Thousands of Saints fan will make their way to Wembley to see the team face Manchester United on Sunday, February 26 with the aim of winning the EFL Cup.

The match will be the first major final that Saints have reached since 2003.

A thrilling win over Liverpool at Anfield last month helped take them a step closer to the dream and sparked excitement across the city, with fans celebrating and post boxes painted in the colours of Southampton Football Club.

Now the countdown has started and fans and supporters have less than two weeks left to plan their trip to Wembley

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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 13/02/2017 10:37:24

| | Darron Gibson’s Sunderland verdict: We dropped too deep and Southampton punished usSUNDERECHO |

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Southampton’s Manolo Gabbiadini enjoying life in the Premier League

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Southampton striker Manolo Gabbiadini has only been at the club for two weeks but the Italian has already developed an understanding with his new team mates and says the chemistry was clear for all to see in Saturday’s 4-0 win over Sunderland.

The 25-year-old has made an explosive start with Southampton, scoring three goals in two matches since his arrival from Napoli for £14million at the end of last month.

Gabbiadini, who has also played for Atalanta, Bologna and Sampdoria, scored 58 club goals in 215 appearances in Italy and has six caps for the national side.

‘Everyone played a very good game,’ he told the club’s website.

‘My second goal was a good one because of the team’s play. The build-up from my team mates was very good. It was a hard match in the beginning, but then we scored the two goals. The team then worked very hard to keep the lead.’

Gabbiadini appeared to chest Ryan Bertrand’s cross into the net on the half-hour mark to open the scoring at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light and he added another 15 minutes later with a smart turn and shot.

He said his second goal had given his side the platform to go on and win the match.

‘The second goal gave the whole team lots of confidence in the dressing room at halftime, and that was very important,’ he added. ‘In the second half we could have scored more. It was a very important victory for the team.’

Defender Jack Stephens said the decision to sign Gabbiadini was already paying off.

‘It’s been a great start for him and hopefully he will carry on that form,’ said Stephens. 'You can’t argue with what he has done so far.

‘The second goal came at a really good time, just before the break. I would imagine it really put Sunderland on the back foot. The timing more than anything was important, but it was a fantastic goal.’

The win moved 11th-placed Southampton onto 30 points from 25 matches in the Premier League, while Sunderland prop up the table on 19 points.

Southampton’s next fixture sees them face Manchester United in the EFL Cup final at Wembley Stadium on February 26.

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Garth Crooks’ XI of the week: Pundit sticks left-back in right midfield

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GARTH COOKS has made a bizarre decision in his latest team of the week.

The controversial pundit often causes a stir by picking players in odd positions on the field.

And this week is no different, with Crooks deciding to field a left-back at right midfield.

What do you make of that XI?

Click through the gallery above to see Garth Crooks’ team of the week.

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