Southampton are set to host Championship winners and fellow promoted side Leicester City at the St. Mary's Stadium in the eighth Premier League matchday. While Southampton are yet to take their first league win after six defeats from seven matches, Steve Cooper's side are coming on the back of an important 1-0 league win over Bournemouth. Moreover, Leicester City are fifteenth in the table with six points while Southampton have taken only one point and are currently in the relegation zone at the nineteenth place.
Therefore, their upcoming Premier League fixture is a massive game for both sides in their aim to avoid relegation this season. Further, Southampton could even face a familiar former player in the Leicester City lineup, who has previously played for the Saints. The player is 32-year-old centre-back Jannik Vestergaard, who joined Southampton from Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach in 2018 and made a total of 79 appearances for the Saints.
£15 million Ex-Southampton star gives Nations League masterclass before facing Saints
Three years later, Vestergaard decided to join the-then defending FA Cup winners Leicester City in a £15 million move from Southampton. Since departing the St. Mary's Stadium three seasons ago, this will be Vestergaard's first Premier League appearance against Southampton having once featured in the matchday squad in a thrilling 2-2 draw in the 2021/22 season alongside missing the other games due to injuries.
On the other hand, Vestergaard has played twice against the Saints in the Championship, both coming in massive 4-1 and 5-0 league wins in the previous season. Thus, the Denmark international would want to showcase his brilliant defensive quality when he will face his former side at the weekend. Meanwhile, Vestergaard is currently featuring for the Denmark national team in the UEFA Nations League and recently, gave a masterclass against UEFA Euro 2024 Champions Spain in a 1-0 group stage defeat.
The 32-year-old defender made a total of six huge clearances and won multiple aerial duels to lead Denmark's defensive resilience against Spain. However, Martin Zubimendi's attempt on goal took a deflection from Kasper Schmeichel and found the back of the net with only ten minutes remaining in the match to give the defending Euro Champions a second win in the UEFA Nations League. Despite that, the Ex-Southampton star gave a rock-solid defensive performance for his national team and Russell Martin's side will need to be at their level best to score some goals against Leicester City with former player Vestergaard leading the visitors defence.