A depleted Saints side went to West Brom and kept up the pressure on them with a vital win courtesy of a Jordy Clasie classy goal.

The side that Claude Puel had to put out at West Brom was symptomatic of the problems that Saints have had this season, there were five positions being filled by those who would not be considered first choice this season.

In fact it was down the very spine of the team with two back up central defenders, two back up central midfielders and then Manolo Gabbiadini being absent.

But it was credit to the team spirit that the players in these positions that perhaps put in the hardest work and grafted out a well earned win.

In recent weeks I have aimed criticism at Yoshida and Stephens, but I will say that they had great games at the Hawthorns, although it should be noted that the Baggies still wasted a few chances in front of goal that might have cost us dearly had it not been for Fraser Forster who again looks back to his best.

Indeed there was not one Saints player that couldn't walk off the pitch without the satisfaction of knowing it was a job well done both individually and as a team.

Clasie and Hojbjerg commanded the midfield that meant that Romeu and Davis were barely missed and indeed the goal that won the game had all the characteristics of the team work that won the game, it had the hard work of Shane Long who brought the ball down ran at the defence and then laid it at the feet of Dusan Tadic, the Serbian then held the ball up, looked to try and turn then with that route cut off held it up a little more then laid it back for Jordy Clasie who smashed the ball home from 25 yards with Foster in the West Brom goal not even moving.

You felt that Saints did need a second, but that didn't come, however for all our possession we were still a bit vulnerable at times and we needed to dig deep and graft and we did.

It was hard to choose a man of the match, it was truly a team performance that had the West Brom fans streaming towards the exits long before the end of the game.

Now Saints are four points behind the Baggies and well placed to haul them in and overtake them for 8th position.

Saints now have back to back wins for only the third time in the league this season, they now need to make it three in a row for the first time.

When the season has ended and the dust settled it will have been Saints failure to find this consistency that will have ultimately cost them dearly, it it testament to the quality of the squad that despite all the issues this season we have still stayed in or around the top ten for most of the time and this highlights just how good this season could have been had we not had so many injuries or other issues.

Now is the time to be positive, stay behind the team and hopefully help it to that first ever fourth consecutive top ten finish.

That gives us great foundations to build on for next season, we should recognise that and enjoy these times, it hasn't felt like it at times, but if we get that top ten placing come the end of the season, then the stats will say this has been one of the best seasons in the entire history of the football club in terms of all round achievement.

Photo: Action Images

PezzaSaint added 10:02 - Apr 9 Given the lack of Romeu and Davis yesterday I think it was a very good performance. Their replacements in Clasie and Hojbjerg did well. Couldn't believe the size of the WBA side compared to our guys and feared for the worst from set plays, but the defence did very well indeed and I think Maya should get the nod just over Fraser for MOTM. And a word for Claude, he got his tactics spot on where we largely nullified their forwards and were able to counter attack quickly. Had Manolo beeen playing then I think we would have won more easily. Had Saint Are on the nose, bummer!! Am I right in thinking that if Man U win the Europa then 8th spot in the PL would qualify for the Europa? COYS

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SanMarco added 10:20 - Apr 9 Good win given the players missing - our best defender, best midfield and best attacker all out so the strength-in-depthers have a point. Am I right in saying that Man City will be between CL legs like they were last season when we played them at home? Sadly not Pezza - only 7 clubs can qualify for euro competition. There are no combinations that give 8th a spot...
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helpineedsomebody added 10:56 - Apr 9 40 points achieved well done everybody who are connected to Southampton football club
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helpineedsomebody added 10:56 - Apr 9 40 points achieved well done everybody who are connected to Southampton football club
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steve73 added 12:12 - Apr 9 Brilliant show of strength in adversity. Given the absence of key players and the West Brom 'style' I thought we'd be bullied to defeat. Quite surprised that Pulis didn't exploit our weaknesses more ruthlessly he's normally very good at that but it was a terrific team performance by us and good work by Puel as we were set up very well too.
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highfield49 added 12:23 - Apr 9 Although pre-match I wasn't expecting anything from this game the team pulled together brilliantly which implies that the dressing room spirit is a bit special. None of the players coming into the team indicated anything other than their ability to adapt and perform as though they played every week. Whether that is due to management ability by Puel or just the attitude of the players is impossible to say from the sidelines but this was a great example of team work. This has got to be the best squad in the club's history with players like Sims and Reed sitting in the wings capable of performing in the first team whenever required. Like helpineed has already said, well done to everyone at the club.

