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    The Killing of Southampton | Sunderland AFC vs Southampton EFL Championship
    World Cup 2026

    The Killing of Southampton | Sunderland AFC vs Southampton EFL Championship



    If you are lacking a podcast at the minute why not give this murder case a look. See Just how Tony Mowbray dismantled promotion hopefuls Southampton 5-0 and sent the Saints to Hell. SELECT HD

    Southampton expectedly rushed and pressed right from the off, but Sunderland had a plan to soak it up and break with pace behind them.

    This plan worked right from the first whistle as Jack Clarke’s goal put Sunderland 1-0 up from a lovely Trai Hume cross. Ekwah’s improvements were on show again today as he relentlessly broke up play and swept the ball upfield to Ba and Clarke out wide. He unleashed a couple of his howitzers to push the Lads further ahead 3-0 at the break and by the start of the second half the game was over with Bradley Dack adding a fourth.

    Sunderland though, weren’t just seeking a win, they were after an execution and when Jewison Bennette and 16yr old Chris Rigg combined to score a fifth goal and send the Saints to hell, it capped off a wonderful day for the lads.

    Chapters:

    0:00 – Intro
    0:10 – Stats
    0:32 – Pressure Kings
    0:53 – Selection
    1:18 – 90 Second game
    2:20 – Tony’s Rope-a-dope
    3:12 – Sharp or Stale?
    4:06 – Pierre’s Howitzer
    5:13 – Plan B is a Myth
    6:20 – Manning Penalty
    7:12 – Carving up the Saints
    9:20 – Pierre’s a Legend
    10:46: – Half Time
    11:19 – No Respite
    11:43 – Four to the Floor
    12:44 – Lost Souls
    13:23 – Hopeful Holgate
    13:49 – Pritch & Hemir on
    14:24 – One dimensional
    15:15 – Rigg & Bennette on
    16:06 – Gettin Riggy with it
    17:47 – Part of a Masterplan

    View 38 Comments

    38 Comments

    27. Jim Nesbitt on

      They had gegenpressen. We had Toniola's plan using gettenthruem and getteninbehindem and it worked like a dream. Loads of fabulous performances all over the pitch. I kept hearing Lou Reid's Perfect Day in my head for about the next 2 days! Saints probably thought this was going to be a walk in the park but they got crucified!

      Thanks for your fantastic work on these videos – they're unique, insightful and extremely enjoyable.

    28. MrRipsaw1 on

      "Shall I bet £100 on the win then hope we score first and cash out?" I joked to Junior as we sat down to watch the game. Regrets? I've had a few 😀

      Class review as usual, nice stats in the opening, never heard of PPDA before, thanks for introducing it, I note we weren't so far behind Southampton. 'Possession' is a relatively easy stat to understand, but doesn't say a lot about the style of play eg. teams that hold the ball passing it side to side in defence, throwing PPDA into the mix adds an indication of intent when out of possession as opposed to the teams that sit back, wait for the ball to be given away then bore the pants off spectators. Nice one!

      You covered pretty much everything that needed covering, so my thoughts are more general…

      I was reminded again in this game of the quote you shared during the Preston away game review last season: "Arrigo Sacchi once said. there has been only one revolution in football, the change of the game from an individual to a collective one". In the that game it was initially used to describe Preston's high press but ended being requoted as your final thought as a perfect description of our play throughout the game. Well, this game once again showed how the collective can out perform the opposition when they believe and maintain the game plan. Southampton had no plan B and we didn't need one 🙂

      I'm with you in the opinion that Hemir will come good. It was a shame he didn't finish his one on one with the keeper and the shot where he turned the defender, but everything up to the final touches showed composure and skill. As mentioned in the "What the Falk" podcast, with the new strikers coming in, it should take some pressure off Hemir and allow him to grow into the team organically as other young players have. He has time and once the confidence grows, I think he will be a good asset to have on the pitch. I said before the Accrington game that we could do with a good cup run for the benefit of the youngsters and fringe players, so was more disappointed for those players that would have been given game time than I was for the club in general. With no Pizza Cup and the FA Cup being months away, a few more League Cup games would have suited our developing players and new arrivals.

      My "Final Thought" after the Southampton game… Sacci is also credited with the following quote: "…Great clubs have had one thing in common throughout history, regardless of era and tactics. They owned the pitch and they owned the ball. That means when you have the ball, you dictate play and when you are defending, you control the space…" Who would have guessed he was talking about Sunderland?

    32. intheclarts on

      So where do we go from here? I think we've condemned ourselves to everyone parking the bus lol. Guess we'll just have to break them all down. And Pierre from outside the box is gonna be a potent weapon, he'll score better than those this season. As for Russell Martin, he's just Lee Johnson with better hair.

    34. Douglas Purvis on

      Nice analysis again. I like the way you pick out key moments… like the intense little chat between Dan (a captain in the making, surely) and Pierre before the third goal. It lends a unique perspective on things. I'd already written my piece on tactics for Roker Report and this performance almost threw a spanner in the works, given how cleverly Mowbray and his coaching team exploited the Saints gegenpress and the space it affords. Rope-a-dope is a perfect description. You can't hit what you can't see!

    35. Saint194 on

      Martin will get Saints promoted. Bad day at the office, it happens. In fact, part of me thinks this could turn out to be a good day for Saints in a weird way. Longer-term, this could be a catalyst for better performances, especially defensively.

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