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Southampton claimed their first points of the season with an impressive away victory over Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, however the fact that the Saints remain in the bottom three suggests that it could be another battle against the drop for Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side, even at this early stage of the new campaign.

 

Summer signing Moussa Djenepo scored his first goal for the club as Southampton defeated Brighton 2-0 at the Falmer Stadium, with the hosts having been reduced to 10 men in the first half following a red card for Florin Adone. Nathan Redmond secured all three points with an injury-time strike, with Hasenhüttl’s young team having shown signs that they are starting to gel.

 

Following a hard opening day at Turf Moor, where the Saints came unstuck 3-0 against Burnley, Southampton were left with nothing to show from their opening two games of the 19/20 Premier League season when European champions Liverpool came out on top when they travelled to the South Coast last weekend. Former Saints star Sadio Mane opened the scoring for Jurgen Klopp’s side, and despite a late goal from Danny Ings against his former club, it was not enough to secure a point, with Roberto Firmino having put the visitors 2-0 up earlier on following another defensive mistake.

 

However, with the likes of Che Adams and Djenepo having impressed against Brighton last time out, fans at St. Mary’s will be confident that their team can produce more consistent performances than last season, when they finished 16th in the standings, just five points above the drop zone. Highly rated bookie Ladbrokes has placed the saints at odds 5/1 to finish in the bottom three come the end of the campaign, with Southampton’s tricky start to the season continuing when they host Manchester United at the end of August.

 

The Saints were relatively quiet in the transfer market, with the permanent signing of Ings and a deal to bring Che Adams from Birmingham City having been their standout incomings. The duo were expected to work well on the field, with Adams having scored over 30 goals in the Championship during his three years with the Blues.

 

Elsewhere, Kevin Danso was handed a surprise debut against Brighton over the weekend, with the defender having replaced Ryan Bertrand in the starting line-up. The 20-year-old, who arrived at St. Mary’s following a last-minute deal on transfer deadline day, impressed Saints fans with his composure, despite being played out of position following a minor injury to Bertrand. Southampton have an option to sign the Austrian international on a permanent basis at the end of the season, with the youngster having initially signed on loan.

 

Manager Hasenhüttl will be hoping to impress in his first full season at St. Mary’s, with the former RB Leipzig boss undoubtedly looking for his side to finish in a higher league position than last time around, with their group of youngsters having been thrown in at the deep end over recent weeks. Upcoming matches against the likes of United, Sheffield United and rivals Bournemouth will demonstrate their capabilities further.

 

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