Downs takes top marks in Saints player ratings at Eintracht Braunschweig

SAINTS made it two wins from two this month when they beat German second division outfit Eintracht Braunschweig to kick off pre-season tour.

It was the second friendly of the summer for Tonda Eckert's side, who beat National League Eastleigh 3-1 at the Silverlake Stadium last week.

Damion Downs opened the scoring after 35 minutes with a beautiful take and finish, as he looked to put a disastrous first season behind him.

His goal shone in an otherwise slow-paced friendly clash, which came just hours after the Saints squad had flown from England to Germany.

Important minutes banked ✅ pic.twitter.com/pkn15cI1wB

— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) July 24, 2026

Here is how we rated every Saints player involved...

Daniel Peretz - 6.

Did not have a lot to do in his 45 minutes, but commanded his box well when required and dealt with the easy things relatively comfortably.

Mads Roerslev - 7.

Good showing from the Dane, who looked to get forward throughout the half and limited any threat from the opposition down his side.

Taylor Harwood-Bellis - 6.

Nothing bad to say about him, though he was not tested a lot. Did what was required to preserve the score, but headed over with his one chance.

Jack Stephens - 6.

Showed some good box defending on two occasions when pressured. Was given a talking to for pulling an opposition striker down off the ball.

No major concern, but started quite poorly in possession and wasted a good free-kick with a straight cross. Did block the first chance very well.

Flynn Downes - 7.

Played his part in the goal with the pass to Dobbin, who set up the eventual scorer, and was solid throughout the half. He'll be happy with that.

The midfielder was tidy throughout and tried to show his passing range with a couple of attempted diagonal balls, one of which came off well.

Ben Brereton Diaz - 6.

Not a lot to report on an individual basis but no faults. Worked hard and moved around the pitch, but was probably the least involved of the forwards.

Lewis Dobbin - 7.

Very busy, showed good pace on the counter under pressure, and made up for being rash with a big chance to assist by setting up the opening goal well.

Leo Scienza - 6.

Got into an immediate individual battle with the right-back and mostly came out on top, but failed to deliver quality with his set-piece moments.

Damion Downs - 8.

Opened the scoring with a brilliant touch to round the keeper, and another to beat a defender for a simple finish. Involved and inventive throughout.

Lovely move for our opener 😎 pic.twitter.com/VieuKzp9v7

— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) July 24, 2026

George Long - 6.

Had even less to do than Peretz but did not make any errors in possession and was on hand to sweep up when required. Not much more to say.

James Bree - 6.

Part of a defence which allowed practically nothing across the 45 minutes, against a physically limited outfit - but didn't take advantage of set-pieces.

Nathan Wood - 6.

Did not have a lot to do but conceded very little and was reliable in possession throughout. Decent performance from probably the third-choice.

Josh Quarshie - 7.

Not properly tested but seemed to be the busiest of the four centre-backs on the day. Used his physical attributes well to snuff out any danger.

Ryan Manning - 7.

Moved from a six to a seven right at the end as he continued to sweep up any potential danger and cleared well, but would like to see more in attack.

Shea Charles - 7.

Charles looked good in his first minutes of pre-season, and really started to show his class as the half wore on with passing range and shimmies.

Kuryu Matsuki - 6.

Not a lot to write about Matsuki, who did not make any glaring errors but largely coasted through the game playing in a central midfield role.

Tom Fellows - 7.

Caused problems right from the start, although he put a big chance to pass just behind Archer. Shot over the bar and got a defender booked.

Cameron Archer - 7.

Credit for being so hard-working. Had a good effort deflected wide early on and then saw another chance saved after some good feet in the area.

Romeo Akchukwu - 7.

Started the half by forcing a good save with a bending shot from outside the box. Very active and physical throughout, although end-product lacked.

Nick Oyekunle - 6.

Not bad at all from the young striker, who was plenty involved through the half. Had a couple of speculative efforts, but missed a chance to assist Archer.