Southampton: Saints Silence Scousers in Scoreless Draw

Southampton picked up a much-needed point Saturday, as Claude Puel’s side held league-leaders Liverpool to a 0-0 draw at St. Mary’s.

The result marks the only the third draw for Liverpool this season and the first time since August 20th that the club have been held scoreless. In holding the Reds to a draw, Southampton also denied their Merseyside rivals the chance to lock up the top spot in the Premier League for another week.

Chelsea’s win over Middlesbrough this afternoon means that ‘Pool now sit in second place, one point off the Blues.

For Southampton, the draw means another week in 10th position and, more importantly, a greater buffer between midtable and relegation, as Crystal Palace, Boro, West Ham and Hull all lost this week. The Saints sit tied with Burnley on points and one point clear of West Brom; however, these sides each have a game in hand as they play tomorrow afternoon.

The match itself featured a solid defensive outing from Claude Puel’s men, who looked from the outset concentrated on taking points off the high-flying Merseysiders. Though dominated in possession and chances created, the Saints were able to absorb the body-blows of Liverpool’s potent attack without conceding the knockout punch thanks to some heroics by team captain Jose Fonte and standout Virgil van Dijk. A series of acrobatic displays from Fraser Forster showed that the 28 year old was not slowed down by a reported minor injury last week.

On the offensive end, Southampton’s chances were few in coming, the most promising being a header from Charlie Austin that went wide of the net. Sofiane Boufal acquitted himself well in his first Premier League start, going 66 minutes and creating some action in the attack before giving way to the recently-rehabilitated Shane Long.

Long, who missed the past three weeks with a hamstring injury, put in a good late shift showcasing his trademark pace but lacking for support to finish the job. A pair of late subs brought on Jay Rodriguez and Harrison Reed, the latter seeing his first Premier League minutes this season. The score-line, however, would remain blank despite the added offensive firepower.

Speaking to club media after the match, central-midfielder Pierre-Emile Højbjerg praised the opposition, calling Liverpool “the best team I’ve ever faced.”

“I played in Germany against Bayern Munich and Dortmund, I played against Manchester City in the Champions League, but I must say this is maybe the best team I have ever played against,” Højbjerg said. “It’s unbelievable how they move…it’s like a symphony.”

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Manager Claude Puel echoed those sentiments, calling the match “a very good performance…and a good point” and specifically hailing keeper Fraser Forster, who collected his fourth clean-sheet of the League season.

“Fraser made a fantastic save in the first half,” Puel told club media. “It’s important for us against a good team, who had some chances, to have a good goalkeeper, and Fraser works very well.”

It is the first time this year that Puel has publicly praised his keeper, who entered the match having conceded five goals in the previous two League games.

Southampton face a midweek fixture in Prague against Sparta Praha on Thursday, before returning back home next weekend to face the second half of Merseyside in Ronald Koeman’s first return since leaving for Everton in the summer.