A brilliant goal from Danny Ings gave Southampton a narrow but deserved win over Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham.
The Saints striker flicked the ball superbly over Toby Alderweireld before shooting past Paulo Gazzaniga for his ninth goal in his past 10 games.
Spurs were unimpressive, with Jan Vertonghen missing their best chance from close range in the first half.
Mourinho, who was booked late on, sees his team stay sixth in the table, while Southampton rise to 11th.
Spurs striker Harry Kane was forced off with a leg injury just seconds after having a goal disallowed for offside in the second half.
Shane Long went close with a header with five minutes left, but Southampton is now unbeaten in their last four outings.
Southampton claimed a penalty against Alderweireld for handball early in the second half, but the referee did not give it and VAR upheld the decision, then also upheld the official’s decision against Kane when he netted later on.
Mourinho was shown a yellow card by referee Mike Dean after appearing to go over to speak to members of the Southampton coaching team.
A 2-2 draw with Arsenal on 23 November left Southampton one place off the foot of the table on just nine points, but since then Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side has hit a run of form to move away from the relegation zone.
The win over Spurs means they have collected 16 out of a possible 24 points since that meeting with Arsenal, and they worked tirelessly to both give themselves chances and to frustrate the visitors.
And Ings’ goal brought back memories of Paul Gascoigne’s famous strike against Scotland in Euro 96, with the striker touching a long pass from Jack Stephens over Alderweireld before allowing the ball to bounce up invitingly for the 27-year-old to score his 13th league goal of the season.
Southampton’s energy levels dipped in the second half, but they held on to restrict Spurs to just one shot on target after the break.
It was their fourth clean sheet of a campaign that has veered away from the depths of the 9-0 humiliation at St Mary’s by Leicester on 25 October towards signs that Southampton can stay in the Premier League with some comfort.
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Source – Sport365coza
