On Wednesday night, Southampton’s FA Cup run this season came to an end.
Liverpool defeated the Saints 3-0 at Anfield, with goals from Lewis Koumas and Jayden Danns guaranteeing the hosts’ place in the quarterfinals.
For Russell Martin’s team, that made it yet another difficult evening. They have now lost their last three games in all competitions.
Nevertheless, Southampton might still draw advantages from their performance against the Premier League’s top team.
Shea Charles’s midfield effort for the Saints did appear to be one of those that can be evaluated favorably.
Shea Charles makes an impact against Liverpool for Southampton
Charles returned to the Southampton starting lineup at Anfield after sitting on the bench for the previous two league games.
The midfielder went on to have a good effect for the duration of the ninety minutes, looking impressive when he had the ball.
Good night for him, according to The Daily Echo’s report on Charles’ performance in the game. looked really skillful when in control of the ball, and he was particularly good at turning his man to move the play forward while facing his own goal.
A few opportunities resulted from this. At 1-0 down, they also made a few poor passes and failed to capitalize on a clear opportunity in the Liverpool area.
The 20-year-old received a 7/10 for his effort against Liverpool as a consequence.
Charles completed 57 passes on Wednesday night with an amazing 89% success rate, according to SofaScore. In that game, only two Southampton players completed more passes: Jack Stephens and Jan Bednarek, both defenders.
Charles did, in fact, make two crucial passes during the game. In the bout, only Joe Rothwell (3) accomplished more.
The Northern Ireland international performed his job at the back as effectively. Throughout the game, Charles completed the most defensive actions of any Southampton player—ten.
Additionally, he participated in 15 duels and won ten of them, giving his team a share-high score. He did, however, miss one shot on goal during the attack, which was considered a significant opportunity lost. That occurred when he was free in the Liverpool area and blasted into the side netting.
Russell Martin must now make a difficult decision.
It seems like Martin has a lot to think about after watching Charles’ performance.
The Southampton player has been going through a difficult moment. Before being benched for the two games before this, he had been substituted during his last two starts.
But he showed against Liverpool that he can compete at a very high level by holding his own.
Martin will thus need to determine whether or not he can rely on Charles to consistently have this kind of influence.
Flynn Downes, who has been incredibly dependable in midfield this season, could be close to recovering from injury for Southampton, which will further complicate things.
In light of this, it will be intriguing to watch if Charles can now establish himself once again in the St. Mary’s starting lineup.
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