Southampton had a frustrating evening in Israel as they were held to a goalless draw by Hapoel Be'er Sheva at the Turner Stadium this evening.
Virgil van Dijk missed the Saints' best chance of the game in the fourth minute, but they managed to keep their Group K opponents at bay.
Claude Puel's side sit at the top of the standings, while Be'er Sheva are second on the same points, Sparta Prague sit third and Inter Milan are at the bottom having lost both of their opening matches.
Discover how the game unfolded in Sports Mole's text commentary below.
5.00pmEvening everyone! It's matchday two in the Europa League and there are a whopping 24 fixtures being played this evening. On English shores, most of us will be focusing on the progress of Manchester United and Southampton. Jose Mourinho's men take on Zorya Luhansk at Old Trafford tonight, but right here, we will be keeping our close eye on Southampton's trip to Israel to face Hapoel Be'er Sheva.
5.08pmClaude Puel's side will hope to earn two in two following their opening 3-0 victory over Sparta Prague earlier this month, but it is clear that Frenchman is prioritising this weekend's Premier League match against Leicester City as he has rested captain Jose Fonte, Ryan Bertrand, Steven Davis and Charlie Austin.
5.13pmAs for Be'er Sheva, they are heading into tonight's match in positive form having won all of their five games at the Turner Stadium this season. They also caused an upset in their opening group match of this competition by sealing a 2-0 win over Inter Milan in Italy. It could prove to be a big test for Southampton tonight.
5.18pmRight, before we go any further, let's bring you the lineups for both sides...
5.18pmSOUTHAMPTON XI: Forster; Yoshida, Martina, Van Dijk, Targett; Clasie, Romeu, Redmond, Hesketh, Ward-Prowse; Long
Subs: McCarthy, Cedric, Tadic, Reed, Hojbjerg, Stephens, Olomola
Subs: McCarthy, Cedric, Tadic, Reed, Hojbjerg, Stephens, Olomola
5.19pmBE'ER SHEVA XI: Goresh; Bitton, Vitor, Taha, Tzedek, Korhut; Nwakaeme, Radi, Ogu, Melikson; Maranhao
Subs: Buzaglo, Hoban, Sahar, Broun, Ohayon, Shabtai, Haimov
Subs: Buzaglo, Hoban, Sahar, Broun, Ohayon, Shabtai, Haimov
5.22pmDue to Puel leaving a number of players at home, there have been a total of seven changes from the team that beat West Ham United at the weekend. Maya Yoshida, Cuco Martina and Matt Targett come into the defence, replacing Cedric, Fonte and Bertrand. In midfield, Jordy Clasie, Jake Hesketh and James Ward-Prowse replace Steven Davis, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Dusan Tadic. Shane Long is the man to lead the line up front.
5.25pmAs mentioned, there is no Charlie Austin tonight. It seems as though Puel wants to keep the striker fresh for this weekend's trip to the King Power Stadium to face the defending league champions. It was the Europa League, though, that pushed Austin into a first-team spot in the top flight. After scoring twice against Sparta at St Mary's, the former Queens Park Rangers forward has netted three times in his last three games in all competitions. Southampton will have to rely on Shane Long for goals tonight, though.
5.29pmWhen explaining his decision to rest key players, Puel told reporters: "The players are staying because with the travel many players won't have enough time to recover for Leicester. We have got to play against Leicester on Sunday, which is just two days training after this game. Leicester have five days to recover.
"It is important to consider both this game and the other to try and have a good result every time. It is the management of the squad. We can see with the games before that many players have improved and made progress because they have had game time and confidence. All the players in the squad have taken confidence in this system and philosophy and I think it is important to finish this work.
"All the players are ready to play with good energy and for me it is very important. This is management and important for the recovery and we have a good chance to have a good team with younger players and all the players have improved since the beginning of the season."
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5.34pmIt has been quite the turnaround for Southampton in recent weeks. They went four league games without a win, recording two draws and two defeats. They managed to score in all but one of them (a 2-0 defeat to Manchester United), but they were unable to get the job done. Watford and Sunderland held the Saints to 1-1 draws, while Arsenal delivered a sucker-punch when Santi Cazorla scored a 94th-minute penalty to claim all three points in a clash at the Emirates earlier this month.
5.37pmAfter claiming their first win of the season against Sparta Prague in the Europa League, Southampton have not looked back. They earned a 1-0 win over Swansea at St Mary's, with Austin's goal coming in the 63rd minute. The club then switched attention to the third round of the EFL Cup where they took on Premier League opposition Crystal Palace and earned a 2-0 triumph. Next up in the league was a trip to the London Stadium to face out-of-form West Ham United. They stunned Slaven Bilic's side by winning 3-0. Austin, Dusan Tadic and James Ward-Prowse were the scorers on the day.
5.44pmSTATS! Everything looks rosy at the moment for Southampton, but when it comes to Europe, they have not won back-to-back fixtures (excluding qualifiers) since the second round of the Cup Winners' Cup in the 1976-77 campaign. They have also failed to score in each of their last four European away games.
