Match Overview
On 22 August 2026 at St Mary’s, Southampton beat Stoke City 3-1 to extend an unbeaten home run that began in January. Cyle Larin opened the scoring for the Saints, while Divin Mubama’s late debut goal and Ryan Manning’s injury-time penalty sealed the win.
Stoke’s George Hirst, who joined from Ipswich for £7 million, and Ben Johnson, on loan from the Tractor Boys, made their debuts, with Djibril Soumare also starting his first game for the Potters.
A minute of applause was held for former Southampton and England forward Kevin Keegan, who died last month.
Key Moments
- 12th minute: Cyle Larin, fed by Finn Azaz and Flynn Downes, broke through Viktor Johansson and calmly slotted past him for Southampton’s first goal.
- Stoke levelled: Ethan Galbraith, his first goal since joining from Swansea, converted Sam Gallagher’s low cross after Bae Jun-ho’s build-up.
- Late drama: In the 89th minute, a move involving Lewis Dobbin and Azaz set up Mubama, who expertly finished to give the Saints a 2-1 lead.
- Injury-time penalty: In the fourth minute of added time, Samuel Edozie broke free, only to be brought down by Svante Ingelsson. Ryan Manning calmly converted the spot-kick, making the final score 3-1.
Managerial Comments
Tonda Eckert said: “I think as much as you want to be at 100 per cent in the way a game goes, that’s just not the way at the beginning of the season. We made a commitment at half-time that we go all in and I think we deserve to bring that game in our direction in the second half.”
Stoke’s Mark Robins admitted: “We could have come away with the three points today. It’s just unfortunate that we didn’t manage to stay on the front foot, even when the changes were made.”
Taylor Harwood-Bellis was conspicuous by his absence after Southampton rejected an £18 million offer from Aston Villa. Unai Emery is reportedly preparing an improved bid for the once-capped England defender.
