For the second time this week Southampton take on Wolves, this time at St Mary’s Stadium. Will Saints make it 2/2? Prepare for the Premier League fixture with our Match Pack, in association with eToro…
THE MATCH
Southampton vs Wolverhampton Wanderers
St Mary’s Stadium
Premier League
Sunday 14 February, 12:00 GMT
THE OFFICIALS
Referee: Graham Scott
Assistants: Darren Cann, Mark Scholes
Fourth official: Darren England
VAR: Martin Atkinson
Assistant VAR: Constantine Hatzidakis
HOW TO WATCH
The fixture will be broadcast live on Amazon Prime Video.
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
There’s no denying Saints haven’t been on the best run in the Premier League as of late, but Thursday’s Emirates FA Cup victory over Wolves acts as a significant boost for Hasenhüttl’s men.
With a quarter-final place secured in the FA Cup, attention now turns back to the league where Saints will be eager to start picking up the points again – having not won a Premier League game since victory over Liverpool at the beginning of January.
Wolves have also had a rocky start to 2021, having only picked up one league victory so far against a 10-man Arsenal.
There's no doubt both teams will be in search of all three points in order to boost their 2020/21 campaign.
TEAM NEWS
Things are gradually looking up for Saints as a number of players are returning to training. Kyle Walker-Peters had a successful return to the squad on Thursday against Wolves, while Mohammed Salisu made his debut in a Saints shirt after a long stint on the sidelines.
Saints are missing a crucial figure in Theo Walcott but loan signing Takumi Minamino should return to the squad, after being cup-tied for Thursday's fixture. Alex McCarthy is also likely to return in goal for Saints.
For Wolves, it’s expected their side will look quite a bit different from the team that faced Saints at Molineux on Thursday.
While Raul Jiminez, Daniel Podence, Willy Boly and Marcal all remain out with injury, the likes of Adama Traore and Willian Jose are likely to feature in the starting XI.
FORM GUIDE
Southampton:
Wolves (a) 0-2 (Ings, Armstrong) FA Cup
Newcastle (a) 3-2 (Minamino, Ward-Prowse)
Manchester United (a) 9-0
Aston Villa (h) 0-1
Arsenal (h) 1-3 (Armstrong)
Wolves:
Southampton (h) 2-0 FA Cup
Leicester City (h) 0-0
Arsenal (h) 2-1 (Neves, Moutinho)
Crystal Palace (a) 1-0
Chelsea (a) 0-0
THE MANAGERS
Ralph Hasenhüttl: “This time we have to recover better, everybody has to stay fit and then we go again for another 90 minutes in the Premier League.”
Nuno Espirito Santo: “Both teams already know each other very well, but Sunday is going to be a different game for sure.
“New things, it’s a different game, and regarding this one, we have to do better.”
ONES TO WATCH
Takumi Minamino: Saints’ latest loan signing got off to a flying start as he scored against Newcastle last weekend.
He didn’t feature on Thursday as he’s cup-tied, but that does mean he should be fresh and ready to add that extra spark on Sunday at St Mary's.
Ki-Jana Hoever: The 19-year-old was handed a rare start for Wolves in the Emirates FA Cup fixture with Saints and despite the result, the youngster showed real promise.
If Santo gives him the chance, the defender could really make a difference to Sunday’s Premier League clash at St Mary’s.
TOP PERFORMERS
Inclusive of all competitions
Southampton:
Goals:
Danny Ings 8
James Ward-Prowse 6
Adams, Armstrong 4
Assists:
James Ward-Prowse 5
Ché Adams 4
Danny Ings 3
Wolves:
Goals:
Neto, Jiménez 4
Podence, Neves, Saïss 3
Fábio Silva 2
Assists:
Pedro Neto 4
Podence, Kilman 2
HEAD TO HEAD
Played: 69
Saints: 28
Draws: 18
Wolves: 23
DID YOU KNOW?
- Takumi Minamino scored 30 minutes into his Premier League debut for Southampton against Newcastle last time out, having netted just one league goal in 531 minutes with Liverpool. The last player to score in each of their first two Premier League games for Southampton was Manolo Gabbiadini in February 2017.
- Southampton are the only team to play a Premier League match on Valentine’s Day but not receive a card, with no Saints player receiving a yellow or red card in their 4-2 win over Liverpool in February 1994. All other 15 teams to feature in a Premier League game on that day have had at least one card.
- Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse scored his fourth direct free-kick goal in the Premier League this season against Newcastle last time out – only David Beckham in 2000-01 and Laurent Robert in 2001-02 have ever scored five in a single campaign in the competition.
KEEP UP TO DATE
We’ve got you covered! We’ll bring you all of the action from Molineux.
Check out our interactive match centre at southamptonfc.com, with all of the live in-game updates and free audio commentary of the match, and be sure to follow us on social media for further updates and exclusive content:
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