Ipswich 3-2 Southampton: Jeremy Sarmiento’s injury time winner sends Kieran McKenna’s side top of the Championship… as hosts complete dramatic comeback against the Saints
With seven steps to go till the promised land of the Premier League, this was arguably the trickiest game left for Ipswich Town.
To run towards adversity is the mission statement in these parts and Kieran McKenna’s side took that quite literally with a 97th minute winner to go top of the Championship again.
Southampton were ahead and dominant when McKenna turned to his bench on the hour mark and it was the two substitutes in Nathan Broadhead and Jeremy Sarmiento who sent a packed out Portman Road into delirium.
The sun was out in East Anglia and Ed Sheeran was inside the stands as the home side emerged for this clash. Pre-match the fans joked how Norwich were never going to do them any favours after their earlier defeat at Leicester and for much of this game, it looked like an ex-Norwich man in Southampton manager Russell Martin was going to spoil their Easter Monday.
McKenna made two changes from their win at Blackburn on Good Friday as Cameron Burgess and Kayden Jackson came in for George Edmundson and Broadhead while Martin made three changes as Jan Bednarek, Joe Aribo and Ryan Fraser replaced Kyle Walker-Peters, Will Smallbone and Kamaldeen Sulemana.
Jeremy Sarmiento (R) came off the bench to score a dramatic late winner for Ipswich Town
The Brighton loanee’s strike sends Ipswich two points clear at the top of the league table
Nathan Broadhead’s second-half goal helped Ipswich come from behind to claim victory
Southampton were ahead at the break after goals from Che Adams and Adam Armstrong
It was Ipswich who struck first with a thunderous strike by left-back Leif Davis.
Skipper Sam Morsy picked out Davis on the left-hand side of the penalty box, who took one touch before thumping in a left-footed strike past Gavin Bazunu.
Yet the home supporters had hardly stopped celebrating when Southampton instantly levelled from the restart as Joe Aribo found Che Adams, who smartly finished past Vaclav Hladky.
The Ipswich players appealed for offside but it was their own goalscorer, Davis, who had played the Southampton striker onside.
Nine minutes later, the visitors were ahead after a ruthless move from the back which finished with the two Armstrong brothers combining to exploit the space left by Davis down the right flank. Stuart Armstrong played an inch-perfect through ball to Adam Armstrong who converted first-time to silence Portman Road.
By now, Southampton were controlling possession and when Jan Bednarek clattered Kieffer Moore, McKenna was forced to take his striker off with ten minutes of the first half remaining.
Armstrong struck in the 23rd minute of the match to silence the Portman Road home crowd
Full-back Leif Davis had initially put the hosts ahead before Adams and Armstrong struck
James Bree was sent off for the visitors during the final moments of regulation time
Kieran McKenna’s side are within touching distance of playing in the Premier League next year
On came Ali Al Hamadi but it was the Saints with the momentum and Ryan Fraser’s attempt went agonisingly wide after he was played through by Stuart Armstrong.
On the hour mark, McKenna made three changes and minutes after Al Hamadi hit the post with a brilliant effort after some good work by substitute Nathan Broadhead, it was Broadhead who finished wonderfully after a brilliant Ipswich move to level.
Both sides pushed for a winner and Southampton were left to play the last few minutes with ten men after last man James Bree was sent off for bringing down Leif Davis. And they were made to pay too as Sarmiento finished at the second time of asking from Davis’s ball to send the ground into raptures.
The Premier League. Ipswich are almost there.
