Emmanuel Latte Lath’s 90th-minute equaliser saved a 1-1 draw for Middlesbrough to puncture Southampton’s Sky Bet Championship automatic promotion ambitions.
Adam Armstrong had seemingly fired Saints towards a 23rd victory of the season with his 30th goal contribution in the Championship this season – more than any other player.
But Ivorian Latte Lath nodded in his 10th goal of the campaign late on to extend Boro’s unbeaten run to five matches.
Saints ended their 20-day break since their last game with a goal inside 12 minutes.
Kamaldeen Sulemana lifted a ball from the left side into the box and it should have been dealt with by makeshift centre-back Jonny Howson – who was forced to fill in at the back with Boro contending with 11 injuries, six of them to defenders.
Howson sliced his attempted clearance to Armstrong, who settled himself before using his composure to slot into the bottom corner for his 19th goal of the season.
Armstrong almost pilfered his 20th two minutes later but his fierce effort was deflected just over.
Boro grew into the half and struck the post in the 28th minute with their first shot of the afternoon. Kyle Walker-Peters had given the ball away in midfield before Finn Azaz rattled the base of the upright.
Isaiah Jones could not find a stretching Latte Lath while Sulemana blazed over to end a first half that promised more.
The second period started like a runaway train as Gavin Bazunu stood strong to deny Latte Lath at one end before Che Adams pounced on Seny Dieng’s parry to put the ball into the net at the other before the flag went up for offside.
Adams then had two gilt-edged chances in two minutes to double Southampton’s lead.
The Scotland international was dinked through by Taylor Harwood-Bellis but took so long to settle himself Dieng had time to position himself to save the eventual shot in the box, then Adams was able to control and turn seven yards out when unmarked but somehow missed the target.
Armstrong was brilliantly denied from close range by Nieng before his follow-up was blocked on the line by Lukas Engel.
Ryan Fraser had a shot parried before Will Smallbone shinned the rebound over as Saints were made to pay for their wastefulness in the dying embers.
Alex Gilbert’s cross from the right was met by Latte Lath, who craned his neck to divert into the bottom corner.
Vardy eyes 100-point season after Leicester's title win
Jamie Vardy has challenged his Leicester City team-mates to reach 100 points after sealing the Championship title with one game to spare.
The Foxes were promoted back to the Premier League without kicking a ball after Leeds United’s 4-0 defeat to QPR on Friday, but they needed to win on Monday to earn top spot.
Enzo Maresca’s side cruised to a 3-0 victory over Preston through Vardy’s brace and Kasey McAteer’s header, moving them to 97 points.
With one last milestone in their reach, Vardy wants to make sure they end an already successful season on a high.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “We can celebrate it tonight, but now we have another target which is 100 points.
“We are over the moon. It has gone by quick but it's a graft. Not many days off, I'll tell you that.
“The lads - they've given it all. Thoroughly deserved, and I'm glad we've had 5000 to come and celebrate with us. It's not like it's 20 minutes up the road."
After a run of just three victories from nine games in the league between mid-February and April, Leicester have now won each of their last three outings.
Maresca has praised his players for their hard work in what he labelled a “tough season”.
“Fantastic, it's been a fantastic season. The Championship is a tough season and very intense, but I'm very happy," said Maresca.
"Now it's time to enjoy the work of the season to bring this special club back to the Premier League. We deserve it.
“The last two days they have been fantastic. We got promoted, but it was difficult in game preparation. But we used all of today to prepare for the game, the morning and afternoon. It was good.”
Barcelona 4-2 Valencia: Lewandowski hat-trick leads Barca to 4-2 win over 10-man Valencia
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski scored a second-half hat-trick to help his side fight back to claim a hard-fought 4-2 win over Valencia, who were leading 2-1 when they were reduced to 10 men just before the break.
Fermin Lopez's header from a Raphinha cross put Barca in front after 22 minutes, but Valencia's Hugo Duro struck in the 27th and Pepelu scored from the spot after a foul by Ronald Araujo 11 minutes later to give the visitors the lead.
But after Valencia keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili saw red for a handball outside the box before the break, Xavi's side dominated and Lewandowski scored with two headers from corners in the 49th and 82nd minutes before getting his treble with a free-kick in added time.
The win postponed Real Madrid's almost inevitable LaLiga title celebrations for a couple of weeks as Carlo Ancelotti's side sit atop the standings on 84 points.
Barcelona moved back to second in LaLiga on Monday with 73 points as they leapfrogged surprise package Girona, who are third with 71. Those two teams will meet in a Catalonia derby on Saturday.
Data debrief
Barcelona conceded two goals in the first half of a home game for the second time this season, after also doing so against Girona in LaLiga in December 2023.
However, Lewandowski's goals have been invaluable to La Blaugrana this season as he's earned 17 points with his 16 goals in the league.
Preston 0-3 Leicester City: Foxes seal Championship title in style
Leicester City cruised to a 3-0 win over Preston in the Championship on Monday to clinch the title with a game to spare.
Jamie Vardy was the star for the Foxes as he scored in both halves before Kasey McAteer made sure of the points with an unmarked header.
Abdul Fatawu had the chance to cap an already memorable night for the travelling fans but hit the post with his curler.
Preston slumped to a fourth consecutive defeat, while Leicester go into their final game against Blackburn Rovers with the knowledge that they will lift the trophy after the final whistle.
Data Debrief
Jamie Vardy has scored 18 goals this season (two in this game), more than any other Leicester player in the competition. He has also netted in his last three games, scoring four goals in total.
It was a dominant performance from the Foxes, who had 19 shots with 11 of those on target. At the other end, Preston only managed to test Jakub Stolarczyk once from their five attempts.
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