Southampton beat fellow Championship strugglers Sheffield United in a tight and nervy game at St Mary's.

Saints had a perfect start to the match as they took the lead after seven minutes thanks to Leo Scienza's deflected strike.

The victory brings Southampton's run of seven league games without a win to an end as they prepare to face Portsmouth in the south coast derby on Sunday.

Tonda Eckert's Saints move up one place to 15th in the table while the Blades remain in 17th and four points off the bottom three.

Scienza fired Southampton ahead as the United backline failed to deal with the Brazilian's direct play.

The Saints attacker was left in space to drive towards the box on the left-hand side before curling a shot towards goal with his right foot that took a wicked deflection off Oli Arblaster, wrong-footing the keeper and flying into the net.

Scienza now has four goals and four assists for Southampton in the league this campaign after joining from Bundesliga club Heidenheim in September.

Eckert's side nearly doubled their lead after 20 minutes when Ross Stewart's header on goal from a corner was cleared off the line by a diving Arblaster.

Five minutes before the break Saints dangerman Scienza broke down the left after a slip by Ki-Jana Hoever and cut inside before letting off a short from close range that was well blocked by Blades keeper Michael Cooper.

Cooper and Harrison Burrows then did well to scramble the ball clear and prevent a follow-up being poked home from six yards.

Sheffield United came close with a flurry of attacks just before the hour mark.

The Blades worked the ball well down the right before Hoever crossed the ball into Callum O'Hare who had a shot blocked behind for a corner.

Patrick Bamford had the best chance of the game for Chris Wilder's side in the final minute of normal time.

He broke into the box down the left and cut inside and away from Elias Jelert before stroking the ball towards the far corner, but Saints keeper Daniel Peretz produced a great save, stopping the ball with his outstretched legs.

Southampton boss Tonda Eckert told BBC Radio Solent:

"After a long spell (of not winning) the first win is always the hardest.

"We had to dig very deep and in the end it was just pure desire to win that game of football.

"It comes from so deep inside to grind out games and credit to the boys because they put so much into every minute of the game.

"Today we were much more direct and we got the ball forward a bit quicker, Ross Stewart was very good up front for the 60 minutes he gave us today."

Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder told BBC Radio Sheffield:

"We have to take something from that game, especially in the second half.

"They started brighter than us and got the deflected goal but we have to take something from that game, in the last five or 10 minutes we could have won 3-1 with the chances we had.

"Second half we passed it better and won more duels, we dominated them but they found their goal from a deflection and we failed to find ours because we weren't clinical.

"As much as the defeat and result pains me, we have a team that has a right go but I want us to have a right go and get something from the game and I feel we deserved something."