Southampton end losing streak with Chelsea draw

SOUTHAMPTON got their first Premier League point since January with a 1-1 draw against Chelsea at St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday.

The Saints had lost six consecutive Premier League games before Saturday’s clash but they took the lead through Takumi Minamino before Mason Mount pulled Chelsea level.

Japan forward Minamino gave Southampton the lead in the 33rd minute with a classy strike.

The Liverpool star on loan at Southampton collected a pass in the Chelsea box and fainted to shoot, leaving goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and two defenders sitting on the turf before rolling the ball into the net.

Chelsea had been dominant up to that stage but Minamino showed impressive composure to shoot the hosts ahead.

The Japan international became the first opposing player to score a Premier League goal against Chelsea under Thomas Tuchel (in six games & 483 minutes of play). The only previous Premier League goal against Tuchel’s team was an Antonio Rudiger own goal.

 Minamino has now scored three goals in his last five Premier League appearances, having scored none in his first 17 in the competition beforehand. He now has more Premier League goals in three games for Southampton (two) than in 19 for Liverpool (one), according to Opta statistics.

Chelsea were back on level terms nine minutes into the second half from the penalty spot.

Mount was brought down in the Southampton box by Danny Ings, and the England midfielder got up to score the penalty.

Chelsea continued to dominate possession after their equaliser but they did not create enough to get all three points despite the introduction of Callum Hudson-Odoi and Hakim Ziyech (who curiously replaced Hudson-Odoi, substituting the substitute).

The draw ended Southampton’s miserable run of five successive home league defeats to Chelsea.

The Blues remain fourth in the Premier League table with 43 points from 25 matches, while Southampton are 13th with 30 points from 24 matches.