Gunn replaced Alex McCarthy and kept a clean sheet against Chelsea
Wednesday 2 January 2019 23:15, UK
Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl said goalkeeper Angus Gunn made an "amazing step" after he kept a clean sheet on his Premier League debut against Chelsea.
Gunn was one of eight changes for the Saints as they drew 0-0 at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old goalkeeper was not overly worked but denied both Eden Hazard and Alvaro Morata as Southampton kept their first Premier League clean sheet since October.
Chelsea 0-0 Southampton
As it happened
Hasenhuttl, who took charge a month ago, told Sky Sports: "The main thing is the first clean sheet since I came here, that is maybe also because Gunn was in goal for the first time and he did a fantastic job.
"He was as brave as we wanted him to be because he was defending forward and we spoke about the chipped balls behind the last row and it was important that he was always on line and trying to be defending forward.
"I am very happy with him. It was important for me to see what we had in the goalkeeper position and that was an amazing step for him."
Hasenhuttl also acknowledged his decision to make so many changes in the last two games paid off.
"We made the right decision on Sunday to change so many players against Manchester City.
"We knew if we wanted to have a chance against Chelsea we had to put seven or eight fresh players on the pitch otherwise it's not possible to defend for 95 minutes.
"I think we did a good job. The commitment was fantastic, it was an amazing fight and I am very happy for all the supporters. It was tactically a very interesting game for us, we tried to close the gaps through the centre with a high number of players and it worked."
Southampton will now be hoping to climb the table over the next couple of months as they only face one top-six side before the end of February.
"We have the FA Cup and then teams we have to take wins against because it's about staying alive," said Hasenhuttl. "We know the hard work we have to do between now and the end of the season and maybe this point will be very important."
