Southampton returned to winning ways last night, as they defeated play-off hopefuls Coventry City 2-1 at St Mary’s Stadium.
Russell Martin‘s side were in desperate need of a reaction after failing to win any of their previous three games, which all but ended their top-two hopes.
With Saints resigned to a play-off campaign, they couldn’t afford to let their season peter out and needed to build momentum.
Yesterday was exactly what was required, as they raced away into a two-goal lead in the first half, which the visitors couldn’t come back from despite Jake Bidwell pulling one back.
Che Adams received much of the plaudits for his display, though, there was one Southampton star who went under the radar, despite a brilliant performance.
James Bree was the real unsung hero v Coventry City
James Bree has started three of the last four games and is enjoying a productive run in the team, aside from his red card at Ipswich Town.
“After the Ipswich game, I was disappointed with how it ended, personally and for the team as well, but getting back in tonight and getting 90 (minutes) under my belt is a good feeling,” said Bree.
The 26-year-old defender was brilliant having missed the game at Blackburn Rovers through suspension and is making a real statement to remain in Martin’s side ahead of the play-offs.
The former Luton Town ace had 85 touches of the ball and 95 per cent of his passes were accurate, as per Sofascore, which is pretty incredible. Here are the rest of his stats.
- 4 clearances
- 4 tackles
- 1 interception
- 5/7 duels won
- 1 key pass
James Bree makes Southampton stronger defensively
Bree’s inclusion makes Southampton stronger defensively, as it allows Kyle Walker-Peters to move over to left-back, which has been a problem position for Saints this term.
Ryan Manning hasn’t really delivered and Juan Larios is still recovering from injury, so they’ve always been a little suspect in that area of the pitch.
Bree’s rise in form places less of an importance on Walker-Peters to start on the right, so it frees up where he can operate.
Further, naturally, as a more defensive-minded player than the former Tottenham Hotspur star, it adds a little more solidity in defence.
Perhaps Martin may have found the winning formula ahead of a crucial few weeks, which may yet see The Saints go up.
They are back in action on Saturday, as they play host to Watford.