Southampton deepened Norwich's relegation troubles as goals from Che Adams and Oriol Romeu secured Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side a 2-0 victory at St Mary’s
Southampton dominated the opening 45 minutes, but it wasn't until the 34th minute that they really tested Norwich goalkeeper Angus Gunn
 He somehow kept out Mohamed Elyounoussi's volley from close range before Adams plated a free header wide from James Ward-Prowse's corner just moments later
The deadlock was eventually broken two minutes later
 Gunn initially diverted Tino Livramento's dangerous cross away from goal, but the ball rebounded to Adams at the far post and the Scotland international scooped the ball over the goalkeeper and over the goal line
It had been a half to forget for Norwich and it could have got even worse in stoppage time at the end of the first half, but Elyounoussi struck wide of the far post after being picked out by Ward-Prowse
Saints almost doubled their advantage immediately after the restart when Jan Bednarek flicked on Ward-Prowse's corner, but Brandon Williams reacted quickest, heading the ball away before Adams could head goalwards
The hosts continued to dominate but they could not grab a second goal as Gunn made saves to deny Stuart Armstrong, Ward-Prowse and Kyle Walker-Peters to keep the visitors into the game
The scoreline was the only thing keeping Norwich interested, but they did eventually start to test the Southampton defence and Grant Hanley should have done better when heading sub Pierre Lees-Melou's cross wide
However, the game was made safe late on when Romeu powered a strike past Gunn from the edge of the penalty area to seal a deserved three points for Hasenhuttl's side
Victory sees Southampton stretch their unbeaten run at St Mary's in the Premier League to 10 games as they move up to ninth in the table
 Meanwhile, time is starting to run out on Norwich's hopes of avoiding relegation
 Dean Smith's side, who suffered a 17th league defeat of the season, stay bottom of the table and five points from safety having played at least one game more than the sides around the sides above them
"The 2-0 scoreline doesn't do Southampton justice
 They are in a rich vein of form at this moment in time and they should enjoy it
"They'll be thinking they can have a really big end to the season
 They are just in the top half now, four points behind Tottenham
 Southampton will be looking up and not behind them
""Southampton are achieving their absolute maximum as a club, as a team and as a manager
 They are really well coached, and they proved again they are a good side
"They will fall short against some of the big teams, but they are doing everything they can
 They are a good group of players
"Ralph Hasenhuttl said his Southampton side had to work hard for their victory
He told : "We had a lot of chances against an organised opponent
 It was a tight game
"We were able to adapt our game and have different behaviours
 That slowed their game down and then we scored our goals
"We found Angus Gunn was like a magnet today
 We had a lot of shots but he was always there and we had to wait for an unbelievable strike from Oriol
"It's an amazing goal
 We had a few shots from this position but not all of them were on target
 Oriol is super strong, he's so calm on the ball and he's so important for our game
 When he starts scoring goals we can't ask for more
"These are the toughest wins to get, against teams where everyone expects you to win
 The last two teams coming here were in a relegation battle and we won 2-0 with a clean sheet
 People think it's easy but it's not
"Meanwhile, Norwich manager Dean Smith told  his side played well below the standard they have shown in past games
"It was a difficult night
 In the first half we gave the ball away too cheaply
 We didn't play with the quality we can
 When you get 6/10s throughout the pitch you won't win a game in the Premier League
"We had to pin their centre-backs and full-backs because they had too much ball in our half
 We went two up front to change it round
 The subs made an impact
 Southampton are a high pressing team and their numbers drop off
 We knew we'd get some joy in the second half
"It's been a disappointment tonight because so many players played below the standards they have played
 It's frustrating
 Southampton are a very good team that recently held Man City and only lost once at home this season
 They played well tonight
"At this moment we are just concentrating on our next game
 We don't know where the league table will be in five or six games
"Barring a few brief weeks of respite, Norwich have suffered a severe case of deja vu on their return to the Premier League
 There is never just a single defeat; only several in succession and, this term, they have exited the relegation zone just once
Coming into the trip to Southampton for  off the back of heavy defeats to Manchester City and Liverpool, it was immediately clear that there was a gulf in class at St Mary's, and with so many bodies back to defend when they were put under pressure, Dean Smith's men held their hosts at bay for long periods, which was key if they wanted to try and salvage some much-needed points for the relegation scrap they find themselves at the very centre of
But they showed Southampton too much respect at times throughout the game and were second best in so many departments, not least in attack, where frontman Teemu Pukki touched the ball just four times in the first half
 They seldom looked like adding to their miserable tally of seven goals scored away from home in 2021/22
By the time the second half began, they were already a goal down, after Che Adams had hooked the ball over the line from point-blank range, and it could quite easily have been more than two had Ralph Hasenhuttl's side have been more clinical and not fired so many of their 27 attempts straight at ex-Saints goalkeeper Angus Gunn
With 26 games played and just 17 points to their name so far, it is no surprise the Canaries are rooted to the bottom of the table and five from safety
 And as many of the teams around them have multiple games in hand, Norwich have arrived at the point where every single Premier League game needs to be treated as though it is a cup final
'  "Before the goal went in, I was debating who the man of the match was between Oriol Romeu and Stuart Armstrong
"The goal just sealed the deal for Armstrong, who was excellent, but Romeu really is a class act
"I love watching him play
 He brings a calmness and composure, and you could see that in the strike as well
 He connected with the ball so sweetly
"' : "I thought Romeu was the best player on the pitch
"Southampton host West Ham in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday at 7
30pm before returning to Premier League action next Saturday at Aston Villa; kick-off 3pm
Norwich visit Liverpool in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday at 8