x

Southampton Should Not Fear Anyone In The Play Offs.

The hope of getting back into the Premier League automatically has long gone, but the season is not yet over and we now have a good chance of getting to Wembley and going up through the play offs, here we look at who we could meet.

As it stands Saints are the only team absolutely guaranteed to be in the play offs as we head into the final week of the season.

Above them it could be either Leeds United or Ipswich Town blowing up in the final week and joining us in the play offs, but below us there are still 3 teams vying for the final 2 spots.

That is probably not entirely correct though, Norwich City who sit in 5th place on 73 points are 1 point above West Brom in 6th and 3 points above Hull in 7th, but they have a better goal difference of 7 over Hull, so it would take a big turnaround for Hull to get above the Canaries, Norwich travel to Birmingham City who will go down if they are defeated and unless Plymouth lose 5-0 even a draw wont save Birmingham.

Hull for their part are away at Plymouth, so high scoring games in these fixtures could decide the fate of clubs at the top as well as at the bottom.

I would imagine that Norwich will hold on to a play off spot whatever the scoreline, so the final place will be between West Brom & Hull.

West Brom are at home to Preston and although the Baggies are in the midst of a terrible run, it should still be enough to get a point and get in the play offs as Hull are currently 11 goals worse off than West Brom.

Hull are perhaps the only team who only have one option on Saturday, they have to attack and keep attacking and hope that one of Norwich & West Brom, get beaten.

So Saints could meet any of those 3 clubs in the play off semi final, the truth is though we should not fear any of them, despite our own recent form.

Of course we have suffered 3 straight defeats, but we have still got 9 points from our last 6 games, that compared favourably with West Brom who have gained just 5, Norwich who have the same number 9 and only Hull have bettered that, a late 6 match unbeaten run with 3 wins and 3 draws giving them 12 points.

They are most definitely the in form team, it is the same number of points that Leicester have got in the same period and more than any of Saints, Ipswich & Leeds, indeed Leeds have a worse record than Saints over the last 6 and Ipswich an identical 9 points.

So although we have had a disaster in the last 3 games, the clubs around us have not done much better, I would say it is a real outside bet that Hull get that last promotion place, even though they are in form, they travel to Plymouth who have to win to guarantee survival, it won't be an easy task.

That being the case then we should be confident about facing West Brom or Norwich teams that we haven't lost against this season.

So it is not all doom and gloom and saying that the club that has the late run into the play offs is the one that goes up, from the look of it all four clubs in the play offs could be there not on the back of recent form, but earlier in the season, it will not just be Saints who go into the play offs low on confidence.

What to read next:

Will Saints Be Cast Adrift At The Bottom Before They Kick A Ball This Weekend
The Premier League table does not make good viewing unless you turn it upside down, Southampton are rock bottom 2 points adrift from the team above and 4 points off Ipswich 4th from bottom, so will that gap be worse before we kick off on Sunday.
Southampton V Liverpool The Preview
Usually the visit of Liverpool to The Dell & St Mary's was something that Saints fans looked forward to in the calendar, it was a game that often threw up a shock result for the home side, but as we go into the latest clash with the Merseyside men, there seems little hope of that this year.
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.