A remorseless Tottenham Hotspur may have driven the final nail into Russell Martin's Southampton coffin as the Lilywhites slaughtered the Saints 5-0 at St Mary's in the Premier League.
Flashbacks to the 9-0 Manchester United and Leicester City annihilations may have been triggered for the home crowd in the first half, where Ange Postecoglou's men mercilessly ripped their hosts to shreds and achieved a slice of club history in the process.
Thanks to James Maddison's brace, Son Heung-min's strike, Dejan Kulusevski's effort and Pape Sarr's goal, Tottenham scored five goals in the first half of a Premier League game for the first time ever, although a large portion of crestfallen Southampton fans had already left by the time it was 3-0.
In a turn of events that should have surprised absolutely nobody, the game slowed to a crawl in the second half, where Tottenham conserved their energy and sent on the kids while Southampton's Mateus Fernandes had a consolation disallowed for offside.
Tottenham scored as many goals tonight as Southampton have points on the board all season, and Martin's men remain cut adrift at the bottom of the Premier League table, while Spurs have sneaked back into the top half thanks to Chelsea's success over West London rivals Brentford.
SPORTS MOLE'S VERDICT
© Imago
Sunday's St Mary's showdown may have been a clash between two managers under pressure, but while Postecoglou would almost certainly have not been sacked had his side suffered a shock loss, the end is surely nigh for Martin.
In a last-ditch bid to find a winning formula, the Southampton head coach opted for a 4-3-1-2 diamond setup, which went spectacularly awry to the point that he sacrificed the understandably furious Kamaldeen Sulemana for an extra defender with just 15 minutes gone.
Martin heading for the dressing room before half time and missing Maddison's goal made the evening all the more embarrassing for him and the team, and it must be only a matter of time before the inevitable 'Club statement' social media post is put out on Southampton's channels.
As Southampton continue on a one-way street back down to the Championship, a hitherto tepid Tottenham must use this emphatic success as a springboard for an upturn in festive fortunes, as they desperately try to escape mid-table mediocrity.
Postecoglou's side will undoubtedly face tougher tests in the weeks and months to come, but their first-half ruthlessness, Djed Spence's immediate impact and Son continuing his love affair with Southampton were all sights for sore Spurs eyes.
SOUTHAMPTON VS. TOTTENHAM HIGHLIGHTS
James Maddison goal vs. Southampton (1st min, Southampton 0-1 Tottenham)
Tottenham lead within 40 seconds against Southampton 🤯
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 15, 2024
James Maddison tucks the ball away calmly 👏
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/IsRT1VSPbN
A harbinger of doom for the Saints? Tottenham strike after just 36 seconds, as Spence charges infield from right-back before finding the run of Maddison with a slick outside-of-the-boot pass.
The Tottenham playmaker clinically does the rest, firing a low strike underneath the onrushing Alex McCarthy and into the far side of the net.
Son Heung-min goal vs. Southampton (12th min, Southampton 0-2 Tottenham)
Tottenham find themselves 2-0 up within 12 minutes against Southampton 👏
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 15, 2024
This time it was Heung-Min Son with the finish 😮💨
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/xfBPnIEWiU
Another game against Southampton, another goal against Southampton! Son boasts more goals against the Saints than he does against any other team, and the Spurs skipper has now struck for the 13th time in this fixture.
Jan Bednarek can only head an outswinging deep cross to Son at the back post, and the South Korean has ample time to let the ball bounce twice and lash home a powerful half-volley
Dejan Kulusevski goal vs. Southampton (14th min, Southampton 0-3 Tottenham)
IT'S ANOTHER FOR TOTTENHAM!
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 15, 2024
They're now 3-0 up over Southampton within 14 minutes, with Kulusevski scoring the latest 🔥 pic.twitter.com/vNHzLsRGlI
The boos grow louder, and the exodus begins! A handful of disgruntled Southampton fans are already making a beeline for the exits as Kulusevski makes it three for the merciless visitors.
Bednarek does enough to prevent Dominic Solanke from tapping in Son's cutback, but the rebound falls kindly for Kulusevski, who was abandoned by Ryan Manning and could not miss on his 100th Premier League appearance.
Pape Sarr goal vs. Southampton (25th min, Southampton 0-4 Tottenham)
Pape Sarr dances through the defence to make it 4-0 🕺
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 15, 2024
Southampton fans are already leaving the stadium 😬
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/HUYJLVRBom
Martin immediately changed Southampton's system after Kulusevski's strike, albeit to little avail, as Sarr triggers another cacophony of boos from the St Mary's faithful with a tidy finish.
Son is heavily involved once again, cutting inside from the left and finding Sarr, who dances past Nathan Wood and is about to fall on his backside but manages to hook the ball into the bottom corner.
James Maddison goal vs. Southampton (45+5 min, Southampton 0-5 Tottenham)
James Maddison makes it a 5-0 lead for Tottenham 🤯
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 15, 2024
Southampton manager Russell Martin walked down the tunnel just moments before 😬
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/AgDQXRaKov
Does anybody have that Simpsons 'Stop! Stop! He's already dead!" GIF?
A goal made even more embarrassing for Southampton by the fact that Martin did not even see it; the Saints boss had already trudged down the tunnel to prepare for the biggest half-time team talk of his life.
In his absence, Son releases Maddison into the left-hand side of the box with a wonderful pass, and the Englishman manages to find the far side of the net from an incredibly tight angle.
Spurs had never scored five in the first half of a Premier League game before today, but Southampton were only too happy to oblige.
MAN OF THE MATCH - SON HEUNG-MIN
© Imago
Son did not quite emulate his four-goal haul at St Mary's from September 2020, but the Tottenham captain needed just 45 minutes to make three telling contributions, notching Spurs' second with a crisp half-volley and also laying on two helpers for Sarr and Maddison.
In doing so, Son drew level with Darren Anderton on the most Premier League assists for Spurs - a staggering 68 - and he count count himself unfortunate not to have bagged a brace or even a hat-trick, having also hit the woodwork and had seven shots in total.
SOUTHAMPTON VS. TOTTENHAM MATCH STATS
Possession: Southampton 41%-59% Tottenham
Shots: Southampton 9-18 Tottenham
Shots on target: Southampton 3-9 Tottenham
Corners: Southampton 2-5 Tottenham
Fouls: Southampton 8-15 Tottenham
BEST STATS
68 - Son Heung-min has now provided 68 Premier League assists, the joint-most by any Spurs player in the competition's history (level with Darren Anderton). Generosity. #SOUTOT pic.twitter.com/VBdGFibhdw
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 15, 2024
HT: Southampton 0-5 Tottenham
— Squawka Live (@Squawka_Live) December 15, 2024
Tottenham score five goals in the first half of a Premier League game for the first time in the competition's history. 👀#SOUTOT pic.twitter.com/WvHqYXyBIY
WHAT NEXT?
Liverpool in the EFL Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday evening is next up for Southampton on the field, but whether Martin is still in control of the reins when the league leaders come to visit is anybody's guess.
However, Postecoglou will certainly be leading Tottenham into battle against Manchester United in Thursday's cup encounter, before the Lilywhites engage in their own mouthwatering Premier League match with Liverpool on December 22.
Ben Knapton
