Southampton Seek Points, Revenge vs Former Boss Koeman

Southampton will look to collect much needed points and settle a score against former boss Ronald Koeman as his Everton side comes to St. Mary’s tomorrow.

Koeman, who earned Southampton fans’ ire for his departure this summer, has shepherded Everton to 7th in the Premier League, tied with Manchester United and behind on goal difference. Last week, the Toffees struggled vs a dismal Swansea City side, eking out a last-minute goal to take a 1-1 draw out of Goodison Park.

Southampton, meanwhile, sit on 14 points in 11th position and could go as high as 9th, but could backslide to 13th with a poor result. Last week, the Saints weathered a bruising attack from Everton’s arch-rivals to come out 0-0 at St. Mary’s. A midweek outing Thursday saw the club drop points in the Europa League on a crushing 1-0 loss to Sparta Praha away.

With the Christmas break fast approaching, the Saints will look to this match to recapture some of their early form, which has turned dire of late; the club have just four points in the past five matches through all competitions, being outscored 6-2 over that run. In the Premier League, Saints are without a win since October 16, where they drubbed Burnley 3-1 at St. Mary’s.

If the club are going to take 3 points off Everton, though, they’ll have to do it without the services of key player Dusan Tadic, who remains out with a facial injury suffered on international duty. Team captain Jose Fonte is expected to be available, though Matt Targett remains out with injury.

Koeman’s side, meanwhile, reported no new injuries but remains without the services of defensive midfielder Muhamed Besic and centre-back Matthew Pennington. Everton have not recorded a win in three weeks, being demolished by Chelsea 5-0 two weeks ago at Stamford Bridge. The Toffees have a positive record vs. Southampton though, with 46 wins in 94 total matches to Southampton’s 27; the Saints have not beaten Everton since December 2014.

That match was won behind goals from Graziano Pelle and Maya Yoshida as well as a rare Romelu Lukaku own-goal. Last year, the sides split the difference with a draw at Goodison and a 3-0 Everton win at St. Mary’s, the club’s first win there in seven attempts.

Addressing the match earlier this week, manager Claude Puel expressed faith in his club, pointing to their impressive home record this season, conceding only one defeat through ten matches in all competitions.

“I hope for this game we find another face of our team, with good spirit and quality on the pitch,” Puel told assembled media.

Next: Last Week: Saints hold Liverpool to Scoreless Draw

“At St Mary’s in front of our fans it’s important to look forward and to take points and come back into the first half of the table.”

Whether Puel and Southampton can live up to that, and rejuvenate the club’s anemic attack, is likely going to come down to whether a likely front-three of Charlie Austin, Shane Long and Sofiane Boufal can find service and creative flair to make the most of their chances. Given recent form, it’s a tall challenge, but Everton are far from unbeatable. My gut says this is the match that the Saints turn it around ahead of a favorable run of fixtures in December.

Preston’s Pick: Southampton 2-1 Everton