Matches for Southampton are coming fast and furious and now they welcome Brighton into St. Mary’s as they try to keep their unbeaten streak alive.
The first matchup between these two seems to have happened years ago. The Saints came away with a 2-0 victory after a superb goal from Moussa Djenepo and one that put the match to bed from Nathan Redmond.
Brighton, are technically not safe from relegation, but with a result on Thursday they will ensure they are in the Premier League for another season. It should be a good match between two sides who are familiar with each other and I expect we could see a lot of action.
How Southampton Will Win
I believe this is the match we see Ralph start to rotate the starting 11 and get some players some playtime they typically would not get. Danny Ings could get a vital break here and in the midfield we could see Smallbone get another start.
With that said, I expect these players to still play their hearts out and give their manager something to think about when he starts forming his team for next season. Ralph wants to use younger players and will be a great chance for players like Adams, Obafemi, Smallbone, Vokins, and others to show they have the talent to play in the Premier League.
I think there will be a good mix of regulars and youth in the lineup and every Saints supporter should be excited to see what the future could hold for some of these youngsters. I expect to see Adams score a goal or two in this one.
How Brighton Will Win
The Gulls need at least a draw to ensure they will be in the Premier League next season. They will likely start a very strong lineup knowing that and will believe they can get a result at St. Marys where Southampton have not performed very well this season.
Brighton are coming off a rough stretch of schedule where they played City, United, and Liverpool in a span of 4 matches and will see this one as a bit of a relief. They know Southampton are in great form but will have to like their chances more than they would against a Manchester City.
Brighton do struggle to score goals so they will need to keep this low-scoring if they wish to get a result. Southampton do struggle to break down a low-block so I suspect they will try to turn this into a cagey affair and hit the Saints on the counter. If they are successful they could win 1-0.
Predicted Line-ups
Southampton: 4-2-2-2
Goalkeeper: Angus Gunn
Defenders: Kyle Walker-Peters, Jannik Vestergaard, Jan Bednarek, Jake Vokins
Midfielders: James Ward-Prowse, Will Smallbone
Attacking Midfielders: Nathan Redmond, Stuart Armstrong
Strikers: Che Adams, Michael Obafemi
Brighton: 4-4-2
Goalkeeper: Mathew Ryan
Defenders: Daniel Burn, Lewis Dunk, Adam Webster, Tariq Lamptey
Midfielders: Leandro Trossard, Yves Bissouma, Davy Propper, Aaron Mooy
Striker: Aaron Connoly, Neal Maupay
Predicted Score
Southampton 2-1 Brighton