Southampton stars disagree on Saints flashpoint involving Nathan Tella and Adam Armstrong | OneFootball

Highlights

Southampton went top of the Championship temporarily on Friday night with a gutsy win over Sheffield Wednesday - though it remains to be seen who got their opener.

Nathan Tella, who has rejoined the Saints after a superb second-tier loan spell at Burnley last season where he scored 17 league goals, started on the right-wing for the Saints, and just eight minutes in, he received the ball from Kyle Walker-Peters on the edge of the box before striking an absolute howitzer into the top left corner.

He wheeled off in celebration, but little did he know that another of his teammates, Adam Armstrong, was doing the same - because he felt he had grazed the ball with his head as the strike went in. It's been a question up for debate ever since - and now Southampton's players have got in on the act.

What did the Southampton players say about the goal?

A video on Southampton's Twitter shows the club's media asking players who they think the goal should go to.

Young star Samuel Edozie kicked proceedings off, stating: “Tells (Nathan Tella). You have to, you have to!” Che Adams disagreed, naming his strike partner as the one to be credited with the goal, claiming: “Arma (Adam Armstrong). It was a good assist!”

Will Smallbone got in on the act, saying: “Tells. I think it was going in anyway", whilst Jack Stephens then gave his tuppence. “Yeah, it was Arma, wasn’t it. Arma.” Experienced midfielder Stuart Armstrong gave his namesake the credit, saying: “It was Adam’s finish off the head”, whilst new recruit Ryan Manning said the same: “Arma. Great assist, fantastic assist really!”

And then the two themselves got involved, with Tella saying: “I mean, I want to say it’s mine, but I have seen the replay where it does come off his head, so…it is Adam’s goal.”

Armstrong wasn’t quite as generous, telling the interviewer: “Why wouldn’t it be [my goal]? Who did it touch last? There we are. They’re the rules.”

Who was credited with the goal?

Southampton’s official website seems to be torn over who actually got the first goal. In their match centre from Friday night’s clash, the match report itself credits Armstrong with the goal, stating: “Martin’s side only had a 1-0 half-time lead to show for it, given to them by Adam Armstrong, who fortuitously got the final touch on a sumptuous strike from Nathan Tella that already looked goalbound.”

However, the actual match centre livefeed clearly shows a timeline of the game, in which Tella is given the goal with a timestamp of eight minutes. Southampton’s official website seems to be torn over who actually got the first goal. In their match centre from Friday night’s clash, the match report itself credits Armstrong with the goal, stating: “Martin’s side only had a 1-0 half-time lead to show for it, given to them by Adam Armstrong, who fortuitously got the final touch on a sumptuous strike from Nathan Tella that already looked goalbound.”