UEFA Cup/Steaua Bucharest 1; Southampton 0: Southampton crashed out of the UEFA Cup after a 19-year absence ended at the first hurdle in a 2-1 aggregate defeat to Steaua Bucharest in Romania.
Kevin Phillips, Southampton's scorer in the first leg, went from hero to villain as he missed a great one-on-one chance. And, after Rory Delap completely missed his kick from six yards out, Claudiu Raducanu struck eight minutes from time to send Gordon Strachan's men out.
Steaua's 25,000-strong home support created an intensely-hostile backdrop but Strachan's men coped with the atmosphere and were only let down by their own finishing. Victor Piturca's side even had the luxury of Gabriel Bostina missing a sitter.
Raducanu, the scorer of Steaua's away goal in the first leg, had an early effort deflected wide before Fabrice Fernandes, recovering from a thumping tackle, curled the visitors' first attempt into Vasili Hamutovski's midriff with eight minutes on the clock.
And Fernandes was in the thick of the action again when he latched onto Rory Delap's excellent diagonal pass and slid across a centre which the Steaua defence scrambled clear.
Their first genuine scoring opportunity came just after the half-hour. Skipper Jason Dodd scooped in a cross and Phillips stretched and sent a header over the top.
Steaua had a clearer chance six minutes before the break. Marian Aliuta took Dodd out of play with a reverse pass which put Bostina in on goal - but the ball bobbled and he produced an air shot from eight yards out.
Phillips fluffed a gilt-edged chance to put Southampton ahead two minutes before the interval. Fernandes put the former Sunderland striker clean through but goalkeeper Hamutovski parried Phillips' weak shot.
Southampton were also left kicking themselves five minutes after half-time, when another superb chance went begging. James Beattie nodded down Danny Higginbotham's cross and Delap, just six yards out and right in front of goal, flashed a boot at the ball but failed to make any contact.
The Romanians hit back with Raducanu first scuffing a shot into the turf and Florentin Dumitru then smacking a drive narrowly wide. But Saints were giving as good as they got and after Fernandes shot wide, Paul Telfer cracked a dipping 20-yard volley just past the angle of post and bar. Phillips also sent a spectacular 30-yarder fizzing just wide as Saints pushed for a crucial goal.
But the breakthrough came at the other end as Steaua hit the visitors on the break in the closing stages to book their place in the second round. Victor Piturca's side burst forward on the break and Raducanu exchanged passes with Dumitru before sliding the ball home from eight yards.
STEAUA BUCURESTI: Hamutovski, Dumitru, Rachita, Paraschiv, Radoi, Stoica, Aliuta, Bostina, Raducanu, Oprita, Mutica. Subs: Tudor, Curt, Pitu, Falemi, Ogararu, Nanu, Dinita.
SOUTHAMPTON: Niemi, Dodd, Lundekvam, Phillips, Beattie, Michael Svensson, Anders Svensson, Delap, Higginbotham, Fernandes, Telfer. Subs: Jones, Hall, Prutton, Tessem, Griffit, Folly, Ormerod.
Referee: Stefan Johannesson (Sweden)
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