Will Still’s Southampton FC prayers may be answered - Sunderland will love to see it | OneFootball

Southampton may have found the answer to one of their main issues.

Southampton haven’t found life easy during the early stages of their return to the Championship, after suffering relegation from the Premier League last term in tragic fashion.

The Saints arrived back in the second-tier with a determination to right the wrongs of last term and looked to have set about doing that well, defeating Wrexham 2-1 in their first game of the season.

However, Will Still’s side struggled to find consistency after that triumph, with a draw away at Ipswich Town followed by a defeat at St. Mary’s against Stoke City.

Further stalemates with Watford and Portsmouth saw Southampton slip further away from the top of the table, before a defeat at Hull City started to put increased pressure on Still to turn things around.

It took the Saints until their eighth game of the season to record their second triumph away at Sheffield United. Despite putting three much-needed points on the board, this triumph may have also presented Still with a solution to one of the main problems he has encountered at St. Mary’s thus far.

Will Still might have struck gold with Ross Stewart revelation

One key issue for Southampton during the opening stages of this season has been scoring goals on a consistent basis.

Prior to their victory over Sheffield United, the Saints netted more than once in just two of their first seven matches, highlighting how much they have struggled to put the ball in the back of the net.

Operators such as Adam Armstrong, Cameron Archer and Damion Downs have all failed to live up to their promise so far, which has led to frustration building from the St. Mary’s faithful.

Still combated this by starting Ross Stewart against the Blades, after the striker had been resigned to the bench for most of the season thus far.

The Scotsman paid back his manager with a match-winning brace, which provided Still and Southampton with a much-needed victory.

Following this talismanic performance, Stewart has no doubt earned himself a consistent role as the South Coast outfit’s starting No.9.

If he can replicate this performance on a regular basis, Still may have found the answer to his goalscoring woes and will subsequently see his side shoot up the division.

Stewart offers a physical presence in attack that fellow forwards such as Armstrong and Archer lack.

This also allows other operators such as Tom Fellows to link up with the striker, which will be another reason why Still is so keen to get him into the team.

The striker has struggled immensely with injuries since moving to Southampton in 2023, but will hope that this outing is the start of a new chapter in his Saints career.

Naturally, Southampton fans will be most delighted to see Stewart find his shooting boots, but the Sunderland faithful won’t be far behind.

The Scotsman operated out of the Stadium of Light for three seasons and announced himself to the rest of the EFL in the process.

Stewart played an instrumental role in helping the Black Cats achieve promotion from League One in 2022, scoring 26 goals and providing three assists en route to their play-off glory.

Stewart scored 40 goals in 81 appearances for Sunderland and also helped them clinch the EFL Trophy in 2021.

The 29-year-old was affectionately named the Loch Ness Drogba by the Black Cats’ faithful, in reference to his playing style and the goals he scored in crucial matches for Sunderland.

He netted in both the semi-final and final of the 2021/22 League One play-offs, highlighting just how important a role the forward played in securing promotion for the Mackems.

Stewart’s exceptional performances convinced Southampton to fork out £8 million for his services in 2023.

The striker will always be remembered fondly in Wearside for his contribution to the cause and the Sunderland fans will no doubt feel a great amount of joy to see him performing at his best once more.

Stewart played an important role in Sunderland’s upward trajectory that eventually resulted in promotion to the Premier League, something that will always be appreciated at the Stadium of Light.