Southampton 1-2 Burnley: Report, Ratings & Reaction as Substitute Vydra Scores Unlikely Winner

​Burnley have continued their fine run of form thanks to a 2-1 win away at Southampton, with Matěj Vydra proving to be the unlikely hero for Sean Dyche's side on the south coast.

The Clarets took a bizarre lead inside the opening two minutes when Ashley Westwood's corner went all the way into the goal, with Danny Ings leaving his goalkeeper short-changed after failing to clear the ball at the near post.

But Ings didn't take long to make up for his mistake at the start of the match and he picked out the bottom corner of Nick Pope's goal with a powerful strike from the edge of the penalty area, deservedly bringing Southampton back on level terms.

Jack Stephens came close to completing the turnaround only to be denied by the crossbar and both sides went into half time on level terms, but Matěj Vydra put Burnley back into the lead against the run of play with a stunning left-footed shot.

Southampton saw a late penalty shout waved away by the referee after Ben Mee's arm blocked a cross and despite continued pressure in the last few minutes of the match, Ralph Hasenhüttl's side were left empty handed on their own patch again.

Southampton

Key Talking Point

Cast your mind back to their 9-0 defeat to ​Leicester City and it's difficult to imagine how ​Southampton are in the position they are now.

They haven't just been able to become much more accomplished with their overall pressing, but it's their use of wingers which is highlighting how much influence Hasenhüttl is having on the Saints this season.

It was Sofiane Boufal and Stuart Armstrong who started out wide, but just like Emil Forsberg and Marcel Sabitzer did under Hasenhüttl at RB Leipzig, both players were given a lot of freedom to roam and often overload the middle of the pitch.

The visitors struggled to deal with Southampton's movement but after Boufal was forced off with an injury, substitute Moussa Djenepo struggled to fill that role, which proved to be the catalyst for Burnley's smash and grab on the south coast.

Player Ratings

McCarthy (6); Walker-Peters (6), Stephens (7), Vestergaard (6), Bertrand (6); Boufal (7), Ward-Prowse (6), Hojbjerg (7), Armstrong (7); Long (6), Ings (8).

Substitutes: Djenepo (4), Obafemi (6), Adams (N/A).

Star Man - Danny Ings

It was the worst possible start for ​Ings when his decision to duck out the way of Ashely Westwood's corner just 95 seconds into the match, but Southampton's star man didn't let it get to him, if anything being spurred on by the early mistake.

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Ings pulled Southampton back on level terms with a brilliant strike from the edge of the penalty area and he continued to be a threat in front of goal throughout the game, but ultimately the hosts just didn't quite have enough to break ​Burnley down.

Burnley

Key Talking Point

Sean Dyche set up his side to match Southampton's formation in the hopes it would help to negate their host's threat going forward, but Burnley's defenders, initially at least, couldn't deal with the pace and movement that was coming their way.

The pre-match game plan seemed to go out the window after they took the lead just 95 seconds into the match and things were made worse for Burnley after they conceded the equaliser, with Chris Wood being forced off the pitch through injury.

Even with nothing seeming to work for Burnley going forward, some individual brilliance from Vydra against the run of play was enough for Dyche's side to pick up all three points.

Player Ratings

Pope (7); Bardsley (4), Tarkowski (8), Mee (7), Taylor (6); Hendrick (5), Westwood (6), Cork (4), McNeil (7); Rodriguez (6), Wood (5).

Substitutes: Vydra (8).

Star Man - James Tarkowski

It wasn't an impressive afternoon for Burnley as a unit, but centre-back James Tarkowski showed why he's still the most important player at the club when it comes to their continued survival in the Premier League.

The 27-year-old was tasked with more work than any other player on the pitch due to Phil Bardsley's awful positioning, but Tarkowski didn't give Ings or Shane Long any time on the ball on his side of the pitch.

Looking Ahead

Southampton will stay at home next weekend against relegation strugglers Aston Villa, with their next trip away coming against West Ham.

Burnley welcome Bournemouth to Turf Moor in their next match before travelling to face Newcastle United.

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