STATS: Clyne’s tackles for Southampton vs Shawcross’ blocks for Stoke
Southampton v Stoke 16:00
– Southampton will finish an impressive first season in the Premier League by hosting Stoke, after previously earning a 1-1 draw against Sunderland thanks to a Jason Puncheon goal.
– Southampton had an incredible 64% of possession against Sunderland, their best in an away game this season.
– Key to their possession this season has been the tough tackling performances of Morgan Schneiderlin. Schneiderlin has attempted 150 tackles this season, winning 88, both of which are the highest in their respective categories in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
– Nathaniel Clyne has also had an incredibly impressive first season in the Premier League. The 22 year old defender has attempted 103 tackles and won 75.7% of them, the second best tackles won percentage of the 25 players in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index to have attempted 100 tackles or more this season.
– Also impressing in the Southampton back line have been Maya Moshida and Jose Fonte. They are ranked 7th and 8th respectively in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index for interceptions having made 197 and 194 respectively.
– An early Steven Nzonzi goal from a Charlie Adam free kick wasn’t enough to prevent Stoke from falling to a 2-1 defeat to Spurs in their last game.
– Amazingly, Stoke have scored one or fewer goals in 29 of their 37 games this season. Stoke committing men defensively has meant they have one of the healthiest ‘goals against’ columns in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index. However, Matt Etherington must wish that more of his colleagues had committed to hitting the box this season, as he has delivered 39 crosses and completed 284 passes in the opposition half without being credited an assist.
– However, they have excelled defensively. Ryan Shawcross has made 43 blocks, ranking second in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.