Southampton will be confident of extending their unbeaten streak to four games when Aston Villa visit St. Mary’s on Friday night.
The two sides are separated by just a single point in the Premier League table, with fourteenth-place Southampton sitting just above fifteenth-place Aston Villa.
High spirits at Staplewood 🙌— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) November 2, 2021
High spirits at Staplewood 🙌
It’s safe to say that Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are on the rise, however, while the Villains are moving in the opposite direction.
The Saints have taken seven points from their previous three Premier League outings, beating Leeds and Watford, as well as drawing with Burnley.
It is worth noting that Southampton kept a clean sheet against Leeds and Watford, scoring just one goal on both occasions.
When you look at the bigger picture, Hasenhuttl’s men have only managed to win two of their last 12 Premier League encounters.
That said, they have also lost just two of their past 12 games across all competitions inside 90 minutes – pointing towards an upturn.
As for Aston Villa, they head to the south coast on Friday having lost each of their previous four Premier League games.
Dean Smith’s side lost to Tottenham, Wolves, Arsenal and West Ham last month – conceding a combined total of 12 goals (three goals per game).
As a result, they have the third-worst defensive record in the division. Only the bottom two – Norwich and Newcastle – have conceded more goals this season.
It is worth pointing out, however, that Villa have also scored five goals across their past four encounters – netting in each game.
There is no denying that Villa are struggling following Jack Grealish’s departure in the summer, but they have enough quality to turn things around.
Head-to-head: Villa have only managed to win one of their past ten Premier League meetings with Southampton, suffering six defeats in the process (three draws).
Five of the previous eight league meetings between the Saints and Villa have produced over 2.5 goals, while four of the last eight have dished up over 3.5 goals.
Team news: Southampton will be without the injured Jack Stephens on Friday. There are also question marks over the fitness of Armado Broja.
Villa defender Ezri Konsa is suspended following his red card last weekend. Jacob Ramsey, Douglas Luiz, Danny Ings and Trezeguet are also doubts for Friday’s clash.
Given that Villa have lost each of their last four games – and Southampton are unbeaten in three – the home side are expected to pick up a positive result on Friday.
In fact, Forebet predicts that Southampton will beat Aston Villa at St. Mary’s – scoring over 1.5 goals in the process.