Match Reports
Liverpool Home Won 3 – 2
Obviously Ronnie had to restore Fonte to his starting line-up after suspension, but Saints were otherwise unchanged to face Liverpool. This rare selection stability might have produced early results when Long outpaced Lovren only to collapse under a challenge from behind when well-placed to either shoot or pass to an unmarked Pellè – a clear […]
Stoke Away
I can’t say for certain when Saints last had to cope with two players suspended for sending off offences, but I suspect you’d have to go back to the days of Osgood and Williams and the aftermath of a notorious match at Ewood Park. This year, though, Ronnie had to go to Stoke without the […]
Oh When The Sankts – St. Pauli V Eintracht Braunschweig
With hardly any top level games postponed these days and F.A. Cup dates kept free, it’s rare to have a midweek league fixture. It always was rare on the continent, including in Germany where such an event is known as ein Englischer Woche – an English week. However, the Bundesligas had a midweek round when […]
Sunderland Home
Injuries to Austin and Long sustained at Bournemouth made it almost inevitable that the strike force of Tadić, Mané and Pellè would start against Sunderland, and after all they had contributed to the eight goals scored in last year’s equivalent fixture. Martina also got an unexpected start in a back four, and with other players […]
Bournemouth Away
All change again in the Southampton team chosen to face Bournemouth in the near-derby, with the headline tweaks being a return for Yoshida and a place for Mané alongside Austin and Long. The home team don’t have the depth of squad for such niceties, but they served up what was always expected of them with […]
Chelsea Home
Our pre-match preparations are often enlivened by discussions over unexpected Southampton team selections, and the XI for the visit of Chelsea was no exception, when Long and Austin were announced in preference to the partnership of Pellè and Mané from the successful line-up at Stamford Bridge, both omitted players on the bench. Saints started brightly, […]
Swansea Away Saints are Safe
It seems a long time ago when Saints conceded that very preventable goal at Norwich on January 2nd, and indeed the days have now grown a lot longer, but we haven’t let in a league goal since early in 2016. That suggests a settled side, but the Koeman brothers are always prone to tinker, including […]
West Ham Home
A win against West Ham left Saints undefeated in five Premier League games, and also with a run of four home league wins. Both sequences were achieved without a goal conceded and mostly with variations of a back three or five, depending on how you interpret the role of the wide players. Targett had featured […]
Arsenal Away
It would be nice to be strong enough to call the shots over team selection in every match, but against the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal, manager Koeman picks the side that can best cope with the opposition’s strengths: thus a vastly different formation at Ashburton Grove compared with Old Trafford, with Ward-Prowse and […]
Manchester United Away Saints see of the Devils Again
As has been previously noted, there’s no sentiment in the Koeman brothers’ team selections, so last week’s hero, Ward-Prowse, was dropped against Manchester United as Clasie returned. That was despite losing Davis through injury and the Saints midfield had an untidy look, with Tadić and Targett both occupying left side positions ahead of Bertrand in […]
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