Southampton will be looking to continue their charge up the Premier League table when they welcome Burnley to St. Mary’s for the early kick off on Saturday.
Both teams are locked on 31 points, but Burnley’s superior goal difference sees them sit two places above Saints in an extremely congested mid-table.
Saints were stuck in the relegation zone in December with just two wins from their opening 13 games. However, seven wins in their previous 12 have propelled the south coast side up the table.
Southampton beat Tottenham on New Year’s Day before claiming an impressive away win at Leicester. Saints then lost to Wolves, but bounced back with victory over Crystal Palace.
But Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side were thrashed 4-0 by Liverpool last time out. Saints put a decent fight against the runaway league leaders, but this result proves the team still has a long way to go.
Southampton now sit 13th in the standings – seven points clear of the bottom three – and well clear of the relegation battle that is developing at the bottom.
Burnley come into this game on the back of a three-game unbeaten run which has lifted them up to 11th – level with Arsenal, Newcastle and Southampton on 31 points.
The Clarets’ eye-catching run began with an excellent win against Leicester before Sean Dyche’s side claimed a famous victory at Old Trafford over Manchester United.
In their previous game, Burnley claimed a point against Arsenal as the two teams played out a goalless draw. Still, Burnley had more chances than the Gunners and arguably should've come away with all three points.
Southampton were hammered 3-0 by Burnley on the opening day of the season. But a lot has changed since then, so this game is likely to be very different.
James Ward-Prowse is Saints’ only injury doubt this weekend, but Hasenhuttl is confident the midfielder will be fit to face Burnley on Saturday.
The Clarets will be hoping that striker Ashley Barnes has recovered in time from a minor operation, while Johann Berg Gudmundsson could make a return from injury.
Interestingly, 21 of Southampton’s last 25 home games have seen both teams score. Both teams are likely to get on the scoresheet this time around, but Southampton’s home advantage should give them the edge.
Forebet predicts that Southampton will score over 2.5 goals on their way to victory.