Burnley 2 Charlton 2
Ivan Mesík struck in the sixth minute of injury time to earn a dramatic 2-2 draw against Burnley at Turf Moor on Tuesday evening.
The Slovakia international came off the bench to drill home a superb late equaliser, sparking wild celebrations from Nathan Jones on the touchline and the more than 1,000 travelling Addicks who had made the journey north.
Kayne Ramsay had earlier scored on his first start of the season following his return from injury, cancelling out Jacob Bruun Larsen’s opener, before former Charlton youngster Largie Ramazani restored Burnley’s lead. But the Addicks refused to give up and were rewarded with a deserved share of the spoils in the dying seconds.
Jones made two changes to his starting line-up, with Ramsay returning to the side alongside Amari’i Bell, while Josh Edwards and Micah Mbick dropped to the bench. The Charlton boss also opted to revert to a back three.
The hosts enjoyed plenty of possession during the opening exchanges and registered the first shot on target after seven minutes, when Bruun Larsen found space inside the box, only for Arthur Okonkwo to make a routine save.
Jamie Vardy blazed over with a first-time effort midway through the half, while Max Alleyne headed a Kyle Walker cross over the bar eight minutes later as Burnley struggled to turn their possession into clear-cut opportunities.
Charlton, meanwhile, looked dangerous on the counter-attack and caused some nervous moments for Clarets goalkeeper Grégoire Coudert. Miles Leaburn closed down one attempted clearance, with the ball spinning behind for a goal kick, while some last-ditch defending denied the visitors on other occasions.
The deadlock was broken in the 36th minute when Burnley launched a swift counter-attack of their own. Bruun Larsen worked his way into the box on the left before squeezing a low shot through a crowd of bodies, with the effort wrong-footing Okonkwo and squirming beneath the goalkeeper.
The Addicks responded positively and came agonisingly close to an equaliser before the break. Burnley were forced to concede a corner while attempting to play out from the back, and Billy Koumetio rose highest to meet the resulting delivery, only for his goal-bound header to be hooked off the line.
Lloyd Jones then sent a header looping narrowly over before another opportunity arrived from an Amari’i Bell long throw. Leaburn flicked the ball on for Karlan Grant, who was picked out five yards from goal, but Coudert rushed off his line to smother the danger.
Reo Hatate curled an effort just wide for the hosts on the stroke of half-time, leaving Charlton a goal behind at the interval.
The Addicks made a bright start to the second half and should have drawn level three minutes after the restart. Tyreece Campbell delivered a cross from the left which found Leaburn in a promising position, but the striker could only divert his header over the bar.
Charlton would not have to wait much longer for their equaliser, however. On 51 minutes, Danny McNamara’s corner caused problems for Coudert, who failed to punch the ball clear. Grant nodded it back towards goal and Ramsay was on hand to hook the ball over the line from close range.
Parity lasted just six minutes. Burnley regained the lead before the hour mark when Ramazani collected the ball inside the box and fired a firm finish into the bottom-left corner to put the hosts back in front.
Jones rang the changes in the 75th minute, introducing Mbick, Charlie Kelman, Harvey Knibbs and Mesík as Charlton searched for another equaliser.
The visitors threatened soon after the substitutions when Campbell sent a deep cross into the box. Walker’s attempted header back almost looped over Coudert and into his own net, but Burnley survived the scare.
As the game entered its closing stages, Burnley looked to add a third, although their efforts were largely restricted to speculative shots from distance. Charlton continued to push for a leveller, refusing to let their hosts see out the contest.
And their persistence paid off in extraordinary fashion in the sixth minute of injury time.
Knibbs fed Mesík into the left-hand side of the penalty area, where the substitute kept his cool before drilling a low finish into the bottom corner. The Charlton bench erupted, with Jones celebrating wildly on the touchline as the travelling support was sent into raptures and sent home with a well-deserved point.
Charlton now turn their attention to another away fixture, travelling to Watford on Saturday lunchtime (12.30pm BST).
Burnley: Coudert; Walker, Ahmedhodžić (Ekdal 90+1), Julio, Pires; Alleyne, Hatete; Ramazani (Hountondji 80), Laurent, Bruun Larsen (Edwards 71); Vardy (Broja 70)
Subs (not used): Weiss, Raghouber, Roberts, Sonne, Castell
Goals: Bruun Larsen 36, Ramazani 57
Assists: Laurent 36, Julio 57
Booked: Julio 66 (foul on Leaburn), Alleyne 90+4 (foul on Mbick)
Charlton: Okonkwo; Ramsay, Jones (c), Koumetio; McNamara (Knibbs 74), Coventry, Skipp (Kelman 75), Bell (Mesík 74); Grant, Leaburn (Mbick 74), Campbell (Alli 86)
Subs (not used): Mannion, Bindon, Mwamba, Carey
Goals: Ramsay 50, Mesík 90+6
AssistS: Jones 50, Knibbs 90+6
Booked: Coventry 62 (foul on Alleyne)
Referee: Anthony Blackhouse
