SAINTS saw some early signs of encouragement despite an eventual heavy defeat at the hands of Manchester United this weekend.

Matthijs de Ligt and Marcus Rashford scored shortly after Andre Onana’s spot-kick save to put United on course for a much-needed 3-0 victory.

Saints sought a first point since their Premier League return against a team reeling from their humbling home loss to rivals Liverpool.

Saints started brightly but collapsed after Onana saved Cameron Archer’s poor penalty, with a double-salvo then knocking the stuffing out of the hosts.

Here is how we rated the performances of each Saints player... 

Starters

Adam Ramsdale made a good start to life at St Mary's - despite the resultAdam Ramsdale made a good start to life at St Mary's - despite the result (Image: Stuart Martin)

Aaron Ramsdale - 8.

Brilliant performance starting with a close-range save on Zirkzee. Called on regularly during the first half and made several strong stops, including on Rasjhford and De Ligt. Distribution and command of his box were fine too - not much could be done about any of the three goals.

Yukinari Sugawara - 7.

Managed the shift from a wing-back to a full-back position fine. Linked up well with Dibling on the right and continued to show his cross-field passing range. Crossed to Ugochukwu for a great chance during the strong starting spell. No problems with Sugawara, good signing.

Jan Bednarek - 5.

Managed to avoid catastrophic individual errors but was not as involved defensively as Stephens and passing dropped off by the end of the match. Might be partly responsible for the first goal - Downes seemingly handed responsibility for De Ligt off to him before he scored the header. 

Jack Stephens - 5.

Has only himself to blame for how he will be perceived on this occasion but he was the strongest defender during a lot of the match. Started well and big tackles on Amad and Zirkzee inside the box at 2-0. But playing attackers onside for the first goal and then a stupid late sending-off for a bad foul. Kept and progressed the ball well too, apart from one loose pass.

Kyle Walker-Peters - 6. 

Nothing too special but another steady performance over 90 minutes. Came close to producing a couple of chances getting down the left and playing across but his efforts were cut out. Stood too far off Fernandes crossing for the first goal. Completed the most dribbles (three).

Flynn Downes - 6. 

Never a problem for Saints. Popped up in good areas in both halves of the pitch with some key defensive work but was unable to capitalise on a couple of good chances in attack. At least partly responsible for the first goal, handing De Ligt off to Bednarek before he went unmarked.

Lesley Ugochukwu - 6.

Did a lot of good things initially, dominating the middle of the pitch and keeping the ball under pressure. However, headed over a good chance in the first 30 minutes. Lost his man, Zirkzee, for the first goal where if he followed he would have been in an area to stop it. Should start again. 

Mateus Fernandes - 6. 

Should keep his place despite not doing anything too spectacular on the day. Added some initial energy to the midfield and looked to progress the ball from tight areas into more space. Beat Dalot well on one occasion and had a cross-shot blocked. Managed 81 minutes. 

Tyler Dibling - 8.

Very impressive first start. Had Dalot on toast from the sixth minute, beating him and forcing Onana into a top save. Beat him again to win the penalty and give Saints a chance to go ahead. Was the most fouled player in the match (four) as United failed to keep him under control.

Ben Brereton Diaz - 5.

Had some good ideas to get the ball forward to Archer in the first 10 or 15 minutes but they did not come off. Eight passes into final third, the most of any player. Fairly faultless in possession but it's more about what he did not do - failed to impact the game after the opener.

Cameron Archer - 4. 

Started lively with accurate first-time passes and touches around the box. Poor penalty saved and headed rebound back too - the pivotal moment in the match for the team and him. Then fooled too easily by Rashford, who finished well from range. Just 16 touches in 60 minutes.

Substitutes 

Adam Lallana and Maxwel Cornet look to make an impact from the benchAdam Lallana and Maxwel Cornet look to make an impact from the bench (Image: Stuart Martin)

Adam Lallana - 5. 

Came on in the 63rd minute. Nothing to write home about but fairly steady operator in the midfield. Same goes for all subs, nothing good happened in the second half. 

Maxwel Cornet - 5.

Came on in the 63rd minute. Had a couple of opportunities to beat his man and cross but could not make anything tell. Most involved of the front three who came on. 

Ryan Fraser - 5.

Came on in the 63rd minute. Managed just eight touches, which was the fewest of any player on the pitch. First minutes and failed to make any real impact but had good stat percentages.

Ross Stewart - 5.

Came on in the 63rd minute. Thought he put himself about a bit and entered seven duels over the 30 minutes, but failed to register any kind of attacking data. 

Taylor Harwood-Bellis - 5. 

Came on in the 81st minute. Made a big last-ditch block to Zirkzee in added time. However, was inexplicably playing Dalot onside for Man United's third goal with the last kick of the game.