Southampton face Manchester United on Saturday at Old Trafford in a second game in four days for both sides. Both sides will be desperate to win – but the obvious favourites are second-placed United, with Southampton in a slump which means they are winless in their last seven.
Saints seem to be in real trouble at present. Whilst we have deservedly failed to win against sides like Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham in recent weeks, performances against less accomplished teams such as Huddersfield, Leicester, Bournemouth and Brighton are cause for concern.
With Saturday’s meeting the first since the sale of Virgil van Dijk, it remains to be seen whether the Dutchman’s departure will cause an upturn in the dwindling dressing room morale, with the awful 5-2 Boxing Day defeat at Tottenham a prime example of the lack of confidence at present.
Manchester United, on the other hand, have been held in their last two games – Leicester (A) and Burnley (H) – leaving the gap to city rivals and runaway leaders Manchester City at 15 points.
It would probably be easier to highlight which of United’s star-studded plethora of talent would be unlikely to cause a threat to a frail Southampton defence – but nevertheless here are my three opposition threats for Saturday’s encounter.