At the end of a week in which a new pope was elected, it seemed fitting the Saints should prevail in this contest against a woeful Liverpool side that were far from infallible. Goals from Morgan Schneiderlin, Rickie Lambert and Jay Rodriguez won the match and moved Southampton above Sunderland in the Premier League table, three points nearer safety. For a beatifically happy St Mary's congregation, this was the stuff of miracles.
It was an absorbing match from the start, all involved having perhaps been jolted into a state of high alert by the bang of a pre-match smoke bomb set off in the midst of Liverpool fans protesting against exorbitant season-ticket prices. Southampton went ahead after six minutes, with Rodriguez getting on the end of a floated Gastón Ramírez delivery to the far post, then knocking the ball down for Schneiderlin to flick home after outmuscling Daniel Agger.
With Liverpool rattled and their defence in disarray, Southampton squandered excellent chances to increase their lead, Adam Lallana sending one screamer fizzing inches over the bar from distance just before Lambert fluffed a one-on-one with Brad Jones after beating the offside trap with an impeccably timed run.
With the home side rampant, it was a matter of when, not if, they would trouble the scoreboard operator for a second time. Lambert duly obliged with a free-kick, his curling drive finding a gap in Liverpool's porous wall and deflecting past Jones off the backside that Daniel Sturridge had obligingly turned its way.
By half-time, Southampton could and should have been out of sight, with Rodriguez notching a hat-trick of near misses and Lallana also going close. But having looked largely toothless, Liverpool snatched a lifeline in first-half injury time when Philippe Coutinho, a former charge of Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino at Espanyol, drove home from six yards out after Sturridge's effort to secure redemption had been blocked. Pochettino was furious.
Southampton went into this match having ended a run of back-to-back defeats with last weekend's stalemate at Norwich. Nathaniel Clyne returned at right-back, with Maya Yoshida resuming his usual duties in the heart of defence and José Fonte dropping to the bench, only to return just after the half hour for the injured Jos Hooiveld.
A calf injury scuppered Pepe Reina's chances of passing a fitness test, hence Jones's presence between the sticks for Liverpool. In defence, Agger had returned in place of the injured Jamie Carragher and had a shocker, while the central midfielder Joe Allen played the first half despite suffering from a shoulder injury that requires surgery. His match ended prematurely, with Brendan Rodgers withdrawing the Welshman at half-time and sending on Lucas Leiva.
Liverpool's performance improved after the break but their hosts continued to look more composed and dangerous, despite the semi-erosion of their two-goal cushion. Luis Suárez and the out-of-sorts Steven Gerrard brought a couple of smart saves out of Artur Boruc and Sturridge shot wide, but Southampton's pace on the break and relentless crossing from either flank wreaked occasional havoc among a jittery Liverpool back four.
They parted like the Red Sea when Rodriguez picked up the ball on the halfway line and ran at them with 10 minutes to go, allowing the midfielder to sprint at them undisturbed and fire a low drive straight at the hideously unprotected Jones before slotting home the rebound.
"We just weren't very good, it's as simple as that," said Rodgers, who seemed remarkably composed and philosophical in the face of defeat. "When you concede the goals we conceded today it's always going to be difficult to win games. You've got to give credit to Southampton as well because they were very good."
In fact, they were excellent, albeit in the face of surprisingly feeble opposition, who have now been beaten on four of their past five visits to this particular part of the south coast.
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