“Sadio Mane did most of the damage for the Saints with a hat-trick, while Shane Long scored the other goal for the hosts, and teenage striker Kelechi Iheanacho boosted his chances of facing Real with a brace for City”.
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Southampton are now two points behind sixth-placed West Ham in the Premier League table and Fonte is eager to keep fighting for a Europa League spot, with Ronald Koeman’s side heading to title-chasing Tottenham next week.
But he made it clear the performance was the players’ responsibility with only Kelechi Iheanacho, the scorer of both City goals, emerging with credit.
Van Dijk nearly put the game to bed on 66 minutes with an overhead kick that Hart expertly turned over the crossbar, although Mane did just that moments later to complete his hat-trick as he latched onto a through-ball from Tadic to beat Hart from a similar position to his first goal.
Manuel Pellegrini’s team still have a comfortable cushion over their city rivals, but face a defining week ahead, with the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid on Wednesday followed by a tussle with Arsenal in the league four days later.
Pellegrini refused to comment on an anonymous display by Raheem Sterling but hinted Iheanacho could come into contention.
That stop proved pivotal as Southampton took the lead midway through the half.
Long would not be denied a third time, however, when he got ahead of Otamendi to turn the ball home after being set up by Dusan Tadic in the 25th minute.
The 19-year-old Nigerian completed the 90 minutes.
Iheanacho scored his second in the 78th minute, as the game ended 4-1 in favour of Southampton. The Saints winger bagged his 10th league goal of the season as he raced onto Tadic’s low pass before slotting into the corner at the near post. “We played fantastic football today and we try to work hard for the next games now”.
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