Southampton 0-0 West Ham: Hammers held at St Mary's

​​​​Southampton held high-flying West Ham to a goalless draw at St Mary's as the Saints' search for a first Premier League win of the season continued.

In a tight game with few chances, it was new Southampton loanee Armando Broja who twice came close to breaking the deadlock.

However, with nine minutes to go, his low shot hit the foot of the post after a mesmeric dribble, before the forward saw his injury-time header cleared off the line by Declan Rice.

And the visitors' day ended on a sour note in stoppage time when Michail Antonio - the joint top scorer in the Premier League - was sent off for a second bookable offence in an incident which his manager David Moyes later branded as "stupid."

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As a result, despite extending their unbeaten run to seven games - the first time they have achieved such a feat in six seasons - the Hammers slip to fifth in the table, while the Saints lie in 14th place.

How the Saints held West Ham again

Moyes's side arrived on the south coast hoping to maintain their impressive start to the new campaign against a Saints side still looking to get off the mark this season, although it was a first half largely devoid of any meaningful action.

In fact, the closest either team came to opening the scoring was when Moussa Djenepo cut in from the left edge of the box, only for Craig Dawson to bravely get his head in the way of the Mali winger's goalbound curler.

The visitors woke up after the break, no doubt after a few stern words from Moyes, with Craig Dawson going desperately close to heading his side ahead from a right-wing corner, before Alex McCarthy was called upon to turn over Jarrod Bowen's close-range volley.

Moyes, in search of a goal, then brought on his new £33m signing Nikola Vlasic, but it was the home team who came closest to claiming all three points late on through their own new striking sensation.

Broja, on a season-long loan from Chelsea, scored Albania's winner against Hungary last weekend and he very nearly repeated the trick here on two occasions with chances of varying difficulties.

The first opening could not really be called a chance as Broja began his run inside his own half, evading Dawson's wild lunge, before powering forward with just Angelo Ogbonna for company, only for his well-struck shot from the edge of the box to beat Lukasz Fabianski, but not the post.

Then deep into five minutes of injury time, the forward rose highest of all to meet James Ward-Prowse's inswing corner from the left, but this time Rice was in the right place to make a desperate goal-line clearance.

And a minute later, West Ham lost key man Antonio after the striker picked up a second, needless booking for a late tackle on Djenepo as Southampton held West Ham to a goalless draw at home for a second season in a row.

Saints' winless run continues - Opta stats

Southampton have failed to win any of their opening four Premier League games of the season for the first time since 2016-17 (D2 L2 that season), recovering to finish 8th that season.

Southampton ended a run of 14 Premier League matches without a clean sheet, with this their first since March against Sheffield United. On home soil, it was their first since a 1-0 win over Liverpool in January.

West Ham are unbeaten in their first four Premier League matches of a season for the first time since 1999-00, when they won three and drew one of their first four games that season.

Southampton have drawn three consecutive Premier League matches for the first time since July 2020, with their first goalless league draw since last December, which was also at home against West Ham.

In the 419th match of his club career, West Ham's Michail Antonio received only his second red card, with his other also coming for the Hammers in February 2017, against Watford in a Premier League clash.

David Moyes - who took charge of his 100th match at West Ham this afternoon - has seen his side draw each of the last six away Premier League matches against Southampton- three with Everton between 2004 and 2013, one with Sunderland in 2016 and in the last two seasons with West Ham.

What the managers said...

Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl: "The way we defended deep was very good and in the end we had the bigger chances today and normally we should win the game.

"Yes, we had less possession, but no we didn't have less chances to win the game.

"Today the defensive work of all of our team was amazing and this is the key of staying in the game and getting a chance to win it.

"I don't think we have ever been so close to beating West Ham, a team we struggle against."

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West Ham boss David Moyes: "Look, it can happen football (Antonio's red card). Having been booked the first time, he was stupid to lunge in but these things in football happen, so we're not going to make too big a deal of it.

"He's got himself sent off and at the time it looked like the referee probably got it right.

"We always knew these sort of things could happen and they have done today."

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Man of the Match - Armando Broja

It is not often the man-of-the-match award goes to a player who only entered the fray with just 16 minutes left to play, but that is the case here such was Boja's impact on the game.

The 25-year-old had already showed Saints fans what he was about with two goals on his debut in their 8-0 thrashing of Newport County in the Carabao Cup second round last month.

So it was little wonder Ralph Hasenhuttl turned to him as Southampton searched for a second-half breakthrough against West Ham, with the Albania international very nearly rewarding his manager.

However, Broja was firstly denied by the woodwork after a brilliant dribble, before his late header was cleared off the line - just - by Declan Rice to deny the forward a winner.

What's next?

Southampton take on Premier League champions Man City at the Etihad next Saturday at 3pm, while West Ham travel to Dinamo Zagreb in their opening Europa League Group H clash (5.45pm) on Thursday, before hosting Man Utd on Super Sunday at 2pm.

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