Southampton vs. Manchester City: Winners and Losers from Premier League
Sadio Mane bagged a hat-trick as Southampton recorded a 4-2 triumph over Premier League rivals Manchester City at St Mary's Stadium on Sunday.
The in-form Saints registered a fifth win in their last seven league outings to boost their hopes of playing European football next season.
The result takes Ronald Koeman's side above Liverpool into seventh in the table. They now sit just two points behind fifth-placed Manchester United in the battle to qualify for the UEFA Europa League.
As for Manchester City, they made eight alterations to their side that drew 0-0 with Real Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final on Tuesday.
However, only Kelechi Iheanacho—who scored both goals for the visitors—impressed for Manuel Pellegrini's much-changed side.
Here, Bleacher Report takes a look at the winners and losers from a high-scoring encounter down on the south coast.
Winner: Sadio Mane
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Sadio Mane registered the second hat-trick of his Premier League career. Only Matt Le Tissier (four) has managed more for Southampton.
The Senegal forward twice converted passes from Dusan Tadic to sandwich a close-range finish after Virgil van Dijk's header had smacked against the woodwork.
However, Mane did more than just put the ball in the back of the net (even if did that task extremely well).
According to Sky Sports Statto on Twitter, he covered 11.27 kilometres and completed 80 sprints.
Mane told the club's official YouTube channel (h/t Saints official website): "Every striker likes to score for the team, but the more important is the team and the performance of the whole team, and I think we played great football today from the beginning to the end."
Loser: Aleksandar Kolarov
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Southampton teased and tortured Aleksandar Kolarov like a cat with a captured mouse.
The defender was slow. Slow to run, slow to react and slow to get back. Of the four goals Manchester City conceded, three came down Kolarov's side.
James Robson of the Manchester Evening News gave the left-back a rating of two out of 10. You'd reckon he got a point apiece for turning up for the start of each half.
Robson wrote: "So slack when he had the chance to cut out Southampton's break for their second, slow to react when Mane scored just after half time and couldn't keep up when the same man completed his hat-trick."
Independent journalist Jack Pitt-Brooke was just as critical on Twitter: "This is the worst I've ever seen Aleksandar Kolarov play for Manchester City. And I was at Everton away March 2013."
Winner: Shane Long
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Sadio Mane will hog the headlines thanks to his three goals, but Shane Long's efforts shouldn't be overlooked.
Former striker-turned-television pundit Thierry Henry certainly recognised Long's performance, telling Sky Sports: "For me the man of the match was Shane Long. He got them going in every way."
The Republic of Ireland international set the ball rolling for Southampton with the opening goal, poking Dusan Tadic's cross through the legs of goalkeeper Joe Hart in the 25th minute.
It was Long's 10th goal of the Premier League campaign and his 100th in club football, as confirmed on Twitter by Squawka Football.
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Loser: Raheem Sterling
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To pick on Raheem Sterling may seem a little unfair—the England international was not alone in producing a below-par performance for Manchester City.
However, with David Silva ruled out of Manchester City's second leg against Real Madrid on Wednesday with a hamstring injury, Sterling had the chance to prove he deserves to replace his absent team-mate.
Instead he failed to fire on his first start in the Premier League since the Manchester derby on March 20.
Sterling may still play in Madrid, but his performance against Southampton can hardly have encouraged his manager, Manuel Pellegrini, to pick him.
He also isn't doing much for his international prospects ahead of Euro 2016, as pointed out by Adam Shergold of MailOnline: "Should he play in the Bernabeu? On this evidence, no, though City might not have much choice. Should he start at Euro 2016? It’s increasingly hard to make the argument."
Winner: Dusan Tadic
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Dusan Tadic bagged a hat-trick of assists for Southampton, registering three for the home side.
The Serb set up Shane Long's opener, producing a left-footed cross from tight to the right byline.
He then produced through balls to set up Mane's first and third goals, his perfectly weighted passes leaving his team-mate to only worry about providing the finish.
According to OptaJoe, Tadic becomes just the fourth player to register three or more assists in a Premier League fixture, joining a select group that includes Thierry Henry, Eyal Berkovic and Cesc Fabregas.
Replaced by Jay Rodriguez in the 87th minute, Tadic left the field to a standing ovation from the home crowd.
Winner: Kelechi Iheanacho
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Kelechi Iheanacho was the one bright spot on an otherwise dismal day for Manchester City.
The forward scored a goal in each half for the visitors at St Mary's. His first saw him nod home a loose ball inside the area, cutting Southampton's lead in half right before the break.
However, Iheanacho's second was a bit special.
Receiving Jesus Navas' square pass on the edge of the area, the Nigeria international opened up his body to curl a left-footed shot beyond Southampton goalkeeper Fraser Forster.
Per WhoScored.com, he has now scored seven goals from 10 shots on target in the Premier League this season.
Team-mate Sergio Aguero—an unused substitute ahead of the game against Real Madrid in midweek—must have been suitably impressed by Iheanacho's performance in defeat.
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