Southampton will host Burnley this weekend at the St. Mary’s Stadium. Liverpool handed Ralph Hasenhüttl’s men a 4-0 drubbing in their last league encounter, and they would look to bounce back from that. Burnley picked up some crucial points in their previous three games as Dyche’s men managed two wins and one draw.
The Clarets won 3-0 in the earlier fixture against Southampton this season. However, the Saints have been a different beast in the last two months as they have risen to the 13th spot on the table after struggling in the relegation zone in the first half of the campaign. Burnley though have typically done well against Southampton off late. The Saints are winless against them in their last six encounters, where they failed to score on four of those occasions.
Team News: James Ward-Prowse suffered a knee injury against Tottenham in the FA Cup clash. He is doubtful for this encounter. Yan Valery is also likely to miss out. Moussa Djenepo is going to be unavailable due to illness.
4-4-2 Southampton Predicted Lineup Vs Burnley
Formation (4-4-2)
Defence
Alex McCarthy is expected to start in goal for the Saints in the league encounter after Angus Gunn featured in the FA Cup tie. Kyle Walker-Peters could get a start at right-back in this encounter. The 22-year-old will be looking to make a mark after moving on loan from Tottenham Hotspur in January.
Jack Stephens is set to occupy the centre back role. Jan Bednarek is likely to partner him in central defence. The experienced Ryan Bertrand will start in his usual left-back position.
Midfield
Nathan Redmond is expected to start from the left flank. Danish international and club captain Pierre-Emile Højbjerg will feature in his usual central midfield slot. Oriol Romeu is likely to partner him in the middle. Stuart Armstrong could feature on the right flank for the Saints. Sofiane Boufal should be in contention to start on the flanks, but he would probably miss out.
Attack
Shane Long might not be as prolific a goal scorer as his strike partner, but the Irishman has done a decent job for Hasenhüttl so far. His ability to stretch play and make runs has been useful for the Saints. Danny Ings is playing some of the best football of his career right now, and he has 17 goals to his name in all competitions this season. The Englishman will partner up with Long in the front two.
