James Ward-Prowse says Saturday’s encounter at Stoke was one of the toughest physical challenges of his career to date.
The England Under-21 international played the full 90 minutes of his side’s 1-1 draw at Stoke – his first visit to the Britannia Stadium – and speaking after the game he said that experiences such as that will only aid his development.
Speaking to Southampton’s official website, he said: “It’s probably the most physically hurt I’ve felt after a game.
“It was a real brutal experience for me out there and for a youngster to go out there and experience that was great because we won’t go to many places tougher than that.
“As a team we're pleased with a point but disappointed on the other hand not to have all three.
“If you look around their team they’re all big and physical players, so it was a good experience for me. In fairness to us, we kept our bravery to keep on probing for the win, and I think we got our just desserts in the end.”
James Ward-Prowse
- Age: 19
- Club: Southampton
- Under-21s caps: 4
- Goals: 1
- Under-21s debut: 5 September 2013 (v Moldova)
Ward-Prowse has enjoyed a fine run of form so far this season and has started six of Southampton’s ten Premier League games to date – providing crucial assists in the wins against West Bromwich Albion and Fulham.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men are now unbeaten in the league in seven outings and currently sit in fifth place, just six points behind leaders Arsenal.
“We’re very positive and confident in the way that we do play,” Ward-Prowse added.
“We know that if we can get the ball down and play even in windy conditions then we can get success and I think that we did that.
“The manager has put a lot of confidence in me and all of the other players to go out there and do a job. I feel probably the most confident that I have in a long time along with the position that we are in and the way that I’ve been playing, so it’s nice to have contributed towards the team’s success.
“We had great ball retention too,” the 19-year-old added. “Last year we would have been happy with a point from here and this year we’re disappointed not to get all three, so that shows how we’re developing and how we’re progressing and that’s why we are where we are in the league.”
Next up for Ward-Prowse and Southampton are Sunderland, who they meet in the League Cup on Wednesday.
“We’ll be going out with the mentality to win the game and I’m sure that every player in there who’s not playing at the moment and sees the team doing well will want to replicate that in the cup, so everyone will go out with that winning mentality that we’ve all got at the club, and I’m sure we’ll be fine," he added.
