Southampton must take a cautious approach over one player returning from injury.
Southampton are set to host Manchester United at St Mary’s, as they look to get their first points on the board in the 2024/25 Premier League campaign.
The Saints have scored just one goal so far this campaign, which turned out to merely be a consolation goal courtesy of Yuki Sugawara against Brentford.
Russell Martin’s side have certainly been on the cautious side when on the attacking front, as there are no doubts that they have had their fair share of possession in most games in the campaign so far.
The attacking output at this moment has been nothing more than unsatisfactory, however Martin’s options are set to be improved with one absent striker closing in on a return to the squad, one which will take very careful management from the Southampton boss.
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Russell Martin must be cautious with Ross Stewart for his return
Southampton striker Ross Stewart’s tenure on the south coast has been one plagued with injuries, with him tallying just four league appearances for the Saints since he arrived from Sunderland.
There is plenty of optimism that Southampton fans will finally be able to see the Scottish international in action this season after just 42 minutes of action in total since he joined.
Per The Daily Echo, Martin said: “Ross will be in the squad on Tuesday [in the League Cup against Everton]. He’s looking brilliant. He’s been in a good place now for a couple of weeks.
“There is a temptation to unleash him. But we have a lot of players who will be frustrated that they are not involved at the moment. Ross has to bide his time and be patient.
“He may be involved in Saturday’s squad but he will definitely be in the squad on Tuesday. After that it will be up to him to make sure he stays there.”
Stewart has missed 434 days of action for Southampton, and with the glaring likelihood that an injury return, Martin must ensure that he doesn’t utilise the striker too soon after his recovery.
Russell Martin’s management of Ross Stewart situation could be detrimental to the season
Despite having never played a minute of Premier League football in his career, there is every bit of optimism that the 28-year-old will be able to come up to speed in the English top-flight.
However, this optimism, especially from Martin, must not at this moment cloud his judgement and potentially rush the Scotsman back into action.
His spells across both Southampton and Sunderland have shown that he should not be chucked straight into the side, as an overload of gametime at this moment could only aggravate a potential further injury.
Utilising him off the bench in a cup tie will certainly be the safest option for Martin, and one that makes most sense at this moment as rushing the striker in to play Manchester United, when the likes of Cameron Archer, Ben Brereton Diaz and Adam Armstrong are suitable options, would certainly be pointless.