---
title: "Stoke vs Saints: Match preview"
canonical: "https://readsouthampton.com/2015/04/18/stoke-vs-saints-match-preview/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Stew Dean"
section: "Reports/Previews"
published: "2015-04-18T10:45:39Z"
modified: "2015-04-18T10:45:58Z"
---

# Stoke vs Saints: Match preview

When Southampton play away at Stoke City on Saturday, the club will have the opportunity to do something they have never done in the Premier League; accumulate more than 56 points in a season. On the back of a wonderful season, Saints are on the cusp of overhauling their previous best from last season.

In order to do that we will need to get something from a Stoke team who are in that region of mid table stability. In all honesty they can expect to finish the season around where they are now in 10th. They have achieved the 40 points needed to stave off relegation and are out of the running for Europe.

Saints have enjoyed their travels this season, winning 7 matches on the road. As far as the Potters go, they are having a bit of a hot and cold season. They have not won in their past 4 games, but this was preceded by a run of 4 wins on the trot. Their home form matches the same Yo-Yo pattern with 7 wins and 6 losses and their goals for and against almost identical. They have not kept a clean sheet in over a month and are serial offenders when it comes to conceding from set pieces.

Southampton will be without Victor Wanyama who is suspended for the next two matches after picking up a 10th caution last week. Filip Djuricic is still out through injury, however Florin Gardos returns to the fold for the first time this month. Saints should be hitting this game on a wave of confidence after last weeks victory, with big Graziano Pelle finally breaking his duck for 2015 and James Ward-Prowse scoring his first Premier League goal with a bullet from the spot.

A blow for Stoke is that Victor Moses has been sent back to Chelsea after a season ending injury. He will be joined in his absence by Bojan and Odemwingie.

Stoke is a notoriously hard place to come away with a result, but with their season winding down and their leaky defence, there is no better time for Saints to head to the Britania. Saints have been woeful from set pieces this season, especially from corners, so this game represents a chance for the big men to get into the box and get their names on the score sheet.

With 6 games to go and European football almost guaranteed, you might be forgiven for thinking there is not much to play for, but that certainly isn’t the case. Until the finalists of the FA Cup are known, we still have a job to do to make sure we finish in a Europa League spot. Liverpool are in fine form and Spurs have been sneaking last minute winners for months now.

There is also a big incentive for the players, whose summer holidays will be determined by where we finish. Each Europa League journey will start at a different time depending on what position you finish. The 5th placed team in the Premier League goes straight to the group stage which is not until September, meaning the players would get a full summer off. However if we were to finish 7th and sneak through on the technicality of the FA Cup winner already qualifying for Europe, then the players would need to report back for duty much earlier with the potential of a July/early August playoff home and away series.

If we are not 1-0 down after 30 seconds from a 100-meter goal by their keeper, then we are already doing better than last season.