Fans are reacting to Southampton’s social media post in the wake of drawing with Manchester City.
City claimed a 0-0 draw against the already-relegated Southampton at St Mary’s on Saturday, and in turn, squandered their chance to solidify their place in the Premier League’s top five.
While the point sees Pep Guardiola’s men move level with second placed Arsenal, they remain within touching distance of the chasing pack, with just five points separating the Manchester club from Aston Villa in seventh.
Southampton, meanwhile, earned just their third clean sheet of the campaign, with the draw moving them to 12 points for the season, a tally that sees them surpass Derby’s all-time low 11 in the Premier League.
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At full-time the official Southampton account posted on X: “Sorry if we got your hopes up, @dcfcofficial.”
The post has received a spate of criticism, with one person responding: “What happened to shame?”
Another said: “Wait a minute, are you bragging about being the second worst premier league side ever? F***ing tinpot club man.”
Moreover, a third added: “Even for bait this is proper tragic, head would be on Mars if I was a Saints fan.”
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Nevertheless, Southampton’s interim boss Simon Rusk was full of praise for his side’s performance against City.
He said: "Going into the game, we wanted to make it clear that we wanted to finish the season as strong as possible with lots of pride. We delivered that really well.
"Delighted for the fans and the players. My job is to support the players as much as possible.
"The players stood up and it took a lot of courage to deliver that performance. It is important to build momentum for next season."
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Guardiola, meanwhile, told Sky Sports: "The second half was much better but they defended so deep. I didn't expect it. We had four or five chances and unfortunately we could not score.
"We could not do it. They were so defensive and defended so deep.
"We have three games left, three finals. Today was a massive game for us. We have been on an incredible run. It is always difficult. There were 11 players in the 18-yard box, it is difficult.
"It is what it is."
Chris Byfield