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Extending their unbeaten run to six games, Southampton took full points from the KC Stadium on Tuesday, a result that temporarily moves the team eighth in the Premier League. On the back of a second half goal from Jose Fonte, Mauricio Pochettino’s team claimed a 1-0 victory over Hull City, a result that completed their season’s double over the Tigers.
Although Southampton had beaten Hull 4-1 earlier this season at St. Mary’s, the team would find things slightly more difficult further north. Despite two early chances for Rickie Lambert, the Saints were taken to halftime scoreless, having nearly opened the scoring when Jay Rodriguez hit the crossbar in the 31st minute.
In the second half, a steady stream of Southampton pressure finally paid off in the 69th minute, with a barrage of chances from in front of Steve Harper’s goal final producing the game’s only score.
The result prevents Hull from vaulting into the table’s top half while blunting the momentum the Tigers took from this weekend’s win at Sunderland. Now, having lost at home, Hull remain four points above the drop, the team still in danger of slipping back into a fight against relegation
Hull nearly conceded within the first five minutes when an attack down the right ended with a ball falling for Lambert near the spot. As Hull’s defense turned to face the ball, the England international had all the time he needed to find Harper’s upper-left corner. Pushing the ball just wide, Lambert missed an easy chance to make it 1-0.
Two minutes later, after a Steve Davis through ball put Lambert in on Harper, the Saints striker couldn’t lift his shot above an oncoming keeper, missing a second chance to put his team in front.
In the 14th minute, against the run of play, a speculative shot from Tom Huddlestone was glanced toward Artur Boruc’s far post by a Shane Long header, forcing the Southampton keeper to dive to keep the shot outt. The resulting rebound went off the post and off Boruc before finding early substitute George Boyd, who volleyed the bouncing ball order the bar from just outside the six-yard box.
By the mid-point of the first half, the match had reached its equilibrium. Southampton was controlling play while seeing their advances halted just before Hull’s penalty area, while the Tigers were living off the counter, generating two threats down Ahmed Elmohamady’s flank. The closest the visitors came to an opener was Jay Rodriguez’s arching curler from 26 yards that went off the top of the crossbar in the 31st minute. Hull’s best chance saw a cross from Elmohamady find Nikica Jelavic before the Croatian international stabbed a shot to Boruc. The game went into halftime 0-0.
In addition to resuming control after halftime, Southampton increased their intensity, pinning the Tigers deep in their end soon after the game’s second kickoff. In the 69th minute, that intensity finally paid off after a series of chances, Harper saves, and goal line clearances gave way to a Jose Fonte goal. From just outside the six-yard box, the Saints defender make it 1-0.
Late match changes saw Hull mount more pressure over the game’s final half-hour, but with Southampton having made its own adjustments, the Tigers were left rolling the dice with half-chances and long distance speculation. As stoppage time arrived, Jack Cock slammed a 24-yard shot off Harper’s left upright, reminding Hull the result could have been worse.
LINEUPS
Hull City: Harper; McShane (Boyd 12'), Davies, Bruce, Figueroa (Brady 76); Elmohamady, Huddlestone, Livermore, Meyler (Aluko 75'); Long, Jelavic
Southampton: Boruc; Chambers, Yoshida, Fonte, Shaw; Schneiderlein, Cork; Lallana (Ward-Prowse 88'), S. Davis, Rodriguez; Lambert (Guly 77')
Goals: Fonte 69'
