Aston Villa’s relegation fears deepened after Shane Long and Stuart Armstrong fired Southampton to a 2-0 victory at St Mary’s.
Dean Smith’s side did not muster a single shot on target in a dismal display which will set more alarm bells ringing in the west midlands.
Long’s eighth-minute strike and Armstrong’s stoppage-time break-away, after Pepe Reina had gone up for a corner, eased a Saints side who not so long ago looked relegation-bound themselves to the relative safety of 34 points.
They were inches from taking the lead when young defender Will Smallbone collected Moussa Djenepo’s pass on the edge of the box.
Smallbone’s shot took a deflection off Tyrone Mings to wrong-foot Villa keeper Reina, who was relieved to see it clip the outside of his post.
A couple of lengthy injury delays briefly took the wind out of Southampton’s sails and Villa had the ball in the net shortly before half-time, although Mbwana Samatta had been flagged offside before he converted Jack Grealish’s pass.
After the break Villa continued to be panic-stricken by any set-piece into their area. Kortney Hause sliced one corner over his own crossbar and Jack Stephens poked Ryan Bertrand’s free-kick wide.
As for Villa, the closest they came to forcing an equaliser was substitute Trezeguet’s effort which fizzed across goal and wide.
