Southampton and Brentford will be eager to return to winning ways when they go head-to-head at St. Mary’s on Wednesday.
Gameweek 27 of the 2022/23 Premier League season will conclude on Wednesday with two rescheduled games. Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace will face off in one of those fixtures. And the other match on the night will feature Southampton and Brentford at St. Mary’s.
Southampton might be turning a corner under the tutelage of Ruben Selles. While the Saints have bowed out of the FA Cup at the hands of Grimsby Town, they have made gradual progress in the Premier League. They have lost just one of their last four top-flight fixtures, with the latest ending in a battling goalless draw against Manchester United on Sunday.
On the other hand, Brentford suffered a setback this past weekend, with Everton beating them 1-0. The result was their first Premier League defeat of the year and ended a 12-game unbeaten run in the top flight. The Bees are thus ten points behind fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, having played two fewer games.
The reverse fixture saw Brentford cruise to a 3-0 win over Southampton, with Ben Mee, Bryan Mbeumo, and Mathias Jensen finding the back of the net. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Southampton
🗣 LIVE from Staplewood
Rubén Sellés previews #SaintsFC’s clash with #BrentfordFC: https://t.co/REgF84uXrX
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) March 14, 2023
Ruben Selles does not have a new injury concern hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. Against Brentford on Wednesday, the Southampton manager might be bereft of the services of three first-team players.
Juan Larios (muscle injury) and Valentino Livramento (knee) remain unavailable for the foreseeable future. But Ainsley Maitland-Niles might be back on Wednesday. Selles continues to sweat over the Englishman’s fitness, and the former Arsenal utility man faces a late fitness test to determine his availability.
But Maitland-Niles might not be fit enough to start on Wednesday. So Kyle Walker-Peters will feature as the right-back again, with Romain Perraud taking his place on the left flank. Armel Bella-Kotchap and Jan Bednarek should form the central defensive pairing again. And there is no looking past Gavin Bazunu between the sticks.
Southampton will shape up in a 4-3-3 formation on Wednesday. But the system will transform into a 4-2-3-1 when the hosts push forward, with Carlos Alcaraz enjoying a free role in the final third. The Argentine midfielder will likely join James Ward-Prowse and Romeo Lavia in the middle of the park.
Che Adams has become the preferred striker in the last few games and should spearhead the Southampton attack against Brentford. And finally, Theo Walcott and Kamaldeen Sulemena should continue as the two wide attackers, with Selles having several backup options on the bench.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Bazunu; Walker-Peters, Bella-Kotchap, Bednarek, Perraud; Lavia, Ward-Prowse, Alcaraz; Walcott, Adams, Sulemana
Brentford
Like his counterpart in the Southampton dugout, Thomas Frank does not have any issues to worry about ahead of the trip to St. Mary’s. The Brentford manager will be without two first-team players on Wednesday.
Thomas Strakosha (ankle) and Keane Lewis-Potter (knee) remain on the sidelines and will be out for the time being. Otherwise, Frank will take a full-strength squad to Southampton ahead of the game on Wednesday.
David Raya, whose future remains unresolved amid links with Chelsea and Manchester United, is an automatic pick between the sticks. And Brentford will line up in a 4-3-3 formation in front of the Spaniard against Southampton.
💬 Responding to defeat
"It is unbelievable we went 12 games unbeaten and every point was deserved. We need to bounce back; the best teams bounce back straight away with a top performance. That’s what I expect from the players, and what they expect from themselves"#SOUBRE pic.twitter.com/R1XQg9vmFv
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) March 14, 2023
Ethan Pinnock and Ben Mee are the undisputed first-choice centre-backs. And the duo will aim to restore the solidity at the heart of the defence this midweek. Meanwhile, Aaron Hickey and Rico Henry will be the marauding full-backs.
Christian Norgaard will sit at the base of the midfield unit, looking to keep things tight in the middle of the park. Mathias Jensen and Vitaly Janelt will accompany the Danish midfield, with the trio focusing primarily on the defensive duties. But Jensen also makes an impact during transitions.
As for the offensive unit, there is no looking past Bryan Mbeumo, Ivan Toney, and Yoane Wissa. While Toney will spearhead the attack, he will often drop deep to create pockets of space. And that is when Mbeumo and Wissa tend to pounce and catch the opposition defenders off-guard.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Hickey, Pinnock, Mee, Henry; Jensen, Norgaard, Janelt; Mbeumo, Toney, Wissa
Key Stats
- The home side has won all three Premier League meetings between Southampton and Brentford, with each victory coming by a margin of three goals. The Saints won this fixture 4-1 last season.
- Brentford are without a win in all seven of their midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) Premier League games. They lost all five such matches last season while drawing both games so far this term.
- After beating Leicester City 1-0 ten days ago, Southampton could win back-to-back home games in the Premier League for the first time since February 2022. However, the Saints have fewer home points (9) and home wins (2) than any other side in the top flight this term.
- Brentford lost for the first time in 13 Premier League matches against Everton this past weekend. The Bees have not lost consecutive games in the competition since February 2022.
- Southampton have picked up seven points in four Premier League games under Ruben Selles (W2 D1 L1), as many as they had in their previous 12 league matches before the Spaniard’s first in charge (W2 D1 L9).
Player to Watch
Bryan Mbeumo
Whenever there is a game featuring Brentford, all eyes are inevitably on Ivan Toney. But Bryan Mbeumo has been quietly enjoying a solid campaign, settling down properly in the Premier League after an inconsistent debut season. In addition, the Cameroon international has a solid record against Southampton.
Mbeumo has been directly involved in three goals in three Premier League games versus the Saints (one goal, two assists). And he scored and assisted in Brentford’s 3-0 win earlier this season. So expect the 23-year-old to rise to the occasion again as the Bees look to return to winning ways.
Prediction
Southampton 0-1 Brentford
Brentford could not bounce back after Dwight McNeil scored a first-minute goal this past weekend. And they have often left a lot to be desired on the offensive front in tight games. But Thomas Frank masterminded the recent 12-game unbeaten run in the Premier League on the back of some close fixtures. And the match on Wednesday might be another evenly-contested affair.
Ruben Selles is overseeing a potential turnaround at St. Mary’s. And Southampton will not give much of an inch to Brentford for much of the ninety-minute affair. However, Ivan Toney and Bryan Mbeumo should combine for the game’s only goal. And The Hard Tackle predicts a 1-0 win for Thomas Frank’s charges, who will end two records we shared earlier in this piece.
