Southampton entertain Chelsea in the Premier League at St. Mary’s on Sunday afternoon.
Southampton will look to extend their unbeaten league run as Chelsea travel to St. Mary’s this weekend.
Claude Puel’s men are now unbeaten in six games and have taken a haul of 14 points from a possible 18 on offer.
The 1-1 draw versus Manchester City at the Etihad last Sunday was the latest in a string of resolute showings, with Nathan Redmond having scored in his last two games.
The Saints beat Sunderland 1-0 in the EFL Cup on Wednesday night, as club-record signing Sofiane Boufal scored his first goal for the club.
In contrast, Chelsea will be seeking to bounce back from their respective cup defeat to West Ham United.
Antonio Conte’s side humbled Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United side 4-0 last weekend on the Portuguese’s return to West London.
September was a troublesome for Chelsea, taking just a single domestic league point from three games. Since changing the system, however, Conte’s men have a 100% record and are yet to concede a goal, scoring nine.
Reverting to 3-4-3 formation, The Blues have looked a more assured unit, but against a Saints side that failed to score in just two league games this term that record is set to be tested.
However, Southampton’s record at home against the West Londoners does not make for good reading.
The Saints have only beaten Chelsea on three occasions since the turn of the millennium. The last time the two met in February, a late Branislav Ivanovic goal saw the visitors take the spoils back to the capital.
This time around, Antonio Conte’s side will face former Blue Oriol Romeu. The Spaniard has quickly cemented a tough-tackling central midfield role in the Saints’ starting XI and will be keen to show his former employers what they are missing.
After rotating his squad in the EFL Cup, Claude Puel is expected to revert to a similar team that impressed in Manchester last week.
Full-back duo Cedric and Ryan Bertrand could once again miss the visit of Chelsea. Matt Targett also has a hamstring injury and will be assessed.
Their combined absence will again see Cuco Martina and Sam McQueen continue their impressive stints on the flanks.
Boufal is pushing for a first Premier League start but may only make the bench, as is the case with Jay Rodriguez who is nursing a hand injury. Shane Long and Jeremy Pied are both out.
Here’s how Southampton could line up:
For the visitors, John Terry waits in the wings to make a return to a starting berth. Antonio Conte, however, is unlikely to tinker with a winning formula for the time being, though Willian could replace Pedro on the right wing.
Cesc Fabregas is ruled out, whilst Febraury’s goalscorer Ivanovic is a major doubt with a muscle injury.
Here is how Chelsea could line up:
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