- Barton wins it in 78th minute
- Heaton pulls off two fine saves
- Saints lose fourth-straight
Burnley beat Southampton 1-0 at Turf Moor on Saturday as their incredible home form continued in the Premier League.
25 of their 26 points this season have come at home and they’ve now won four PL matches at Turf Moor on the spin thanks to substitute Joey Barton. The veteran midfielder, who only rejoined the Clarets last month as a free agent after leaving Glasgow Rangers in disgrace, sent in a free kick late on to send the home fans wild.
The win for Burnley pushes them up to 10th place in the table and above slumping Southampton who have now lost four on the spin in the Premier League.
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A cross whipped in from Saints’ left was cleared from danger by Stephen Ward as the away side started brightly early on.
Burnley looked dangerous from set pieces but the impressive Virgil van Dijk kept Saints solid at the back.
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Saints piled on the pressure before the break and Dusan Tadic had a trio of chances. First he dragged an effort wide of the far post after being picked out by Nathan Redmond. Then, Cedric’s cross found Tadic unmarked and his goal-bound volley was cleared by Ben Mee and then he scrambled another on goal which Burnley’s defense cleared.
All-Saints as the half time whistle blew.
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The game continued to be mostly contested in the middle of the pitch as the second half wore on with few clear goalscoring chances for either team.
Burnley went close through Steven Defour as his low shot was saved by Fraser Forster and at the other end Saints’ Shane Long headed Cedric Soares’ cross inches wide at the back post.
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A free kick from James Ward-Prowse found van Dijk at the back post and his effort was bundled away by Heaton and Burnley’s defense with Maya Yoshida running in.
Barton then came off the bench and moments later scored the winning goal as his free kick went straight through the wall and in. 1-0 to Burnley.
Saints pushed hard for an equalizer with Ryan Bertrand and van Dijk going close, then Heaton somehow denied Long and Josh Sims with a wonderful double save.
Burnley couldn’t make the most of a counter-attack after those saves, but they held on for yet another home win.