Once again Palace face a trip to St Mary’s in a cup competition to face a Southampton side sitting fourteenth in the Premier League after one win, two draws and two losses.
The arrival of new manager Claude Puel was seen by many as a surprise considering the managers who were out of a job at the time, however, Southampton have always done well when making new appointments. This could prove a tough season for the Saints following the loss of more quality players in the shape of Victor Wanyama, Graziano Pellè and their top goalscorer last season Saido Mane who have all left the club for ‘greener pastures’ over the summer.
In contrast, a rejuvenated Palace side make their way down to the South Coast off the back of a terrific performance at home to bottom club Stoke City. It will be interesting to see if boss Alan Pardew sees this as a chance for the club to return to Wembley after such a fantastic occasion in May even without the reward of lifting the trophy.
TEAM NEWS
CRYSTAL PALACE – Predicting a line up for a cup match is often fairly difficult due to managers choosing to experiment with fringe and youth players. Pardew may opt to use the same starting eleven that beat Stoke at the weekend with the introduction of the likes of Bakary Sako, Mathieu Flamini and Connor Wickham later in the game in an effort to imporve their match fitness. James Tomkins (knee), Pape Souare (leg), Yohan Cabaye (groin), Loic Remy (thigh) and Frazier Campbell (hamstring) will miss the game due to injury.
SOUTHAMPTON – Much the same could be said for the Saints as Puel may want to keep a consistent starting eleven who were victorious against Swansea City at the weekend. However, the South Coast club do have the Europa League to consider this season as well which could play a part. Neither Jay Rodriguez (knock), Sofiane Boufal (knee) and Jeremy Pied (knee) are likely to play a part in this one.
ACTION REPLAY
Last time out Southampton hosted Palace at St Mary’s in the final game of the Premier League season for the two sides. The hosts took a 4-1 victory with goals from Sadio Mane, Graziano Pellè, Ryan Bertrand and Steven Davis while former Saint Jason Puncheon found the net for the consolation. The result meant the Saints secured their place in the Europa League for this season while it saw Palace finish in fifteenth with clearly more than one eye on the FA Cup final the week after.
FORM GUIDE
Last FIVE meetings between the two sides;
- 15/05/2016 – Southampton 4-1 Palace
- 09/01/2016 – Southampton 1-2 Palace
- 12/12/2015 – Palace 1-0 Southampton
- 03/03/2015 – Southampton 1-0 Palace
- 24/01/2015 – Southampton 2-3 Palace
In the past five meetings between the sides, it really has gone one way or the other with Palace winning three and Southampton winning two. The last draw between the Eagles and the Saints was February 2008 when both sides were in the Championship so going on past results, this cup tie is likely to be a very tight affair between two well matched sides.
Last FIVE results for Palace;
- 18/09/2016 – Palace 4-1 Stoke City
- 10/09/2016 – Middlesbrough 1-2 Palace
- 27/08/2016 – Palace 1-1 Bournemouth
- 23/08/2016 – Palace 2-0 Blackpool
- 20/08/2016 – Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 Palace
Last FIVE results for Southampton;
- 18/09/2016 – Southampton 1-0 Swansea
- 15/09/2016 – Southampton 3-0 Sparta Prague
- 10/09/2016 – Arsenal 2-1 Southampton
- 27/08/2016 – Southampton 1-1 Sunderland
- 19/08/2016 – Manchester United 2-0 Southampton
FORM PLAYERS (courtesy of Who Scored)
Top two rated players from each team so far this season;
SAINTS: Winger Nathan Redmond and center defensive midfielder Oriol Romeu have a joint top rating of 7.09.
EAGLES: Andros Towsend tops Palace’s top player rating with 7.78 with Jason Puncheon (7.69) not too far behind.
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY
“Our second win of the week against Swansea has boosted confidence and we had many chances to score in the game. The cup is always different and it is important to play it with good attitude and spirit. I think Crystal Palace is a good, physical team.” – CLAUDE PUEL
ONE TO WATCH
NATHAN REDMOND
Redmond began his professional career with Birmingham City in August 2010 as he become the club’s youngest ever player at 16 years 170 days. The pacey winger has represented England at levels up to the U19 and made his first U21 appearance in the European U21 Championship Finals in 2013. He joined Premier League side Norwich City in 2013 for reported fee of £2million plus add ons. After Norwich were relegated to the Championship last season Redmond completed a £10million move back to the Premier League with Southampton and scored on his competitive debut against Watford.
Redmond has featured in all of Southampton’s matches this season scoring one goal and is the type of player to change a game and Wednesday night may be the perfect oppotunity for the young winger.
PREDICTION
Final league position – 12th
It is difficult to predict exactly how the Saints are going to fare this season and like many have suggested about Leicester City this season, European competition could have an effect on domestic form. With the arrival of new manage Puel and the departure of more quality players which seems a common occurrence each summer, the club will no doubt have to pick and choose where their priorities lay as the season progresses. If their injury prone strikers Charlie Austin and Jay Rodriguez can have an extended spell in the starting eleven then it could be a very interesting season ahead.
- TEB prediction – away win
- St Marys Musings prediction (see link below) – home win
BETTING ODDS (courtesy of Paddy Power)
- Home 19/20
- Draw 5/2 (after 90 minutes)
- Away 14/5
Find our what the guys at St Marys Musings told TEB this week in The Saints View.
