Southampton’s relegation from the Premier League was confirmed in crushing fashion following a 3-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday — and in doing so, the Saints have etched their name into the league’s history books for all the wrong reasons.
The loss at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium sealed Southampton’s fate, making them the earliest team to be relegated from the Premier League with as many as seven games remaining. The previous record for the earliest relegation stood at six games, jointly held by Ipswich Town in the 1994/95 season and Derby County in 2007/08.
Brennan Johnson was instrumental in Spurs’ victory, netting a brace before the break. A third goal from Lucas Bergvall was disallowed after a lengthy VAR check, but it hardly mattered. Southampton collapsed to their 25th defeat of the season, a campaign that has spiraled from bad to worse.
A late goal from Matheus Fernandes offered a momentary lift, prompting ironic chants of “We are staying up” from the travelling Saints fans, but the mood quickly soured again when Johnson was fouled in stoppage time, allowing Mathys Tel to convert from the spot. Johnson, just one goal away from a hat-trick, graciously stepped aside — a rare act of mercy in a brutal afternoon.
This dismal result leaves Southampton staring down another unwanted piece of history. With just 10 points on the board, they are currently only one point behind Derby County’s infamous 11-point haul from the 2007/08 season — the lowest total ever recorded in a Premier League campaign.
Manager Juric acknowledged the looming threat, stating ahead of their upcoming clash with Crystal Palace: “I don’t want it to be that we are the worst team in the history of the Premier League.”
Despite the record for earliest relegation in terms of remaining fixtures, Southampton’s drop is only the joint-fourth earliest by calendar date, alongside Leicester City’s 2001/02 relegation on April 6. Only Derby (March 29, 2008), Huddersfield (March 30, 2019), and Fulham (April 2, 2019) were relegated earlier by date.
To compound their misery, fellow promoted sides Ipswich and Leicester City also find themselves in trouble, with recent defeats increasing the gap to safety to a daunting 12 points. The Saints, meanwhile, are not just looking to end the season with dignity — they’re battling to avoid going down as statistically the worst Premier League side ever.
For now, though, Southampton hold a record no team wants: the earliest confirmed relegation with seven games left to play — a brutal symbol of a season that has never quite taken flight.
