Southampton overcame a first half red card and won away at Leicester City to move the club forward and out of the relegation zone.
Ralph Hasenhuttl continues to impress Saints fans with the team’s turn around. Defending a one goal lead for 35 minutes seemed an impossible task under Mark Hughes. However, the Austrian manager has re-infused a belief and toughness which inspired ten men to take all three points at King Power stadium.
James Ward-Prowse stepped up and scored his first goal via a well-taken penalty. Alex McCarthy regained his place after a two game absence in place of Angus Gunn, and Shane Long was given the striker role, largely by default with players missing for injury (Ings and Obafemi), suspension (Austin), and sale (Gabbiadini).
The biggest story may be the back three of Jack Stephens, Jan Bednarek, and Jannik Vestergaard who defended with their hearts and souls. Losing Maya Yoshida to the Japanese International team for the Asia Cup, was an initial worry, but what a shift those three lads put in!
There were great individual performances across the Southampton team, but here are the three key players who influenced the match the most.