Manolo Gabbiadini made it three goals in two games as Saints signed off for Wembley with a convincing 4-0 win at Sunderland.

Claude Puel changed formation and it paid off as the £14m January signing struck twice in the first half at the Stadium of Light, with a late Jason Denayer own goal and one from Shane Long in stoppage time completing the scoring.

The three points ended Saints’ recent poor Premier League form and lifted them into midtable as they spend the next fortnight preparing for the EFL Cup final against Manchester United.

The game got off to a fairly pedestrian start with the first shot taking six minutes to arrive as Adnan Januzaj’s attempt to curl the ball into the far corner was deflected wide by Ryan Bertrand.

The conditions certainly didn’t help with the wind and rain battering the Stadium of Light.

There was also a different problem for Saints to come to terms with as Sunderland continued their policy of playing with three centre halves.

Jermaine Defoe had a first sniff of goal on 15 minutes as Januzaj made a run from deep and crossed into the box from the left hand side.

It was fired slightly behind Defoe who had to try and bring it under control but a heavy touch saw the ball bounce off of him and wide.

Saints were trying to build themselves into an attacking force in the game.

A change in formation saw them playing more of a 4-2-3-1 with Nathan Redmond and James Ward-Prowse playing on the wings, presumably in a bid to try and exploit the holes in behind the Sunderland wing backs, as well as keeping them defensively occupied. That left Dusan Tadic in a floating role behind Manolo Gabbiadini.

Saints were certainly trying to be patient but their first chance was presented to them rather than created as Darren Gibson scuffed a pass into the feet of Gabbiadini, whose first time shot on the turn in the area was not cleanly hit and went harmlessly wide.

Cedric Soares had a good chance to give Saints the lead on 26 minutes as he ran onto Gabbiadini’s cut back from the left by-line, but his finish from the edge of the area was awful and went well over the bar.

They did get the lead on the half hour mark as Bertrand whipped in a superb cross from the left.

Gabbiadini had made the near post run with Lamine Kone diving just in front of him in a bid to try and get a head to it.

Though there were initially suggestions it was an own goal, replays appeared to suggest that Kone didn’t make contact and it was bundled over by the body, and probably the arm, of Gabbiadini, with Vito Mannone getting a hand to it down to his right but unable to keep it out.

Sunderland had a very optimistic appeal for a penalty turned down by referee Paul Tierney as Defoe went down in a tangle with Bertrand before Saints doubled their lead just before half time.

It was Gabbiadini again on target as Tadic slipped the ball into him in the area, Kone wasn’t tight and allowed the Italian striker to produce a superb turn and a quick low finish past Mannone for 2-0 at the break.

Sunderland made a change in personnel and formation at half time with Steven Pienaar replacing John O’Shea as Sunderland went to four at the back.

Gabbiadini had a chance for his hat-trick three minutes after the restart as Ward-Prowse’s corner found him on the edge of the six yard box but he couldn’t make a clean connection with his side footed half volley and it was a simple save for Mannone.

Saints looked in total control of the game and it forced David Moyes into another change on 58 minutes to try and get something going with Fabio Borini coming on for Seb Larsson.

The frustration was growing around the Stadium of Light as it continued to look far more likely that it would be Saints rather Sunderland who would score next.

Tadic clearly fancied his chances as he cut in from the right and drilled in a left footed shot from just outside the area that Mannone had to be strong to push away diving to his right.

Didier Ndong opted to try a shot from virtually 30 yards out rather than pass to a teammate on a rare Sunderland attack but it was an easy stop for Fraser Forster.

Ward-Prowse tried his luck from a similar range but his strike with the outside of his right boot curled wide.

Saints were totally dominant but were searching for another goal to kill the game off.

They knew if they could find another the three points were in the bag for the long trip home, but if, as unlikely as it seemed, Sunderland got one then it could produce a tense finale.

Ward-Prowse had a decent chance as Redmond stood up a cross from the left that picked out the midfielder’s head eight yards out but he steered it off target.

Saints made a first switch with Gabbiadini replaced by Shane Long on 73 minutes.

The striker had only been on the pitch a matter of moments when he rose to meet Cedric’s hanging right wing cross but Mannone turned it over the bar.

The keeper was in action again as Tadic slipped in Redmond who took his shot early as Mannone stood tall to beat it away.

Both sides made a change as the game rolled towards a conclusion with Wahbi Khazri on for Darron Gibson for Sunderland while Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg replaced Tadic for Saints.

Sunderland tried to exert some late pressure on Saints. Forster had to stay alert to cut out a cross turned shot from Khazri and was equal to the task.

Saints wrapped things with a quickfire double before full time.

Their third goal started with Forster’s free kick and ended with Bertrand firing a dangerous low cross from the left into the six yard box which Jason Denayer turned into his own net.

The fourth in stoppage time was embarrassingly easy as Ward-Prowse and Long exchanged passes before the Republic of Ireland striker steered the ball into the far corner to send Saints off to Wembley on a high.