Here we are again back at the King Power Stadium almost 3 months to the day after a last day of the season debacle that just about categorised the final two months of the season, but this is a new one and things are changing.
Back in May Saints went to Leicester on the final day of the season a side that looked like they just wanted the season over with, most of the defeats bar Chelsea & Brentford in the poor run had been close run things, but the memory will be that we collapsed and were uncompetitive in every game.
Even though it was only three months ago that will be the feeling of many, certainly mine, so it surprised me to check the stats and found out it was 0-0 at half time, Leicester didn't score till the 49th minute and that with 10 minutes left it was only 2-1 to the home side.
The stats weren't that much different, they had 10 attempts on goal we had 7, but they put 4 of theirs in the net and we only 1.
In many ways in condensed the final two months of the season into 90 minutes, any good work we did in a game was thrown away by poor defending.
To be frank I wouldn't argue with anyone who says we have carried on where we left off in that respect in our opening two games, but the truth is that we have improved and it is likely that of the team that played at Leicester in May at least four new faces will be in the side and perhaps 5 of the team that started that game will not be in the starting XI for this one.
No one is saying that we are the finished article at the moment, but we have made progress and we need to keep moving forward, we always start badly for some reason, so history tells us that a poor start for Southampton is no guide to the future, our best League season in three decades in 2015/16 saw us fail to win till our 4th Premier League game, that being our only win in the opening 6, yet we ended up 6th.
So there is no cause for panic yet, the squad as it stands is as good now as it was this time last year, if we judge it's capabilities, we have to judge it as much as it's form between December and March as we do in it's last two months.
So perhaps Leicester City is a benchmark as to how we have improved, on Saturday against Leeds United Ralph Hasenhuttl knew that he had to be cautious, so he refrained from having a side with all of his new young signings in it, although some would say that he made a mistake, I would also say that he played it right, he was just let down by some lax defending, but he had saved his attacking talent for the final half hour and that paid off, if he had put out an attacking starting line up, we might have been 2-0 down before half time let alone the hour mark.
Hasenhuttl gambled that we could hold Leeds and then put on the pressure in the last half hour, but we all know why it went wrong, no leader at the back and until we sort that our defence will always be a game of chance and luck.
So what does the Austrian do for this game, the clamour will be for the heroes of the half hour on Saturday, Sekou Mara and Joe Aribo to start the game, but does he opt for attack or again cautious to start and build up to a finish.
His main issue though is at the back, he has no leader, Salisu has gone backwards from his form of the middle of last season because just when he needs someone talking him through a game and mentoring him he has no one, Armel Bella-Kotcha likewise, he showed on Saturday he can be a player at this level, but he is learning and he needs a mentor.
Truth is though Hasenhuttl has no option other than to play Jan Bednarek, the Pole is not a leader, that is not to criticise him, central defenders generally fall into two categories, stoppers and organisers, he is a stopper, so where some very good central defenders over the years, at the back you need a balance and we haven't got that balance.
Personally I would consider playing Oriol Romeu in the centre of a back three, those who call Hasenhuttl clueless for instance weren't at Old Trafford last season when after heavy United pressure, he changed the side and dropped Romeu into a back three, we went on to get a draw and perhaps should have had more.
So perhaps doing this from the start would work, play Romeu in the centre in between Salisu and ABK.
Some would opt for a back four, I can see why, but again which two do you play, Bednarek is disinterested, but has experience, Salisu & Bella-Kotchap are still raw at this level.
Another bone of contention is the left wing back spot, on the right hand side KWP is superb but on the left Djenepo seems to be the latest whipping boy, his only crime is to be filling in to a position where at the moment there is not a lot of options, in truth he hasn't shirked the job and going forward at least he has looked good with an assist at Spurs and lively against Leeds, but when we are defending he has to be talked through the game from behind and no one seems to do that, it is not just his fault.
Personally I think Stuart Armstrong could do a job in this position, but I also think Djenepo is not as bad as some would have you believe
In the centre of midfield JWP & Lavia are forming a solid partnership, but the final positions in the team are up for grabs. in effect the three positions not claimed are attacking central midfielder and the two strikers.
In terms of sitting in front of the midfield two, we have Joe Aribo who is perhaps the current best option, Stuart Armstrong & Moi Elyounoussi.
