Southampton suffer earliest-ever relegation from Premier League after loss at Spurs

Southampton suffered the earliest-ever relegation in Premier League history when they lost 3-1 at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, confirming their demotion to the second tier despite having seven games left in the season.

Southampton had needed a victory to stay alive in their fight for survival after 17th-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers moved up to 32 points with Saturday's comeback win at Ipswich Town.

But the south-coast club have only 10 points after 31 games to sit rock bottom and 22 points from the safety zone.

Spurs took the lead through Brennan Johnson after Saints had a shot blocked at the other end and the Welsh winger doubled their advantage just before halftime with a neatly taken goal.

Southampton did not threaten the Spurs goal until the 90th minute when Mateus Fernandes halved the deficit but any hopes of a comeback were extinguished when they conceded a penalty and Mathys Tel converted the spot kick to seal the three points.

Chelsea fail to win away game again

The result moved Spurs to 13th in the standings on 37 points, level with Manchester United who host Manchester City later on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Chelsea have extended their long run without a Premier League away win when they were held to a 0-0 draw at their west London neighbours Brentford on Sunday, dealing a fresh setback to their push for a Champions League spot.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca made five changes to the team that beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 on Thursday with strikers Nicolas Jackson, Cole Palmer and Pedro Neto coming on only as second-half substitutes.

Their introduction gave Chelsea a bit more bite in attack after a flat first 45 minutes but they failed to really test Mark Flekken in the Brentford goal.

Who in next season?

Bryan Mbeumo drew a good save from Robert Sanchez and Sepp Van Den Berg headed over from close range in the final 10 minutes before Palmer shot narrowly over with the last kick of the game.

The draw means Chelsea have not won in the league away from Stamford Bridge since beating Spurs 4-3 in early December.

Maresca's men are fourth in the table, occupying the last of the guaranteed Champions League spots, two points ahead of Manchester City who were visiting Manchester United later on Sunday.

Aston Villa, and Newcastle -- who have two games in hand on Chelsea -- are close behind.

Five English clubs are likely to be in next season's Champions League under UEFA's rules, offering some hope for Chelsea whose U.S. investor owners want a return to top European competition as much for the financial returns as for the glory. Brentford, who have not won at home since early December, stay in 12th position.