Southampton 0-0 Stoke City: Three key players

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SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – MARCH 03: Sofiane Boufal of Southampton heads the ball under pressure from Moritz Bauer of Stoke during the Premier League match between Southampton and Stoke City at St Mary’s Stadium on March 3, 2018 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images) /

On Saturday afternoon, Southampton played out to an uninspiring goalless draw in what was a must-win game for the home side at St. Mary’s.

Despite a barrage of second-half opportunities, the Saints couldn’t find a way past Jack Butland who in total faced six shots on his goal across the 90.

In total Southampton had nearly two-thirds of the possession, but failed to do anything despite a relatively positive team selection from under-fire Mauricio Pellegrino.

With that being said, the Argentine made the decision to drop James Ward-Prowse – arguably the Saints’ best player this calendar year – when facing one of the most physical back-lines in the league.

Southampton now face one a season-defining four weeks, with games against Newcastle United and West Ham and potentially a re-arranged fixture against Swansea City. Couple that with a quarter-final against Wigan Althetic in the FA Cup and Southampton have an incredibly vital set of fixtures ahead.

But looking back to the weekend, who stood out for the Saints in what was, on the whole, a boring and disappointing afternoon on the south coast?