The Premier League returns to our screens once again this weekend, following a set of midweek European fixtures that certainly gave us a lot to talk about. The winter period is almost upon us and we all know what that means – a lot of football in a somewhat bizarrely short span of time. Some may think that English football is behind on the times by not having a break, but in truth, the excitement and thrill of so much football is one of the highlights of the Christmas festivities for many. Of course, you’re better off not telling the rest of your family that.

But anyway, let’s refocus our attention to this weekend. One of the games we’re intrigued about the most will take place on the south coast, as Southampton take on Manchester United. To say that these are two teams who are heading in opposite directions would be something of a dramatic understatement, as the two attempt to navigate their way towards more consistent results. Both have fanbases that aren’t going to let up anytime soon, and they need to realise that the pressure is on – especially given the nature of their respective schedules between now and the New Year.

It’s no secret that Mark Hughes has arguably the most pressure on his shoulders heading into this one, with the rumour mill suggesting that he’s on his last legs as Southampton manager. The writing has been on the wall for quite some time with the veteran boss being viewed as the main reason for their decline as of late, regardless of whether or not that’s a fair assessment. Given that he’ll be going up against his former club there’s even more of an incentive for him to pull a shock result out of the bag, but we’re not entirely sure how likely that is – because fate can only take you so far.

Jose Mourinho, on the other hand, just wants to keep people guessing. The Portuguese boss is the master of pulling a rabbit out of the hat in more ways than one, and he’ll be the first person to tell you that. Whether he means to or he doesn’t he continues to forge this polarising personality for himself, as he attempts to guide Manchester United towards a place in the top four. Regardless of whether or not he achieves that goal, though, you’d have to imagine that the board will be looking at his position once the season comes to an end.

Three clean sheets in their last six games would seem to indicate that things are going swimmingly well for Southampton, but looks can be deceiving. They kicked off this recent run with a dull 0-0 draw against Bournemouth, followed up by a similarly uninspiring 0-0 draw up north against Newcastle. They came unstuck in a big way against the champions Manchester City in the form of a 6-1 loss, although they did manage a 1-1 draw against Watford. The 3-2 defeat to Fulham could prove to be a defining moment in the season, which was followed up by a penalty shootout defeat in the Carabao Cup against Leicester City.

Manchester United’s last six seems quite positive, but fans who have been following them all season know that it hasn’t been smooth sailing. They picked up back to back 2-1 wins over Everton and Bournemouth which eased some of the pressure on Mourinho’s shoulders, with their comeback 2-1 win over Juventus giving some fans hope that perhaps the Jose era could have a positive ending after all. The 3-1 loss against rivals Manchester City was disappointing but expected, although the 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace was met with extreme negativity as you’d expect. Thankfully, Fellaini managed to save their blushes in Europe midweek with a late winner to lift them over Young Boys and into the Champions League knockout stages.

These two teams are very familiar with one another with United leading the overall head to head standings 64-28, with 31 draws too. They first met in 1897 when the Red Devils were still known as Newton Heath, but their most recent meeting wasn’t quite as exciting. The two sides drew 0-0 in December 2017, and ironically enough, both sides were in quite similar positions to where they are now – except they were slightly better off (depending on who you talk to).

Southampton have a few niggles to think about heading into this one, with the biggest probably being Danny Ings. The spirited forward will be looked upon as someone who can run at the United defence and cause them problems, although he’ll need to pass a late fitness taste after picking up a hamstring injury. Shane Long and Sam Gallagher are both still injured but apart from that, the Saints should have a relatively clean bill of health, meaning that there can be no excuses for Hughes and company if they don’t give it their all this weekend.

Victor Lindelof is expected to be out for around a month, courtesy of the thigh injury that he sustained against Crystal Palace. Marcos Rojo and Diogo Dalot are both back in training after being out, and aside from that, Mourinho will have a pretty strong squad to choose from. The game against Young Boys featured a mixture of first teamers and fringe players so we may see some shuffling around in the starting XI, but they’ll still likely have a team that should be more than capable of seeing off Southampton – especially if they’re realistic about their top four aspirations.

Southampton vs Manchester United Betting Prediction

The important thing for Southampton is that they don’t allow United to get into any kind of rhythm, because from a quality perspective, these two teams are worlds apart. United are able to move the ball around nicely and have impact players who can change the game, whereas the Saints are pretty unremarkable going forward – although they’re a bit more confident at the back than most people give them credit for. Whether or not that’ll serve them well is a different matter altogether, but as we know, anything can happen in this division.

In terms of an official prediction we think United are going to nudge ahead quite early on in the game, deflating any energy from the Southampton crowd. Both teams will go through the motions with one or two good opportunities each, until early in the second half when United double their advantage with a goal similar to the first. They’ll end up riding out the remainder of the game before the full time whistle blows, signalling a 2-0 win for the visitors that also brings Mark Hughes’ tenure at St. Mary’s to an abrupt end.

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