Manchester City visit the south coast this Saturday in the evening kick-off, hoping to take all three points and remain in pursuit of the Premier League summit.
City haven’t enjoyed much success in their most recent trips to St. Mary’s. January saw Pep Guardiola’s side lose 2-0 to The Saints in the League Cup quarter-final, whilst last season’s league fixture ended in a 1-1 draw.
A key question still without a definitive answer is the presence of Erling Haaland for City on Saturday, though in spite of his absence against Liverpool last weekend, City’s attack was firing on all cylinders.
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Haaland returned to first-team training on Wednesday, but it is still unclear if he is back at full fitness. Regardless of the selection verdict come Saturday, Julian Alvarez has proven that he can be called upon to deliver in front of goal for City.
If the Norwegian does start, we may well see the two forwards feature alongside one another. Alvarez has been praised this season for his all-round attacking ability and incredible work rate off the ball and the World Cup winner delivered on this once again during City's 4-1 thumping of Liverpool.
Whilst attacking options are of course one priority, City must also look at how to deal with Southampton from a defensive perspective. Despite being the Premier League’s joint-lowest scorers this season with just 23 goals, they knocked two past City in January without reply.
The Blues were largely dominant across the 90 minutes, but were somewhat exposed when the Saints broke on the counter-attack. Their first goal came from a brilliant ball into the box, but it could be argued the cross should have been stopped at source.
Guardiola has shown his desire to play the system of inverted full-backs this campaign, and a lack of options in the full-back department leaves little alternatives either way. Could this therefore create an area that Southampton look to expose?
Not only this, but Manchester City showed glances of their vulnerability to fast attacking play last weekend. Mohamed Salah’s opener came through a long ball over the top, and the Reds nearly scored a second on the counter were it not for Jack Grealish’s crucial intervention. Southampton will likely deploy a similar method to try and catch City out.
On the subject of Grealish, the in-form winger will be looking to continue his recent run of performances. Expect to see the 27-year-old cutting in from wide, not only to create chances but also to have a few shots at goal. His ability to draw defenders out and create space in behind will surely be on display as well.
Manchester City’s congested fixture list may also play an important part in this week’s fixture. City host Bayern Munich next Tuesday in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final. European silverware has been the club’s top priority for years, so Guardiola may field a slightly weakened side to ensure fresh legs for next week’s clash with the German champions.
Such a dilemma may result in the absence of Erling Haaland, regardless of fitness, and other in-form attacking players such as Riyad Mahrez and Kevin De Bruyne. However, Pep will likely refrain from making too many changes as he looks to continue fighting on all fronts in pursuit of a treble for City.
A win at Southampton would see Manchester City close the gap on Arsenal once again to five points. Their title rivals face a tough trip to Liverpool on Sunday, with City hoping to put as much pressure as possible on the Gunners ahead of their match in Merseyside.
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