Southampton vs West Brom
England Premier League
Date: Saturday, 31st December 2016.
Kick-off at 15:00 UK.
Venue: St. Mary’s Stadium, Southampton.
Matt Brocklebank writes... Saints were ultimately given the runaround by Spurs in midweek but you felt for Claude Puel when post-match he suggested the dubious red card shown to Nathan Redmond just after Harry Kane had put the visitors in front left them with little hope of anything other than damage limitation. The momentum was clearly with Tottenham but the hosts had performed well during a first half in which they took the lead in the second minute. It wasn't to be against a superior side on the night and a lot depends now how they respond to one of their heaviest defeats of the campaign. Saints were thrashed 3-0 at Crystal Palace at the start of the month and were then unbeaten in their next four prior to Wednesday night, so perhaps we can expect a positive reaction despite the inevitable reshuffle that Redmond's suspension forces. Jay Rodriguez looked like he'd nailed down the centre-forward spot with a brace at Bournemouth but clearly isn't the reliable source offered by Charlie Austin, who remains out through injury. Only Chelsea and Tottenham have scored more than a single goal at St Mary's all season and Saturday's visitors cannot be classed in that kind of bracket, from an offensive standpoint at least, though they have managed four goals on a couple of occasions this term, while scoring three against Swansea and Watford within the past month albeit both at home. Despite the away side finding some form since being hammered at home by Man City at the end of October, the prospect of another low-scoring game at St Mary's seems high and it's well covered by the layers who offer no bigger than 2/1 for under 1.5 to be scored. It's not a game that leaps off the coupon but the away win can certainly be argued for, despite the likelihood of Southampton reverting to their hard-to-beat ways, and prices around 9/2 will be big enough to draw plenty of punters in.
Southampton: Team News
Nathan Redmond’s suspension could open up another opportunity for Dusan Tadic to worth. While Jay Rodriguez is expected to be rested and Shane Long could replace him in the starting eleven.
Jordi Clasie is yet to recover from a groin injury he picked before the Spur’s match. While Charlie Austin, Alex McCarthy, Jeremy Pied and Matt Targett are already sidelined with injuries.
Southampton: Predicted Starting Line-up (4-3-3)
Forster – Bertrand, Dijk, Fonte, Soares – Davis, Romeu, Hojbjerg – Tadic, Boufal, Long.
West Brom: Team News
Saido Berahino and Boaz Myhill are the only players missing for West Brom in theiur trip to St. Mary’s. Tony Pulis will be reluctant to make any changes to his starting line-up that performed admirably in the 1-0 loss at Arsenal.
West Brom: Predicted Starting Line-up (4-2-3-1)
Foster – Nyom, Evans, McAuley, Dawwson – Yacob, Fletcher – Phillips, Chadli, Brunt – Rondon.
Southampton vs West Brom: Head-to-head stats
Southampton won the corresponding fixture of last season by a comfortable 3-0 margin. The reverse fixture at the Hawthorns was a 0-0 draw.
West Brom managed only 1 win in the last 6 Premier League meetings against Southampton, with 2 draws and 3 defeats.
Southampton are unbeaten in their last 3 home matches versus West Brom with 2 wins and a draw. They also kept clean sheets in all the 3 games.
Only one team have managed to score in the last 8 league meetings between the sides irrespective of the playing venue.
Six out of eight meetings between the West Brom and Sunderland witnessed under 3 goals.
Southampton vs West Brom: Prediction
This is a cagey affair with both managers preferring a highly defensive set-up. So the goals will be at premium and Southampton are the more likely candidate to edge this contest by a slender margin at the end. The main reason for the conclusion is their home record this season. They can fall into pieces against top sides in the league, but certainly know how to win matches against others.
Southampton were drawing at half-time in 6 of their 9 home matches so far this season. Then went on to convert this to win on 3 occasions, but lost only once. So our pick for this match is X/1 for a half-time/full-time bet. We will also go by the correct full-time score of 1-0.
Southampton vs West Brom: Bet Tips
Half-time/Full-Time – Draw/Southampton at 4.75 (15/4)
Southampton to win at 2.30 (13/10).
