Bottom-placed Southampton have a big test on their hands as they take on a Brentford side eager to get out of their slump and improve on the road.
Ivan Juric’s time at Southampton continues to prove testing, a he desires a first win since taking over as the new manager at St. Mary’s ahead of the visit of Brentford on Saturday. The Saints are still with only one win all season, and with another defeat, they could equal Sunderland’s record for the worst ever start after 20 matches.
Juric’s first two games in charge of Southampton have yielded back-to-back defeats, although the manager will take confidence from the performances of his players. Both those losses came with a narrow margin, first against West Ham United and then the most recent one against Crystal Palace, where the Saints took the lead through Tyler Dibling.
In any case, they are in a terrible position in their relegation fight, as for now, Southampton are the overwhelming favourites to go down at the end of the season. Only a concerted run of positive results will give Southampton any hope of survival, as their six points from 19 games so far do not make for a good reading.
Thomas Frank will take Brentford to Southampton with the hope of making the best of their hosts’ situation. The Bees might have lost out on the tag of the division’s best home team on Wednesday with their defeat to Arsenal, but they continue to hold the worst record in away games this season in the Premier League.
With only two points to show for their cause, Brentford are yet to win a game on the road and are currently on a run of five games without a win in all competitions. Frank will want his players to show some poise when they visit a hapless Southampton side and make a good reading of their away form.
On Wednesday, the Bees took a shock lead against Arsenal at the Gtech Community Stadium through Bryan Mbuemo. However, three chaotic goals from the Gunners proved decisive in the end, as Brentford could not break down Mikel Arteta’s defence once they conceded that third strike, thus allowing the visitors to see out the game comfortably.
Team News & Tactics
Southampton
It has been one in and one out for the last few games at Southampton, as this time, key midfielder Mateus Fernandes misses out through a suspension.
He collected his fifth yellow card of the season against Crystal Palace, forcing him to miss out this weekend. However, Ivan Juric could have Flynn Downes back in contention after a dead leg problem. Will Smallbone is also back in contention, while Jack Stephens is likely to sit out a few weeks with a severe knock.
Juric will continue to experiment with his centre-back trio, as he could use Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Jan Bednarek and Nathan Wood as his preferred choices at the back. Armel Bella-Kothcap, who Juric’s predecessor ignored, has got a run under the new Southampton manager, although he might return to the bench for this clash against Brentford.
Cameron Archer could join Dibling in an attacking position behind striker Paul Onuachu. Lesley Ugochukwue and Downes are the likely choices to play in midfield, while James Bree and Kyle Walker-Peters are the preferred choices in the wing-back roles.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Ramsdale; Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek, Wood; Bree, Ugochukwue, Downes, Walker-Peters; Dibling, Archer; Onuachu
Brentford
Thomas Frank is aware that his injury list is probably the longest of all Premier League sides, as he continues to miss key personnel ahead of crucial games. Key defensive trio Ethan Pinnock, Kristoffer Ajer and Ben Mee continue to remain sidelined, meaning Sepp van den Berg could have another run out in this side alongside Nathan Collins at the back.
Mads Roerslev and Keane Lewis-Potter will continue in those traditional full-back roles. There were some positives in the Arsenal game, as Mark Flekken came through unscathed, while Mathias Jansen also got a few minutes under his belt.
The chances of Frank making wholesale changes to his midfield or attack are remote, as Kevin Schade coming in for Yehor Yarmolyuk might be the only change there. With Schade, the Brentford boss could revert to a front three of sorts.
Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo take their respective spots on this side. Christian Norgaard will sit at the base of the midfield with the support of Vitaly Janelt and Mikkel Damsgaard on either side of the pitch.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Flekken; Roerslev, Collins, Van den Berg, Lewis-Potter; Janelt, Norgaard, Damsgaard; Mbuemo, Wissa, Schade
Key Stats
- Southampton have lost five of their last six matches in the Premier League.
- Southampton could equal Sunderland’s record for the worst-ever start after 20 matches in the Premier League.
- Southampton have managed only one win in the Premier League this season.
- Brentford have won their last four matches against Southampton in all competitions.
- Brentford are winless in their last five games across all competitions.
Player to Watch
Bryan Mbeumo
The Cameroonian international was once again clinical in front of goal and probably Brentford’s biggest threat going forward. He is the reason why not many miss Ivan Toney in this side, as the winger has been superb in his efforts to show he can be as effective as his former strike partner.
However, Brentford are in a bit of a troubled run at the moment, and the biggest thing for the Bees is to get their maiden away win of the campaign. All eyes will be on Mbeumo and on whether he can inspire the Bees to end their winless run and move up on the table.
Prediction
Southampton 1-2 Brentford
Southampton have shown a bit of fight under new manager Ivan Juric, but there is a lot to be desired from them if they are to evade relegation come the end of the season successfully. As things stand, things look grim for the Saints, and this is something Brentford will look to take advantage of.
The Bees come into this clash with two specific objectives: to win an away game and end their winless run of five games. It feels like Brentford will achieve both those targets, and Thomas Frank will not want his side to lose to this Southampton side struggling to stay relevant. While the Londoners are not expected to keep a clean sheet, they are well-positioned to score their goals and take three points at St. Mary’s.
