Saints climb out of relegation zone with 3-1 win at Villa

Updated: May 17, 2023, 05:18 am
Southampton escaped the relegation zone on Saturday with victory over Aston Villa, who dropped into the bottom three.
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Two goals from in-form striker Danny Ings helped Southampton to a 3-1 win at Aston Villa on Saturday as the visitors climbed out of the Premier League relegation zone.

Southampton grabbed the early advantage at Villa Park after Shane Long chased down a long ball behind the Villa backline, but his effort was parried by goalkeeper Tom Heaton, only for Ings to score from the rebound.

The visitors doubled their lead on the half-hour mark after a James Ward-Prowse corner found the unmarked Jack Stephens, who headed the ball into the bottom right corner.

Villa suffered another setback just minutes after half-time as a botched clearance from Marvelous Nakamba landed at the feet of Ings, who fired his shot past Heaton for his seventh goal in the last seven league matches.

Dean Smith's Villa, who lost midfielder John McGinn through injury in the first half, showed an alarming lack of fight until midfielder Jack Grealish pulled one back with a spectacular volley with 15 minutes to play.

Yet the home fans were left frustrated with another timid performance as Villa suffered their fourth consecutive league defeat to replace Southampton in the bottom three.

"Massive win, we knew how important this game was," Ings said. "We heard their supporters getting onto them early on."

"We're working on things every day, but I think today is a huge step in progressing forward. When the third goal went in we knew it would be difficult for them to come back."