Russell Martin expressed his gratitude and acknowledged he was not a “sexy appointment” after guiding Southampton to the Premier League with a precious 1-0 win over Leeds at Wembley.
Adam Armstrong struck midway through the first half to haunt Leeds again with his 24th goal of the campaign and it proved enough to send Saints back to the top flight at the first time of asking.
It continued the remarkable rise of Martin after he masterminded promotion to the Premier League in only his fifth season as a manager.
WE ARE GOING UP 👑👑👑 pic.twitter.com/KZpDFNXGsB
— Southam(P)ton FC (@SouthamptonFC) May 26, 2024
The 38-year-old paid tribute to the Southampton owners and former director of football Jason Wilcox, who brought him to the club but left to join Manchester United last month and was at Wembley a day earlier for the FA Cup final.
Martin said: “I just feel really grateful. I have felt that all week really.
“Just felt a load of gratitude for what the players have given us, the staff, the supporters and I feel immense pride in what we have achieved.
“I just feel grateful to the owners for giving me the opportunity in the first place, for Jason, who had a good day himself here yesterday.
“I feel like it wasn’t a sexy appointment for Southampton Football Club, me coming in, but they were brave enough to give me the opportunity and hopefully we have repaid them with a day they will remember forever.
“It has given me one of the best days of my career for sure, so yeah I just feel nothing but gratitude and a lot of love for the people I’ve worked with all year.”
Saints endured a rollercoaster ride before they made it to Wembley, losing four in a row in September before Martin oversaw a club record 25-match unbeaten run.
A poor end to the campaign, which included a 5-0 loss at Leicester, threatened to derail their promotion bid, but they regrouped to beat West Brom in the play-off semi-finals.
It set up another clash with Leeds and Martin tasted success for a third time against old boss Daniel Farke, with Armstrong’s first-half strike the difference.
Leeds started well, but Southampton made their numerical advantage in midfield count when Flynn Downes found Will Smallbone, who brilliantly passed through to Armstrong and he drilled into the corner.
Farke sent on Dan James in search of a leveller and the Wales international struck the crossbar with six minutes left before another low effort was parried away by Alex McCarthy to earn Southampton victory.
“We missed a few passes we would never normally miss, so I just wanted to tell them to stick to the game plan a little bit,” Martin revealed.
“We scored a really, really nice goal and it is something the guys work on a lot in terms of the way it built up.
“I didn’t want us to defend as long as we did in the last 25 minutes, but with the tension in the game, I understand that because it’s a big occasion.
“I felt when we had to defend, we defended so well and Alex when we needed him was brilliant.”
Defeat for Leeds consigned them to more play-off heartache with this a sixth consecutive time they have failed to go up via that route in the club’s history and ensured they missed out on a revenue boost of £140million, according to Deloitte.
Farke said: “Yes, as you can imagine it couldn’t be worse. Obviously we’re suffering a lot in this moment.
“I can’t really say we are the worst side in this final and to lose this final hurts a lot.
“We are very disappointed, but I also don’t want to miss to say first of all congratulations to Southampton. They defended really, really well and were pretty effective.”
Let's start our Daily Laugh today. Don't give up on the Premier League Dungeon Bro, Darwin Arsenal transfer market These are the same fans who say Auckland City didn't deserve to be in the Club World Cup.Brazilian teams at the Club World Cup: 4/4 through to the round of 16Argentinian teams at the Club World Cup: 0/2 through to the round of 16 lol This is what referees have to watch for 90 minutes....
Barcelona attacking midfielder Pablo Torre is closing in on a transfer to Mallorca after agreeing terms with the LaLiga club, a source has confirmed to ESPN.Mallorca and Torre's entourage held a meeting on Thursday, in which an agreement was reached with the player, who is attracted by Mallorca's project, a source said.The news was first reported by Marca.In the coming days, Mallorca will contact ...
Arsenal are in talks to sign Valencia centre-back Cristhian Mosquera, sources have told ESPN.Mosquera, 20, has made 73 LaLiga appearances in the last two seasons and sources said Arsenal are well positioned to beat off competition to the defender, who is a Spain youth international but also eligible for Colombia.RB Leipzig are also interested and Valencia have tried to renew Mosquera's contract, b...
Gyokeres makes transfer U-turn amid Man Utd and Arsenal interestViktor Gyokeres has made a transfer U-turn as he aims to force a move to Manchester United or Arsenal this summer.It had originally been assumed that Gyokeres would favour a move to Arsenal of the two English clubs, with Champions League football on offer at the Emirates. However the Gunners' continued pursuit of Benjamin Sesko from R...
Real Betis interest grows in Barrenechea’s: We have to decide if Unai wants to keep him...Aston Villa midfielder Barrenechea is attracting attention this summer as manager Unai Emery makes a decision regarding his future.Barrenechea continues to attract attention after impressing on loan at Valencia since August, namely from Real Betis. Midfield maestro, Johnny Cardoso, who seems destined fo...
Milos Kerkez opens up on Liverpool move: I think it should be every kid's dreamLiverpool signing Milos Kerkez has opened up on his move to the club this summer and why he chose the Reds over every other side.Liverpool completed the signing of Kerkez from the Cherries in a deal worth 340M as manager Arne Slot build a team fit to challenge for the Premier League title once again. The Hungary interna...
Trafford has "fully agreed personal terms with Newcastle" ahead of summer moveNewcastle United are closing in Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford who has agreed personal terms with the club.Burnley reportedly value Trafford at around 340million, which would make the 22-year-old the fifth most expensive goalkeeper of all time as the Magpies chase down their first signing of the summer transfer window...
Vivianne Miedema scored her 98th and 99th international goalsFinland Women lost their five-match unbeaten run on the eve of the 2025 UEFA Women's European Championship thanks to a 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands in a warm-up friendly before the tournament.The homes side's opening goal in Leeuwarden was a gift from the Finnish defence - in the 11th minute, Oona Siren gave the ball away cheaply inside...
Arsenal's Gabriel Martinelli is challenged by Brentford's Danish midfielder Christian NorgaardIn order not to get left behind in the transfer market this summer, Mikel Arteta and the Arsenal board appear to be making various moves which could have a significant and positive impact for them in 2025/26.To date, since the Spaniard took over in the Emirates Stadium dugout, the Gunners have always bee...
Al Ain's Laba Kodjo Fodoh (centre) is congratulated by teammates after scoring his team's first goalAl Ain ended their FIFA Club World Cup campaign with a 2-1 comeback victory over Wydad at Audi Field in Washington in just the third-ever meeting between a team from Morocco and one from the Middle East.Both teams knew their fate prior to kick-off - even a win would not be enough to see them progres...
- 1 Seattle Sounders vs PSG Prediction 24 June 2025
- 2 Man United close in on Bryan Mbeumo
- 3 Man Utd close in on Bryan Mbeumo! Red Devils agree £60m+ fee with Brentford as Premier League rivals iron out final transfer details
- 4 Alfie makes clear Haaland commitment to Man City
- 5 Salzburg vs Real Madrid Prediction 27 June 2025
- 6 Real Madrid reveal target as Zubimendi joins Arsenal
- 7 Liverpool cult hero waves goodbye as transfer is confirmed: It’s been an absolute honour
- 8 Marcus Rashford to Barcelona is back ON! La Liga champions ready to sanction loan deal for Man Utd outcast amid Nico Williams pursuit
- 9 Barcelona announce Garrido departure
- 10 ‘Queen of Football’ swaps kit for bikini in rivalry with Alisha Lehmann