'With 19 minutes to go at St Mary’s on Saturday and Manchester United 3-0 ahead, Sir Alex Ferguson withdrew Roy Keane and sent on Phil Neville. The manager claimed that it was to give Keane a rest, but it also had the advantage of sharpening up Neville’s studs and elbows for a more challenging battle that is likely to lie ahead.
Chelsea may have taken over the roles of favourites to win the Barclays Premiership and European Cup that United have felt to be theirs by right, but at least the FA Cup still offers Ferguson’s men another chance to heap humiliation on Arsenal, either in the semi-finals or Final, and that probably would be even more of a consolation prize for the season than winning the trophy.
In the meantime, the holders could not have asked for a better tonic than this result after a depressing week that saw them fall farther behind in the Premiership race and beaten by AC Milan. Four goals away from home and a place in the FA Cup semi-finals would satisfy even the greediest of teams, even if this was more of a 90-minute practice stroll than a full-blooded Cup tie.
It was over as a contest as soon as Harry Redknapp handed in the Southampton team-sheet. Injuries and suspensions had robbed him of five players, including his entire first-choice midfield, although whether all those deemed unfit would have missed a vital Premiership game is open to question.'