Southampton vs Liverpool preview, team news, tickets & prediction
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Liverpool will be making a second trip to the South Coast within a matter of weeks, following their Premier League encounter in November.
Since a 1-0 upset of Liverpool in January 2021, Southampton have lost five and drawn one of their last six meetings with the Reds.
Given their respective fortunes this season, Liverpool are expected to get past the Saints once again.
The Southampton faithful have been through a rollercoaster of emotions in recent years as Russell Martin led them to a play-off victory over Leeds United to secure promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
However, their return to the top flight has been as difficult as anticipated with four defeats and only one goal scored to start the season.
Although there was only a draw from their next five games, Southampton finally defeated Everton 1-0 for their first victory of the campaign.
The Saints sought to build on that with another positive result against Wolves, but they ended up being the first side to lose to the West Midlands side.
They are already four points adrift at the foot of the Premier League table, after collecting just four points from their opening 11 matches.
Southampton are in danger of being left behind in the race to beat the drop, and a decent cup run can drive some momentum.
Although they can shock Liverpool, they must do much better than their victories in the previous rounds against Cardiff City, Everton and Stoke City.
There is certainly a glitter of hope for less-fancied sides in any cup tie, but they must conduct a solid game plan to overcome the Merseysiders.
Liverpool have made a record-breaking start to the season despite Arne Slot overseeing a period of continuity having taken over as manager from Jurgen Klopp.
The Dutchman has given his team the chance to ease into his philosophy and although the Reds are far from perfect, they have an experienced squad full of serial winners.
They are benefitting the most from Manchester City and Arsenal's current slumps and so far, and Liverpool have the least flaws of the title-chasing trio.
The Merseysiders are the only team with a perfect record in the UEFA Champions League after four games and they now enjoy a five-point lead at the top of the Premier League table.
Their 2-0 win over Aston Villa takes them to 28 points having drawn and lost one each from their first 11 matches.
They are in a better position than they envisaged this early into Slot's reign, and now the Anfield side are looking to win the league for the first time since 2019/20.
Their supporters will know there is a long way to go in the race despite sitting top of the Premier League, top of the Champions League, and being in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals having lost just once across all competitions.
They must ease to a victory over Southampton in order to boost their chances of defending the League Cup.
Match tickets
This EFL Cup quarter final fixture takes place on Wednesday, 18 December 2024 with kick-off scheduled for 8 PM UK time.It promises to be a spectacular occasion and match tickets are now available for sale on the website of each individual club, with priority access given to club members and season ticket holders.
Southampton's St Mary's Stadium is the location and around 32,000 people should be in attendance for this important cup game against Liverpool.
This is a rare opportunity for the hosts to reach a cup semifinal and it is one that they must grab amidst their ailing form in the league.
Getting match tickets from official sources may be tough, so we urge supporters to find their Southampton vs Liverpool tickets on a resale site.
Saints fans will also be delighted to find other Southampton tickets for this season.
Team news
Aaron Ramsdale and Jan Bednarek are facing weeks on the sidelines to compound Southampton's list of absentees which includes Gavin Bazunu, Ross Stewart and Will Smallbone.Meanwhile, the likes of Flynn Downes and Ryan Fraser are both expected to be back before this game.
Trent Alexander-Arnold may not be fit enough for this trip to the South Coast, with Alisson Becker, Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa also being fitness doubts.
However, Harvey Elliott is primed to return soon and this could be a good chance to start him and give him some crucial playing time.
Line-ups
The Southampton squad may be short of quality and experience across the ranks, but they must find a way to rotate effectively while putting out a strong side against Liverpool.
They must harness the solidity provided by their 3-5-2 shape but cutting out errors passing out from the back will be key to surviving Liverpool's attacking onslaught.
Southampton: McCarthy; Walker-Peters, Sugawara, Stephens, Harwood-Bellis, Manning; Armstrong, Downes, Aribo, Fernandes; Armstrong
Given their league and European exertions, Liverpool should field some changes to their regular lineup but the strength of the team would remain high.
Fringe players like Chiesa, Kostas Tsimikas, Wataru Endo, Joe Gomez and Jarell Quansah will be eyeing a start and they must perform on the night.
Elsewhere, Conor Bradley will take Alexander-Arnold's place on the right-hand side of defence regardless of the latter's injury status for this fixture.
Liverpool: Kelleher; Bradley, Quansah, Gomez, Tsimikas; Endo, Szoboszlai; Diaz, Jones, Gakpo; Nunez
Prediction
Southampton have scored in each of their last four home games at the time of writing but their lack of ruthlessness could still let them down.It is essential that they stem the flow of Liverpool's attacking moves and also take the few scoring chances that come their way.
Slot's side, on the other hand, will look to be clinical and control the tempo of this game from start to finish.
Southampton 0-2 Liverpool
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