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The first two weeks of the Premier League have surprised us with some unexpected results. But given the competitive nature of the Premier League, it shouldn’t have been such a surprise.
Manchester United bounced back last weekend after their 1-0 defeat to Everton, and went on to win against Fulham 3-2, though the victory was far from convincing to say the least. Southampton, on the other hand, have had a disappointing start to the season after suffering losses against Manchester City and Wigan. The Saints did look promising against the defending champions, but are yet to register their first points on the table in their bid to stay in top-flight football for another season.
Let us have a look at some of the stats before we start analysing the teams:
| Southampton(Home) | Manchester United(Away) | |
| Current League position | 19th | 7th |
| Goals scored | 2 | 3 |
| Goals conceded | 5 | 3 |
| Top goal-scorer | Steven Davis, Rickie Lambert (1 goal each) | Rafael, Robin Van Persie, Shinji Kagawa (1 goal each) |
| League Form | L L | L W |
| Players unavailable | Steve De Ridder, Jack Cork | Wayne Rooney, Chris Smalling, Rio Ferdinand, Phil Jones |
| Match Timing and channel- | 8.25 p.m (IST) | ESPN |
Nigel Adkins has been experimenting with a 4-3-3/4-5-1 formation that has had strikers playing out wide and with three central midfielders. This requires his wide players to play a defensive role as well, which they are not used to doing. It did work against Manchester City to some extent, with Jay Rodriguez and Jason Puncheon falling back regularly but it just wasn’t enough in the end.
Kelvin Davis will be expected to start as the goalkeeper. No surprises expected there. The back four has remained the same for the Saints in both their league matches with Jose Fonte and Jos Hooiveld in the centre and Daniel Fox and Nathaniel Clyne operating as left and right full backs respectively.
The 3-man midfield has been the same with Adam Lallana and Morgan Schneiderlin starting both league games. Adkins will have to make a choice whether to play the 17-yr old James Ward-Prowse or the experienced Steven Davis. Considering it is Manchester United, there are chances he would prefer experience over youth and go with Steven Davis.
The attacking trio will be difficult to predict as Adkins has a few players to choose from depending on how he wants to play. He might go with Guly Do Prado as an attacking midfielder with Rickie Lambert and Jay Rodriguez starting upfront. Do Prado and Rodriguez can stretch play down the flanks, drawing the Manchester United centre backs with them and this would free up space for Rickie Lambert to take advantage of. Jason Puncheon’s pace can be used in the second half and with Evra being the weak link in United’s defence, there can be possibilities of Puncheon starting in place of Rodriguez as well.
Probable formation- Southampton
Sir Alex Ferguson has stuck with the 4-2-3-1 formation in both the league matches but he has failed to find the perfect midfield combination. Tom Cleverley and Anderson were impressive in their win against Fulham but you just cannot ignore what Paul Scholes brings to the team.
David De Gea can be expected to start between the sticks. Though he has been susceptible to aerial balls and crosses into the box, his shot-stopping and reflexes have been amazing so far. And who can forget his smooth dribbling skills vs Fulham!
There has been news of a possible return of Jonny Evans from injury. So, Evans/Carrick and Vidic can be expected to start in central defence with Rafael and Evra as wing-backs. Rafael got himself a rare goal against Fulham but his defending has not been up to the mark. There have been question marks about Evra as well but as long he keeps playing those crosses perfectly to Van Persie’s feet, there won’t be much threat to his place in the team either.
Paul Scholes will return to midfield with Tom Cleverley joining him in the centre. Shinji Kagawa will play as an attacking midfielder, in the hole behind Van Persie. What would help United is the fact that he does have a tendency to drop back regularly and help out the midfield at times. With all the drama surrounding Nani’s contract talks, it doesn’t look likely that Sir Alex will give him a start for a few matches. Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia on the wings would be the obvious choice for Sir Alex then.
With Wayne Rooney injured, many United fans’ hopes of seeing Van-Rooney (that’s what I prefer to call them) in action has taken a setback. Until then, Robin Van Persie can enjoy the lone striker’s role. As long he continues to deliver those sweetly struck volleys, there shouldn’t be much concern for the United fans. Danny Welbeck can be introduced later on or maybe Javier Hernandez can get some minutes under his belt as well.
Probable formation- Manchester United
Nemanja Vidic vs Rickie Lambert - Southampton’s top goal scorer last season against the Serbian wall. Vidic has looked good after his long injury layoff and one can expect some fireworks between these two, in case the going gets tough for either team.
Morgan Schneiderlin vs Shinji Kagawa - Schneiderlin has been playing as an anchor man for the Saints and he will have to be alert against the wily Japanese. Kagawa’s movement and slick passing are his main strengths and Schneiderlin will have to keep him in control if Southampton are to have a chance of taking away anything from this game at all.
Antonio Valencia vs Daniel Fox - Antonio Valencia was by far the best winger in the Premier League last season and one can expect him to give Fox a hard time on Sunday. Fox has been impressive in the two games he has played so far but he will be facing a quality winger for the first time. This battle will be really interesting and only time will tell if Fox can live up to the Ecuadorian winger’s pace and guile.
Manchester United should emerge as comfortable winners. Southampton are coming on the back of a 4-1 win in the League Cup against Stevenage but there might be some tired legs on the field on Sunday against a well-rested Manchester United side. But as we have seen in the Premier League so far, no team can be taken for granted and Manchester United need to maintain their concentration levels throughout the match if they want to avoid an unlikely upset.
