Plymouth Argyle 1-2 Southampton: Che Adams wins it for Saints in injury time
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Everton target Che Adams scored his third goal of the season for Southampton to claim all three points at Home Park
Che Adams struck an injury-time winner for Southampton to end Plymouth Argyle's unbeaten start to life back in the Championship.
It looked like it would end 1-1 after two goals at the start of the second half when last season's Argyle leading scorer Ryan Hardie levelled just two minutes after Nathan Tella had put the visitors ahead.
But Everton target Adams, who may well have been playing his final game for Saints, had the final word.
Despite Conor Hazard brilliantly saving Adam Armstrong's header, Scotland international Adams was lurking unmarked at the far post, where he chested down and hammered home a right-foot volley from just two yards out.
In a comparatively quiet opening first half, Saints went closest to breaking the deadlock when Tella's shot was turned past the post by home keeper Hazard.
But the game livened up four minutes into the second half when Tella latched onto a misplaced Armstrong pass to score.
Showing great awareness as two Argyle defenders hesitated, he seized on the loose ball to clinically curl left-footed past Hazard.
Argyle striker Ryan Hardie celebrated his second home league goal of the season
But Argyle were level just two minutes later when Morgan Whittaker whipped over a superb low right-wing cross and Hardie guided in at the near post.
After 36 goals at League One level over the past two seasons, Hardie scored for the second successive home game in the fledgling Championship campaign.
But his afternoon was marred slightly when he broke clear and rounded Saints keeper Gavin Bazunu inside the penalty area, only to go tumbling and earn himself a booking for simulation.
Saints then went close to winning it, when Armstrong's right-foot free-kick went through Argyle's wall - and brought a superb flying save out of Hazard.
But, after a week in which they lost James Ward-Prowse to West Ham and Romeo Lavia to Chelsea both for massive seven-figure fees, Adams supplied a satisfying postscript.
His winning goal extended Saints' unbeaten start in the Championship to seven points from three games, moving them top - temporarily at least, before the rest of Saturday's games.
Who's next?
Southampton return home next Saturday when they host Queens Park Rangers (15:00 BST).
Argyle are on the road as they travel to rejuvenated US-owned Birmingham City (15:00 BST).
Plymouth Argyle boss Steve Schumacher:
"It was a good standard with some real high quality moments from both teams. We probably edged the first half. The second half Southampton came into the game a little bit more.
"They had the huge spells of possession that we expected but all of the time we were always in the game and to lose it like that right at the end is a bit gutting. A bit of a sucker-punch.
"We still had five minutes to go and I thought we'd get it back. That's been a trait of our team over the past couple of seasons. We never give in. We should grow in confidence from this.
"On another day one of them goes in but I can't fault the lads' effort. They gave us everything. I felt we had the game-plan right and caused Southampton loads of problems."
Southampton boss Russell Martin:
"The late goal is no coincidence, the amount of work we put into the opposition for games.
"I really wasn't happy with the first half. I told the players that at half-time. The last half an hour, we were really impressive.
"The only downside was conceding a goal so soon after scoring. But we had the character to come back and the supporters' response to the goal we conceded was amazing.
"The players were relentless in the second half and that is what we need to be. I was really pleased with the mentality. It has given us the belief, the connection with each other."