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Southampton's misery against the big teams at St Mary's continued as they lost to Liverpool on Sunday night. A early stunner from Coutinho followed by a neat finish by Sterling late on in the second half sealed the deal for Liverpool.
However, it wasn't all straight forward for the Merseyside outfit as they drew their luck in the first half with constant Southampton pressure. Also Liverpool were lucky not to concede atleast one penalty on the night. Let us look at how the players performed on the night:
Southampton
Fraser Forster - 6/10
Apart from picking the ball from the net twice, the goalie hardly had anything to do apart from clearing the ball forward, which he managed with relative ease.
Nathaniel Clyne - 7/10
The full-back continued his great form in this match. He looked solid at the back and offered great width on his side by surging forward time and again.
Miguel Fonte - 7/10
The centre-half looked composed at the back. He cleared everything which was thrown at him and stood tall.
Maya Yoshida - 6.5/10
He formed a great partnership with Fonte and looked composed in defence, but his distribution was sloppy at times.
Robert Targett - 5/10
He offered good width in his side by regularly surging forward and looked okay in defence. However, it was his blunder, which allowed Liverpool to kill the game.
Victor Wanyama - 7/10
A strong physical performance from Wanyama. He hardly came out of a challenge on the losing side and offered great protection to his centre-halves.
Steven Davis - 6/10
He looked decent in defending, however he offered little in attack. Hence, he was substituted for Schneiderlin at the break.
Filip Djuricic - 5/10
He was at the heart of two penalty shouts, but neither were given. Those were his only notable contribution on the night as he hardly got involved in the game.
James Ward-Prowse - 6.5/10
He was a constant threat for Liverpool with his good positioning at dangerous areas of the pitch and his passing was also good on the night.
Eljero Elia - 6/10
He took up some good positions on the pitch, but his final ball or shot let him down.
Graziano Pelle - 6/10
He was isolated up-front and hardly had any chance to threaten Liverpool defenders.
Substitutes
Morgan Schneiderlin (45') - 6/10
He went forward more than his predecessor Davis did. However, it wasn't enough for the Saints.
S Mane (57') - 5/10
He came to provide more pace up-front, but hardly got involved in his teams play.
D Tadic (75') - N/A
By the time he came on the match was already over, so he had little to do.
Liverpool
Simon Mignolet - 6.5/10
His shot stopping abilities was good on the night. However, his handling of crosses and clearances is still a major worry for Liverpool.
Jordan Ibe - 6/10
He did a good job defensively and offered good width on his side. However, he lost the possesion far too easily.
Dejan Lovren - 5/10
His return to Saint Mary's is a not a night to remember for Lovren. He was lucky not to concede a penalty in the first half with a hand ball and got a deserved yellow card for a rash challenge.
Martin Skrtel - 7/10
He had a good game on the nigt with his assured defending. He also did a good job on Pelle.
Emre Can - 6/10
He looked composed at this make-shift position. However, he was lucky to not give an early penalty for a foul on Djuricic.
Lazar Markovic - 5/10
He was caught out of position many times in the first half by Nathaniel Clyne. Markovic also offered little in the attack. He was rightly taken off at the break.
Jordan Henderson - 7/10
He offered great protection to his centre-backs with his immense work-rate. He also surged forward time and again to join the attack.
Joe Allen - 5/10
He was lucky not to give a early penalty on Djuricic. Also his passes was too safe and secure as he didn't much in the game.
Adam Lallana - 4/10
It wasn't a night to remember for the former Southampton captain. He hardly did anything noteworthy on the night.
Philippe Coutinho - 7.5/10 (Man Of The Match)
He scored a contender for the goal of the season. Apart from that strike, he looked a constant threat with his nice link-up play with his teammates.
Raheem Sterling - 7.5/10
He yet again thrived on the false nine position. He held the ground really well on his own up-front and got a deserved goal late on in the game.
Substitutes
Alberto Moreno (45') - 7/10
He came on for the ineffective Markovic and was a constant threat on the left flank. He also played major role in his team's second goal.
Daniel Sturridge (62') - 6/10
Sturridge did well after coming on as a substitute. He linked up well with his attackers.
Glen Johnson (75') - N/A
Hardly anytime to make an impact.
