After 161 days out injured, Ross Stewart finally made his Southampton return in the final day win over Leeds United.
The striker was Southampton‘s marquee signing in the summer and was supposed to be the man that fired the club to a return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
Stewart arrived from Sunderland with an achilles injury that had kept him out since January and the £10 million man finally made his Saints debut in a home win over West Brom in November.
The Scotland international followed that cameo up with another ten minutes in the next game against Huddersfield Town where he picked up a hamstring injury that looked set to keep him out of the rest of the season.
Manager Russell Martin confirmed in the week that Stewart was ready to be on the bench against Leeds to give both players and fans a boost ahead of the play-offs.
After 83 minutes at Elland Road, Stewart came on for Adam Armstrong to help his side get over the line as they emerged unlikely 2-1 victors over Daniel Farke’s side.
Russell Martin on what Ross Stewart teammates did after Leeds win
Southampton fans would have been unsure what to expect from their side given they had suffered three defeats on the bounce and Martin was expected to rest players ahead of the play-offs.
With that in mind, they will have been enthused by a confidence-building win over a side they could face in the play-off final in a few weeks time.
The return of Stewart only added to the positive final fixture of the regular Championship season and Martin spoke on the classy thing the Southampton squad did to recognise Stewart’s long-awaited return post-match.
Speaking to Southampton’s club website, Martin revealed: “The lads just applauded him in the dressing room.”
The Saints boss then added: “I’m really delighted for him, he’s such a brilliant guy and he’s had such a tough time and he’s so desperate to prove how good he is.”
“We all know how good he is, we see it now in training and he’s really returned to the Ross I enjoyed watching for a few years before I finally got him, so it’s going to be a big moment for us.”
How Stewart performed in Leeds cameo
When Stewart entered the fray on 83 minutes, Southampton were sitting deep to protect their lead.
This meant that the striker’s job revolved mainly around pressing the Leeds defenders, holding the ball up and drawing fouls.
He did this effectively despite only playing the final few minutes and looked sharper than you would expect from a man who had only played 17 minutes of football this season.
According to Sofascore, Stewart had nine touches in his 14 minutes, made four of his six passes, won both his two ground duels and was fouled twice.
These statistics reflect the way the game was being played out for the final moments, with Leeds trying to unpick a resolute Southampton defence who were then looking for an out ball when they won possession.
Saints fans will be hoping to see much more of Stewart in a Southampton shirt, but on Saturday he was a real focal point for his side.
Things may well have been very different for the St Mary’s club had Stewart been fit all season, but he will be hoping he can still have an impact in the crucial play-off fixtures.