- Joe Aribo put the visitors in the lead with a goal after 21 minutes at Portman Road
- Ipswich drew level through Liam Delap but Saints netted late for all three points
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Southampton fans sang: ‘Can we play you every week?’ as Ivan Juric finally won his first game in English football to inflict a crushing defeat on Ipswich.
A healthy dose of travel sick Saints should have been just what the doctor ordered for the Tractor Boys, but it was Kieran McKenna who was left feeling ill.
Southampton had lost six league games in a row going into this game. They hadn’t tasted victory in 13. And they had the worst away record in the whole division.
But they went ahead through Joe Aribo, and even though Liam Delap equalised with his ninth goal of the season, Paul Onuachu snatched a late winner.
Asked how he would celebrate, Juric said: ‘We will start with red wine. Then we will see!’ You can hardly blame him.
Few still expect this to end in some sort of great escape. But Juric said: ‘We are fighting. We don’t want to give up. We had some really good games before this. We showed great character. We have to try to play like this in every game.’
Paul Onuachu netted late at Portman Road as Southampton secured their first away win of the season
The Nigeria international tapped home from close range as Saints took home all three points
Kieran McKenna’s side enjoyed a strong spell of momentum during the early going on Saturday
But it was the visitors who drew first blood when Joe Aribo volleyed them into the lead
For Ipswich it was a result so bad it felt terminal. A draw would have been enough to lift them out of the bottom three before Wolves kicked off against Aston Villa. But you cannot lose at home to the club adrift at the foot of the table and expect to stay up.
This was only Southampton’s second win in their last 37 Premier League games, and the boos rained down from the home stands at the end.
McKenna, whose side have now lost four in a row themselves, said: ‘It’s a really poor result for us. No doubt about it. Especially on the balance of play. The only answer is work.’
Ipswich went behind when a Matheus Fernandes cross deflected up off Jacob Greaves and fell nicely for Aribo, who volleyed it down and past a flapping Arijanet Muric in the Ipswich goal. Muric, who was at fault for both goals, only started because of an injury to Christian Walton, who now faces a few weeks out with a groin problem.
Delap equalised just after the half-hour mark, riding a tackle from Jan Bednarek and then coolly tucking the ball past Aaron Ramsdale, and Nathan Broadhead should have made it two when Delap played him clean through soon afterwards, only for Ramsdale to save.
But Ipswich struggled to test Ramsdale after that and with their frustration growing, disaster struck when Muric could only parry a shot from substitute Kalmadeen Sulemana right back into a dangerous area, and Ounuachu pounced.
The only downsides for Saints were a calf injury to Jack Stephens, who lasted just 10 minutes of his comeback as a substitute, and a mystery surrounding midfielder Flynn Downes, who didn’t travel.
His future is now in doubt, with Juric admitting: ‘We had some problems with him during the week.’ When pressed on what kind of problems, he added: ‘I have said enough.’ Ipswich would be interested in Downes if he were to leave Saints before the window closes.
