Pressure eased on under-fire manager Steven Gerrard as Aston Villa eked out a 1-0 win over Southampton on the day the Premier League returned to action following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
The English top-flight resumed on Friday for the first time since the Queen died on September 8, with last weekend's games postponed.
The game started with a minute's silence, and fans applauded in the 70th minute and sang "God Save The Queen" in recognition of her 70-year reign.
It was a forgettable game between two sides still searching for a consistent identity and the Saints slipped to a third defeat in four games to leave questions over the future of boss Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Fourth bottom at kick-off, Villa had won just one of their previous 10 league games and did little to suggest they would improve that record for the majority of the first half.
Jacob Ramsey netted his first goal of the season to give Villa a scrappy victory.
Desperate for a win after collecting four points from their first six games, Villa began to dominate possession but Philippe Coutinho wasted two good chances before Ramsey broke the deadlock.
The 21-year-old midfielder struck in the 41st minute, pouncing on the rebound and firing the ball off the underside of the crossbar after Ollie Watkins' header from a corner was acrobatically kept out by Southampton keeper Gavin Bazunu.
Douglas Luiz almost grabbed a cheeky second for Villa in first-half stoppage time as he swung in a corner that looked like it was going to dip under the crossbar, but Bazunu tipped the ball over.
Southampton came out with a lot more urgency in the second half, but both sides struggled to get any decent shots on target as Villa defended their lead doggedly.
"It's a big victory. It wasn't pretty or stylish but, with where we were in the league, we knew we had to do it in a pragmatic way," Gerrard said.
"I'm really proud of the boys' effort. In football, you have to grind and fight.
"It's been a tough period, but I've wanted step forward and protect my players. We've accepted a lot of criticism and it's about reacting and that's what we have done tonight."
Match info
Deccan Gladiators 87-8
Asif Khan 25, Dwayne Bravo 2-16
Maratha Arabians 89-2
Chadwick Walton 51 not out
Arabians won the final by eight wickets
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Bio
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Town: Al Diqdaqah – Ras Al Khaimah
Education: Bachelors degree in mechanical engineering
Favourite colour: White
Favourite place in the UAE: Downtown Dubai
Favourite book: A Life in Administration by Ghazi Al Gosaibi.
First owned baking book: How to Be a Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson.
MATCH RESULT
Liverpool 4 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Liverpool: Salah (26'), Lovren (40'), Solanke (53'), Robertson (85')
COMPANY PROFILE
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Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
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