Southampton 1-0 Tottenham: Premier League – Saints Player Ratings
By Harry Tizard
Manager, Goalkeeper, and Defenders
Ralph Hasenhuttl, Manager – 8
The Austrian was impressive once again in the way he set up his Southampton side.
Hasenhuttl started the same 11 that finished Saturday’s match against Crystal Palace, with the 4-2-2-2 system paying off once again.
The Saints frustrated Tottenham throughout, with the away side struggling to break down the red and whites compact back four and were forced to take the majority of their shots from outside the 18-yard box.
The manager also impressed through effective substitutions. Bringing off Djenepo was smart, with the winger having a poor game. Long coming on in his place allowed Redmond to play in his preferred position out on the left-hand side, and have two natural strikers leading the line.
The 52-year-old also waited until the 90th minute to bring on Oriol Romeu. With Kane injured and Spurs struggling to build a meaningful attack, the Austrian recognised that moving into a more defensive shape was not needed with the idea that swapping an attacking midfielder for a defensive one would have invited pressure into Southampton’s final third.
Waiting until the final moments of the game did not only run down the clock but also outnumber Tottenham in midfield.
Alex McCarthy, Goalkeeper – 8
McCarthy once again had a strong game in between the sticks. The former Crystal Palace man made a crucial save from a deflected Kane shot after just a matter of minutes (with the score standing at 0-0 at the time) and commanded his box well for the entirety of the game.
Ryan Bertrand, Left-Back – 7
For the second game running, Bertrand was effective in creating an attacking option through his overlapping run. The defender was caught out a couple of times up the field when the ball was turned over in the midfield, however, it could be argued that this was not a fault of his, but more a side-effect of playing such an attacking 4-2-2-2 system where the full-backs are expected to push forward to create an option.
Jan Bednarek, Centre-Back – 7
Polish defender Bednarek once again repaid Hasenhutlls continued faith in him through another strong performance that helped Southampton on their way to a second clean sheet in three games. The 23-year-old, who only missed two minutes of Premier League football in 2019, made a team-high nine clearances, as well as three interceptions during the match.
Jack Stephens, Centre-Back – 8
Stephens marshaled the defence once again for the Saints. Playing as the covering central defender, the Englishman read the danger well for the entirety of the game. Most notably, when the ball was given away midway through the second half to potent forward Kane, the former Plymouth Argyle man cleared the ball away when it seemed the forward had a clear one-on-one path to the goal.
Along with his defensive capabilities, completing two tackles along with eight clearances, Stephens had a part to play in the single goal of the game, playing the ball over the top to Ings who eventually found the net.
Cedric Soares, Right-Back – 6
Despite distributing some rather wayward passes down the right flank, Portuguese full-back Cedric endured a rather solid game in the Southampton back four.
The former Sporting Lisbon man did well to keep tricky winger Lucas Moura quite for the entirety of the match and was even able to win an areal duel against Kane at the back post.