Harwood-Bellis: We had to get over the line
Southampton defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis gave a mixed reaction to the goalless draw at Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
Saints had certainly turned a corner defensively since conceding three during the late defeat at Ipswich Town on Monday; the centre-back happy with a first clean sheet since February at Ewood Park.
But the visiting side couldn't get on the scoresheet, meaning it was a "frustrating" first goalless draw of the season for Harwood-Bellis and his teammates.
"It’s a game we should be winning and I thought we’d done enough to win," reflected the 22-year-old. "There's bits we can improve on, we kept a clean sheet which is always a positive. But we just had to get over the line.
"We had a real big focus on defending the box better, we had to get better at that. Us defenders took responsibility for that and I thought we put it right today. Any chances they did get we blocked and we had a lot of intensity in there.
"I thought we played well on the ball, built up well. Probably needed a little bit more intensity when we broke their press to get at them. If we get the first goal I think we had everything to stay on top with the way we defended.
"The main focus today was a clean sheet, but we need to put the ball in the back of the net. That’s not just down to the strikers, that’s everyone. But we’ll review it and go again Tuesday.
"If we defend like that for the last seven games, I’m sure we’ll win more than we lose. We’ve got some good players here and some good quality.
"We had one blocked off the line and half a chance for Arma in the first half. I think it’s the little bits of games that haven’t gone our way today. We can’t mope around, we’ll pick our heads up and go again."
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