Southampton enjoyed an incredible bank holiday weekend as they secured a return to the Premier League at Wembley.
Russell Martin‘s side overcame Leeds United for the third time this season in the Championship play-off final on Sunday.
Adam Armstrong was the Southampton goalscorer as they edged past their opponents with a much-deserved 1-0 win in which Leeds rarely troubled Alex McCarthy’s goal.
There were a number of former Southampton players in attendance, with the likes of Shane Long, Francis Benali and Steven Davis, as well as Adam Lallana – who is now linked with a sensational return to the club – all supporting the Saints.
However, one club legend also in attendance revelled in the win, taunting Southampton’s fierce rivals Portsmouth after the game.
Matt Le Tissier with Porsmouth social media dig
Matt Le Tissier was spotted at the game, sat next to a fellow former club captain in Lallana.
Le Tissier is widely viewed as the Saints’ best ever player, amassing a club-record 100 Premier League goals; the first midfielder of any club to achieve such a feat.
Portsmouth won League One this season and looked set to compete in the same division as Southampton for the first time since the 2011/12 season in which the Saints won promotion to the Premier League.
However, Southampton’s Wembley triumph on Sunday means that wait will go on, and Le Tissier was quick to rub this in.
Le Tissier posted on ‘X’: ” Sorry Pompey but you’re gonna have to try a bit harder if you want some derbies”.
Southampton wait for Portsmouth derby goes on
Southampton and Portsmouth have faced off just once since the two clubs were in the Championship together 12 years ago.
That meeting came in the Carabao Cup in September 2019, with Saints a Premier League side and Pompey in the third tier.
Southampton won 4-0 at a hostile Fratton Park, with two goals from Danny Ings, as well as one each from Cedric Soares and Nathan Redmond.
Southampton will be determined to stay up next season and ensure that if the two clubs are to meet again in the near future it is in the Premier League rather than a second-tier affair.
For now, at least, any hopes of a south coast derby remains through either of the domestic cup competitions and Southampton will boast their superior league status for at least one more season.