After fighting back to take a late 2-1 lead, Fulham was reminded of that classic soccer lesson...don't give up unnecessary dangerous free kicks in the final minutes of a match. Jose Fonte's late equalizer, his second of the match, allowed the Saints to escape with a point.
Southampton vs. Fulham: Final Score 2-2, Saints grab point on late set piece
Fulham fought back from down 1-0 to lead late, but an ill-advised foul gave Southampton a dangerous set piece that they took advantage of to earn a point.
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The Saints took the lead early in the 6th minute thanks to Fonte who beat Fulham keeper Mark Schwarzer with a clever header from close range in to the bottom corner off Adam Lallana's corner kick. They would hold their lead until the 69th minute.
Maya Yoshida's seemingly innocuous off-target shot was inexplicably redirected by Southampton's Jos Hooiveld in to his own net to pull the Cottagers even at 1-1. Hooiveld was left to ponder his decision and even worse, his second own goal of the young season. Richardson put Fulham ahead in the 88th minute after a long ball caught the Saints defense out. Sascha Riether ran on to the ball on the right wing and sent a low cross in to the box that found a charging Richardson whose shot took a slight deflection before beating Paulo Gazzaniga.
After the goal, some home fans left the stadium out of frustration...knuckleheads. As the clocked hit the 90th minute, the apparent Fulham hero RIchardson fouled Morgan Schneiderlin, giving the Saints a dangerous set piece chance. Daniel Fox took the free kick from roughly 35-yards towards the far post and found Fonte who out muscled and out-leaped a taller Brede Hangeland and headed the ball past Schwarzer to save a point for Southampton.
It was the sixth set piece goal allowed by Martin Jol's side this season, a fact that will require to some extra work in training to improve. The draw pulls Southampton out of the drop zone for the moment.
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