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da brdice： Southampton centre-back Maya Yoshida returned to the starting XI for the must-win clash against Fulham on Wednesday night and helped his side to a 2-0 win, making manager Ralph Hasenhuttl look very silly in the process.
The south coast outfit knew realistically pre-match that they needed to take the three points in order to boost their chances of avoiding relegation, and a victory would move them 10 clear of the 19th-placed Cottagers.
That is exactly what they got ahead of tough-looking fixtures against Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur next as they moved up to 17th and two points ahead of Cardiff City, and their defence was particularly impressive at St Mary’s.
Jack Stephens dropped to the substitutes’ bench after playing a major role in the majority of the goals the south coast outfit had conceded in recent times, with Yoshida replacing him and slotting in alongside Jannik Vestergaard and Jan Bednarek.
The Japan international had been part of a side that had kept the only clean sheet under Hasenhuttl’s tutelage – the 0-0 against Chelsea on January 2 – prior to jetting off to represent his country at the Asian Cup, where they were beaten in the final by Qatar.
However, on his return the 30-year-old had to settle for a spot on the bench in the previous two fixtures with the Austrian manager continuing to keep the faith with Stephens despite his errors, the last of which came in the 2-0 reverse against Arsenal at the weekend when his poor back-pass eventually led to a second goal for the Gunners.
Yoshida came in and did exactly what was needed against Claudio Ranieri’s strugglers by producing a dominant display, making two tackles, seven clearances and winning four aerial duels to keep Aleksandar Mitrovic and co at bay.
The Japanese star also showed his composure when he did have the ball with a passing accuracy of just under 85%, more than either of his central defensive teammates, in what could prove to be a season-defining triumph.
Hasenhuttl was certainly made to look really silly following his influential player’s display, and it is even clearer now that he should have been back in the side as soon as he returned to England earlier this month.