5.47pmAlso, it's important to take into consideration the amount of travel involved. It took a total of seven hours (including flight and a coach trip) for Southampton to arrive at their destination, but they will need to get their energy levels up before kickoff!
5.51pmOriol Romeu has been speaking to the media this week. He finds himself back in the first team after being left out on the cold by former manager Ronald Koeman. Before joining the Saints, Romeu was a Chelsea player, but he had to watch from the sidelines when the Blues won the Champions League and Europa League.
"You feel part of it, and you feel proud of yourself and your teammates, but in your mind it's 'I want to win it one day being there, being on the pitch'," Romeu told reporters. "[n 2012-13] I played the last game in the Champions League in the group stage, then I got the 'ACL' and couldn't play in the Europa League. I had the medal because I was in the squad, but I didn't play.
"As you go forward, every game is nicer, playing quarter-finals, semi-finals, it's all watched around Europe and the world, and we all want to be there. Who wouldn't want to win the Europa League? It's a long run, it's very hard, but we're here to give everything every game."
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5.54pmSo, what do we know about Southampton's opponents tonight? Well, they are pretty much Israel's Leicester City! They won their first Israeli Premier League title for 40 years by winning 17 games and sealing two draws. In the process, the team sealed a spot in the Champions League. In the qualifying rounds they managed to overcome Olympiacos, but their campaign in Europe's elite came to an end when they went up against Celtic.
5.55pmThey have proved to be difficult opponents in the Europa League as they stunned Inter Milan in the opening group fixture. Be'er Sheva headed into the fixture at the San Siro as underdogs, but they proved to be anything but. Miguel Vitor broke the deadlock int he 54th minute, while his teammate Maor Buzaglo doubled the team's advantage just before the 70th-minute mark.
5.56pmThey also have former Chelsea player Sahar on the bench tonight. The forward could cause some trouble with his pace if he's brought on. Interestingly, the now 27-year-old spent the latter of his teenage years on loan at Southampton's arch rivals Portsmouth.
5.57pmDID YOU KNOW? The Israeli side have won all three of their European matches at the Turner Stadium and they are also unbeaten in five UEFA fixtures. Tonight will not be a walk in the park for Southampton. Also, it's worth noting that this is the first time that the two sides have played one another.
5.58pmBoth players have made their way onto the pitch. Kickoff is moments away!
1 minKICKOFF! Be'er Sheva get us underway at the Turner Stadium! It's a great atmosphere tonight. Fingers crossed for a good game! Switzerland's Stephane Johannesson is the referee tonight.
3 minIt looks as though Southampton have set up in a diamond formation, with Hesketh behind Long and Redmond. Puel's side have had most of the ball in these early stages.
4 minMISS! Oh my! What a miss from Van Dijk! Southampton win a free kick and it's whipped into the box from Ward-Prowse. It's the perfect delivery for Van Dijk, who only needs to head it into the net fro point-blank range, but he misses! The ball goes over the bar.
7 minThe Saints are showing attacking intent in these early stages and they look comfortable so far. Aside from Van Dijk's chance, the visitors haven't tested the keeper just yet.
9 minLong almost finds an opening from a less-than-convincing back pass from Vitor, but the defender manages to get the ball to his keeper.
10 minBe'er Sheva get their first sight of goal as Radi gets the ball on the edge of the box and unleashes a strike. The ball loses pace as it takes a deflection and Forster collects comfortably.
12 minOgu nicks the ball off Clasie and Be'er Sheva break. A high ball is delivered into the box and Van Dijk manages to boot it out of the danger area.
14 minThere is nothing much to report from the last few minutes. The pace has slowed down and neither side are creating many goalscoring opportunities.
17 minThe home side find space on the edge of the area. They're given time to play by Saints, who seem happy to drop back. Nwakaeme unleashes a shot after turning on the line, but it's straight at the keeper.
18 minTargett delivers another nice cross into the penalty area searching for Long. The striker is crowded out by two defenders and the ball is hooked clear. Even if Long had got a shot away, it wouldn't have counted because the Irishman was offside.
19 minAt the other end, Be'er Sheva win a corner off Van Dijk. Radi swings it into the area to find the head of Vitor, who directs it across goal, but none of his teammates are there to latch onto the end of it.
23 minSouthampton continue to sit back and the home side try to take advantage as the ball is crossed into the area but bounces to the other side. It's picked up and crossed back in for Maranhao, who tries to direct a header towards goal, but he can't connect properly and it goes wide.
25 minThe hosts are getting on top now, but they're just lacking that clinical final touch. After a few passes around the box, Ogu unleashes a thumping shot, but it's blasted straight into Ward-Prowse. Be'er Sheva want a handball, but the referee is having none of it.
28 minCHANCE! Be'er Sheva continue to come at Southampton and they almost find the breakthrough when Korhut plays the ball through to Melikson in the box, but Van Dijk comes across to get in a well-timed tackle.
