Will Still is set to partake in a derby very few Southampton figures have done in recent memory but he has a valuable past derby takeaway to claim advantage for his Saints side.
Southampton had the idea about their local derby being conducted in the midst of September, but making their fans refresh-up with the dates through their Championship place is humiliating stuff. In a way, they can be tipped joint-fourteenth and then the Saints will have been arrowed by endless jokes from the Portsmouth faithful.
Therefore, Southampton do know that if something needs to match with their league standings, then it's a promising eighth point that can be tabled on the next-to-next sunny St. Mary's Sunday.
Now, the objective is plain and clear but how will Saints ensure they get the best attempt for this mission completion?
They don't have an Asmir Begovic to uneven the pre-game balance, though he might have opted not to reveal any rivalry secrets from the Pompeys. Instead, their successful card is the wildcard hire Will Still himself.
Still seems to have voiced lessons from his previous derby
In a report from the Daily Echo, Still has sounded out his trusted derby takeaway, saying: "I think the derby is there to be won and to do whatever it takes to win it. You need to stick your little toe on the line or your backside to defend the goal."
Travelling back to the season before, Still had a renowned Ligue 1 derby between Lille and his former employers' Lens on his managing schedule. He was second best both times on the game's outcome but the first of them must have stung the Englishman for weeks.
From the top, it was a 2-0 but one which had almost hundred minutes of a stalemate carved on it. A careless penalty ruined the evening and the second one, sugarcoated the matchup as a dominating three points.
The clips from that night can fuel up Still's men with an appreciable morale and let's hope, they don't force Still to make as faceless a face as he did on that French league night.