Southampton were relegated from the Premier League after losing 2-0 at home to Fulham on Saturday, bringing an end to their 11-year spell in the English top flight with two games remaining in the season.
Southampton, who needed a win to stave off relegation, can no longer reel in 17th-placed Everton and Ruben Selles’s side are bottom of the league on 24 points from 36 games.
Southampton, who earned promotion to the Premier League in 2012 and finished in the top eight for four straight seasons between 2013-17, have earned only six league wins this season, racking up 24 defeats and six draws.
“Disappointing. It has been coming. We knew we were in a difficult position,” Southampton captain James Ward-Prowse told the BBC.
“We need to go away individually and as a club and assess if we’ve done everything we possibly could. I don’t think we have and that is a shame…
“I think we should perform at a better level than we have done. From the first day of the season until now you can tell the standards have slipped.”
In a scrappy and disjointed opening 45 minutes, neither side were able to take control of the game, with Fulham having more possession and slightly better attempts but no luck in front of goal.
The best chance of the first half came when Willian unleashed a volley from close range in the 41st minute, but Southampton defender Lyanco cleared the effort off the line to ensure the teams went into the break level.
Both sides tried to play with more attacking intent in the second half, as Carlos Alcaraz had a goal disallowed before Carlos Vinicius latched on to a loose ball in Southampton’s box and tapped home the opener for Fulham in the 48th minute.
Substitute Aleksandar Mitrovic marked his return from an eight-match ban with a goal, sealing the win for Fulham at St Mary’s Stadium with a stooping header in the 72nd minute.
Southampton had the lion’s share of possession in the closing stages, but were unable to create anything of note and prevent a return to the second-tier Championship, with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who was born in Southampton, one of the few fans who did not leave the stands before the final whistle.
Fulham moved up to ninth and stayed on course for a first top-half finish since 2012.
