Southampton can’t solely blame officials for cup final defeat

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Big decisions didn’t go Southampton’s way but they still could have beaten Manchester United.

Southampton’s Oriol Romeu looks dejected after the game

Southampton lost the EFL Cup final in heartbreaking fashion, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic scoring three minutes from time to give Manchester United a 3-2 victory.

What made it even harder to take for Saints fans and players alike was that Manolo Gabbiadini had what should have been the opening goal incorrectly ruled out for offside, while Jesse Lingard was also fortunate not to receive a second booking after the break.

Southampton were certainly unfortunate, with Jose Mourinho even admitting his side didn’t deserve to win over ninety minutes. It’s easy to simply blame the officials but Claude Puel will also know that his players made some costly errors that allowed the team with less possession and fewer chances to win.

The first goal especially was a catalogue of errors, from Oriol Romeu giving away the free-kick with a stupid challenge to Steven Davis in the wall letting the shot sneak past him and most notably Fraser Forster reacting far too slowly.

Manolo Gabbiadini scored twice but should really have had a hat-trick

For United’s second goal their players were given too much time on the ball and it looked alarmingly easy for Lingard to slot home, while the third was an inevitable consequence of leaving Ibrahimovic unmarked in the box.

Puel got his tactics spot on, with Saints much the better side on the day and the players can be proud of the run to the final as well as the performance once they got there, but the nature of all three goals they conceded should rankle.

Big decisions went against Southampton, but the truth is they still could have won and if the club want to enjoy more finals in the future they should accept there is room for improvement and not solely blame the officials. Even though their league form has stuttered a little this season, a solid Wembley performance suggests the club are very much continuing to grow.