x

Southampton At Leicester City The Preview

Saints head up to the King Power Stadium for a fixture that could see us leapfrog the Foxes and end the weekend in 4th place with a win, but with an injury crisis still in full swing it will be a tough ask, can they do it.

Saints form in recent years has been good at Leicester, the last two previous visits have seen us leave with a 2-1 win and three years ago a 0-0 draw under Mark Hughes kick started our surge towards Premier League safety, indeed the previous season also saw a goalless encounter meaning that our last defeat up there was back in Leicester's Premier League season back in 2016 when we narrowly lost 1-0.

But if we are to keep this unbeaten run going it will have to be done in adversity with the injury list having increased since the win over Liverpool just under a fortnight ago.

But although it seems likely that the youngsters will have to be used again and of course the potential absence of Danny Ings will be a big blow, we can still put out a competitive side although the bench could be a bit sparse in terms of experience.

First decision for Ralph will be in goal where he has to decide if Alex McCarthy is free of any after affects of his bout of Covid 19 .

That will also be the case with Danny Ings whose period of isolation ended yesterday and Oriol Romeu will be back after missing the Liverpool game, but after Ibrahima Diallo's performance in that game he might struggle to get his place back, Che Adams returning will be a direct replacement for Ings.

I can see Saints lining up like this and in truth it won't be a bad starting line up.

McCarthy

Walker Peters, Bednarek, Stephens, Bertrand

Armstrong, JWP, Diallo, Walcott.

Adams

Yes I know that is only 10 players, the big question is who the 11th will be and what formation Ralph will select.

The easiest option would be to keep the normal 4-4-2 and slot in either Shane Long or Dan N'Lundulu up front, Danny Ings could start, but with a lot of games coming up it would be risky to ask him to play 90 minutes at full velocity after 10 days of missed training.

One option would be to a slight tweak, by playing both Romeu & Diablo in a 3 man central midfield and using the wide men to push up when needed .

We could even see Yan Valery reprise the right sided midfield role in the latter part of the Liverpool game and Theo Walcott pushed up front, Ralph still does have some options.

It will be an inexperienced bench though, but the youngsters stepped up against Liverpool and can do again.


This will be a tough game, but we will be suited to it and we will put out a side who will fight for every ball.

Am I confident we can win ? the answer is no, but I am confident that as in the game against Liverpool, we will make it difficult for Leicester to win and with our backs to the wall we can perhaps eke a result out.

Obviously that is not a great prediction, but given the number of experienced first team players we will be missing like Vestergaard, Redmond, Djenepo & Obafemi, the fact that we can still put out a good starting XI shows that the squad does have depth and if called upon the likes of N'Lundulu, Smallbone, Vokins & Yan Valery will not let us down.

What to read next:

Return Dates Set For Injured Southampton Duo Ramsdale And Bednarek
If you thought that things couldn't get worse for Russell Martin after the defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers, then think again, injuries to two key players in the past fortnight have added to his woes.
Do Southampton Need To Recall Bella-Kotchap For Liverpool Clash
With Jan Bednarek seemingly set to miss his first Premier League game of the season, Saints are struggling for central defenders to take on the League leaders Liverpool at St Mary's, is it time to bring in a player out of the cold.
Does Shea Charles Prove That Russell Martin's Player Judgement is Flawed
There has been a lot of words typed on the internet about Russell Martin and his tactics, but is this just the reason as to why we are doing badly in the Premier League, last season there was a clear evidence that his player selection is not what it should be.
Central Defensive Injury Blow For Southampton
If the next few weeks were going to be tough with the potential absence of goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, then they are now getting much worse with the news that a central defender has been injured in International duty over the weekend.
England England's Number 16
It was a dream England debut for Southampton's Taylor Harwood-Bellis, in front of his future Father in law ex Manchester United & Republic of Ireland legend Roy Keane, not only scoring but also nearly getting an assist.
Nick's Saints Saints Away Travel Lay On 6th Coach For Brighton
Brighton away was the first fixture Southampton fans looked for when they came out back in June so there was great disappointment when the game was switched to a Friday night as it means it's virtually impossible to get back on the train.
Saints Not Afraid Of Sacking Russell Martin Even If They Have To Pay
Recent reports have suggested that Southampton have not dispensed with the services of Russell Martin due to the alleged £12 million compensation cost. However it is now suggested that this is not the case and that if they do lose faith they are willing to pay the price.
Southampton Settle Russell Martin Compensation With Swansea City
Its dragged on a bit, but Saints have finally sorted out the compensation package with the Swans for Russell Martin's switch from South Wales to the South Coast, although the details of the settlement are rather vague.
Goalkeeper To Have Surgery As Saints Season Gets Even Worse
One of the highlights, if you can say their were any, of the last few months, was the arrival from Arsenal of Aaron Ramsdale, but now comes some terrible news, that he has injured a finger.
Sources Say Southampton Have Made Decision About Russell Martin
The last two days have been ones of frustration for fans of Southampton Football Club, after a toothless display at Wolverhampton Wanderers, many were convinced that this would surely be the end of the line for the Saints manager.