Southampton travel to Manchester City this weekend looking to recover from their second-half collapse against Leicester City.
Southampton were cruising to their first Premier League win of the season when they were 2-0 up against Leicester but a Ryan Fraser red card saw a second-half collapse unfold.
Fraser was sent off for pulling Jamie Vardy’s shirt in the box, who converted from 12 yards before Jordan Ayew broke Saints hearts with a 98th-minute winner.
Despite now failing to win any of their first eight Premier League games, Russell Martin retains the backing of the Southampton hierarchy, who believe in the long-term project.
Martin’s shortcomings tactically have been evident throughout this term, and he’s going to need a miracle to stop Manchester City from winning this weekend.
Pep Guardiola’s side are unbeaten in their first eight games, most recently beating Wolves late on to remain second in the table.
David Coote named on VAR for Man City vs Southampton
Ahead of Southampton’s trip to the Etihad, the refereeing appointments have been made, with Tony Harrington the man in the middle and David Coote on VAR.
So far, Harrington has only taken charge of four Southampton matches and dished out six yellow cards in those fixtures.
Coote, meanwhile, has refereed 14 games involving the Saints and has been on VAR duty for three fixtures.
The 42-year-old has been involved in previous controversies, as towards the end of 2020, Coote was banned from refereeing Premier League matches after failing to check a red card for Jordan Pickford, who committed a horrible tackle on Virgil van Dijk.
He also left Jurgen Klopp angered in a match last season. The German felt Liverpool should have been awarded a penalty against Arsenal after Martin Odegaard handled in the box.
Coote decided not to award a spot kick, leaving the former Reds boss fuming, and he isn’t the only one to be left frustrated by the referee.
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Ralph Hasenhutl once clashed with David Coote
Former Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl once clashed with Coote during a 0-0 draw against West Ham in 2021.
The game’s big talking point at St Mary’s came in second-half stoppage time when Michail Antonio was sent off for a second booking, following a foul on Moussa Djenepo.
Hasenhuttl was left frustrated that referee Coote did not play advantage following the incident, in which the hosts had the chance to counter for the winner.
The man in the middle ended up booking the Austrian for his protests and he made his feelings on the decision known after the game.
“I spoke with the referee. He gave me a yellow card because I was very emotional. Absolutely, okay,” Hasenhuttl said via the Daily Echo.
“In this moment, you think ‘ah this is the chance now to kill them’ and he stopped the game. I can understand his argument, he understands my argument – this is how football should be.”
Coote’s track record in the top flight isn’t great, and although Southampton don’t stand much chance of leaving the Etihad with a positive result, they’ll need VAR to at least be on their side.