Wolves' dramatic comeback victory over the Premier League's bottom team at St. Mary's increased the pressure on Southampton manager Nathan Jones as they played with ten men.
An hour after Mario Lemina was sent off for dissent after receiving a second yellow card, January signing Joao Gomes scored the game-winning goal on his debut for Julen Lopetegui's team.
Prior to Lemina's dismissal, Carlos Alcaraz had already put the struggling hosts ahead, but the Saints were unable to increase their lead against resolute opposition in front of a growingly uneasy home crowd.
When Jan Bednarek unintentionally bundled the ball over the goal line after blocking Adama Traore's shot, Wolves' perseverance finally paid off after 72 minutes.
The home crowd's attitude deteriorated as Gomes scored to complete a remarkable turnaround, and the full-time whistle was met with a chorus of jeers.
Wolves, who are in 15th place, are now five points clear of the relegation spots while Southampton is now four points from safety as a result of the loss.
Jones is at risk after a devastating loss.
Three months after being appointed to their respective positions in the same week in November, Lopetegui and Jones' circumstances could not be more dissimilar.
In contrast to Wolves, who have more than doubled their points total after seven Premier League games under Lopetegui, bottom-dwelling Southampton have now dropped seven of their last eight games under Jones.
Last weekend, as their team lost to Brentford, the visiting Saints supporters made their opinions known by chanting, "Nathan Jones, get out of our club." from the away section.
Although Jones insisted this week that he had been accepting responsibility rather than deflecting blame for poor results, his poorly received post-match comments only served to increase the unrest.
It is unclear whether Jones will be able to recover from this latest setback after losing this game in the circumstances, having led with a man advantage at halftime.
The Saints supporters had every right to express their annoyance after witnessing their team fall apart in the final 20 minutes to tie the worst home league run in the club's history.
For the first time since March 2022, Wolves has won consecutive league games thanks to this impressive comeback. In contrast, this Wolves team is starting to show obvious progress under Lopetegui.
Wolves dig in to scurry away from danger.
The first half's exciting three minutes seemed to have given Jones the ideal afternoon.
The 20-year-old Argentine Alcaraz cheered up the home crowd with a goal on his first league appearance for the team, as his reactive finish deflected off the post.
Lemina received a caution for a foul on Alcaraz after nine minutes, and as the crowd yelled for a penalty, he ran towards the referee and was given the red card.
To Wolves' credit, however, the guests never gave the hosts a chance to relax as they toiled assiduously to make up for their inferior population.
After Bednarek's unfortunate own goal, Lopetegui's team continued to attempt nine shots in the second half compared to Southampton's five, giving them the advantage in the likelihood of winning the game.
A remarkable victory was sealed three minutes from time by substitute Gomes' fine side-footed finish, and Wolves can further distance themselves from trouble when they play Bournemouth the following weekend.
Despite a very disappointing day for Southampton, the impressive performance of 20-year-old club record signing Kamaldeen Sulemana, who displayed his speed, trickery, and willingness to shoot in a promising full debut, provided the only reason for optimism.
