Match Report
Southampton secured their first win of the Championship season with a 3-1 home victory over Stoke City at St Mary's, a result that swung dramatically in the final minutes.
The hosts took an early lead through Cyle Larin, who scored his third goal in as many games, but Stoke equalised through Ethan Galbraith's first goal for the club. The match remained finely poised until the closing stages, when Divin Mubama—a former Stoke loan striker—sneaked into the box and slotted home a late goal to put Southampton ahead.
In the fourth minute of added time, Samuel Edozie broke free and was brought down by Svante Ingelsson, who was already on a booking. Referee Steve Martin awarded a penalty and showed Ingelsson a second yellow card, sending him off. Ryan Manning converted the spot-kick to make it 3-1, as reported by rte.ie.
The Controversial Penalty
Stoke City are adamant that Edozie was offside in the build-up to the foul, a claim carried by the Stoke Sentinel. The club's stance is that the penalty should not have been awarded, but with the red card resulting from two yellow cards, an appeal is not an option.
Manager Mark Robins expressed his frustration, saying: "They've made an error there." He added that he would have appealed if it had been a straight red card, but that route is closed for a second booking.
The dismissal means Ingelsson will be suspended for Stoke's Carabao Cup tie against Hull City on Tuesday, as red cards apply across competitions.
Robins' Assessment
Despite the defeat, Robins found positives in his team's performance, particularly in the first half. "We were good first half. It was a little bit harsh to go one down but we had started off pretty brightly and that's more like how I want to see us play," he said, as quoted by the Stoke Sentinel.
He praised Bae Junho, who made his first start and played deeper than expected: "I thought he was brilliant." Robins also spoke about the club's progress, saying: "I've got to (keep a fresh mind). From my perspective you're always making sure that you try to get to a point where it's better than where you found it and I think that is happening now and it's happening quicker than we've been able to do before."
However, he acknowledged the need for improvement, noting that the team's physical conditioning is not yet at the required level, which forced changes that may have contributed to the late collapse.
Tactical Changes and Key Moments
Robins made five changes to his starting XI, handing full debuts to new signings Ben Johnson, Djibril Soumare, and George Hirst, along with a surprise recall for Ben Gibson at centre-half. Junho was deployed in a deeper midfield role than expected.
Stoke dominated much of the first hour, with the Stoke Sentinel reporting that they had 12 shots to Southampton's 3 just before the hour mark. But the final half hour saw a dramatic shift, with Stoke managing only 2 shots while Southampton had 14.
The opening goal came in the eighth minute when Junho lost possession near the Southampton box, allowing the hosts to break quickly and Larin to finish beyond Viktor Johansson. Galbraith's equaliser arrived in the 27th minute, and Mubama's winner came in the final minutes after a quick move that slipped him free in the box.
Perspectives
Stoke City: Manager Mark Robins and the club believe the decisive penalty was awarded incorrectly due to an offside in the build-up, and they are frustrated that the resulting suspension cannot be appealed.
Southampton: The home side's win was secured by clinical finishing and a late penalty, with rte.ie highlighting the contributions of Irish players Finn Azaz, who set up the lead goal, and Ryan Manning, who scored the spot-kick.