SAINTS captain James Ward-Prowse joked he would “rather a free-kick” after missing a second penalty of the season during the victory over Leicester City.

The skipper was not made to pay as Charly Alcaraz opened the scoring shortly after Foxes goalkeeper Danny Ward stopped his spot-kick to win 1-0 at St Mary’s.

It meant a first clean sheet at home this campaign but Ward-Prowse has now seen both of his penalty kicks saved. He scored the rebound versus Brighton & Hove Albion.

The England international chatted with Sky Sports after the match, with Saints lifted off the bottom of the Premier League table for the first time in 2023.

“I’d rather a free-kick, to be honest! But there you go, sometimes you score them and sometimes you don’t,” he said.

“Fair play to the keeper, he read it this time. But the main thing is we came away with three points and that is better than any goal you can score.”

Former Saints midfielder Jamie Redknapp was later singing the skipper’s praises, saying: “The best way to describe James Ward-Prowse is that he leads by example.

“The fact he missed a penalty didn’t stop him running and chasing, his appetite for the game is fantastic. You always believe he will deliver the right quality with set-pieces and I’m a massive fan of him. This result gives them a real chance.”