It will be a worry for manager Paul Lambert when coming up against the joint-best defence in the Premier League, though Southampton have concerns in their backline.... What are these concerns in our backline ?
Gazza (yikes!) Clyne Fonte Lovren Shaw Cork Wanyama Rodriguez Lambert Lallana Osvaldo Let's have Rickie and Dani on together from the start. That way they both have options when they receive the ball in the last third, and aren't forced to create something out of nothing.
I think I would give Osvaldo another go. If he's only given opportunities against the likes of Chelsea it's no wonder he's perceived to be struggling.
I think I'd go for this. Assuming that Morgan is out. Think the toughest decision is whether to play Lambert or Osvaldo at the moment. Osvaldo clearly needs more time playing with the team, and perhaps Villa is a better game for him to show us what he can do. But...Lambert links our play much better and gives us the option of going long if we need to...particularly with Gazza in the team. please log in to view this image
To be annoying: Gazzaniga Fonte Lovren Hooiveld Clyne Shaw Schneiderlin Cork Rodriguez Lallana Lambert
I'd go with... Gazzaniga; Clyne, Fonte, Lovren, Shaw; Wanyama, Ward-Prowse; Osvaldo, Lallana, Rodriguez; Lambert.
If Morgan is available I'd play him and Cork. I'd rather see big Vic play at the weekend and with only 1 yellow away from missing a game, playing against Villa would be a risk. I'd like to see Rickie start but as said by others it would nice to see dani play some against teams other than the top ones.
Or is it better to play the strongest team for games that you may get points from? What would be the point of playing Wanyama on Saturday and we lose anyway after perhaps losing against Villa. Every game is worth the same number of points.
I wouldn't chance Morgan unless he's 100% fit. Too many games upcoming, and a few days off beats any possibility of missing him for a month or more if he aggravates something. Same back four as usual, Cork in for either Morgan/Wanyama dependent on whether Morgan is fit, Davis/Lallana/Rodriguez/Lambert as the attacking quartet. Not a slight against JWP in dropping him to the bench; we're going to have to rotate a bit with the sheer number of games, and Davis does a good job of marshaling possession when the game gets stretched, which is a distinct possibility given Villa's love of the counter-attack and intermittent defensive frailties.
What did Morgan go off for? Interview with Pochettino was inconclusive. Got to play Wanyama and trust he doesn't pick up a booking. Gazzanigga Clyne Fonte Lovren Shaw Wanyama Schneiderlin Lallana Osvaldo Lambert Rodriguez
He will click (i hope..... feeling a similar way to when I said the same about gaston last year). Has to be given a good run. If we keep buying expensive foreign players and give them a chance one of them has to succeed.
Gazzaniga Clyne Fonte Lovren Shaw Wanyama Ward-Prowse Davis Lallana Rodriguez Lambert This is what I'd expect Pochettino to play, although I think he may play Osvaldo instead of either Davis or Lambert. I feel that Ward-Prowse will probably start in CM ahead of Cork, and I really think Lambert had two of his best games last season against Villa.
Lawro has predicted us to win. And was also complimentary- what does this mean?! He seemed very critical on MOTD2. Is he bipolar?
