Southampton progressed to the third round of the Carabao Cup after they comprehensively beat Norwich City at Carrow Road.
The Saints emerged 3-0 winners over the Canaries, with goals from Cameron Archer, Ryan Fraser, and Kuryu Matsuki.
Will Still should be pleased, as the side looked to put their first defeat of the campaign behind them after Stoke City earned three points at St Mary’s at the weekend in the Championship.
However, there was a lot of focus on who was and wasn’t involved in the fixture with Norwich City as the transfer window remains open.
Southampton recently lost Tyler Dibling to Everton, while rumours still swirl about Mateus Fernandes leaving the club to join West Ham.
Still addressed the absence of Fernandes from the squad for the victory over Norwich City.
Will Still on the absence of Mateus Fernandes
There have been rumours all summer that Mateus Fernandes will leave the club, with West Ham having made two previous offers for the player.
Southampton value the player highly and don’t want to sell for anything below this; however, fans may be concerned that the Portuguese midfielder was left out of the victory over Norwich City.
Speaking after the win with the Southern Daily Echo, Still said: “No, it’s nothing to do with transfers or anything like that.
Mateus Fernandes during Southampton FC v Fulham FC - Premier League
Photo by Robin Jones/Getty Images
“We left Stevo (Jack Stephens) and Matty (Mateus Fernandes) at home just for recovery, for loads and all that, but that’s it. Adam Armstrong’s back is still tensed up and can’t quite move.”
Fans of Southampton may still be concerned about the future of Fernandes due to the poor start to the season for West Ham, so the Hammers may splash the cash to solve their current issues.
Still proud of the Southampton performance
Despite the absence of these key players, Southampton were able to dominate Norwich City in the Carabao Cup, and now the Saints can look forward to the next round of the Carabao Cup.
Will Still believed the performance was the most pleasing part, as Southampton are looking to build towards a campaign with promotion at the end of it.
Speaking to the Southern Daily Echo, he said: “We were getting into old habits of playing sideways and backwards and attracting pressure, but we started playing forward and getting in behind.
“We don’t want to play short and attract pressure and play it back into pressure. I think that’s everything we want to avoid.
“Once we started stretching it, our passing was a bit bigger, and we started switching and stretching their block, then you just make it easier for yourself.
“I’m pleased with how we eventually grew into the game. But we know it’s a work in progress and it’s still early days, so I’m sure we can build on that.”