Norwich City 2-2 Southampton
- Published
Steven Naismith's injury-time header secured a replay for Championship side Norwich City against Southampton in the FA Cup third round.
Virgil van Dijk volleyed in Dusan Tadic's cross to put Southampton in front, but Steven Whittaker levelled with a penalty after Harry Lewis fouled Cameron Jerome.
Maya Yoshida's header looked to have won it for the Premier League side.
But Naismith glanced in Whittaker's cross for a dramatic equaliser.
Southampton will host the Canaries in the replay on Wednesday, 18 January.
Saints continue to slide
Saints boss Claude Puel made eight changes from their 3-0 loss against Everton, possibly with Wednesday's League Cup semi-final first leg against Liverpool in mind.
And it looked like the decision to drop defender Jose Fonte, who handed in a transfer request this week, in favour of the returning Van Dijk would pay dividends.
The Dutchman, who had served a one-match suspension, applied a composed finish to give Saints the lead and illustrated why he is in such high demand.
But with three consecutive defeats in the Premier League, Puel will be starting to come under pressure, particularly after failing to beat a second-tier side.
Debutant keeper Lewis had a rough afternoon, mis-controlling a ball and then fouling Jerome for the Norwich penalty, and a Saints defence that has now conceded 11 goals in four games failed to hold out in injury time.
A turning point for Canaries?
Norwich have tumbled from Championship title contenders to play-off hopefuls since the start of the season, although boss Alex Neil slightly quietened calls for his departure with a 3-0 win over Derby on Monday.
And while promotion back to the Premier League will be prioritised over an FA Cup run, Naismith's late leveller will go a long way to helping Neil win back the favour of an increasingly disgruntled Canaries fan base.
Carrow Road is regularly sold out for league matches, but the stadium was half-full, with sections of supporters unhappy at the £25 ticket price.
The fact that Norwich had failed to win 14 of their last 18 third-round FA Cup matches may have contributed towards the antipathy.
But the home side's determination, shown by Jerome's closing down of the keeper to win the penalty and the spirit to equalise at the end, suggest the Canaries may be able to rekindle their form in the league.
Manager reaction
Norwich boss Alex Neil: "At times we could have played better but the pleasing thing is to get the response. We worked to the end.
"Steven Naismith worked his socks off and really deserved his goal. I'm delighted for him.
"A draw was probably a fair result. We wanted to carry on the momentum from Derby and with the late equaliser this was a positive result."
Southampton boss Claude Puel: "It's difficult to accept this because I think it's always difficult to play away against a Championship team.
"I think we have had control of the game and have scored two fantastic goals through Virgil and Maya.
"It's a pity and we find it difficult to take this goal in the last minute. I think it's our fault and that these possibilities happen.
"It's without a week of recovery and work, but it's our fault and it's important to have a good answer in the next game against Norwich."