Up front we have Che Adams, Sekou Mara & Adam Armstrong for the two strikers roles, with potentially using Elyounoussi or Stuart Armstrong as auxiliary strikers.
From what I saw against Leeds I think Adam Armstrong would be the first on the list, he was superb on making the first goal and during the game buzzed about, strikers are based on confidence and he seems to be getting that judging by the game last Saturday.
Che Adams doesn't appear to be in confident form, he seems to be a player caught in limbo, he is trying his hardest, but his future is uncertain, if Saints were to sign another striker then I think he would be allowed to go, if we don't then he stays.
This must be difficult to comprehend, he needs to know where he will be playing for the rest of the season and only when the transfer window shuts will he know that, he should be congratulated that he has been professional and puta shift in rather than sulked.
So if we play Adam Armstrong, do we start with Adams who knows how to work a back line, create space with off the ball running or do we plunger in Mara whom we know little about. His cameo role and sublime pass suggested good things, but he needs to be brought into the side slowly rather than thrown in.
I remember three years ago a new signing sat out the first game, made a brief appearance in the second as a sub and then in the third scored a wonder goal two minutes after coming on and then added to that with a goal in his full debut in his 4th game, the fans were salivating and proclaiming him the new goalscoring sensation, do you remember his name ?
Conversely will Ralph render this entire preview redundant by playing 4-4-2.
So my predicted line up for 3-2-3-2 is:
Bazunu
Bella-Kotchap, Bednarek, Salisu
Walker Peters, Djenepo
JWP Lavia
Aribo
A Armstrong Adams.
If Ralph does go for 4-4-2
Bazunu
Valery , Bella - Kotchap Salisu, Walker Peters
S Armstrong, JWP Lavia , Djenepo
A Armstrong Adams
As you can see the personnel is different for a different formation, going to 4-4-2 causes position issues, we have no left back, so we would have to switch KWP & bring in Valery, in midfield we would lose Aribo but the reshuffle would bring in Stuart Armstrong.
There are those who have criticised the line up used in the opening games as being 5 -3-2 ie 5 at the back and defensive, but I see it as more attacking than the 4-4-2 line up given the personnel that we have, in essence it is not 5-3-2, but 3 at the back, two wingbacks who forage forward more and almost an extra striker with the man sitting in front of the holding midfielders.
Leicester themselves have not had a good start to the season, they started by throwing away a 2-0 lead against Brentford and then followed it up by getting tanked 4-2 in North London against Arsenal.
There are many similarities to our opening two games, only that we showed character in coming back from 2-0 down rather than throwing that lead away.
But Brendon Rodgers has let his squad grow old, Kasper Schmeichel has now gone and they have gone to their back up keeper Danny Ward, the Welshman has won caps for his country, 26 of them to be exact, but at 29 he has barely played first team football, his only real experience came in two seasons, the first in 2015/16 when he was at loan at Aberdeen and then in 2016/17 when he played on loan at Huddersfield in their promotion season.
Since then he has stagnated and his game against Arsenal was only his 3rd Premier League game for the club, the first being back in May and indeed these 3 games aside he hadn't played another League game for over 5 years.
Shades of Alex McCarthy here, clearly a talented keeper but has not made the transition from back up to being a first choice for some reason, he made errors at Arsenal and this is what Saints have to capitalise on at the King Power, a defence that is ageing and has some disruption in it, Johnny Evans is 34 and Wesley Fofana has his head turned by Chelsea with Brendan Rodgers even having to deny that the player has asked to leave the club.
Leicester have done little business in the transfer market, but they have lost their talisman in goal, the first time Kasper Schmeichel hasn't started a season for them in 11 years.
With Jamie Vardy turning 36 in January, Brendon Rodgers has a squad that is not as good as it was, too many players grew old and there isn't the transfer money to replace them as they leave cheaply or for free.
Leicester are in decline and we have to make sure that continues whilst they are in a little disarray, for 80 minutes of the game last season we competed with them, before letting in two soft late goals, we are a better squad now, they are not, we have to make it count.
So going to Leicester isn't the daunting trip it once was, although to be fair we had a decent record there over the past 6 years or so, let's go and get something there and build on the foundations from those last 20 minutes against Leeds.