With a league-low four goals to their name this season, Russell Martin’s men looked desperate to end their winless top-flight run and wasted no time in seizing an early advantage.
Moments after Joe Aribo crashed his header against the crossbar, Cameron Archer pounced on a low cross from the left wing and tapped home his second goal of the season, making it an eighth consecutive Leicester game in which the opening goal arrived before the half-hour mark.
Having conceded first for the fifth time this season – a troubling pattern that has seen them fail to win after falling behind (D2, L3) – Leicester gradually grew into the contest. However, just as they found their rhythm, the Saints dealt another blow in a near-repeat of the opener.
Aribo made up for his earlier miss, firing a low drive past Mads Hermansen from inside the box after Kyle Walker-Peters’ sublime pass, sparking rapturous home celebrations. Bilal El Khannouss then nearly responded at the other end, rattling the inside of the post with a brilliant strike in what turned out to be the final real chance of the half.
After the break, Steve Cooper’s men pulled one back via Facundo Buonanotte, who benefitted from the game-changing introduction of Issahaku Fatawu just before the hour mark. The Argentine teenager positioned himself perfectly to knock in the Ghanian’s pass from the right flank, maintaining Leicester’s record as one of the three PL sides, alongside Manchester City and Arsenal, to score in every game so far this season.
The newly introduced attacker continued to cause havoc, rattling a long-range shot off the woodwork before Jamie Vardy won a penalty. Ryan Fraser’s tug on Vardy’s shirt inside the six-yard box earned him a direct red card, and the striker made no mistake from the spot, sending the resulting penalty past Aaron Ramsdale into the left corner.
Just when everyone thought the points would be shared, Leicester snatched a late victory at the death when Jordan Ayew emerged with the goods in the eighth minute of stoppage time, smashing a low drive into the bottom corner to steal just a second away PL victory in the most dramatic fashion.
Southampton, meanwhile, will rue their performance in the second half after giving up their two-goal lead, with which they could have otherwise claimed a first top-flight victory in 21 games.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Issahaku Fatawu (Leicester City)
