Rickie Lambert penalty rescues vital late point for Southampton against Fulham
Last Updated: December 30, 2012 9:14am
Rickie Lambert converted an 85th-minute penalty to hand Southampton a crucial away draw and extend Fulham's poor run of form to only one win in 11 matches.
The home team had taken an early lead thanks to Dimitar Berbatov's sixth goal of the season and looked set to hang on for the victory.
Best of the Match
- Man of the Match: Morgan Schneiderlin was constant source of drive and creation in the Southampton midfield and was central to their second-half fightback.
- Goal of the Match: Rickie Lambert's goal may have been from the penalty spot, but it was a superbly struck shot and handed his team a vital away point.
- Save of the Match: Mark Schwarzer reacted well to a rasping shot from Gaston Ramirez at the death and although he parried the ball goalwards, he did well to recover and stop it crossing the line.
- Gaffe of the Match: Philippe Senderos made a mess of a routine defensive header that, in turn, led to the corner from which Southampton won their penalty.
- Talking Point: Fulham's inability to extend their lead and close the game out hints at a lack of confidence and belief that could see them dragged into the relegation battle.
However, former Saint Chris Baird handled in the box five minutes from time and Lambert converted to pull his team a point clear of the relegation zone.
Fulham made the better start and could have gone ahead in the third minute through Steve Sidwell's right-footed shot that whistled narrowly wide from 20 yards out.
It didn't matter, though, because they took a deserved lead five minutes later when Ashkan Dejagah fed the overlapping Sascha Riether on the right flank, and his low cross found Berbatov to hook home from close range at the back post.
Fulham pushed on for a second and although had plenty of joy down the left flank through the impressive Alex Kacaniklic, they were unable to truly test Kelvin Davis in the Southampton goal.
The visitors took until the 20th minute to settle down and went close when both Jack Cork and Morgan Schneiderlin tried their luck with shots from the edge of the box.
Berbatov saw a close-range header from a corner blocked by Davis as Fulham reasserted their authority, but they then lost their momentum after the break as Southampton fought their way back into the game.
They went close within three minutes of the restart through a Jason Puncheon left-footer that only narrowly missed the post, before Steven Davis sent a header wide when unmarked 12 yards out.
Lambert then fired a well-struck volley narrowly over, but made amends shortly after as the visitors finally made their breakthrough with time running out - courtesy of a helping hand from an old friend.
A corner from the left connected with the outstretched arm of Baird and although Mark Schwarzer got a glove to Lambert's spot-kick, it was too well struck to keep out.
Gaston Ramirez then almost snatched all three points for Southampton with a rasping left-foot strike that Schwarzer nearly parried into his own goal.
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Matches
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Barclays Premier League
Table
Barclays Premier League
| Pos | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester United | 38 | 89 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 38 | 78 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 38 | 75 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 38 | 73 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 38 | 72 |
| 6 | Everton | 38 | 63 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 38 | 61 |
| 8 | West Bromwich Albion | 38 | 49 |
| 9 | Swansea City | 38 | 46 |
| 10 | West Ham United | 38 | 46 |
| 11 | Norwich City | 38 | 44 |
| 12 | Fulham | 38 | 43 |
| 13 | Stoke City | 38 | 42 |
| 14 | Southampton | 38 | 41 |
| 15 | Aston Villa | 38 | 41 |
| 16 | Newcastle United | 38 | 41 |
| 17 | Sunderland | 38 | 39 |
| 18 | Wigan Athletic | 38 | 36 |
| 19 | Reading | 38 | 28 |
| 20 | Queens Park Rangers | 38 | 25 |
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