Southampton 2018/19 Season Player Review: Stuart Armstrong

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 01: Stuart Armstrong of Southampton celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Southampton FC and Manchester United at St Mary's Stadium on December 1, 2018 in Southampton, United Kingdom. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 01: Stuart Armstrong of Southampton celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Southampton FC and Manchester United at St Mary's Stadium on December 1, 2018 in Southampton, United Kingdom. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images) /
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Southampton looked to strengthen an area lacking in their squad with the signing of Stuart Armstrong from Celtic before the 2018/19 season.

The Scot joined Saints over the summer and brought with him some creativity and aggression the team was missing in the central attacking midfield.

The 27-year-old was used in a mixture of starting and substitute roles throughout the season as it took him a little bit to adjust to Premier League’s style of play.

It started out a little rough but by the time December came around it looked like he was truly comfortable on the pitch and showed that when he scored 2 against Fulham and followed that up with a  goal against Man U the next week.

He finished the season with only 4 goals and 2 assists but as most supporters know, those numbers do not tell the whole story of the type of player Armstrong is.

LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 24: Stuart Armstrong of Southampton celebrates after scoring his team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Fulham FC and Southampton FC at Craven Cottage on November 24, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Christopher Lee/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 24: Stuart Armstrong of Southampton celebrates after scoring his team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Fulham FC and Southampton FC at Craven Cottage on November 24, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Christopher Lee/Getty Images) /

Whenever he came on as a sub he was always a spark-plug. Giving the team a much needed injection of energy and was always looking to create for himself and his teammates.

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With a season in the Premier League under his belt I suspect next season will be significantly better.

He will know the type of competition he is going up against and will have a full grasp of the Hasenhuttl system so look for the Scot to thrive and start upping his goal and assist totals from the previous season.

He has the chance to be the focal point of the attack next season and if Hasenhuttl gets the pacey players he wants, Stu will have plenty of opportunities to carve up defenses with his through balls and long shots as defenders back off of him to pay mind to the players making attacking runs.

Key Premier League Statistics

Shots per Match: 1.1

Key Passes per Match: 1

Average Passes per Match: 21.1

Pass Success Rate: 78.6%

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