Southampton manager Russell Martin has slammed Millwall for dangerous tackles but conceded that his team did not do enough to get back into the game at home today.
The Saints seem to be stuttering in the race for automatic promotion after losing a second game in a row following an unbeaten run that stretched from September last year.
Millwall beat Martin’s team 2-1 in a big win for the Lions under new manager Neil Harris, which boosted their chances of being away from the relegation zone this season.
However, Southampton’s second defeat on the trot is the story and Martin slammed his team for the kind of soft goals they conceded at home.
He insisted that some of the tackles made by the Millwall players were disgraceful but he does not want to blame the referee as his team did not do enough to get back into the game.
The Southampton boss insisted that his team need to stop conceding soft goals but admitted that they had enough chances to win the game.
Martin told BBC Radio Solent: “I am furious at the manner of the goals we’ve conceded.
“Some of the stuff was good but we have given a team something to hang onto again. It’s ridiculous.
“I think it’s the softest free-kick in the world for the first one.
“Two of their tackles were a disgrace but I am not going to blame the referee – we didn’t do enough to get back in the game and win the game.
“We have to stop conceding first.
“We had a mountain to climb to get into the game.
“Second half we have a few big chances but we don’t score – if we get the goal I think we go on to win it.”
Southampton have an FA Cup clash against Liverpool on Wednesday night but their focus is likely to be on the league game against Birmingham City next weekend.
