Burnley 0-1 Southampton: Premier League – Saints Player Ratings

Manager, Goalkeeper and Defenders

Ralph Hasenhuttl – 8

After a fortnight where his use of a high defensive line has been questioned, the Austrian set his side up well, choosing to bring in the oft maligned Jannik Vestergaard to deal with the aerial threat of Chris Wood. The decision paid dividends as Southampton gave little space to their opponents and dealt with the ball of the top effectively.

Not many sides go to Burnley and prevail, so the Saints manager should be pleased his plans worked. He will have kept a weary eye on the lack of chances his team created but given the outcome, one suspects such concerns will be left to another day.

Alex McCarthy – 6

A definite improvement on the woeful performances of late, characterised by a couple of decent saves. In particular a stinger from Charlie Taylor threatened the Southampton goal but the gloveman was equal to the task.

Questions still remain over his positioning and ability to claim crosses, whilst there were also instances of him being hesitant in coming off his line. McCarthy is realistically the best option still at Saints but for the team to progress, he needs to be more decisive. This in turn will inspire confidence from his defenders.

Ryan Bertrand – 6

An uncharacteristically restrained performance at times from the Southampton left back. There were some early signs that he was in the mood to link up with Djenepo but the running was less obvious in the second period.

That said, his defensive contribution was part of a clean sheet on the road, so whilst there was room for improvement, there is no requirement to be unduly critical. Nevertheless, there was one moment of madness, a kamikaze back pass to McCarthy, which was seized upon by the lurking Wood. To Bertrand’s palpable relief, the linesman had already raised his flag and the ensuing finish did not count.

Jannik Vestergaard – 9

A towering performance from the Danish centre half, who is slowing converting his doubters into believers. Thrown into the starting eleven in place of Jack Stephens, he nullified the threat of Wood and was a rock at the heart of the defence, in what was surely his best showing in a Saints shirt.

Alongside a greatly improved Bednarek, Vestergaard looked classy and composed in possession, playing a series of stylish diagonal balls to the players waiting on the wings. Whilst his lack of speed does prove problematic against pacey attackers, the great Dane will be a useful option in these sort of matches. Man of the match.

Jan Bednarek – 7.5

A solid performance from Bednarek was a welcome change from the poor efforts of last week. With Vestergaard winning the majority of his aerial battles, Bednarek did well to close down the second ball and looked more attentive in possession.

Although Vestergaard lacks the mobility of Bednarek’s usual defensive partner Stephens, the improved communication was evident for all to see. Will Hasenhuttl now revert to a horses for courses strategy when it comes to his centre back pairing?

Kyle Walker-Peters – 7

A decent effort from the 23 year old right back and once again, he played a key part in a Danny Ings goal. Early on, his immaculately judged through ball released Che Adams, whose cut back was enough for Ings to score.

Defensively he looked sound, although there were a couple of instances where he was guilty of not being tight enough to his man as the crosses came in. The omens remain positive.