Southampton recorded a historic 2-1 win against Inter Milan in the Europa League at St Mary's on Thursday night, and the result will live long in the memories of Saints supporters.

It means Claude Puel's side know that they will qualify for the knockout stages of the competition if they triumph away at Sparta Prague on the next matchday.

Some fans would have been worried when the Frenchman decided to once again rotate his squad and make five changes to the team that lost 2-0 to Chelsea last Sunday, but the players that came into the starting XI did the club proud.

 

One of those was midfielder James Ward-Prowse, who arguably had his best match in a Southampton shirt against the Italian giants.

The 22-year-old has sometimes struggled to impose himself on games when he has started, but it was different story under the St Mary's floodlights - coming of age in front of our very eyes.

WORK RATE

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Southampton's James Ward-Prowse applauds their fans as he celebrates after the match
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With Claude Puel favouring a rotation system this season, Ward-Prowse and his midfield partner Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg benefited against Inter after being left on the bench for the match against Chelsea four days previously.

The former was particularly impressive and was all over the pitch, especially in the second half when Saints' completed the turnaround.

It was that energy and pressing that put the defensive Inter outfit under pressure and eventually led to the historic victory.

LEADERSHIP

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In previous first team matches for Saints, Ward-Prowse has been something of a quieter influence on the pitch, but it was a different story against Inter on Thursday night.

The 22-year-old was barking out instructions to his teammates and leading the team with his pressing, showing why he is the captain of the young Three Lions.

In the pre-match press conference he seemed to be highly motivated for this clash, and that determination is something that he needs to take into every game in the future.

QUALITY ON THE BALL

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Inter Milan's Assane Demoya Gnoukouri in action with Southampton's James Ward-Prowse 
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Ward-Prowse's quality from set-pieces has never been disputed by Southampton supporters, but his contribution during open play often leaves much to be desired.

However, the Saints midfielder really imposed himself on the match on Thursday night. He showed some nice touches and attacking passes, while he was unlucky not to score with a spate of good long-range efforts.