EPL: Saints face Hammers’ test

Southampton vs. West Ham
Venue: St. Mary’s
Kick off: 3PM

Seeking to maintain their unbeaten start to the new Premier League season, West Ham United travel south to meet Southampton this afternoon.

Both sides played out 2-2 draws just before the international break, with the Saints rescuing a point against Newcastle United while West Ham were pegged back by Crystal Palace.

Seemingly down and out heading into the last knockings of their clash with Newcastle, Southampton’s efforts at St James’ Park did not appear to be bearing fruit after Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin twice put the Magpies ahead either side of Mohamed Elyounoussi’s equaliser.

However, in the fifth minute of second-half injury time, Adam Armstrong was felled by Jamaal Lascelles, giving dead-ball specialist James Ward-Prowse the opportunity to rescue a point for his side, and the Saints captain needed no second invitation to crash home the penalty.

Hasenhuttl paid tribute to his side’s “belief” after taking a point from an encounter where they arguably should have collected all three – but almost failed to take home any – and a tally of two points from a possible nine sees them sit 13th in the rankings at this early stage.

Thrashing Newport County 8-0 in the EFL Cup may have sold the St Mary’s faithful false hope heading back into the Premier League, where that recent draw with Newcastle stretched Southampton’s winless run in the division to five matches, and they have now gone 14 games without a clean sheet in the league.

The Saints have already held Manchester United to a 1-1 draw in front of their own fans this season, though, and only one of their last six Premier League home matches has ended in defeat, although they must now pit their wits against one of the country’s most inspired and in-form outfits.

Newcastle and Leicester City could not stop the rampant machine that is David Moyes’s West Ham during the first two weeks of the season, but one certain Chelsea loanee took it upon himself to halt the Hammers’ momentum just before international football took precedence.

Twice West Ham took the lead against Crystal Palace through Pablo Fornals and, of course, Michail Antonio, but twice they were pegged back by Conor Gallagher, whose 12-minute brace prevented Moyes’s side from claiming a third win on the trot during a pulsating four-goal draw.

However, seven points from a possible nine – with a goals tally of 10, the joint-highest alongside champions Manchester City – has quickly seen West Ham rise to second in the table, only behind Tottenham Hotspur and their perfect start to the season.

The real challenges will soon present themselves for West Ham, though, as they kick off their Europa League campaign away from home against Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday night, and they have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last eight Premier League matches away from home.

West Ham’s record against Southampton makes for positive reading, though, as they have won six and drawn one of their last seven meetings with the South Coast club, whose most recent victory in this fixture was a 3-2 win at St Mary’s in August 2017.

Southampton possible XI: McCarthy, Livramento, Stephens, Salisu, Walker-Peters, Elyounoussi, Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Djenepo, Adams, Armstrong.

West Ham United possible XI: Fabianski, Coufal, Dawson, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Rice, Soucek, Bowen, Fornals, Benrahma, Antonio.