U23 Report: Saints 3-0 West Ham

Saints had started their cup campaign strongly after defeating Dinamo Zagreb and drawing with Porto in the autumn and dispatched the Hammers with the same confidence to advance at Staplewood Campus.

Under the watchful eye of new First Team Manager Ralph Hasenhüttl, Radhi Jaïdi’s youngsters will have given the Austrian plenty to consider as two finely taken goals and a committed rearguard action laid the platform for a highly polished victory.

Saints resisted early pressure to take the game beyond the visitors within the space of two first-half minutes courtesy of Johnson and Barnes’s clinical finishes that came at a time when West Ham were threatening to strike themselves.

The impressive Barnes pulled Slattery’s clipped pass out the air and teed up swivelling Jonathan Afolabi to side-foot straight at West Ham’s Nathan Trott from inside the six-yard box but not before Jahmal Hector-Ingram had slipped inside Jake Vokins and tested Jack Rose from close range.

Vashon Neufville flashed a shot viciously over the bar just before the quarter-hour mark and the winger might have had an assist had Dan Kemp not somehow scrambled his shot off target moments later.

It seemed the momentum was very much in the favour of the visitors as the half drew on only for Saints to spring into life and seize control at Staplewood.

A first concerted spell of possession suggested they were beginning to edge into proceedings and Johnson’s beautifully worked strike, followed by Barnes’s ninth goal of the season demonstrated the explosive capabilities of Jaïdi’s side.

The opener came from the work of Will Smallbone whose surge down the touchline and surgically precise low cross allowed Johnson to fire high past Trott from just inside the penalty area.

The second was just as clinical, Barnes snapping up Callum Slattery’s drilled pass into the box to slot home his 10th goal of the season in all competitions.

A third goal would have been just reward for the way Saints were squeezing the Hammers out of contention; the in-form striker beat Trott to Smallbone’s wide free-kick to head off target five minutes before the interval.

Saints’ scorers were withdrawn at the break to make way for Harry Hamblin, Will Ferry and a change of shape but their first-half rhythm remained unaffected.

The two-goal cushion allowed the home side to control the pace of what remained of the game and while the Hammers increased their intensity, they fashioned few chances to threaten Rose in the Saints goal.

Substitute Hamblin skidded a left-footed shot past the post from Smallbone’s lay-off as the hour mark came and went before Afolabi raced in behind on the back of a defensive error only to see his low cross for Ferry diverted away from danger.

An even greater one immediately followed to deepen West Ham’s woes as Ferry’s resulting right-winger corner was bizarrely helped into the net by goalkeeper Trott at the near post.

Three might have become four within minutes, Trott instantly making amends by diving acrobatically to his left to deny Slattery from the penalty spot.

It was a moment that did little to blot an excellent all-round performance from Jaïdi’s charges who can move on to the knockout stages full of confidence.