An injury time effort from Kenneth Zohore was enough to snatch all three points for Cardiff as the Bluebirds secured a dramatic 2-1 win over Southampton at St Mary's Stadium.
After a cagey first half, the game sprung into life with 20 minutes remaining. A corner from Joe Ralls was headed on by Callum Paterson and Sol Bamba found himself unmarked at the back post to help the ball into the back of the net in front of the travelling fans to make it 1-0 to Cardiff.
It looked as though Cardiff would be able to hold on to their lead, but Southampton seemed to have broken the hearts of the visiting fans in stoppage time.
A corner from James Ward-Prowse was flicked on by substitute Charlie Austin, with Jack Stephens left at the back post with a free tap in to grab an equaliser.
The home fans thought they'd snatched a point, but there was to be even more drama deeper into injury time.
The ball fell to substitute Kenneth Zohore and from 12 yards out he tucked the ball into the corner of the net to snatch all three points for Cardiff in dramatic fashion.
Here's a breakdown of the afternoon's events.
SOUTHAMPTON
Key Talking Point
The Saints were unbeaten in their previous five games heading into the encounter and would've fancied their chances of extending the gap between themselves and those sides in the relegation zone with a win over fellow strugglers Cardiff, but things didn't work out that way.
They were left frustrated at half time having managed just one shot on target and failed to create any clear cut chances, which came back to bite them in the second half.
Fans were left disappointed after a lacklustre performance from their side, which could prove to be a very costly result for Southampton in the race for Premier League survival.
Player Ratings
Starting XI: McCarthy (6); Valery (7), Bednarek (7), Stephens (6), Vestergaard (7), Bertrand (6); Ward-Prowse (6), Romeu (6), Hojbjerg (7); Long (5), Redmond (7).
Substitutes: Elyounoussi (6), Austin (6), Gallagher (6).
STAR MAN - There weren't too many positives for Southampton to take from the loss, but Nathan Redmond was the Saints' biggest threat.
His pace did give the Cardiff defence something to think about and he caused some problems out wide, but inevitably he couldn't save his team from the loss.
WORST PLAYER - It was a very quiet afternoon for Shane Long. He really struggled to create any sort of goalscoring opportunity and was left frustrated after a disappointing day at the office.
With Shane Long up front we offer absolutely no goal threat. Very average performance so far #SaintsFC
— BettingBloke (@BlokeTom) February 9, 2019
RALPH. DO. NOT. PICK. SHANE. LONG. #saintsfc
— Adeem (@adeem761) February 9, 2019
Shane Long is an absolute disgrace, he is the epitome of the level we’ve started to accept as a football club. #saintsfc
— Rob (@robIacey) February 9, 2019
He was brought off with 20 minutes remaining with his side desperately needing a goal - which is never a good sign for a striker - and he'll certainly be hoping for a much better performance next time around.
CARDIFF
Key Talking Point
Just two points separated Cardiff in 18th place and Southampton in 16th, and it would prove to be a fantastic performance from the visitors.
Neil Warnock's men defended resolutely for the entire 90 minutes and were clinical when they needed to be with the very few chances they had in front of goal, earning themselves what could prove to be a vital three points.
Player Ratings
Starting XI: Etheridge (8); Paterson (7), Peltier (8), Ecuele-Manga (7), Bamba (9), Bennett (7); Arter (6), Gunnarsson (6), Ralls (6); Niasse (5), Reid (5).
Substitutes: Zohore (8), Bacuna (7), Camarasa (6).
STAR MAN - On an emotional day when Cardiff needed their leaders to set up, Bamba certainly did that. He dealt with everything that was thrown at him by the Southampton forwards and limited them to very few chances in the game.
I love this club. I love Sol Bamba.#ccfc #cardiffcity #bluebirds #SOUCAR pic.twitter.com/G5bdDuiASX
— James Davis (@Jimardee) February 9, 2019
Bamba again
— Big Ak (@CFCAk) February 9, 2019
Not only was he effective in defence, he also grabbed the crucial goal with a great piece of anticipation to create some space and poke the ball home. It was a real captain's performance and he'll be delighted with his day's work.
WORST PLAYER - On a day where Cardiff looked content sitting back and defending, Bobby Reid had very little service in the forward areas. Often finding himself chasing long balls to no avail, he struggled to get into the game and didn't cause much of a threat for the Saints' defenders.
His afternoon was ended prematurely when he was subbed off just an hour into the game, and it'll go down as an afternoon Reid will want to forget in a hurry.
Looking Ahead
It will be a tough result to take for Southampton and they'll be hoping to bounce back when they travel to the Emirates to face Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.
Cardiff have won back to back games for the first time this season and they'll be hoping to make it three in a row when they host Watford in their next Premier League match.
Source: 90min
