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Southampton 3-0 Sparta Prague: Charlie Austin at the double in win

A brace from Charlie Austin gave Claude Puel his first win as Southampton manager and the Saints a ideal start to their Europa League campaign.

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With this being Southampton’s first fixture in the Europa League group stages, then plenty of incentive to pick up their first three points in Europa League history is at stake, hence why a strong starting line-up will be selected.

Dusan Tadic had to be ushered away after arguing about who should take the penalty but celebrated with Austin whose header made it 2-0 before Rodriguez added a late third.

Click the video above to watch the highlights.

Austin now has two goals in four appearances for the Saints in all competitions.

Southampton host Sparta Prague in Group K of the UEFA Europa League at St Mary’s.

Striker Charlie Austin scored twice to set the Saints on their way.

Martina’s cross from the right was met with a downward header from Austin, which slipped under Koubek’s hand and into the net.

There was another delay as Austin and Dusan Tadic argued over who should take the kick. How Van Dijk is not on the radar of England’s so-called elite clubs becomes a bigger mystery with every inch-perfect performance. Three penalties in the first few games, it’s very hard for my team.

However, Martina’s hopes of reuniting with old manager Ronald Koeman at Goodison Park were shattered when Jeremy Pied was ruled out by a serious knee injury.

“It’s very interesting, because we changed the team a little bit for the start of this game, and I am happy for all the squad, because they can see many good players”, Puel told Southampton’s YouTube channel.

“It is important to change some players, to play good football, and to keep in shape for all the competitions”, he said on Wednesday.

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Fraser Forster’s first clean sheet and Southampton’s first victory this season and largest margin since 26 December 2015 will do wonders for a club whose confidence was wavering after a slow start to the domestic season.

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