Football: Saints earn point with late penalty in 2-2 draw at Newcastle

Football: Saints earn point with late penalty in 2-2 draw at Newcastle

The Straits Times - Sports·2021-08-29 06:02

NEWCASTLE, ENGLAND (REUTERS) - Southampton's James Ward-Prowse scored a 96th-minute penalty to earn his side a dramatic 2-2 draw at Newcastle United on Saturday (Aug 28) - a result that leaves both teams still waiting for their first win of the season.

Saints were awarded the spot kick in the dying minutes after a VAR intervention, with Jamaal Lascelles adjudged to have fouled Adam Armstrong as he was about to shoot.

Newcastle, who lost to West Ham United and Aston Villa in their opening two games, were on the verge of victory after Allan Saint-Maximin scored on the counter-attack in the 91st minute to give them the lead for the second time.

"It's crazy. Football is harsh at times," Newcastle forward Callum Wilson told the BBC.

"You're always vulnerable when you've just scored, but as professionals they shouldn't be nicking it late on like that.

"We're conceding too many goals at the minute. We need to work harder to make sure that stops because it's disappointing when you score what should be a last-minute winner and then it gets taken away."

Wilson had opened the scoring for the home side in the 55th minute with a diving header, after Federico Fernandez's long ball over the top of the Southampton defence found Jacob Murphy unmarked on the right.

Murphy cushioned a header back across goal and into the path of Wilson to score past Freddie Woodman, but midfielder Mohamed Elyounoussi equalised for Southampton when he bundled Nathan Redmond's cross over the line in the 74th.

"Conceding early in the second half put us back a bit, but it shows the development of the team that we go a goal down and... come away with a deserved point - but I feel we could have won," Ward-Prowse said.

Newcastle made a sluggish start, sitting deep and inviting the visitors to attack, and could have easily fallen behind in the first half were it not for Saints' lack of killer instinct.

Moussa Djenepo spurned a glorious chance to give Southampton the lead in the 23rd minute, shanking the ball wildly over the crossbar from point blank range after collecting Valentino Livramento's square pass from the right.

Djenepo almost made amends two minutes later, turning away from his marker inside the box, but his snap shot was blocked by the Newcastle defence before falling to Kyle Walker-Peters, whose follow-up attempt was deflected behind for a corner.

Newcastle grew into the match, with Saint-Maximin a lively presence, and ended the first half with Wilson nearly scoring from a corner only to be denied by a diving save from Alex McCarthy, before the game sprung into life in the second half.

The result earned 15th-placed Newcastle their first point of the season, while Southampton are two spots higher on two points after a defeat and two draws.

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