JAMES Ward-Prowse hailed “magic” man Sofiane Boufal after his stunning goal lifted Saints out of the doldrums with a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough at St Mary’s.

The England Under-21 captain was full of praise for match winner Boufal and urged him to build on his goalscoring performance with nine-goal top-scorer Charlie Austin ruled-out for up to four months with a shoulder injury.

The Moroccan international’s strike – his first in the Premier League – not only set alight a drab and dreary match against Boro, but it also acted as much-needed pain relief after a disastrous week in which Saints were eliminated from the Europa League on Thursday night and lost 3-0 to strugglers Crystal Palace.

“We needed a reaction after Thursday,” said Ward-Prowse. “In the first half we struggled. We didn’t have many solutions with the ball, but second half we changed the shape and that obviously paid dividends.”

On 53 minutes, Boufal, the £16m record signing from Lille, belted in a superb 25-yard effort past Middlesbrough goalkeeper Victor Valdes and ultimately gave Saints their first win in two games, lifting them to 10th in the Premier League.

“It was a great strike,” Ward-Prowse said. “He’s obviously had one like that already this season against Sunderland in the cup and it was great to see him get another one today.

“He’s one of those players who can create something out of nothing and that’s great for us.

“We know he can produce a bit of magic when we are struggling like today. Credit to him and we’re pleased for him to get the goal.

“He’s got to carry that on now.”

Ward-Prowse admitted that it was a vital lift to win against Aitor Karanka’s side after a miserable week.

“Everyone was deeply disappointed that we couldn’t get the right result on Thursday,” he said.

“It was a good sign today that, although we didn’t necessarily play our best football, we managed to get a good result and we need to make sure we get a run going now.

“We’ve got a good couple of games coming up to maximise the amount of points we can get.”

Saints did not feel under pressure heading into the Middlesbrough match, but rather they were determined to put things right.

“I wouldn’t say pressure,” the academy graduate said. “There was a determination from us all to put Thursday behind us and look forward and make sure the Premier League campaign stays on track.

“We started off well by doing that [winning against Boro].”