Flynn Downes had another injection after the West Ham game, and Tonda Eckert said he was "quite positive" about getting him and Cyle Larin back for QPR.
Southampton scored three goals in 34 minutes at the London Stadium without either.
The safest prediction is the same team again: Daniel Peretz in goal behind Bree, Stephens, Schlotterbeck and Manning, with Ward-Prowse and Jander in the middle and Matsuki, Azaz and Scienza supporting Lewis Dobbin.
Daniel Peretz is back at his very best for #SaintsFC since the international break 👏🧤 pic.twitter.com/x82XxVx7YK
— SaintsExtra (@SaintsExtra) October 24, 2026
Dobbin, Larin and the number nine shirt
Lewis Dobbin scored his first Southampton goal at West Ham. Whether that earns him a second start in a row is debatable in this eleven, but the answer looks like yes.
Larin has seven league goals, Saints Marching reported, which is more than twice what Finn Azaz or Kuryu Matsuki has. Sports Mole's preview expects Eckert to name both Larin and Downes among the substitutes, even if they pass their checks.
That would be the right call. Dobbin fired over from a clear run at goal against Bolton on the 17th October, per Sky Sports' report, and a week later he finished one at West Ham. Keep that form in the side.
Eckert described West Ham as a tough place to go, and his players answered with two goals before the 12th minute. A side that starts that quickly does not need to add new blood on Saturday.
Downes is the harder one. Eckert wanted him in the squad badly enough to need another injection to get him close, so expect to see him in the second half if QPR make the afternoon awkward.
Matsuki scored twice against this opponent at St Mary's last season. Saints Marching noted that he has three league goals this term and that Eckert has tipped him for ten.
What Julien Stephan is dealing with
Think about Julien Stephan's Friday. Boy Kemper is carrying a knock, Tariq Lamptey, Niclas Madsen and Rumarn Burrell are all out, and Karamoko Dembele, ten months on from a cruciate injury, is expected on the bench.
Sports Mole expects an unchanged QPR side after the 5-0 win over Swansea. Richard Kone scored three of those inside 15 minutes, so Southampton's back four will have a long afternoon if he gets room.
QPR share the joint-best defence in the division with Southampton and Birmingham, so goals will not come easily for anybody.
Keep the team that won at West Ham. Put Downes and Larin on the bench, and let Eckert decide in the second half whether he needs to use either of them.
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