Sellés on "very good news" and deserving debutants
Rubén Sellés was pleased to make three significant substitutions in the second half of Southampton’s final away game of the season at Brighton.
Saints may have lost the game 3-1, but there were still some feel-good stories to emerge from the Amex Stadium, including the return of Tino Livramento after 13 months on the sidelines.
Livramento suffered an ACL injury in April last year, ironically on the same ground, and came through 20 minutes on his comeback, including an extensive period of stoppage time.
“Tino has been out of the game for one year. He is a boy that put everything into the game. He showed character, when he was ready to come back he had a couple of setbacks that kept him away from the team,” Sellés said.
“When we got the news last Monday that he can be selectable and can play 15, 20 minutes of the game, it was very good news.
“It was very good news that it was here, where it happened one year ago. He is a boy with a brilliant future and it’s very good to have him back.”
Either side of Livramento’s 77th-minute introduction, there were Premier League debuts for Academy starlets Dom Ballard and Kamari Doyle – the latter making his first senior appearance in any competition for the club.
“I think we have very good players in the Academy,” Sellés continued. “Dom and Kami have been key elements for the title of Premier League 2 with the B team.
“They were working with us, they deserve that first game – their debut – and I think they showed that they are as good as any other can be, and I’m happy that they can stay with us, they could make their debut and hopefully there is more to come.”
