Opposition View: Norwich City (H)
Southampton will be hoping to make it two consecutive wins on home soil when they welcome Norwich City to St Mary’s on Wednesday night.
Saints head into this match on the back of a 2-1 victory over fellow strugglers Watford, courtesy of goals from Danny Ings and James Ward-Prowse.
Norwich, though, will fancy their chances. They travel down south on the back of a 2-0 win away at Everton and, most recently, a 2-2 draw against Arsenal at Carrow Road.
This match is perhaps the biggest of both clubs’ respective seasons so far, and to get an insight into just how the Canaries are feeling ahead of this clash, I spoke to Read Norwich’s Daniel Emery.
Norwich have looked pretty good at times this season, so it might come as a surprise to some that you’re down the foot-end of the table. What’s gone wrong?
Injuries. Injuries, injuries, injuries. Our captain and best defender last season, Christoph Zimmermann, missed all of pre-season and the first three games before getting injured in the first half against West Ham and only returned last week against Everton.
With Timm Klose also out injured, we had to play Ibrahim Amadou or Alex Tettey – both defensive midfielders – at centre-back, which completely ruined the flow of our team and the way we like to play.
Since Zimmermann has come back, we’ve been far more solid, resulting in us creating more chances at the other end as we have something to build on at the back.
There have been a few really impressive performers for Norwich this season. Who’s stood out so far?
Todd Cantwell and Tim Krul. Both of them struggled at times last season, and there were big question marks over their ability to make the step up, as shown by the signings of Patrick Roberts and Ralf Fahrmann, but they have been superb.
Krul has made world-class save after world-class save and Cantwell has finally added some end product to his game in midfield.
A couple of weeks ago, you lost a pivotal six-pointer to Watford. It’s another crucial game tomorrow, so do you reckon Norwich will secure a much-needed win at St Mary’s?
If we play as well as we have in the last two games, yes. We can create chances against anyone and Southampton have conceded the most goals in the league, which suggests that we have a great chance.
What have you made of Southampton so far this season?
Confusing. I’d imagine Southampton fans think the same, given how many changes Ralph Hasenhuttl has made to his formations and starting line-ups throughout the season.
When there is no consistency in the selections, how can there be consistency on the pitch? They have some very dangerous players going forward, but not enough at the back for me to think they can keep out our attack.
Are there any Saints players whom you think Norwich will be unable to cope with?
Danny Ings and Moussa Djenepo have impressed me a lot this season, with most teams unable to deal with Ings, so he will certainly be one to watch out for.
His movement off the ball and sharpness on it make him a top striker in this league and the likes of Zimmermann and Ben Godfrey will need to stay switched on. Otherwise, he will punish them.
Finally, what’s your score prediction?
An ambitious 3-1 win!