Matsuki scored his first Championship goals as Saints threw down their play-off credentials with a 5-0 thrashing of fellow chasers QPR at St Mary’s.
Finn Azaz got the bulldozing under way before Matsuki notched either side of half-time to fire Saints to seventh and to a seventh unbeaten league game.
Leo Scienza and James Bree’s stunner added gloss and left QPR seven points adrift of the top six to dent their hopes of reaching the Premier League.
After the match, Eckert said: “Kuryu has played for some big clubs in front of some big crowds, and I think he has a natural confidence in himself.
Kuryu Matsuki grabs his second of the match! 👏 pic.twitter.com/y9vG89IxQE
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) February 24, 2026
“You need to have that as a player, to always back yourself. The nice thing with him is that it’s always paired with humility to work every single day.
“He’s very humble as a person and especially in the moments when it’s easy to drop your standards if you don’t play, but he doesn’t.
“He comes in the same way every day for training, and he’s a very nice player to coach, a very nice player to have around. I think his quality is outstanding.
“He doesn’t lose a ball when you give it to him, even under pressure.”
Matsuki has scored in the Championship, FA Cup and Carabao Cup this season, including a header at Doncaster and a stunner at Norwich.
“He’s actually quite good with a header. If you remember the cup game, I think he had two opportunities where he could have scored,” added Eckert.
“He put one wide, and then he put one in the back of the net, but he’s that kind of player that doesn’t get marked in the box when teams need one free.
“You look at Taylor Harwood-Bellis, or at Jack Stephens, then you have Kuryu, it’s easy to leave him free. Luckily, they did, and he got there first.”