To win on Saturday, Southampton must lock down these five Bolton threats

Southampton will be looking to make it an incredible six wins from six on their own patch in the Championship this season when Bolton Wanderers come to town on Saturday.

St Mary's is the dictionary definition of a fortress at the moment, but the Saints can't go into this game, just expecting another three points to fall into their lap.

Indeed, Bolton have settled back into life in the Championship rather well this season, after the ecstasy of promotion, with four wins collected from their opening ten fixtures pulling them up to 14th in the early standings.

Two of those wins have come on their travels, as well, with these five Trotters players needing to be locked down, to ensure Tonda Eckert and Co. keep their 100% streak at St Mary's going.

#1 Gaizka Larrazabal

Bolton, back in their Premier League glory days, had the likes of Fernando Hierro in their backline briefly, with the Real Madrid great hailing from Spain.

In the here and now, Steven Schumacher has his own Spanish defensive import in Gaizka Larrazabal, with the Bilbao-born full-back fitting in instantly to his new Lancashire surroundings, after a summer move from Casa Pia.

He has two assists next to his name as an attack-minded full-back, and he has also scored this season, as Larrazabal got in on the goalscoring action during Bolton's crazy 4-3 win away at Norwich last month.

Having won a combined seven tackles and duels against Cardiff in September, too, to ensure a 1-0 win was sealed, he is standing out as the full package for his mid-table team.

#2 Josh Sheehan

The number 22 stood out during the 3-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers away win for his burst of pace for his assist, but Josh Sheehan stole the show even more from the middle of the park.

Sheehan would hammer home an emphatic effort to seal the memorable win at Molineux, with the number eight continuing to shine in the Bolton first-team ranks as Mr Consistent.

Southampton will be wary that he has a moment of magic like that up his sleeve that can change a tie in a split second, and he also loves an assist, having once collected an eye-catching 13 assists during just one League One season for the Trotters.

He's getting better with age, some would say, like a certain James Ward-Prowse, who will be battling to dominate the ball, alongside Sheehan.

#3 Thierry Gale

Moving to the forward ranks, Thierry Gale has been exciitng Bolton fans all season long, as their own Leo Scienza-style winger.

He has four goal contributions next to his name for the season so far, with Gale scoring some big goals this season in pivotal stages of matches.

Indeed, he would break the deadlock on the opening day at the Toughsheet by curling home a superb solo strike. This would set the tone for Bolton to win 2-1 against Preston North End.

Moreover, he would grab an instant equaliser during that aforementioned 4-3 triumph over Norwich, with the Trotters continually responding to setbacks in that frantic encounter.

Gale will need to be locked down for Southampton to reign supreme on Saturday, with Schumacher praising how "robust" the Barbados international has been this campaign, when acclimatising to the rough and tumble of the Championship.

#4 Atsuki Ito

Atsuki Ito hasn't been a consistent starter for Bolton this season, but he has proven his worth to Schumacher a number of times during the infancy of the campaign so far.

Much like his fellow Japanese compatriot Kuryu Matsuki, the number 27 has two Championship goals next to his name, with both strikes coming about from only 88 minutes of combined action against Norwich and Wolves.

The one-time Gent midfielder would bag the winner at Carrow Road, from just 20 minutes or so of action, so he might well be deployed as a super sub at St. Mary's, as Schumacher tries to capitalise on some weary Saints’ legs.

#5 Sam Dalby

Lastly, Sam Dalby is only three goals behind seven-goal hero Cyle Larin in the golden boot charts in the Championship.

Southampton face off against the clinical Englishman when he's in the best form of his season to date, with two goals put away confidently, from his last three second tier outings.

Like Ito, he can pop up with a decisive goal, from very miminal touches, with Dalby only needing a meagre 11 touches away at the Old Gold to score.

Regardless of the dangerous players just listed on the Bolton roster, Southampton will back themselves to pick up another three points, as they aim to shore up a playoff spot.

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