Player ratings as Southampton cruise to dominant win at Stoke City

Tonda Eckert made just two changes to the team that came away from Fratton Park with a point last Sunday.

Sticking with the 4-2-3-1 formation, the Saints continued to look more balanced from front to back. Ross Stewart came into the side for Adam Armstrong, who has reportedly picked up a knock, while Tom Fellows returned on the right side of midfield, replacing Kuryu Matsuki. 

After a lively start, Finn Azaz put the Saints a goal up with a tap-in from close range. Taylor Harwood-Bellis, who has been surrounded by transfer speculation this week, threaded an outrageous low through ball to Tom Fellows, who beat the offside trap. Fellows slid an inviting pass across the six-yard box, where Finn Azaz was on hand to guide the ball home at the far post.

A stunning save by Daniel Peretz kept the Saints' clean sheet intact at half-time, before Flynn Downes extended the visitors' lead early in the second half.

This 2-0 away win and a clean sheet gave Southampton boss Tonda Eckert the ideal reason to celebrate on his 33rd birthday.

Goalkeeper and Defenders

Daniel Peretz (GK) - 7/10 - Another multi-faceted performance from the Israeli goalkeeper. After almost gifting Stoke City an equaliser when he barely made contact with an intended clearance, he pulled off a fantastic flying save to deny Bae Jun-Ho in the first half before diverting a goal-bound Seko effort onto the post to keep Stoke out.

James Bree (RB) - 7/10 - Another solid performance at right-back justified his inclusion ahead of Elias Jelert. His two very strong efforts since returning from Charlton show what a mistake it was to send him out on loan in the first place.

Taylor Harwood-Bellis (CB) - 7/10 - The pass for the first goal underlined his class and is why he is coveted by Premier League clubs. A very good performance from a player who is too good to be playing mid-table Championship football.

Jack Stephens (CB) - 8/10 - Stephens has taken his game to new levels since returning to partner Harwood-Bellis in the middle of a back four. He received a great reception from the crowd after the match, which will stand him in good stead for the remainder of the season.

Welington (LB) - 7/10 - Relieved the pressure repeatedly by dribbling the ball out of defence and making strong tackles when required. Sometimes forced to make up for his own mistakes, and his pace got him out of sticky situations a couple of times.

Midfielders

Flynn Downes (CM) - 8/10 - An unlikely goalscorer, given his record, which capped an excellent performance. Downes is proving his worth for Southampton at the base of the midfield.

Caspar Jander (CM) - 7/10 - Jander continued to play slightly ahead of Downes, which is giving him the space to exploit going forward. Out of possession, Jander made sure to stop Stoke City from counter-attacking.

Attackers

Léo Scienza (AML) - 6/10 - A threat in the first half, but he had the blinkers on when he should have squared the ball twice for Ross Stewart to shoot. Withdrawn after 60 minutes and was predictably missed.

Finn Azaz (AMC) - 8/10 - Given the player of the match by the Sky television pundits. Azaz retained possession better than he has done so far this season, and the quality of his passing is far superior to that of any other player in the team.

Tom Fellows (AMR) - 6/10 - His run behind and pass for the first Southampton goal was well executed, and he played well enough. Opportunities to run at the Stoke defence were limited, so his effectiveness was limited, particularly when he switched sides.

Ross Stewart (CF) - 6/10 - A threat in the air and offers something a little different from Adam Armstrong. Not his best performance by any means but he will score more goals at this level.

Substitutes:

Kuryu Matsuki - 6/10
Shea Charles - 6/10
Ryan Manning - N/A
Nicholas Oyekunle - 6/10

Player of the match: Flynn Downes