Southampton and Manchester drew 1-1 on the final day of the 2013-14 Premier League season at St. Mary’s Stadium.
The home side took the lead just before the half hour mark as Rickie Lambert slotted home expertly after Saints dominated the opening 45 minutes. After the break United improved drastically and Juan Mata bent in superb free kick to level things up. Danny Welbeck and Mata had good chances to clinch the win, but United ended their horrendous season by drawing.
Saints finish the season in eighth place, their best-ever season in the PL, while United finish in seventh which is their worst-ever season in the PL as they’ve finished outside of the top four and will not play European soccer next season.
A nightmare season is finally over for United, as they hand their PL crown over to their ‘noisy neighbors’ Manchester City.
MORE: Final Premier League standings
Saints started well and should have had a penalty as Luke Shaw played the ball into Rickie Lambert who flicked it onto Adam Lallana who tried to get by Nemanja Vidic yet the Man United skipper looked to have clearly handle the ball but referee Mike Dean waved away the appeals. The home side continued to dominate as Victor Wanyama and Rickie Lambert had a sniff at goal, with United wasteful in possession and Saints’ players oozing confidence in front of England’s national team manager Roy Hodgson. Luke Shaw rose highest in the box to head just over the bar as Saints pressed for the opener. Moments later Lallana tried to bend an effort in on goal
Just before the half hour marks Saints deservedly went ahead as a long ball forward saw Lambert battled with Vidic in the air and Steven Davis picked up the pieces and played in Lambert who have David de Gea and slotted home his 14th goal of the season. Manchester United tried to respond as Vidic, who was covered in blood after getting an elbow from Lambert, headed over and Chris Smalling had a shot on goal. Saints could have gone 2-0 up just before the interval as Lallana glided in from the left flank and put a teasing ball across the box that Steven Davis couldn’t quite get on the end of.
United were let back into the game 10 minutes after half time as Victor Wanyama hacked down Danny Welbeck on the edge of the box and Mata stepped up to curl home a beautiful free kick into the top corner. That goal spurred United into life as Welbeck headed over soon after as the Red Devils took the game to Saints. In the second half it was all United and Darren Fletcher should have done better with a free header in the box and punished Southampton for some slack defending.
Late on United pushed hard to try and grab a winner but Welbeck fired over and Mata got an acrobatic effort all wrong, as the sides drew 1-1 for the second time this season.
LINEUPS
Southampton: Boruc, Clyne, Fonte, Lovren, Shaw (Chambers, 80'), Wanyama, Cork (Gallagher, 60'), Schneiderlin, Davis, Lallana (Ward-Prowse, 69'), Lambert
Goal: (Lambert 28')
Manchester United: De Gea; Smalling, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Januzaj, Fletcher, Kagawa (Carrick, 45'), Welbeck; Mata (Valencia, 89'); van Persie (Hernandez, 68')
Goal: (Mata, 54')