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saintmark1976 added 12:34 - Apr 9 Well done Nick, praise for Yoshida, a truly "light on the road to Damascus" moment for you.I suspect that your comments were caused by relief at the realisation that we have reached the magic 40 points. On a slightly more serious note.If we can get a result like this with some "star players" not available then what could we achieve next season assuming the board is true to it's word of not dismantling the squad during the summer?

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TeamCortese added 12:59 - Apr 9 Great result yesterday! Very proud of our defensive display. Yoshida was hands down MOTM. Even Liverpool legend agree with me. http://www.skysports.com/watch/video/sports/football/10830642/thompson-southampt Nick I think that finally puts to bed him and Stephen’s being Championship players! That aside this win really highlights the strength and depth of our squad and (as Nick pointed out) really shows that the season could have been better if we had less injuries. However, I really think some of our squad players will get better next season and that leaves the club with a very interesting predicament—especially if there is no European football. In particular I have big expectations of Hojberg, McQueen, Boufal and Sims. San Marco fortunately you are wrong about the European qualification. There is a scenario where you there can be as many as 5 clubs in the Champions League and 5 in the Europa League. However for our purposes we’ll need 5 clubs in the Champions League and 3 clubs in the Europa League. The scenario is very much contingent on Man Utd winning the Europa League and finishing 5th or 6th. It goes as followed: Current top 4 remains as is with Man Utd finishing 5th and Leicester not winning the Champions League. In this instance Arsenal (assuming they lose in the FA cup, the remaining clubs will be top 4) will get the FA Cup Winner’s Europa League spot with the next club (most likely Everton) getting the League spot for Europa League (finishing seventh). The team that finishes 8th would then get the League Cup Winner’s Europa League spot (8th position). In the event that Man Utd finish 6th it would have the same outcome. This link below explains in more detail. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_football_clubs_in_international_competitio

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worksopsaint added 19:37 - Apr 9 Nic, several times recently you've commented that the opposition missed a number of chances which should have been taken. You are right to say that . The question is : is this them having an off day or is the frequency of this phenomina is related to how we defend? I'm not an expert on tactics but if we defend in numbers and defend with pace then might that cause forwards to hurry shots or be distracted by our presence, meaning that they are not as clinical as normal.

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SanMarco added 20:37 - Apr 9 I certainly hope you are right on the 8th place thing Cortese, My info came from a site purporting to quote the actual UEFA rules - but being the net it could hopefully be a load of sh1te. With our difficult finish 8th will be tough anyway
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IanRC added 23:24 - Apr 9 Thought Clasie was immense yesterday (if that is possible), and not just because of the goal. WBA player should have gone for the off the ground tackle, how differently the rules are interpreted when it is a United player who is fouled ..... For us though a great performance all around, well done guys.
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LordDZLucan added 09:25 - Apr 10 The lack of investment in the squad (until the very back end of the January transfer window) has had good and bad consequences. Firstly the bad - we've underachieved this season against what we could have achieved. But the good is that Puel's been forced to pitch the youngsters in and 'boy' have they performed. And Puel has also shown himself to be a shrewd manager given the problems he has faced. Overall I think we've got out of jail a bit this season but actually I think we're now well set up for next season - as long as we don't sell our best players again!

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bstokesaint added 12:49 - Apr 10 I’m very pleased with what is a decent result again, against another team that don’t just roll over, even to the big boys. Plenty of highlights for me, not least seeing Clasie and Hojbjerg get some game time, with a goal for the former and a clean sheet from Fraser and a great display which will hopefully lift his confidence. I’m interested to see if eighth place really does carry a European spot (as discussed above). I have to confess it’s the first I’ve heard of it and that last Europa spot does have its advantages and disadvantages, with a really early start to the season and some very tricky qualifying ties.

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BoondockSaint added 13:48 - Apr 10 Ah, 40 points and safety! Shame that after last year, we are all satisfied with this. The worry now is Les and the board say "That's good enough for us, we did don't have to buy any players this summer, in fact, Gabbiadini didn't play yesterday and we achieved safety, so let's sell him to the Scouse as soon as the window opens!" Hi highfield-"best squad in club history"???

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bstokesaint added 18:55 - Apr 10 Not sure "everyone" is satisfied with 40 points Boondock. A few maybe, but most suppporters I know expect a lot more. I'd be surprised if the club saw this as progress too, especially after reports we're going to try and keep the current squad together. Jury will be out in the summer.
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