January 21, (THEWILL) – On Saturday, an English Premier League match between Southampton and Aston Villa had to be temporarily halted due to an unauthorised drone flying over St Mary’s stadium.
The game was scoreless at the time, with Kyle Walker-Peters having an early goal disallowed for offside and Gavin Bazunu making a critical save for the Saints. Referee Michael Salisbury took the players off the field for a few minutes until the drone cleared the airspace, and play resumed shortly thereafter.
This incident follows a similar one that occurred during a match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Brentford in January 2022. The Premier League prohibits unauthorised drones from flying in the vicinity of stadiums during matches.
With 15 minutes left on the clock, Ollie Watkins scored the winning goal for Villa, heading in from a deep free-kick. The goal was checked for offside via VAR, but it was ultimately ruled as a valid goal, which meant that Southampton’s three-game unbeaten run came to an end.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
