Southampton are back in the Premier League

The Southampton team guaranteed this Sunday (26) their return to the first division of English football next season. At Wembley Stadium, coach Russell Martin's team defeated Leeds 1-0 and secured the last qualifying spot.

In addition to the joy on the sporting side, returning to the first division also guarantees the club happiness on the financial side. With this Sunday's victory, the club pockets no less than 140 million pounds, the equivalent of 911 million reais, a prize paid to those who gain access.

Southampton joins champions Leicester and second-placed Ipswich, teams that qualified directly from the Championship.

_{Striker Armstrong celebrates the goal that gave Southampton the title (Photo: Reproduction/Instagram/@southamptonfc)}

Understand how the Championship works

In the English second division, the top two teams qualify directly for the first division. From the third to the sixth, playoffs are played between them, with semi-finals and a final.

In the semi-final, Southampton beat West Bromwich 3×1 on aggregate, while Leeds reached the final by beating Norwich with a combined score of 4×0.

The final match

The first dangerous arrival was from the Leeds team, in the 3rd minute, Gray shot wide. Southampton soon controlled the match and with a good free kick, Smallbone almost scored, the south London team continued to be better in the game and the title goal came in the 23rd minute with Armstrong with a cross shot after a beautiful pass from Smallbone. The pair almost doubled at 44, but Armstrong stopped at goalkeeper Meslier.

In the second stage, Ledds made little threat, but with the entry of Daniel James in the 21st minute, the team improved. The striker almost tied the game on two occasions, at 38 he hit the crossbar and in stoppage time stopped at McCarthy.

The 1-0 victory puts Southampton back in the Premier League a season after relegation.

Featured Photo: Players celebrate the title (Reproduction/Instagram/@southamptonfc)