This evening Southampton will play host to Brighton and Hove Albion as their long-awaited return to Premier League football is finally upon us.
It’s the Saints’ first Monday night game of the campaign and also their first of the calendar year, as they face an inconsistent Brighton side who they beat in the Carabao Cup just under three weeks ago.
Mark Hughes’ team could win their third-straight game with a win over the Seagulls, having previously started the season with a draw and two defeats. The win over Crystal Palace will have hopefully provided some serious momentum which will have lasted the long international break – we have to hope the Saints are still full of confidence this evening.
Brighton themselves have now nearly gone a month without a win, having failed to maintain the impressive performance they put in against Manchester United in the second week of the season – since then they have lost to Liverpool and drawn with Fulham either side of that Carabao Cup defeat to Southampton.
However the Seagulls have plenty of talent littered throughout their squad and have recruited well over summer – on their day they have proven they can go toe-to-toe with just about anyone in the league.
But what pre-match talking points can be expanded upon before this evening’s kick-off?