Ugochukwu stuns West Ham to move Southampton level with Derby's total
PA Media
Date published: Sat 19 Apr 2025 17.27 BST

Lesley Ugochukwu's added-time equaliser ensured Southampton equalled Derby's record-low Premier League points total with a draw at West Ham.

The already-relegated Saints were still on course to be crowned the worst team in Premier League history after Jarrod Bowen fired the hosts into the lead. But they were not even the worst team at the London Stadium for long periods of a dreadful game, and they snatched a deserved point deep into added time when the Chelsea loanee Ugochukwu drove home through a crowded penalty area.

The Southampton fans behind the goal celebrated as if they had won the league, probably drowning out groans from Derby after they saw their record-low points tally of 11 from the 2007-08 season matched.

Meanwhile, to say West Ham have not got going under their new manager, Graham Potter, is an understatement. The Hammers have picked up an average of one point a game since Potter took over, a worse record than that of his maligned predecessor, Julen Lopetegui.

Potter criticised his players afterwards for their inability to control games and admitted he faces some big decisions this summer. "I can't say we deserved much more, which is a reflection on how disappointed we are," said the manager. "Credit to Southampton, but we didn't do enough to win and in the end, we have to look at the reasons why.

"If you have to be the protagonists of the game, which I think West Ham are at home to Southampton. We have to be able to control things and be able to attack and be able to be in control of the situation.

"We weren't able to do that and in the end, that always feeds the opponent, no matter where they are in the league, whatever their points tally is.

"We have to look at the season as a whole and zoom out and think about what decisions we can make going forward, because where we are now and how we're playing, we need to improve."

West Ham did almost grab the lead inside three minutes through Niclas Fullkrug, starting his first game since January after another spell out injured. The Germany striker got a toe to Lucas Paqueta's ball into the box ahead of Jan Bednarek but his effort was well saved at his near post by Aaron Ramsdale.

Yet despite still not being mathematically safe from relegation - albeit with realistically little chance of making the drop - the hosts plodded through the first half with a bewildering lack of urgency. Southampton, with two wins to their name all season, were by far the more threatening side, with Kamaldeen Sulemana teeing up Kyle Walker-Peters, who drove across goal and narrowly wide.

The league's lowest scorers came even closer after half an hour when Jack Stephens's shot was blocked by Paqueta, with Sulemana thudding the rebound against the bar.

Boos rang out as the teams trudged off at half-time, and there were still thousands of empty seats when Bowen lifted the tedium a minute into the second half. The goal came from a Southampton corner, with Emerson Palmieri and then Mohammed Kudus strolling forward before finding Fullkrug, whose incisive pass played in Bowen to score his 10th goal of the season.

It was the 78th goal conceded by the Saints this term. That almost became 79 when Fullkrug headed in a James Ward-Prowse corner at the far post, but the striker's forearm into the throat of Ramsdale ensured it was rightly chalked off.

Southampton's chances of a point looked to have disappeared along with the ball after the substitute Tyler Dibling blazed over. But in the fourth minute of added time Dibling found Walker-Peters, whose cross deflected off Max Kilman and was lashed in by Ugochukwu.

Their interim manager, Simon Rusk, was delighted with a point. "I think we can be really pleased. I thought that it was the least we deserved," he said.

"I thought the players showed mental stamina in the second half and didn't in any way, shape or form feel sorry for ourselves. And we fully deserved our equaliser at the end.

"I'm really pleased to see that they've had a moment with the fans at the end. That was a nice moment to observe. Late goals at the end like that, after what's been a really difficult season, is a lovely moment."

Daily Mail: Match Facts
WEST HAM (4-2-3-1): Areola 6.5; Coufal 6, Todibo 6, Kilman 6.5, Emerson 6.5 (Scarles 80); Soler 6, Ward-Prowse 7 (Mavropanos 86); Bowen 7.5 (Ferguson 86), Kudus 5.5 (Guilherme 75, 6), Paqueta 6.5; Fullkrug 7 (Soucek 80)
Subs: Fabianski, Cresswell, Irving, Rodriguez
Goal: Bowen 47
Booked: Coufal, Kilman
Manager: Graham Potter 6
SOUTHAMPTON (3-4-2-1): Ramsdale 7; Harwood-Bellis 6.5, Bednarek 6.5, Stephens 7; Walker-Peters 6, Downes 6.5, UGOCHUKWU 8, Manning 6.5 (Welington 85); Fernandes 6.5, Sulemana 7 (Dibling 74, 6), Onuachu 5.5 (Archer 68, 6)
Subs: McCarthy, Aribo, Bree, Smallbone, Wood-Gordon
Goal: Ugochukwu 90+3
Booked: Onuachu
Manager: Simon Rusk 6
Ref: Andrew Kitchen 7.5
Att: 62,461
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