Southampton v Liverpool Preview - Tough trip for Reds after Istanbul exploits
THE DETAILS
Venue – St Mary’s, Southampton
Referee – Andre Marriner
Date & Time – Saturday, August 17th @ 15:00
Current Odds – Southampton 11/2, Draw 15/4, Liverpool 4/9
Any win will do on Saturday. It’s only the second gameweek of the Premier League season and already it feels like the pressure is on thanks to the style in which Manchester City obliterated West Ham last Saturday.
Liverpool, hopefully buoyed by their UEFA Super Cup success on Wednesday, will need all the energy they can muster on the south coast this Saturday afternoon.
FORM
Southampton Form
The Saints lost 3-0 at Burnley last weekend. Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men looked impressive in the early stages at Turf Moor but Burnley then just stole the game from them.
Southampton will be eager to get off to a winning start on their home ground for the 2019/20 season.
Liverpool Form
Liverpool beat Norwich City 4-1 last Friday at Anfield to get their Premier League campaign off to a winning start. On Wednesday night, Jurgen Klopp’s side overcame Chelsea in a penalty shootout victory to lift the UEFA Super Cup in Istanbul.
The bad news from the Super Cup was that the teams had to play 120 a high-tempo game in 120 minutes of the Turkish heat and humidity. Many Liverpool players were out on their feet by the end of the night.
TEAM NEWS
Southampton Team News
Southampton are not missing any players through injury or suspension currently.
Ralph Hasenhuttl went with a 3-5-2 formation at Burnley so we could see the same shape again from The Saints on Saturday.
As always, Nathan Redmond is one to watch as his pace can cause havoc for defences on the counter-attack.
Liverpool Team News
Alisson and Nathaniel Clyne miss the game for Liverpool through injury. Naby Keita is also a major doubt after he had to leave training early ahead of the UEFA Super Cup meeting with Chelsea during the week.
Klopp will have a lot of tired players to consider on Saturday. Joe Gomez could move back into central defence making way for Trent Alexander-Arnold to start at right-back.
In midfield, Fabinho suffered a lot from cramp on Wednesday. He will probably be on the bench for this game. Therefore, Gini Wijnaldum could start in the ‘6’ role with James Milner and Jordan Henderson ahead of him.
Up front, Roberto Firmino should start alongside Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané.
PREDICTED LINEUPS
Southampton XI (3-5-2) – Gunn; Bednarek, Vestergaard, Danso; Valery, Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Hojbjerg, Bertrand; Redmond, Adams
Liverpool XI (4-3-3) – Adrian; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Wijnaldum, Henderson, Milner; Salah, Firmino, Mané
WHEN THEY LAST MET
Liverpool won 3-1 at St Mary’s when the sides met in April. Shane Long put the home side in front before goals from Naby Keita, Mohamed Salah and Jordan Henderson gave The Reds a hard-fought victory in an entertaining game.
PREDICTION
Southampton 1 – 2 Liverpool
It’s not going to be an easy afternoon for Liverpool on Saturday. Southampton will be itching to set things straight after suffering a heavy 3-0 defeat at Burnley on the opening weekend of the season. Winning their first home game of 2019/20 would be the ideal quick-fix for Hasenhuttl’s side. However, Jurgen Klopp’s Reds are one of the best teams in Europe right now. Liverpool’s tired legs to win, just about.