Ex-Arsenal midfielder raves about 'absolutely outstanding' Southampton star - Tonda Eckert knows him well | OneFootball

In the space of one game, Cameron Bragg has emerged as an exciting prospect for Southampton

Former Arsenal and EFL midfielder Adrian Clarke has lauded praise on Southampton's newest young star, Cameron Bragg, after his performance against Charlton Athletic.

Not many football fans would have heard of Bragg when the teams were released at 11:15 on Saturday morning ahead of Southampton's trip to Charlton Athletic.

Barring a brief and uneventful loan stint at Crawley Town at the beginning of last season, the 20-year-old played virtually all of his football in the academy at Southampton.

Bragg made two cameo appearances, totalling nine minutes, during the Saints' 2023/24 FA Cup campaign, and then came off the bench for his league debut earlier this season against Blackburn Rovers.

So, when it was announced that the youngster would be making his first Southampton start away at Charlton, with Flynn Downes left on the bench, a few eyebrows were raised, but not by Tonda Eckert, who knows what Bragg is all about, having coached him in the U21s side all season.

By the time he was substituted on 76 minutes, Saints fans knew why Eckert made the decision, and were revelling in a new, exciting star emerging in their ranks.

It was a near-perfect debut, and Clarke doesn't feel that this will be the last we see of Bragg this season.

Adrian Clarke waxes lyrical over Cameron Bragg's first Southampton start

Speaking on the What the EFL podcast, broadcaster and former midfielder Adrian Clarke singled out Bragg as one of the star performers for Southampton in their dominant 5-1 win over Charlton.

It speaks volumes that, in a game where Finn Azaz, Tom Fellows and Adam Armstrong were seemingly back to the best versions that Championship fans expect of them, it was an unknown 20-year-old who stole the show just by doing his job efficiently.

"Cameron Bragg, 20 years of age, I think he made his [league] debut at Blackburn in what was a bit of a miserable game," he said.

"But [Eckert] starts him in centre midfield, Flynn Downes wasn't quite right, and he completes 44 of 46 passes, wins eight of 11 duels, wins four out of six tackles and creates two chances.

"Cameron Bragg, I think you are going to play the next game, mate. That was absolutely outstanding."

Expectations would have been high for Bragg, who was taking the place of one of the Championship's more consistent performers in his position in Downes.

He may need to show more consistency to nail down that place in the starting eleven, but if his debut is anything to go by, he will have no problems in that regard at all.

Cameron Bragg showed everyone what Tonda Eckert already knew in Charlton Athletic win

Interim manager Tonda Eckert was brought in this summer to manage the U21s side and, therefore, has had the privilege of working with Bragg all season so far.

Usually, when a youth manager gets a promotion to first team manager, whether that's interim or permanent, some of the star performers from his young sides are afforded opportunities to show what they can do on a bigger stage.

Sometimes, these fall flat, but if Bragg's debut has anything to go by, he'll be a mainstay in that Saints side for years to come.

The 20-year-old has been with the club since he was eight years old, and Eckert was delighted with his performance in the win last Saturday.

"I've known Braggy for a couple of months now, and he deserves every single moment with the fans today," Eckert said post-Charlton.

"Credit to him for a very good performance. If you look at his loan history, he comes to us here from a very difficult year."

"He has been excellent from the very first day I came in, and in the U21s he always accepted his role."