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Southampton vs West Ham: Can Saints pick up midweek win?

By Ryan Borowski

LONDON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 16: Ralph Hasenhuttl, Manager of Southampton gives their team instructions during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Southampton at Emirates Stadium on December 16, 2020 in London, England. The match will be played without fans, behind closed doors as a Covid-19 precaution. (Photo by Peter Cziborra - Pool/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 16: Ralph Hasenhuttl, Manager of Southampton gives their team instructions during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Southampton at Emirates Stadium on December 16, 2020 in London, England. The match will be played without fans, behind closed doors as a Covid-19 precaution. (Photo by Peter Cziborra - Pool/Getty Images) /
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Southampton will play their second match in four days as they welcome West Ham into St. Mary’s as both teams look to secure a win after draws on Boxing Day.

Southampton had a somewhat frustrating draw against Fulham on Saturday and will look to have a bounce-back performance against a tough West Ham opponent on Tuesday.

The good news is Southampton are back at home and will have learned from their past three matches and look to get back to their winning ways.

The bad news is they still have some injuries to deal with but will get Romeu back. So let us take a look at how both teams can win on Tuesday.

How Southampton Will Win

Fulham on Saturday were organized and pressed the Saints well and it threw them out of their attacking rhythm a bit. Ralph, is a master at adjustments and will have the squad ready for this match and will hopefully have the attack ready to go.

I expect only two changes to the starting lineup and that will be Romeu coming back in for Diallo and possibly N’lundulu come in for Shane Long.

I expect there will be a lot of chances for both sides in this match and it could be a high-scoring affair. It may be (I am going to regret this and it will be 1-1) the first to 3 will win this match. Southampton will just need to be clinical in front of net and make the Hammers pay the price.

How West Ham Will Win

The Hammers have been rather inconsistent this season but have gotten some good results and have proven they can beat anyone on their day. On the flip side of that, they are also prone to slipping and having some disappointing results that would leave fans scratching their heads.

They have missed striker Antonio who looks like he is preparing to make his return and that would be a welcome sight if he suits up for the match on Tuesday.

West Ham would have watched how Fulham were able to limit Southampton’s chances on Saturday and will look to replicate that tomorrow. If they can successfully press the Saints, especially when the centre-backs have the ball, they can control the match and make it difficult for the Saints to score. That is how they will win this match.

Next. Hasenhuttl reveals approach for January transfer window. dark

Predicted Line-ups

Southampton: 4-2-2-2

Goalkeeper: Alex McCarthy

Defenders: Kyle Walker-Peters, Jan Bednarek, Jack Stephens, Ryan Bertrand

Midfielders: James Ward-Prowse, Oriol Romeu

Attacking Midfielders: Theo Walcott, Moussa Djenepo

Strikers: Che Adams, Dan N’lundulu

West Ham: 3-4-1-2

Goalkeeper: Lukasz Fabianski

Defenders: Fabian Balbuena, Angelo Ogbonna, Aaron Cresswell

Midfielders: Vladimir Coufal, Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek, Ben Johnson

Attacking Midfielder: Manuel Lanzini

Forwards: Sebastian Haller, Jarrod Bowen

Predicted Score

Southampton 2-2 West Ham

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