Russell Martin insists he will not sacrifice his possession-based philosophy but he will surely need to modify it this season after his toothless Southampton team misfired on their Premier League homecomingagainst Nottingham Forest.
Martin will plead patience over his penchant for a short passing style – with his team having about two-thirds of the possession – but Southampton spluttered in front of their fans and were fortunate not to concede during a meagre first half. Nuno Espírito Santo’s Forest were rewarded with the winner through the midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White, with Southampton offering little in response. They still await a first goal and point since their return to the top flight.
Martin, whose side mustered only one shot on target compared with Forest’s eight, said: “Ultimately we concede from a set piece and at a moment we were so on top. It’s not good enough. We didn’t play well enough in the first half. There was a lot of tension in the stadium. Out of eagerness we just turned the ball over and that’s the worst thing you can do against Forest.
“We adapted brilliantly and were on top in the second half and then we conceded a rubbish goal. We turned the ball over too much. I didn’t enjoy the first half. Too many turnovers and forced passes. They just need to relax and trust the way we play.”
Southampton selected an unchanged team after their opening defeat at Newcastle. Forest made two changes from the side held at home by Bournemouth. The defender Nikola Milenkovic and the former Newcastle midfielder Elliot Anderson were handed their full debuts in place of Willy Boly and the injured Danilo after the Brazilian broke his ankle last weekend.
A bright start from Forest resulted in the first opportunity but Chris Wood could only scuff his shot from Anthony Elanga’s pass straight into the hands of Alex McCarthy. The busy Southampton goalkeeper was soon forced into another save, blocking Neco Williams’s strike with his legs.
Forest were imposing themselves and cut Southampton open again, with Ola Aina bursting clear down the left wing, but his cross was headed straight at McCarthy by Wood. Nuno was shown a yellow card after he reacted angrily to a rash challenge by Ben Brereton Díaz on Elanga that did not result in a booking for the Southampton forward.
Ibrahim Sangaré fired in an attempt from the edge of the area that was deflected narrowly over the crossbar as Forest continued to threaten a breakthrough. Southampton were struggling to trouble the visitors, whose keeper Matz Sels was untested in the opening half hour.
Forest frittered away a great opportunity to take a deserved lead, with Milenkovic sidefooting wide from Wood’s low cross. Kyle Walker-Peters belatedly forced the hosts’ first effort on target when the defender, cutting inside from the left, drilled a shot straight into the arms of Sels. At the other end, Williams fired narrowly wide from the edge of the area as Forest failed to turn their dominance into a half-time advantage.
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Southampton tried to up the ante after the break but the newly promoted club were still unable to trouble their opponents. Elanga, meanwhile, looked lively, the former Manchester United attacker running at the Southampton defence only to see his strike was deflected out for a corner as Forest pressed for the opener. The breakthrough finally arrived, Forest deservedly taking the lead after Callum Hudson-Odoi’s cross was headed towards goal by Gibbs-White. His initial attempt was blocked by the right-back Yuki Sugawara but Gibbs-White followed up to drill the ball into the net.
Forest almost doubled their lead through Hudson-Odoi but the former Chelsea winger’s shot was parried away by McCarthy. Southampton emptied their bench in search of a cutting edge but Forest were untroubled and their first victory of the season should have been by a greater margin.
Nuno, whose side have taken four points from their opening two matches, said: “I think we played a very good game. We were dominant and it’s always tough to play away from home. Overall a very good performance from us.”
