The Saints come into this game having played out their third 0-0 draw in five games, against Manchester United. Mark Hughes’ Potters have rather stumbled towards the finish line in recent weeks, failing to win any of their last four games. Their last game was a 1-4 thumping to Arsenal at home in which their defending left much to be desired. In fact, Stoke have only won one game in their last ten and the two wins they have managed since February 11th have come against sides who have gone on to be relegated from the league (Hull and Sunderland).
With that in mind, Stoke are certainly not a safe team to back at this late stage in the season and, given how they have been leaking goals at an alarming rate recently, it’s difficult to imagine them walking away from this game with a clean sheet. Add to that their dismal away form, which has seen them lose eight of their last 11 and failing to score in six of their last seven, and we’re quietly confident that Claude Puel’s Saints will edge this contest.
Taking into consideration the fact that Southampton have failed to score in five out of their last seven games, we’re going to back a home win here under 2.5 goals. Puel’s men do not currently look like an outfit capable of routing a team, while Stoke will be determined to avoid a repeat of their disappointing final home game of the season against Arsenal.
We’d recommend trying a Southampton to win 2-0 bet, which is currently 8/1 with Betfair. For under 2.5 goals in the match, it’s 10/11 with the same bookmaker, which is another solid price. Of course, seeing that we’re dealing with two low-scoring teams in poor form, there is every reason to suggest that this will play out as a 0-0 bore draw, especially seeing as Southampton have not scored in any of their last four games at home. A draw may be a smart decision at 14/5 with Betfair.
There hasn’t been any suggestion recently that Hughes is in danger of losing his job at Stoke, but another defeat here will surely put him in an uncomfortable position heading into any season review meeting. Key players like Marko Arnautovic and Xherdan Shaqiri have not shone like they did in the previous campaign and, with Hughes having been in his current post since 2013, he will certainly be asking for plenty of heart and spirit from his players to steer clear of a whimpering end to the season.
This may well be Puel’s final game in charge at Southampton, though, as reports have claimed that the board will axe the Frenchman after clashes with players, who have grown increasingly frustrated with his constant rotation policy. The view is that coming agonisingly close to winning the EFL Cup has disguised their sub-standard form – they are set to finish on their lowest points tally since 2012.
