Southampton came out on top in one of the most pressured games in English football when they beat Leeds United in the Championship play-off final.
Before a ball was kicked, Kyle Walker-Peters knew that he was tasked with one of the toughest jobs on the day because he had to keep Crysencio Summerville quiet.
The Leeds United trickster has probably been the best player in the Championship this season, scoring 19 goals and the Wembley final was set up for him to showcase his magic again.
But Crysencio Summerville came up against a player in Kyle Walker-Peters who knows what it’s like to come up against some of the best.
The 27-year-old has 115 Premier League appearances to his name having repped Tottenham Hotspur and the Saints during his career so far.
But the versatile fullback had Leeds’ main star on lockdown and won the battle to the point that his counterpart was subbed off after 70 minutes.
Summerville just wasn’t his usual self during the game and it was a big call by Daniel Farke, but in the end, it made no difference because Leeds hardly turned up.
After the game, Walker-Peters hailed the Yorkshire side, who finished third during the regular season, as a ‘really top team’, as he told Sky Sports Football (26/05/24 at 5:35 pm).
The two-capped England star also touched upon his battle with Summerville and how he just knew he had to be ‘on top of my game’.
Whilst also sharing that the plan from Southampton, and their manager Russell Martin, was to ‘stop their front four’, which they did and everyone else saw the end result.
Kyle Walker-Peters v Crysencio Summerville
“We are playing against a really top team,” said Walker-Peters. “We know how much quality their front four have.
“For me, I am up against Summerville. I know I have to be on top of my game, so that was the focus all the week, to stop their front four and then we knew we had the quality to win the game.
“Then this man (puts his hand on Adam Armstrong) has one chance and he puts it away, so it’s great.”
Will Crysencio Summerville leave Leeds United?
You feel it’s inevitable. From a financial perspective, the club will probably have no choice and now they will probably lose him far cheaper than they would have wanted.
Yes, Summerville will have to look at his own performance because in Leeds’ biggest game of the season, he just didn’t turn up and he only has himself to blame.
READ MORE: Harry Maguire rubs salt into the wounds after Leeds United lose play-off final to Southampton
But the Dutchman is far too good for England’s second tier and you suspect he will be leaving sooner rather than later.
Sources have told HITC that the likes of Tottenham and Liverpool are looking at his talents – and with a Dutchman – Arne Slot – now in the hotseat at Anfield, you feel this is probably one to watch out for.
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