Juric Expresses Regret After Southampton's Draw Sets Unwanted Record Path

Southampton manager Ivan Juric expressed his apologies to the club's supporters after his team squandered the opportunity to avoid setting a negative Premier League record in their 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace on Wednesday. Matheus Franca's stoppage-time header for Palace cancelled out Paul Onuachu's early goal, denying Southampton their third league win of the season.

With just 10 points, Southampton are now one point away from equalling Derby's record-low final points tally of 11 from the 2007-08 season. Sitting 19 points adrift of safety with only eight matches remaining, the team faces imminent relegation. If they lose to Tottenham this weekend and Wolves defeat Ipswich, Southampton will be officially relegated, making them the first team to be relegated with seven games left to play. This would surpass the records set by the 2007-08 Derby, who had six matches remaining, and Huddersfield and Sheffield United, who both had four.

In light of their impending relegation, Juric sought to reassure the club's long-suffering fans. I'm really sorry for the fans and the players that we didn't win because I believe they deserved it, he said. I'm proud of how we played today, though I'm disappointed we didn't secure the win as we did almost everything right.

Juric continued, expressing his belief that the team had made progress. The players took a step forward today, and I had a strong feeling that we could compete, he added. We've earned one point, and now we must prepare well for the next match. If we perform like this in every game, we will pick up points. We just need to find a way to play well on Sunday and make the fans proud.