31 minMartina gets flustered as he ends up nodding the ball out for a corner. The set piece is taken short by Be'er Sheva, but the move ends with an overhit pass.
34 minSOUTHAMPTON SUB: The visitors make an early change as Hesketh makes way for Tadic. It seems as though the change is due to injury rather than tactical.
37 minTadic makes an instant impact as he sends a perfect pass to Martina, but the defender fails to control the ball and the move breaks down.
41 minTadic has made the difference here for Southampton. They are ending the half dominating the ball, but once again, the keeper has rarely been troubled. Apparently, Hesketh's substitution was tactical rather than anything injury-related.
45 minOh dear. Be'er Sheva are not happy with Southampton. Ogu and Van Dijk exchange some angry words after the visitors failed to kick the ball out after Targett went down.
45+1 minHALF-TIME: BE'ER SHEVA 0-0 SOUTHAMPTON
6.50pmIt's all square at the break as neither Southampton nor Hapoel Be'er Sheva have been able to break the deadlock. The home side were the better team for the majority of the first half as they were given plenty of space and created more opportunities than they counterparts. The Saints dominated the ball towards the end of the half when Dusan Tadic came off the substitutes bench. Perhaps there will be a breakthrough in the second half! We'll return shortly.
46 minRESTART! Southampton get the second half underway! The visitors have not yet created a single shot on target. They'll hope to change that stat in the next 45 minutes.
48 minBe'er Sheva come out on the front foot as Bitton delivers the ball into the box from the right-hand side. Maranhao meets it and flicks wide of Forster's goal.
51 minSouthampton are continuing to sit back as Nwakaeme crosses into the area, but it comes to nothing. Bitton gets a go and Romeu clears the danger.
52 minSAVE! A chance from Southampton! Goresh makes his first save of the game as Ward-Prowse breaks away from his marker before unleashing a 25-yard strike. The keeper drops to his right to clear.
54 minIt's been better from Southampton in the last few minutes as they force Be'er Sheva back into their own half. That was lacking in the first half.
60 minNot much goalmouth action to discuss I'm afraid. Tadic tries to makes this happen with a cross from the right side, but it's over-hit.
62 minBOOKING! The first yellow card of the evening issued to Vitor following a challenge on Tadic.
63 minBE'ER SHEVA SUB: The former Chelsea man comes on. Sahar replaces Maranhao for the final 27 minutes of the match.
66 minMartina gets a great cross into the box, but none of his teammates are there to nod in from the six-yard box.
67 minCHANCE! Best goalscoring opportunity of the half so far and it goes to Be'er Sheva! Nwakaeme plays in Melikson, who drills it low across the goal, but it just trickles past the back post.
70 minBE'ER SHEVA SUB: Its the second change from the hosts as Buzaglo, who scored against Inter, replaces Melikson.
71 minNwakaeme is gifted the ball following a poor clearance from Yoshida. He's 20 yards from goal and goes for glory, but he drags his shot wide of the post.
73 minTadic spots Long's run and the striker chips the ball towards Ward-Prowse, who gets crowded out when a swarm of bodies surrounded him in the box.
77 minCHANCE! Martina storms into the final third and gets on the end of Tadic's pass. The right-back crosses into the box, but there's nobody there to get the final touch.
79 minBitton lays the ball off to Buzaglo, who spots Sahar in the penalty area, but Yoshida manages to block off the attacker. Targett then gives away a free kick and the hosts have the chance close to the right byline.
81 minBE'ER SHEVA SUB: Before the set piece is taken, Radi makes way for Hoban.
81 minThe free kick comes to nothing for the home side as Buzaglo delivers in a deep cross to find Tzedek, who volleys over the bar.
82 minSAVE! Hoban goes for goal with a volley on the edge of the area, but Forster drops down to make the stop. The resulting corner ends up at Nwakaeme's feet, but his shot is picked out by the keeper.
85 minSOUTHAMPTON SUB: The visitors make a change as Redmond is brought off and replaced with Hojbjerg.
86 minBOOKING! Substitute Sahar receives a yellow card for tugging on Yoshida's shirt.
90 minThere's not much urgency from either side in the closing minutes of the game. It looks as though we're heading for a goalless draw. We have two minutes of added time.
90+2 minFULL-TIME: BE'ER SHEVA 0-0 SOUTHAMPTON
7.56pmIt's all over at the Turner Stadium as Hapoel Be'er Sheva and Southampton share a point after a goalless draw in Israel. The Saints should have been in front after four minutes, but Virgil van Dijk fluffed a simple header, and it was arguably the visitors' best chance of the game. Be'er Sheva created a handful of goalscoring opportunities themselves, but the deadlock was not broken. Southampton sit at the top of Group K on level points with Be'er Sheva, while Sparta Prague sit third and Inter reside at the bottom after losing both of their games. Thanks for joining us, and until next time, goodbye!
