Express & Star

FA Cup fifth round: West Brom 1 Southampton 2 - Report and pictures

Alan Pardew's brief love affair with the Albion is beginning to splinter after defeat to Southampton capped off a miserable Valentine's week for the club.

Published
Last updated
Ahmed Hegazi (AMA)

The Bagies lost at home to the Saints for the second time in a fortnight, and even though they rallied in the second half after a flat first half, it was not enough to get through to the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Wesley Hoedt's 11th minute goal and Dusan Tadic's chip on the counter-attack after 56 minutes gave Southampton a two-goal lead.

Salomon Rondon struck back immediately in stunning fashion with his best goal in Baggies colours, but even though they hit the bar late on, Pardew's men couldn't find that all important equaliser to take the tie down south.

Watch Matt Wilson dissect Albion's loss to Southampton

The FA Cup was the last chink of light left among the gloom of a dreadful season, but even that has been extinguished by this calamitous week.

Two members of the infamous 'Cab Four' were included in the starting line-up, although Jonny Evans was stripped of the captaincy and shunted to left-back, and there were boos as well as cheers when their names were read out before the game.

Gareth Barry kept his place in midfield and Boaz Myhill made the bench, although a hamstring injury ruled Jake Livermore out.

The armband was handed to Gareth McAuley instead as Pardew opted for a Pulis-esque back four full of centre-backs.

But none of those centre-backs picked up Wesley Hoedt in the 11th minute when he volleyed James Ward-Prowse's corner home from the six yard line.

It was a dreadful goal to concede, and came when McAuley and Craig Dawson both rushed towards the cross but missed it completely.

Hoedt found himself in acres of space on Albion's six yard line, and he gobbled up the chance with ease to send the Baggies behind.

Dawson nearly made amends three minutes later when James McClean sent in a high looping cross that the right-back met with his head, but he couldn't keep his effort from three yards out under the bar.

All the early action was coming from set-pieces and the visitors nearly added a second soon after when a corner bounced all the way to the back post, but Dawson was on hand to hack the ball clear off the line.

James McClean had been picked ahead of Chris Brunt, and the Irish international who was Albion's best player seemed determined to make his rare start count.

After winning a corner by chasing a lost cause, he also had Alex McCarthy scrambling across his line with a fierce long-range effort that just bent wide off the post.

After a shaky start, Albion started to grow into the game, but while they were seeing plenty of the ball, their final pass was consistently letting them down.

Grzegorz Krychowiak and McClean were trying to get something going, but there was serious lack of quality in the final third.

Albion had eight shots in the first half, but none on target.

They did manufacture a chance in odd circumstances when Dawson fell to the floor in Southampton's penalty area and got the ball stuck in between his legs, but when it popped out to Matt Phillips, his shot was deflected over.

But with such a slow central defence pairing, the more Albion pushed forward, the more susceptible they were to the counter-attack.

Only a strong covering tackle from Evans denied Tadic after Nathan Redmond had skipped away from McAuley on the halfway line.

It was a flat first half but it finished with a bit of fury, when Ahmed Hegazi was incensed by an elbow from Guido Carrillo.

However, referee Chris Kavanagh showed the Saints striker a yellow and the players trudged down the tunnel.

Albion needed a spark or a stroke of luck, and they nearly got one five minutes into the second half when a Jack Stephens mistake let Jay Rodriguez in on goal, but McCarthy pulled off a stunning low save to tip his shot around the post.

That was the first time the Saints keeper had been called into action, and he was forced to make another save from the resulting corner, when he tipped Dawson's header over.

But the best of the lot came five minutes later when Krychowiak's shot destined for the far corner took a wicked deflection. The keeper readjusted his body brilliantly and pushed it around the post.

Albion were enjoying their best spell of the match, but then Southampton stung them on the counter.

The visitors broke down the left, but when the ball was looped in towards Tadic, it looked like Krychowiak was going to clear the danger.

When the Polish midfielder missed the ball completely with a wild swing of his leg Tadic reacted with composure, lifting the ball over Foster to double Southampton's lead.

That gave the Baggies a mountain to climb but they stung back immediately with a goal of supreme quality from Rondon.

Peeling off his man, he was found with Krychowiak's raking 50-yard cross-field ball and instead of taking it down, he volleyed it first time with his weaker left foot, lasering it right into McCarthy's top corner.

It was always going to take something special to beat the inspired Saints keeper, because two minutes later he pulled off yet another great save, clawing away Hegazi's header from three yards out to stop Albion from equalising.

Pardew sent Chris Brunt on for Barry with 20 minutes to go and the veteran midfielder, who had a poor game in midfield, was booed off the pitch by some fans for his role in the mid-week controversies.

Krychowiak was the next to make way for young Sam Field, but just before that change Albion came agonisingly close to equalising.

Hegazi's sliced volley from a cleared corner looped onto the bar before Rondon's rebound effort was cleared off the line.

Even though they rallied, there have been too many days like this season, when Albion have come close but ultimately failed.

Now they're out of the FA Cup, and the dream is over in the 50th anniversary year of the 1968 triumph.

And sfter four defeats in a row and a controversial jaunt to Spain, pressure is beginning to mount on Pardew.

KEY MOMENTS

11 GOAL SOUTHAMPTON - Hoedt volleys home a corner from six yards out after being left alone when McAuley and Dawson rush towards the cross and miss it.

56 GOAL SOUTHAMPTON - Saints break away and Tadic dinks the ball over Foster after Krychowiak swings a leg at the ball and misses.

58 GOAL ALBION - Albion strike back immediately when Rondon fires an unstoppable first-time volley in from Krychowiak's raking cross-field ball.

81 Albion go agonisingly close to an equaliser when Hegazi hits the bar with a sliced volley before Rondon's rebound is cleared off the line.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Alex McCarthy - Saints keeper made a number of impressive saves in the second half.

TEAMS

Albion (4-4-2): Foster, Dawson, McAuley (c), Hegazi, Evans, Phillips (Burke 89), Barry (Brunt 72), Krychowiak (Field 81), McClean, Rodriguez, Rondon. Unused subs: Myhill, Nyom, Gabr, Yacob.

Southampton (4-2-3-1): McCarthy, Cedric, Stephens, Hoedt, Bertrand (c), Lemina, Hojbjerg (Romeu 78), Ward-Prowse, Tadic, Redmond (Gabbiadini 72), Carrillo (Sims 85). Unused subs: Forster, Pied, McQueen, Bednarek.

Referee: Chris Kavanagh (Manchester)

Attendance: 17,600 (2,707 away)