Southampton’s journey in this season’s FA Cup concluded on Wednesday night.
In a challenging match at Anfield, Southampton faced a 3-0 defeat against Liverpool, who secured a quarter-final spot with goals from Lewis Koumas and two from Jayden Danns.
This marked the third consecutive loss for Russell Martin’s side across all competitions. Despite the overall outcome, there were silver linings for Southampton, particularly in the performance of Shea Charles in midfield, providing a positive aspect that can be acknowledged from the match.
Shea Charles delivers an impressive performance for Southampton against Liverpool.
After being benched in the last two league games, Shea Charles found himself back in the starting lineup for Southampton against Liverpool at Anfield.
Throughout the 90 minutes, the midfielder made a positive impact, showcasing his excellent ball control and ability to advance play while facing his own goal. The Daily Echo noted, “Good night for him. Looked really slick in possession and excelled taking the ball while facing his own goal and turning his man to advance the play.”
Despite his overall solid performance, Charles had a couple of misplaced passes and missed a scoring opportunity in the Liverpool box at 1-0 down.
Nevertheless, he received a 7/10 rating for his efforts. SofaScore statistics revealed that Charles completed 57 passes with an impressive success rate of 89%, ranking among the top passers for Southampton, just behind defenders Jan Bednarek and Jack Stephens.
Charles demonstrated his playmaking ability by making two key passes during the match, second only to Joe Rothwell. Defensively, the Northern Ireland international excelled, completing ten defensive actions, the most by any Southampton player.
Engaging in 15 duels, he emerged victorious in ten, sharing the highest score with his teammates. However, in the attacking aspect, Charles had one shot off target, missing a significant chance when he fired into the side-netting while free in the Liverpool area.
Russell Martin is now faced with a challenging decision regarding player selection.
This display by Charles appears to have presented Russell Martin with numerous considerations.
Charles has faced challenges recently, being substituted in his last two starts and subsequently placed on the bench for the two games preceding this one. However, his performance against Liverpool demonstrated his capability to perform at a high level.
Now, Martin must decide whether he can consistently rely on Charles to deliver such impactful performances.
The decision is further complicated by the impending return of Flynn Downes, a dependable midfielder for Southampton throughout the season. It remains to be seen if Charles can secure a regular spot in the starting XI at St Mary’s amidst these dynamics.