Southampton: Saints facing selection issues ahead of Fulham
By Marc Walker
Southampton are in the midst of a selection crisis with three players suspended or close to suspensions and two others potentially injured.
Current Saints captain Ryan Bertrand is banned for this weekend’s vital Premier League clash with Fulham after picking up five yellow cards.
He was booked during the 1-1 draw with Watford last time out and now faces a one match spell on the sidelines.
Both Mario Lemina and Cedric are also close to bans after collecting four bookings in the first 12 league games of this campaign.
They will have to try and hold out until the cut-off date for bans for five yellows, with the 31st of December being when the number rises to 10 bookings for a suspension.
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Lemina is a possible doubt for this weekend anyway after suffering with a muscular injury whilst on international duty for Gabon in the past two weeks.
Saints striker Danny Ings also picked up an injury during the Watford game and it remains to be seen whether he has recovered to be involved at Craven Cottage this weekend.
With these key players potentially out, Saints manager Mark Hughes could face a few selection headaches.
The game is expected to decide his future as manager of the club so he will be hoping that whoever he chooses performs.
Matt Targett is the only real replacement for Bertrand at left-back with Sam McQueen currently out on loan and injured.
Playing against Fulham will see him up against some of his former teammates after he spent a successful spell on-loan with them last season.
If Lemina remains out, an opportunity could come for Oriol Romeu or James Ward-Prowse to impress.
Charlie Austin may need to be called upon to replace Ings too and will be wanting to get on the scoresheet after his second goal against Watford was controversially ruled out.
The clash at Craven Cottage sees 17th place face 20th place in the Premier League and a win for either side could help kick-start their season.
The hosts will also be buoyed by the arrival of a new manager in Claudio Ranieri during the international break after the Italian replaced Slavisa Jokanovic.