Shane Long was one unhappy camper at the weekend and he made sure everyone knew it.Especially his manager, Claude Puel.Southampton were on the receiving end of a 3-0 lashing at the hands of Pep Guardiola's Manchester City side at the St Mary's Stadium on Saturday, but things took a turn for the worse late on.The Republic of Ireland international striker only entered the fray in the 60th minute, but he was hauled off again in the 82nd, much to his very visible dismay.The score was 1-0 when he got on, but it was 3-0 by the time Jay Rodriguez replaced him. Why would Puel do a like-for-like switch at 3-0 down with such little time left?So what happened? Puel was clearly upset at the incident and appeared to look at the rest of his management team for an answer after Long walked off down the tunnel.Well, he has now revealed where it all went wrong."It was difficult," the French man told the Daily Echo.

"It seems that Shane felt a touch himself [on] his hamstring and it seems a misunderstanding between him and the staff.

"It was a precaution to take off Shane but I hope it’s nothing and it will be good for Shane tomorrow or the next day."

It's understandable to pull Long off at 3-0 down with nothing to play for if they thought he was in trouble, especially given the previous hamstring problems the electric forward has suffered.

However, surely Long told the physios whether he was ok or not, so where was the communication mix up?

Chances are the 30-year-old striker understands the confusion and his manager was only looking out for his best interests.

The defeat leaves the Saints ninth in the table 12 points above the trap door, but 17 points away from sixth and European contention.

After their EFL Cup run, though, many might consider this a successful first season for Puel on the south coast, especially considering they lose Sadio Mane and Graziano Pelle last summer.